Qualifications Summary

• Generally, employers will spend less than 10 seconds screening your resume the first time. Their goal is to eliminate as many candidates as possible and concentrate on the best. Therefore, highlighting your qualifications early in the resume is an effective way to improve your chances for consideration.
• While a job objective states what you want, a qualifications summary states what you know.
• A summary consists of three or four statements of your best qualifications that tell the reviewer why you are the ideal candidate for the job. It is similar to the blurb on the back of a book or the trailer to a movie. It should capture the essence of your experience, skills and traits. It is a good place to insert “keywords” for electronic scanning.
• It belongs below your contact information or objective statement. Most resume writers choose either an objective statement or summary, but some use both.
• A summary works well for applicants with extensive or varied experience because it prevents the important facts from being lost among the details.

Summary of Qualifications Examples

SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS – Explanation

• Write three or four bullet statements that summarize why you would be good at your job objective. Each statement should be no longer than two lines.
• Your statements should highlight your relevant strengths such as experience, skills, community service, and personality traits.
• Prioritize the statements in this section so the most relevant one comes first.

Objective/Qualifications Summary

Any of the following terms may be used as your career objective, qualifications summary or profile. Please remember to be succinct and avoid such objective statements as, “Seeking an opportunity that fits my education and experience that will allow me to advance in the company.” Such statements say nothing about what you have to offer, only vaguely describes what you want.

Sections of a Resume: Summary of Qualifications

• Highlights your key skill areas – draws attention to specific skills that support your job goal
• Can either be done in paragraph form or as a bulleted list
• Should include your Security Clearance if you have one. Remember to have your resume cleared by your Security Manager.
• Time to “brag” about your best qualities – your “greatest hits”

SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS

This section will provide a concise overview of your qualifications as they relate to your Career Objective.

• Emphasize those skills you have developed in terms of interpersonal, organizational, supervisory, etc.

Qualifications Summary

The qualifications summary, which evolved from the objective, is an overview designed to quickly answer the employer’s question “Why should I hire you?” It lists a few of your best qualifications and belongs below your contact information or objective statement.

A qualifications summary, like an objective, is optional. It can be particularly effective for applicants with extensive or varied experience because it prevents the important facts from being lost among the details. Most resume writers choose either an objective or a summary, but some use both.