Writing a resume summary statement will likely be the most difficult task you face when composing your resume; that's because the summary statement is perhaps the most important component. The summary statement is responsible for conveying the skills and experience you will contribute to the company.
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Contrast the summary statement with the formerly popular objective statement, which tells recruiters and hiring managers what you hope to gain from a position with the company. Crafting a fresh summary statement that piques the reader's interest is crucial for moving forward in the interview process.
What to Include
When writing a resume summary statement, remember that this information is your introduction to recruiters and hiring managers. The quality of this statement will determine whether or not they continue to explore your resume and possibly consider you as a viable candidate for the position.
Start writing a resume summary by creating a bulleted list of your most valuable experience, skills and traits that are relevant to the job. Next, reconstruct these points by creating four to six short sentence fragments.
Finally, read the statements aloud to test their conversational flow. If you compose your sentence fragments correctly, your summary statement should sound concise, organized, and rhythmic.
How to Format
When writing a resume summary statement, limit the content's focus to a few specific points. You do not need to use complete sentences. In fact, sentence fragments are considered standard practice for the summary statement. Use positive action verbs to demonstrate that your knowledge and experience is current.
Place the summary statement at the top of your resume, just below your contact information. A savvy summary will keep the reader's attention while highlighting salient qualities and experience.
Tips for Writing
To keep your summary statement fresh, focus on trending technologies and skills you have acquired within the past few years. Have you recently mastered a new software application or worked on a team that ventured into new territory, like self-driving cars or ride-sharing software? The more you can demonstrate your exposure to and experience with emerging trends, the fresher your summary statement will appear.
Examples
If you get stuck when you are writing a resume summary statement, take a break and check out some examples to stimulate your language skills and get your creativity flowing. Sometimes, all you really need are a few examples to steer you in the right direction.
Below are a couple of examples of fresh resume summaries; one for a software engineer and one for a technical project manager. After you have reviewed several examples, you will begin to see similarities and patterns, and then writing a resume summary statement will not seem so daunting.
Example #1:
Highly motivated software engineer with experience in cutting-edge technologies, including cloud-based infrastructures, artificial intelligence and software development for the Internet of Things. A supportive team player who enjoys a challenging, fast-paced work environment.
Example #2:
Customer-focused project manager with diverse international industry experience on large government and NGO projects. Thrives under pressure with an outstanding ability to motivate a technical team. Excellent communication skills and highly attentive to detail.
You can take a look at other content on LiveCareer for tips and insight when it comes to constructing an outstanding resume that is sure to get noticed.
