How to Create the Perfect Administrative Assistant Resume

How to Create the Perfect Administrative Assistant ResumeIf youre already an administrative assistant (or you know much about the field), you know that the admin is often the person who keeps the trains running in a busy geschftszimmer. Youre the keeper of schedules and files, as well as providing support in any number of administrative duties. Administrative assistants have a very special career path in that theyre found in just about every industry. Skills you learn as an assistant in one industry can carry you through to another field altogether, which means you have tons of career flexibility. And youre in good company in 2014, there were nearly four million administrative assistant jobs in the country, per the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1467144145037-0) ) But how do you break into this fieldor if youre already in it, how do you abflug moving up to your advantage?As with most career advancement questions, the answer lies in a document we all know and love the resume. Your resume is your foot in the door, so you need to make sure it accomplishes three thingsIt should represent the best of who you are, career-wise.It should show how qualified you are for the specific job opening at hand.It should be formatted in a way thats clear and easy to read.For mora on the overall job search for administrative assistants (current or future), TheJobNetwork has tons of great resources on the hunt and the career path. For now, letsfocus specifically on the resume.1.What type of resume should you use?2.How to format the resume3.Combination resume4.How to wrap up the resumeWhat type of resume should you use?The reverse-chronological resume (the kind where you start with your basic information like contact information, objective, and education, then work backwards through your job history and related skills) has been the gold standard for a long time. Now, however, with recruiters and hiring managers g etting resumes in all sorts of formats, your options have gotten a little more diverse. That means you can pick a format that works best for your career and your status as a job applicant.Entry-level applicantsIf youre just getting started (after graduating or starting over as a career change), you might want to consider a skills-based resume. This means that instead of launching into your work history, you have a bulleted list of professional skills. This kind of resume takes the spotlight off of your experience (which you might not have tons of yet) and puts it on the skills you bring to the new job. A skills-based resume might be the best option for you if you have any of these going for youYou have very few relevant jobs (and dont want to list that table-waiting gig that got you through summers, or the internship that ended up having nothing to do with your eventual goals).Your previous jobs are so similar that the detailed bullets about each job would be virtually the same.The Muse has more on the skills-based resume format, if youre still on the fence about whether this is the right format for you.If you go with the skills-based resume, its extra important to customize your resume for each job application. before applying, do your researchWhich tasks/skills are specifically outlined in the job description?What background information can you find about the companys values? (company websites often have mission statements, or brief summaries of the companys values and goals.)Does anyone in your network work at this company? If so, the benefits are twofold this person could help get your resume in the right inbox, but he or she could also give you some insight into what the companys culture is like, and what qualities would be most welcomed.Once you have as much info as you can find, create your skills showcase to reflect what the company is binnenseeking for this particular position. For the work history that follows, you can keep the individual job history bullets very basic (company name, job title, dates).Mid-career or job change applicantsEven if youve had administrative assistant job(s) before, its still a good idea to rebuild your resume from scratch for new opportunities. You want it to be the snapshot of your career at this moment, not some cut-and-paste throwback to one or two jobs ago.If you have great experience, then the traditional reverse-chronological format is totally fine. But you might also want to consider a hybrid of the two, a combination resume. In this kind of format, you lead with an overview of your most relevant skills, followed by detailed bullets walking back through your work history.How to format the resumeIf you want to use an existing template, there are lots of good sites that do the heavy lifting for youall you need to do is cut and paste your info into the template. Some great resources for resume templates include myPerfectresume and Best-Job-Interview.If youre more into DIY, and want more control o ver how the information is presented, you can also use these guidelines to help you build your best administrative assistant resume.For a traditional reverse-chronological resume, weve got your back. ResumeGenius also has some straightforward examples of how to format the standard resume. If youd like to branch out from that established format, lets look at the skills-based resume and the combination resume for someone applying for an administrative position.Skills-based resumeLets say this candidate has only been out of college for about a year, but wants to emphasize the skills s/hes amassed through work, internship, and volunteer experiences. The skills-based resume would be the way to go. Heres an example of how that would lookTerry Robinson14 West Street, Apt. 2bHartfordrd, CT, 45454 (000) 999-9999 trobinsonemailclient.com LinkedIn www.linked.in.com/trobinsonObjectiveAdministrative professional seeking to leverage skills and experience into a senior office manager position.Sk ills summaryOffice management skillsScheduling and coordinating meetings for senior managersMaking travel arrangements for kollektiv membersManaging travel and expense reports for team membersWorking independently with minimal trainingProject management skillsSpearheading the transition from a paper filing system to digitalManaging intern training programsCommunication skillsManaging correspondence for executives and senior managersCreating and distributing a company-wide newsletter to generate awareness of team accomplishmentsLiaising with a variety of clients, in-house teams, and vendorsMultilingual english, french, spanishSocial program planningComputer skillsExpert in the microsoft office suiteCertified in quickbooksProficient in social media and corporate communicationsExperience Administrative Assistant, The Forrest Group (Hartford, CT) May 2015 PresentIntern, Ogilve Groves (New Haven, CT) June 2014 achter monat des jahres 2014After School Program Coordinator, Gene Autry Elementary School (West Hartford, CT) April 2012 Present (volunteer basis)Education University of New Haven, New Haven, CT Bachelors Degree in Education, 2015. 3.7 GPA.Combination resumeNow lets say, a few years later,thiscandidateis further along in his or her career as an administrative professional. S/he still wants to emphasize skills, because the job description for which hes applying at educorp calls for someone with strong office management and communication skills.Terry Robinson14 West Street, Apt. 2b, Hartford, CT, 45454 (000) 999-9999 trobinsonemailclient.com Linkedin www.linked.in.com/trobinsonProfessional experience The Forrest Group, Hartford, CT Administrative Assistant, February 2011 PresentServed as primary administrative assistant and office manager for the sales group, including direct secretarial support for the executive vice president.Ogilve Groves, New Haven, CT Receptionist, May 2006 January 2011As the front-office representative for a top advertisin g firm, handled correspondence and incoming phone calls, filing, training interns and junior staff, and coordinating schedules with clients and vendors.Skills summaryOffice management skillsScheduling and coordinating meetings for senior managersMaking travel arrangements for team membersManaging travel and expense reports for team membersWorking independently with minimal trainingProject management skillsSpearheading the transition from a paper filing system to digitalManaging intern training programsCommunication skillsManaging correspondence for executives and senior managersCreating and distributing a company-wide newsletter to generate awareness of team accomplishmentsLiaising with a variety of clients, in-house teams, and vendorsMultilingual English, French, SpanishComputer skillsExpert in the Microsoft office suiteCertified in QuickBooksProficient in social media and corporate communicationsEducation University of New Haven, New Haven, CT Associates degree in business, 2006B oth formats are similar, but allow the applicant to use more discretion in what he or she presents. You may have been taught that resumes should have a rigid format, but its not trueyour experience isnt one-size-fits-all, so why should your resume be?How to wrap up the resumeRegardless of what format you choose, there are important elements to make sure youve hit in your resumeContact informationObjective (optional)Skills/certificationsWork historyEducationHow you structure those is largely up to youyou want your strongest points to show clearly and concisely, so that the reader can identify those qualities up front. If you wait until the interview to show off your skills, for example, you might never get to that stage. The best way to figure out whats best for you is to look at lots of examples, to see what feels right for your level of experience.Its important to find a balance between showing a stable work history (or volunteer, internship, or educational history) and emphasizing the skills youve learned along the way that will make you a great candidate for this job.And as always, proofread the heck out of your resume. Have someone else read it after youve come up with a draft, so that their fresh eyes might pick up on a typo or weak point that you didnt see because youre so familiar with the material.Go forth and revise, and good luck, current and aspiring administrative assistantsInterested? apply here