Administrative Skills to Add to Your Resume

Updated September 6, 20221.6k

Administration skills are in high demand. Do you know which admin skills you should add to your resume and how to list them?

Administrative Skills

Administrative professionals need a wide range of hard and soft skills to excel in their role. From communication skills and time management to technological proficiencies and office management, there’s a lot of administrative work, and many jobs have some element of administration in them. For this reason, administrative skills can be a valuable addition to any resume. Here’s what you need to know about adding administrative skills to your resume.

What Are Administrative Skills?

Administrative skills are those skills that allow a job seeker to manage an office effectively. Thanks to the nature of office management, this is a broad category that includes both soft and hard skills. Office managers and administrative assistants need to be able to:

Deal with co-workers and the public respectfully
Create and manage files and reports
Take calls and direct queries to the appropriate department
Create professional documents and reports detailing industry-specific information quickly and effectively

And much more! As such, communication skills, technological literacy, grammar, and critical thinking skills can all come into play in the role of an administrator. So, how can you identify which administrative skills are most sought after in your industry?

In-demand Administrative Skills for Your Resume

It is important to remember that different administrative roles will require different skills. So, if you’re looking for a new job, the most in-demand skills will be the ones listed in the job description. In a general sense, however, these are some of the most highly sought after skills for administrative roles:

Communication skills
Organizational skills
Decision-making
Time management
Teamwork
Bookkeeping
Critical thinking
Active listening
Customer service
Problem-solving
Writing memos
Taking notes/ meeting minutes
Spreadsheets
QuickBooks
Multi-tasking
Microsoft Outlook
Adaptability
Making travel arrangements

Interpersonal skills, writing skills, and the practical skills required to use common office equipment are generally attractive for any office worker’s resume. Knowing how to describe these skills properly on your resume is crucial.

Listing Administrative Skills Well on Your Resume

Your administration skills will primarily be listed in your skills section. This section of a resume should contain between 8 and 12 bullet points with relevant skills. If you want to make a good first impression, however, you should also prove your skills elsewhere in your resume.

You can prove your skills in the following ways:

List professional certifications

If you have professional certifications for certain software or skills, include them in your resume. If you have several certifications, you can create a separate section. You can include skills even if they are not directly relevant. For example, if you have a certification for project management, this will be useful in a busy office.
Give examples of times you have used them

Everything is hypothetical on paper. Proving your skills is necessary if you want to stand out, and one way to do so is to give examples in your work history section. For example, if you want to prove your communication skills, describe when you have used written or verbal communication to solve problems and bring about desirable outcomes. If you want to highlight your technical skills and hard skills, focus on the technical aspects of your work. For example, you could write statements such as:

- Created end-of-year PowerPoint to effectively show financial performance to stakeholders.
- Managed a team of 6 office staff and reduced wasted man-hours by 15%.
- Managed company social media and created a LinkedIn recruitment program that resulted in four new hires.
Include academic qualifications and relevant coursework

If you lack work experience, you can make up for this by showcasing your academic qualifications and achievements. For example, if you have a bachelor’s in business administration, or a certification in project management, this will be great for your resume. You can also discuss relevant coursework in your education section to prove your skills.

If you include your administrative skills in these ways and use active language to describe your work achievements (e.g., “Created” and “Managed”), you will make a good impression. Remember that hiring managers have very little time, so you have to catch their eye. Be bold and confident. Represent the value you can bring to the company!

If you want to make writing your administrative resume easier you should also consider using the ResumeNerd resume builder to gain access to great resume templates.

FAQ: Administrative Skills

Are all administrative skills soft skills?

While many administrative skills are soft skills, there are some hard skills among them. For example, the skills required to use administrative tools and software, such as Excel proficiency and database management, are hard skills. However, it is better to lean heavily on your soft skills, especially in entry-level jobs. This is because basic administrative hard skills can be taught more easily than soft skills like conflict resolution. Plus, soft skills are likely to be used daily in these roles.

Which administrative skills are the most important?

The most important administrative skills for any resume will be determined by the job in question. The best way to determine which admin skills will be most important for your job application is to consider the job description that you intend to apply for. You can also read relevant resume examples to see what skills they list!

Which administrative skills should I list on my resume?

Start by reading the job description to see which administrative skills are listed. After doing this, list skills of your own that match and are relevant to the job you are applying for. Thankfully, most roles that use basic programs like Microsoft Office will require administrative skills.

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About The Author

Jessie Oleson Moore

Jessie Oleson Moore is a Philadelphia-based freelance writer / ghostwriter and artist. As a writer, she has written extensively on finance, day trading, personal growth, and career development and has extensive experience producing in-depth, research-based articles and guides. In addition, she is an accomplished illustrator and author who has appeared on The Today Show and been featured in Publisher's Weekly. In her free time, she’s an avid traveler, Ashtanga yoga practitioner, and unicorn enthusiast.