If anyone should be familiar with the hiring process, then it’s HR professionals themselves. As it turns out, even hiring managers will find it challenging to create the best HR resume. Here are a few human resources resume samples and tips to help you get started.
Human resources typically deal with employee relations, staffing and onboarding of new hires, and acts as a link between employees, from junior staff all the way up to executives. Here are just some of the job titles that will require a human resources resume:
Most professional resumes will follow this format:
The header should contain all your contact information, including:
The resume summary (or resume objective) describes who you are as an employee to the hiring manager. Typically, you would briefly talk about your most relevant skills and work history. Keeping this to one short paragraph is key. You should instead save any lengthy anecdotes for the cover letter or the interview.
The resume skills section should have a blend of hard and soft skills. Hard skills relate more to daily tasks you need to carry out, such as knowing how to use certain software. Soft skills focus more on a candidate’s personality and how they fit into the company culture.
These are just a few of the HR skills to include in your human resources resume:
You can easily format the skills section in bullet points. This makes it easier for you to condense your resume into a single page. Doing so also makes it easier for a hiring manager to read.
Scanning the job description for specific keywords is another common practice many HR professionals will be familiar with. The applicant tracking systems (ATS) your current job uses will often scour every application for these keywords and approve those that meet the system’s qualifications. It is only then your application will be looked over by an actual hiring manager.
A good HR resume should typically reflect your professional experience within the Human Resources field. It’s best to list your work history in reverse-chronological order. That way, you can display your most recent accomplishments and qualifications. If you are applying to be an HR manager, then you should typically have years of experience within the human resources field to display your expertise.
Prospective human resources workers should at least have a bachelor’s degree in Human Resources directly or a Business degree that focuses on HR. Including certifications within this section can also enhance your resume. Certifications can establish you as a more valuable candidate as well as an expert in the human resources field.
An entry-level human resources position won’t require too much work experience, so you don’t have to worry about adding much experience in the work experience section. Instead, focus more on the education section, adding relevant coursework and your GPA to impress hiring managers. You can also inlcude any relevant internship experience, volunteer work and other human resources relevant work you have performed.
Every job seeker should take the time to write a personalized cover letter for each job application. Many candidates tend to overlook this aspect simply because it is listed as optional. However, the cover letter gives you the chance to formally introduce yourself and your skills to the HR manager and explain why those skills make you the best person for the job. Including a cover letter can improve your chances of being noticed by the right people.
It can be tough to craft a great resume from scratch for every job application. That’s where using a resume builder tool can come in handy. Resume builder tools have tons of free resume templates, resume samples, resume format tips and other general resume help. In just minutes, you can write the best HR resume for your next job search and job application!
