Whether you’re looking for a new job or are ready to begin a whole new career, you probably already know the importance of all the resume components. It tells future employers why they should hire you over someone else; what you have that others don’t. But if your resume is missing a “skills” section, you’re missing out.

What Is the Skills Section of a Resume?

The skills section of a resume is where you put the unique knowledge and skills you possess that relate to the job you want to get. It should connect directly from you to the job.

What to Include in the Skills Section of Your Resume

Everyone knows that you need to list former employers, jobs, and responsibilities on your resume, but hiring managers don’t want to wade through everything you’ve ever done. Instead, they want to know what you can do. Give them a quick list of your skills—both hard and soft sills. For example, if your goal is to find a job as an architectural drafter, you’ll want to highlight the Computer Aided Drafting and Design skills that would be important to the employer. But you might also want to include leadership and communication skills, especially if they align to the job posting.

That’s why it’s important to include the right language in the skills section of your resume. Take words directly from the job description that match your skills. You might call out your rock-solid computer skills, but if the job posting refers to them as technical skills, you should too. And this isn’t just for that hiring manager. It’s also for the computer that might read your resume in search of keywords before a human ever sees it.

Where Should the Skills Section of the Resume Be?

Your skills should be prominently placed and easy to find. Locate it at the top of your resume, ideally on the left side. This is how we read, top-to-bottom, left-to-right. You want to make it as easy as possible for an employer to see what you have to offer.

Don’t Forget the Basic Components of Your Resume

Even if you have an amazing skills section, you’ll need more. In fact, if the skills section of your resume does its job, the hiring manager will be looking more closely at the rest of your resume. Make sure you have these important parts:

• Contact information
• Employment history
• Responsibilities
• Education
• Certifications
• Awards
• Portfolio and social media links
• Community service

Proofread, Proofread, Proofread Your Resume

The easiest way for your resume to get tossed out of consideration is for it to have careless errors. Make certain that your entire resume is free of typos and grammatical errors. Proofread it and then have someone else proofread too. You won’t always catch your own mistakes.

At Porter and Chester Institute, we’ll provide you with career training skills you can proudly list on your resume. We’ll also teach you how to construct a winning resume, search for your next job, and prepare for an interview. Our Career Services Advisors will help you become the best job candidate you can be! Check out one of our nine campuses in Connecticut and Massachusetts to learn more now.