Keywords That Make Your Resume Awesome

Every word in your resume is taking up valuable space, so make them count. In fact, selecting targeted and relevant keywords that relate to the role you are seeking can help you get past the resume screening and into your first round of interviews.
Find out how to use resume keywords effectively, the best keywords for a resume, and which words will help your resume pop.

Why Resume Keywords Matter

Importance of resume keywords in the hiring process

Busy recruiters may only spend a few seconds looking at your resume. What are they scanning for? Keywords. Incorporate keywords and phrases related to the job throughout your resume to indicate that you are a good match. 

For example, if someone is hiring for a retail manager role, they may be looking for words like “retail,” “inventory,” “product display,” and “scheduling.”

Enhancing applicant tracking systems compatibility

In addition to human readers, often, companies have applicant tracking systems (ATS) do a first pass on resumes that come in. These systems are sometimes programmed to flag resumes that use desirable keywords and filter out the rest. 

Picking keywords to get past ATS filters is sort of like the modern-day version of a screening phone call. If you don’t pass through, your resume may never end up in a recruiter’s hands.

Aligning with job descriptions

Matching your resume keywords with keywords used in job postings demonstrates that you meet job requirements. While it’s fine to work off of a master resume, customizing it with keywords for each company you apply to can help you stand out.

For example, an organization might be looking for someone who has experience with a particular software. If it’s not listed on your general resume but is something you’re skilled at, you can add it.

Types of Keywords To Include on Your Resume

Some keywords are specific to the type of work you do, while others might be related to skill sets you have, tools you use, or the impact you’ve had. Here are a few strategies as to how to find keywords for resumes.

Industry-specific keywords

While your resume shouldn’t be too full of jargon, it is acceptable to use industry terms that a job recruiter or hiring manager would be familiar with. For example, information technology (IT)-related resumes might use terms like “firewall,” “switches,” or “LAN” while project management job seekers might use keywords like “vendor management” or “compliance.”  

Read a few job listings in your field to get a sense of the common industry-specific keywords for resumes.

Job-specific keywords

Think about which keywords are related to particular job functions that you may perform. Some examples might be “customer service,” “patient care,” or “troubleshooting.” 

The responsibilities section of a job posting can be helpful for generating these kinds of keywords.

Skill-based keywords

Resumes should include a mix of hard and soft skills to demonstrate proficiency in performing tasks and emotional intelligence in working well with others. Hard skills are usually more technical or hands-on in nature, while soft skills involve interpersonal skills.

• Hard skills could be: vital signs monitoring, web page design, or search engine optimization (SEO) analysis
• Soft skills might include: communication, leadership, or empathy

Action verbs and power words

Powerful words can enhance the effectiveness of your resume and inject some energy and excitement into an otherwise bland document. See how these word lists compare to give you an idea.

Certifications and tools

Another type of keyword that employers may look for is specific certifications or proficiency in certain software suites. For example, salespeople may want to list platforms like Salesforce while a financial professional could include a designation like CPA or CFP.

How To Identify the Best Keywords for Your Resume

Analyzing job descriptions

One easy way to find appropriate keywords for your resume is to carefully look over job postings. See if there are any frequently mentioned terms that stand out. You can also read about the company itself to match your resume to its key values, whether it’s innovation, inclusivity, or public service.

Researching industry trends

Other resources that can help you find strong keywords for your resume could include industry publications, reports, or blogs. See which topics are emerging in the field or what’s trending. For example, using AI tools might be more common to your line of work, and therefore, something you can add.

Using online tools for keyword research

Tools like Jobscan, LinkedIn, and Google Trends can also help identify the best keywords for resumes. Take advantage of these tools to help refine your keyword strategy.

How to Integrate Keywords into Your Resume

Incorporating keywords into the resume summary

One of the best places to include relevant keywords is in your resume summary or objective. This section is the top of your resume and the most likely part to be reviewed.  Here’s an example of a keyword-optimized resume summary for a financial analyst:

• Methodical financial analyst with over seven years of experience leveraging advanced financial modeling to drive portfolio growth. Conducts rigorous risk assessment to mitigate loss and deliver actionable insight. Known for staying at the forefront of industry trends and best practices.

Using keywords in the work experience section

Within your job history, you can also naturally integrate keywords into your bullet points. 

Examples of job descriptions enhanced with keywords:

• Design and implement network upgrades to Cisco 6500-E, including migrating more than 85 WAN connections across five locations
• Manage and troubleshoot more than 450 enterprise-level servers to ensure uptime and reduce help desk requests by 35%

Listing keywords in the skills section

As far as keyword strategy for resumes goes, the skills section is another important place to highlight top keywords. Here are resume keyword examples for a pharmacy technician:

Key Skills

• Assisting pharmacist
• Customer service
• Knowledge of drug classification and medication procedures
• Pharmaceutical calculations and measurement skills
• Regulatory compliance

Including keywords in additional sections

Some keywords will appear most naturally in the education, certifications, and additional information sections if they have to do with formal training you’ve done.

Examples of Effective Resume Keywords

Here’s a resume example that demonstrates good keyword use:

Tips for Using Keywords Effectively

Avoiding keyword stuffing

If you’re concerned about how to choose keywords for resumes, just plopping in keywords in places where they don’t make sense or sound natural will not work. Incorporate the keywords where they fit best, and spread them around. For example:

• Skills can fit into a skills section, but also within a job description or in the summary.
• A certification should be in the education section and can also be in your summary.
• Industry words can be throughout the document.

Balancing specificity and generality

Use a mix of both specific job-related keywords and broader terms for resume keyword optimization. This is important because different people will be reviewing your resume. A human resources (HR) person might be looking for a fit with the company values while a direct supervisor might be more focused on hard skills.

Here’s an example of a good balance:

• Supervised and mentored a team of junior engineers, ensuring quality control and compliance with company standards
• Utilized CAD software to design complex mechanical systems, perform simulations, validate designs through testing, and incorporate industry trends into innovative engineering solutions

Keeping keywords up-to-date

Your resume is a living document, meaning you should be reviewing and updating it frequently. The top resume keywords for job applications are constantly changing. Show that you are keeping current with evolving industry terminology. Especially if you haven’t been a job seeker in a while, your older resume might be outdated. This may be most apparent with mentioning types of software or when listing technology skills.

Look at job listings and browse LinkedIn profiles of people in your field for some ideas.

Keep ATS in mind

Don’t forget that an ATS might be looking for certain keywords, and how you write and format your resume matters. For example, if there is an acronym for certification, you may want to both spell it out and include the acronym (i.e. Registered Nurse and RN).

Try to keep your section headers standard as well. Use “skills, education, experience” rather than “strengths, schooling, past companies,” which are less recognizable.

Tailor keywords for each job application

Customizing keywords for each specific job application is important, and it only takes a few minutes. Simply look at the job description and company description and sprinkle in some of the same terminology they use.

Additional Resources

 Links to online tools for keyword optimization

• Columbia University: Optimizing Your Resume for Applicant Tracking Systems
• University of Arizona: Top Resume Optimization Tips
• University of Illinois Chicago: Optimizing Resumes for Applicant Tracking Systems

Resume templates with keyword integration

• Business Resume Examples and Templates for 2024
• Professional Resume Templates and Examples for 2024
• Traditional (Classic) Resume Template

Career Advice Articles and Job Application Tips

• How To List Work Experience on a Resume
• Key Skills Examples for Your Resume
• Resume Objectives — Examples for All Types of Jobs

Andrew Stoner

Executive Resume Writer and Career Coach

Andrew Stoner is an executive career coach and resume writer with 17 years of experience as a hiring manager and operations leader at two Fortune 500 Financial Services companies, and as the career services director at two major university business schools.