When a hiring manager picks up your CV, the personal summary is the first thing they will see, scan, and read.
In the world of job hunting first impressions count. As this is an introduction to you CV and can speak volumes about who you are, it’s vital you get it right. Its aim is to show off your strongest points, highlight your strengths, shout about your achievements, and mention your aspirations.
If you’re not sure what to say, or how to start then you’ve come to the right place. This page will help you put together an engaging, informative, and concise personal profile that best describes yourself and your future potential.
Page overview:
- What is a CV personal summary?
- Should you include a personal summary on your CV?
- How to write a personal summary
- What to include in a personal summary
- Tips on writing a personal summary
- Frequently Asked Questions
What is a CV personal summary?
It’s essentially a sales pitch for your CV.
Some people see it as a shorter version of a cover letter. This is wrong, as it is in effect a unique reflection of your career to date and carries significant weight in the eyes of employers.
Also known as a personal statement, CV profile or About Me section, it’s a brief snapshot of you as a professional and the first opportunity to sell yourself to a prospective employer.
Sitting just below your contact details, but above everything else, it’s a critical part of your CV that can make or break your job application.
Use it to outline who you are, what you have to offer and what you are looking for.
Why it’s important
Employers look for individuals who exhibit professionalism, effort, and competence during the application process. A well written personal summary is a sign of all of these and more.
Should you include a personal summary on your CV?
Although not mandatory, virtually all CVs have a personal summary in them. This is because they provide time scarce and busy hiring managers with a quick and convenient overview of your abilities.
Many career advisers believe that they are one of the most important parts of a job application. Particularly for experienced applicants who have a lot to shout about. However, some believe they just take up valuable CV real estate, especially for candidates with little work experience like graduates.
Conclusion
So, should you include one? Yes, if you’ve got a long career, and maybe if you haven’t.
Remember, if you get it right it can be a great way to grab the reader’s attention and show off your writing and communication skills. If you get it wrong, it can end your chances there and then.
How to write a personal summary
This is one of the trickiest parts of a CV to write.
That’s because in the space of a few sentences you’ve got to give details of your most relevant work experience, skills, achievements, and career aspirations. You want to tell the recruiter what you can do for them, as quickly as possible and in a way that is easy to read and understand.
It must highlight what is unique about you and what sets you apart from others. You should therefore talk about yourself in truthful, confident, and positive way. Do this by using words that express an optimistic tone and show that you’ll be a great addition to any existing team.
Never lie, because later in an interview you can be asked to justify all the nice things you’ve said about yourself.
There are three core sections that should be included. Here they are in the order they should be listed;
1. Introduce yourself.
2. What you can do for them.
3. Your career goals.
1. Introduce yourself
This opening sentence should not be too salesy or pushy. Doing this can make you look arrogant and put the reader off. Instead, it has to gently get the reader interested in you and want them to continue reading. Achieve this by politely introducing yourself and telling them how many years’ experience you have in your current position.
In essence, start by telling them who you are and where you stand in your career.
Example:
“I come to you as a proven recruitment specialist who has over 5 years of experience of successfully sourcing and onboarding suitable candidates.”
2. What you can do for them
Next, explain why you are suited to the role and clearly state the value you will bring to the company. Articulate why you’re the best person for the job by mentioning those qualities that will make you valuable to the vacancy.
Use the job description to identify the exact skills the employer is looking for and then align your competencies with this.
Example:
“As per your requirements, I possess a long track record of using social media to advertise positions, attract candidates and build relationships. Furthermore, I have extensive knowledge and experience of the administrative processes related to the HR department”.
3. State your career goals
Conclude your summary by reaffirming why you are applying for the vacancy and briefly stating your ambitions.
Explain what career paths appeal to you and mention why you want to work for them. This last bit adds a more personalized touch to your statement.
Example:
“Right now, I am looking for a suitable role with a reputable company like yours, where there will be future opportunities to progress into senior management”.
Different types of personal summaries
How you write it depends on what stage you’re at in your career. Someone with years of experience will need a different personal summary from an entry-level job seeker.
Experienced job seekers
Write a formal but friendly summary that draw attention to your past experiences and successes. Highlight your most relevant accomplishments and how you have added value in previous roles. Then stress your confidence in bringing the same level of performance to their operations.
School leavers, college students and graduates
Job seekers just starting out will not have enough knowledge, experience of achievements to put into a personal summary. They do not have anything relevant or impressive to write. Therefore, anything they do write therefore runs the risk of looking generic.
If, however, you want to include one, then it should focus on your future potential. Get across your desire to succeed and willingness to learn, improve and grow within any company you join. Also, use it as an opportunity to show off your communication skills.
What to include in a personal summary
In an engaging way explain why you are suitable for a specific job, what can you bring to the company and your career objectives. Remember to back up your claims, by giving them just enough evidence to entice people to want to know more about you.
You could also include a brief outline of current or previous role that are relevant to the job you are applying for.
What to avoid
Avoid turning the reader off by giving vague, bland, or general statements that they have heard many times before. You also do not want to sound arrogant, lie or exaggerate. Other unnecessary information not to include;
- Hobbies
- Cliches, like ‘good team player’.
- Marital status
- Family details
- Contact details
- Content overlap where you repeat what has already been said elsewhere in your CV.
- Buzzwords
Keep it up to date
Make sure your personal summary is fresh by revising it on a regular basis and updating it with the latest skills or competencies you may have gained.
Do not:
- Copy or mimic what you may have written in a cover letter.
- Give information like your age, religious beliefs, or marital status.
- Use bland cliches like ‘I work well with others’ etc. Recruiters see this all the time and want something that makes you different.
- Write about your personality, social life, or hobbies. Instead stick to hard hitting facts about your relevant experience, achievements, and goals.
- Send the same personal statement into every job application.
Format
Make sure your CV layout is consistent throughout the page, this means having the same font size and type, as well as text justification for your summary and everything else. Recruiters notice these small details and can use them to judge you.
If there’s space, then put the heading “Personal Summary” at the top of the section. However, if you’re stuck for room then don’t.
Tips on writing a personal summary
Entice the hiring manager to discover more about you by following the advice and guidance below. Use it to write a profile that shows you can hit the ground running and make an immediate positive impact on their operations.
Target it at the job you are applying for
No two jobs you apply for are the same, and no two statements should be the same. There is no ‘one size fits all’ summary you can use.
Ideally, a new personal statement should be written for each job application, that’s because each job requires a slightly different set of skills and experience.
Start off by reviewing the job description to discover what the employer wants from a candidate as regards to experience, skills and education etc. Then try to remember any similar duties your carried out from previous roles or competencies you may have. Make a list of these and insert them into your statement.
Take the time to make each one as unique as possible. Focus what you write on a specific industry by incorporating jargon, terminology, and other critical data relevant to that role. Continuously tweak and tailor your statement so that it targets the precise skills the vacancy requires.
Although, all of this may time, in the long term it’s worth the effort.
Do you write it in first person or third person?
They can be written in either the first or third person, just make sure to maintain consistency throughout, do not switch between the two.
Employers are used to seeing both formats, and as there are no definitive rules about this, either of these options is fine. They both have their own advantages and disadvantages.
The best one is the one you feel most comfortable to write in.
Keep it short
It should be short, sweet and to the point. Ideally no more than a few lines, meaning between 100 to 200 words. Any longer than this and you risk making it a rambling clunky statement that takes up valuable space and is difficult to read.
Shorten it by choosing your words carefully to write simple sentences that get straight to the point and do not include any waffle. Another way to cut it down is by avoiding repetition and not repeating what you have said in other parts of your CV or over letter.
Use figures to back up your claims
Book that one-way ticket to the next stage of the hiring process by quantifying the value of your work and achievements.
Back up your claims for improvements with growth percentages, statistics, value increases, budget savings and customer happiness figures, etc. Also use numbers to show how long you’ve worked in a particular area and prove any impressive results you’ve achieved.
Get keywords from the job description
Creating a persuasive personal statement is challenging, but a lot easier if you mimic what the recruiter has used.
If you’re struggling to identify keywords to include, then get inspiration from the job description. In it you’ll find all the keywords and phrases the job seeker is looking for. By using these you can convince the hiring manager that you’re a serious contender for their position. Doing this can also help you pass the pre-screening ATS process.
Avoid using jargon or technical terms that the employer may not be familiar with.
Proof read it
After completing it put it away for a few hours. Then pick it up and read it a couple of times to make sure it sounds right. Carefully check it for apparent spelling and grammar mistakes. A good way to do this is to read it out loud to identify possible mistakes.
You can also ask a family member or friend to check it out, just in case you’ve missed something.
Frequently Asked Questions about a personal summary
Where does the personal summary go on a CV?
It is always placed at the top of your CV, just below your name and contact details and above your work experience.