How To Write "About Me" In A Resume In 4 Steps (With Tips)

Creating an interesting resume is one opportunity you can use to increase your chances of securing a job interview for a position in your field. An effective "about me" section intrigues the resume reader and convinces them you are the right candidate for a particular job. Learning the steps to create this section can save you time and energy when writing your document. In this article, we will discuss what an "about me" section is, instruct how to write "about me" in a resume, and give tips to help you perfect this section of your resume.

What Is An "About Me" Section On A Resume?

An "about me" section is the introductory segment of your resume. It briefly explains your professional background, skills and accomplishments. This section is typically between three and four lines of text and is like a resume summary but has a more conversational tone. Components of the "about me" section include:

• Professional title

• Relevant skills and qualifications

• Career goals

Related: How Long Should a Resume Be?

Who Can Benefit From Using An "About Me" Section On A Resume?

While any applicant can use an "about me" section on their resume, some groups may get greater benefit from inclusion than others. They are:

Recent graduates

Using an "about me" section can help you customise your resume for different career opportunities as a recent graduate. This is especially true if you have developed many varied skills in different areas or have general knowledge in one key industry. Using this type of section allows you to highlight skills and experiences that best apply to each role.

Career changers

For those changing industries or careers, "about me" sections can help highlight their transferable skills. Even if you have little experience or background in your new industry, you may have many other qualifications that could be useful in the new role. Hiring managers may review the "about me" section before looking at your work history and decide you have enough knowledge or experience in other areas to benefit their company.

Professionals with different backgrounds

Some experienced professionals have expertise in many fields or niches. An "about me" section can help you condense which ones are most relevant to the role. Similar to that of career changers, this section can help show potential employers how your knowledge and skills across different areas make you a stronger candidate for their current role.

How To Write "About Me" In A Resume

Use these steps to learn how to write an "about me" section for your resume:

1. Research and brainstorm

Think about your background, education, awards, skills and other attributes that you developed or earned throughout your career or education. Make a list of the things that make your work exceptional in any field. Consider writing or typing your list to create a reference sheet as you create your "about me" section. After you have created your list, read the job posting for the particular position for which you are applying. Compare your list to the job qualifications and responsibilities and see how the two compare. This exercise can help you decide which information is most relevant.

Related: 6 Universal Rules for Resume Writing

2. Write your introduction

This one-or-two sentence segment of the "about me" section tells the hiring manager who you are. It includes your professional title or the job title you should put on your nametag or nameplate. If you do not yet have a professional title because you are a recent graduate or making a career change, you can substitute the word "aspiring" in front of your preferred job title. This section also explains your background, such as the things you do at your current job or your education history.

Example: 'Marketing specialist with two years of experience working in search engine optimisation for blog posts. Currently employed as an SEO specialist at Reactive Media Inc.'

3. Share relevant skills

This segment tells the hiring manager what specific skills make you the best candidate for the job. It is usually one or two sentences long and includes the most impressive skills that appeal to the hiring manager for the particular role. You can choose from both hard and soft skills. In this section, you can also list the most important achievement related to your career, such as a project you worked on, an initiative you led or a way you brought more business to the company.

Example: 'Optimised over 100 blog posts to increase website traffic by 10% and increase revenue over eight months. Experience in writing training documentation for new hires in the digital marketing department.'

Related: How To Include Accomplishments on Your Resume

4. Explain your career goals

In this segment, tell hiring managers how the job for which you are applying is part of your current and greater career plan. Talk about your ambition and why you are excited to interview and hopefully get the role. This segment is usually one sentence long.

Example: 'Seeking more experience in mentoring and training new marketers and continuing to develop strategies to grow both established and emerging companies.'

Tips For Writing An "About Me" Resume section

Use these tips to perfect the "about me" section of your resume:

Be passionate

When describing how the job role fits into your current and future career plans, it is acceptable to sound excited about the prospect of earning and accepting the position. Passionate employees generally make significant contributions to the work they do and the companies they work for because they are excited about their positions. Use a few adjectives or a tone that conveys why you want to do this job and why interviewing you can benefit the company.

Consider your tense

When writing your "about me" section, consider the tense you use when talking about current and past experiences. Use the present tense when discussing current roles and applicable skills. Use the past tense to describe former jobs, experiences or accomplishments.

Consider your audience

Consider to what industry you are applying when using specific terms in your "about me" section. Fields like information technology may encourage the use of jargon when discussing specific programmes or systems, or common industry knowledge. However, in less technical industries, you may benefit from using more common language in your resume.

Related: 10 Resume Writing Tips To Help You Land a Job

Use a job listing

You can use the job listing as a reference to see what the company and hiring manager think are the most important qualities and skills for any role. This allows you to compare their expectations to your experience. You can match common elements, choose the most important ones and include those keywords in your "about me" section.

Personalise each resume

Update your "about me" section for each new resume. Even for jobs in the same industry or at the same company, the most relevant skills and accomplishments may differ by position. Using the job listing can help you discover how to personalise your "about me" section for each role.

Use facts

Using numerical data throughout your resume can make the document appear more credible. Consider including the number of years you have worked for an organisation, percentages and other facts in your "about me" section. Numerical data is usually easy to verify, so it is a great way to make it easier for hiring managers to fact check your information and see that you are telling the truth about your qualifications.

Limit first-person pronouns

Do your best to limit the use of first-person pronouns throughout your "about me" section. Though you will sometimes use the words "I," "me" or "my", try to limit their use to one or two instances. This helps keep the focus on your credentials and helps to unclutter the section.

Examples Of "About Me" Resume Sections

Use these examples of "about me" sections for specific roles to help you understand how to create your own:

Recent graduate

Aspiring computer programmer with a BTech (Hons.) degree and proven problem-solving and troubleshooting skills. Interned with RUSHTech as a junior database developer for financial programs. Seeking an entry-level programmer or coder position to continue expanding my knowledge of different languages and systems.

Teacher

Dedicated secondary science teacher with six years of experience instructing chemistry for classes 11 and 12. Improved student performance by 12% during that period. Seeking a role as a department chair to have more influence over the curriculum choices for the science track.

Cashier

Enthusiastic cashier with nine years of experience providing customer service and managing inventory. Improved efficiency of the checkout and payment process by 5%. Received the employee of the month award twice in three years. Seeking admission to the management track program to continue improving systems and processes in the retail industry.

Content writer

Proficient content writer with 10 years of experience writing engaging material for a variety of travel and lifestyle audiences. I have had articles published by over 100 news and media outlets and in five different languages. Seeking a position that uses my extensive research and interview skills to create content for other interest categories.

Please note that none of the companies, institutions or organisations mentioned in this article are associated with Indeed.

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