- What should your administrative assistant resume include?
- How can you create a professional summary?
- How should you describe your work experience as an administrative assistant?
- Include a fitting administrative assistant resume education and certifications section
- Which key skills are relevant for an administrative assistant resume?
- How to select the most impactful administrative assistant resume template
- Copyable administrative assistant resume example
- Key takeaways for writing an administrative assistant resume
Administrative assistants are the backbones of many offices, and the role requires someone who can handle many tasks to support day-to-day operations. Show employers why you’re the best candidate for the job with a well-crafted administrative assistant resume.
Without administrative assistants, many offices would be less productive and efficient. These professionals provide administrative support to keep teams focused and on task. If you’re applying to be an administrative assistant, your resume should show employers why you’d be an indispensable part of their team.
This guide and corresponding example will show you how to create an administrative assistant resume. We’ll go over:
What your resume should include
How to describe your education and experience
The right skills to highlight on your resume
How to choose a resume template
What should your administrative assistant resume include?
Administrative assistants provide support to make sure offices run smoothly. Your resume should show a prospective employer you’re up to the task. It should emphasize your core skills for the role, such as your reliability and your knowledge of office software.
You can highlight this information by including these sections on your resume:
A resume header with your contact information
A resume summary
An employment history section
An education section
A resume skills section
How can you create a professional summary?
At the top of your resume, a professional summary or profile is your first chance to make an impression on the hiring manager. With two or three sentences, aim to answer this question: Why should an employer hire you as an administrative assistant?
As you write your summary, think about the experience, qualities, or skills you have that set you apart. For example, do you have experience offering administrative support in the company’s industry? Have you earned a relevant certification to broaden your skill set? Did you implement a new process to streamline office tasks in your last job?
Look to our example resume for some ideas. In the profile section, the applicant discusses their ability to manage shifting priorities and adapt quickly to new environments.
Multifaceted, quick-thinking and highly motivated administrative support professional. Proven capacity for adapting rapidly to new environments, with ability to deliver top-notch support within a wide range of industries. Highly detail-driven and organized; able to handle multiple shifting priorities within fast-paced office environments. Robustly process-driven, with talent for identifying and implementing improvements to existing processes.
How should you describe your work experience as an administrative assistant?
Your work experience section will show an employer how you can use the skills and knowledge you’ve gained in other jobs to be successful in their company. Tailor this part of your resume to the job description by highlighting your relevant experience with administrative tasks, such as scheduling, filing, and answering phone calls.
List your previous jobs in reverse chronological order with your job title, employer’s name, and dates of employment. Use bullet points to describe your duties in each role. Provide specific examples and quantifiable achievements of how you made a positive impact in your other roles. For example, you may describe how you improved office efficiency or saved a company time and resources.
Here’s an example of a bullet point using measurable data:
Created a new filing system to reduce document retrieval time by 26%, saving over 30 hours of personnel resources each quarter
Innovation Center Administrator at CGI Innovation Center, Houston, TX 2018 - Present
Coordinate all administrative support functions as sole administrator for CGI's flagship facility utilized for hosting prospective clients, and first individual to hold position.
Maintain schedule and calendar comprising numerous ongoing conferences, meetings and social events.
Host all facility events, interacting with guests from scheduling through departure to ensure a positive experience.
Efficiently maintain office supply inventory.
Nurture relationships with various vendors to ensure a clean, well-organized and well-maintained workspace, and to procure / arrange payment for event food, drinks, equipment and other needs.
Creatively organize facility to maintain streamlined, well-functioning workspace, comfortable work environment and state-of-the-art technologies.
Introduced highly efficient new process for administering company calendar, including implementation of a new web-based scheduling system.
Revamped and streamlined office recordkeeping system.
Selected by peers for 2019 Outstanding Employee of the Year for award for Central Texas region.
Trusted to fully manage office for two months during unexpected supervisor absence.
Executive Assistant / Office Manager at Stuart Medical Office, Houston, TX 2012 - 2018
Delivered guidance and coaching to office staff in various administrative functions.
Managed team of 10 in daily activities such as recordkeeping, filing and scheduling.
Assisted executives by answering phones, scheduling meetings and appointments, answering phones, reviewing documents and handling travel arrangements.
Performed various financial functions, including A/P & A/R, expense reports, collections, account reconciliations, patient billing and invoicing.
Maintained and updated office equipment, including computer hardware and software.
Served as direct liaison between staff and physicians.
Acknowledged as company-wide primary point of contact in all aspects of staff and patient interactions, scheduling and overall communications.
Successfully collected $15Kin outstanding patient balances in a 60-day period.
Steered $3.5K reduction in by office budget through research and deployment of new office equipment and computer technology
Skillfully provided swift, accurate transcription of patient histories and physicals, consultations, progress notes and procedure reports.
Include a fitting administrative assistant resume education and certifications section
Many employers hire administrative assistants with a high school diploma, while others prefer candidates with postsecondary education. Provide your level of education to show an employer you meet their requirements. This section can also describe any continuing education you’ve completed throughout your career.
Follow these tips to describe your education:
Stick to the essential details. Provide the name of your degree or diploma and the school where you earned it.
List your education in reverse order. If you have multiple degrees, list your highest one first. You don’t need to include your high school diploma if you have an associate degree or higher.
Highlight relevant certifications. Mention relevant certifications you’ve earned in administrative support or office management. These credentials can show your dedication and set you apart from other candidates.
Know the industry
Some industries, such as law and healthcare, require administrative assistants to have additional education or certifications. If you’re applying for jobs in those fields, make sure you highlight industry-specific qualifications on your resume.
Associate in Applied Arts and Sciences, Business Administration w/ Minor in Accounting at Essex County College, Newark, NJ
Which key skills are relevant for an administrative assistant resume?
Administrative assistants need a range of skills to do their jobs. Emphasize both your hard and soft skills to prove you’re a well-rounded candidate for the job.
Not sure what skills to include? Look at the job description for guidance. Employers typically list the skills they want candidates to have. Often, those skills are also keywords you can use to make sure your resume passes an applicant tracking system (ATS). Many employers use ATS software to scan and rank resumes based on keyword usage. (For more information, check out our article on resume ATS optimization.)
Some common ATS-friendly skills for an administrative assistant resume include:
Office operations
Scheduling
Multi-line phone systems
Recordkeeping
Executive support
Administrative software
Organization
How to select the most impactful administrative assistant resume template
The resume template you choose can influence a hiring manager’s impression of you. Make sure you choose a template that’s clean, organized, and professional. Create sections for your professional summary, experience, education, and skills sections, as we’ve shown in the example. Use bold section headers and leave white space between sections to make your resume easy to read.
In most cases, your administrative assistant should be no longer than one page. You can add a second page if you have many years of relevant work experience.
You don’t have to build your resume from scratch. Explore the many templates we offer in our resume builder to find one that meets your needs. You can also get additional inspiration by browsing over 100 resume examples we have available.
Copyable administrative assistant resume example
Summary example
Multifaceted, quick-thinking and highly motivated administrative support professional. Proven capacity for adapting rapidly to new environments, with ability to deliver top-notch support within a wide range of industries. Highly detail-driven and organized; able to handle multiple shifting priorities within fast-paced office environments. Robustly process-driven, with talent for identifying and implementing improvements to existing processes.
Employment history example
Innovation Center Administrator at CGI Innovation Center, Houston, TX 2018 - Present
Coordinate all administrative support functions as sole administrator for CGI's flagship facility utilized for hosting prospective clients, and first individual to hold position.
Maintain schedule and calendar comprising numerous ongoing conferences, meetings and social events.
Host all facility events, interacting with guests from scheduling through departure to ensure a positive experience.
Efficiently maintain office supply inventory.
Nurture relationships with various vendors to ensure a clean, well-organized and well-maintained workspace, and to procure / arrange payment for event food, drinks, equipment and other needs.
Creatively organize facility to maintain streamlined, well-functioning workspace, comfortable work environment and state-of-the-art technologies.
Introduced highly efficient new process for administering company calendar, including implementation of a new web-based scheduling system.
Revamped and streamlined office recordkeeping system.
Selected by peers for 2019 Outstanding Employee of the Year for award for Central Texas region.
Trusted to fully manage office for two months during unexpected supervisor absence.
Executive Assistant / Office Manager at Stuart Medical Office, Houston, TX 2012 - 2018
Delivered guidance and coaching to office staff in various administrative functions.
Managed team of 10 in daily activities such as recordkeeping, filing and scheduling.
Assisted executives by answering phones, scheduling meetings and appointments, answering phones, reviewing documents and handling travel arrangements.
Performed various financial functions, including A/P & A/R, expense reports, collections, account reconciliations, patient billing and invoicing.
Maintained and updated office equipment, including computer hardware and software.
Served as direct liaison between staff and physicians.
Acknowledged as company-wide primary point of contact in all aspects of staff and patient interactions, scheduling and overall communications.
Successfully collected $15Kin outstanding patient balances in a 60-day period.
Steered $3.5K reduction in by office budget through research and deployment of new office equipment and computer technology
Skillfully provided swift, accurate transcription of patient histories and physicals, consultations, progress notes and procedure reports.
Education example
Associate in Applied Arts and Sciences, Business Administration w/ Minor in Accounting at Essex County College, Newark, NJ
Skills example
Office Operations Management
Executive Support & Scheduling
Customer / Client Communications
Facilities Management
Accounts Payable / Receivable
Multi-line Phone Systems
Events Planning & Management
Workflow Planning / Prioritization
Key takeaways for writing an administrative assistant resume
An administrative assistant resume should convince an employer you can help an office run smoothly.
Tie your experience to the role by describing how you’ve improved office efficiency in your other jobs.
Emphasize your relevant skills and attributes, such as recordkeeping, office software, and organization.
Use a clean, organized template to show employers your professionalism.
