examples of personal statement resume

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How to Write a Resume Personal Statement: 7+ Professional Examples

Not sure what a resume personal statement is or what it should include? We’ll guide you through the writing process with great examples of personal statements for various fields and experience levels.

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How to write a personal statement for a resume

Resume personal statement examples.

• resume objective
• resume profile
• resume summary
• about me section

A personal statement is optional when you write a resume , but it’s a standard part of CV formatting .

Resume personal statements are often confused with:

• personal statements on job applications, which you usually fill out separately on the application form
• personal mission statements , which you write for yourself to establish your lifelong goals
• personal statements for college admissions applications , which follow essay formatting and should be at least a few paragraphs long

Our free-to-use resume builder can make you a resume in as little as 5 minutes. Just pick the template you want, and our software will format everything for you.

Your resume’s personal statement should display your most relevant qualifications and express your professional goals.

After the hiring manager notes your name in your header, their eyes automatically go to your personal statement. So ensure your most relevant resume accomplishments appear in your introduction using these guidelines:

1. Write it last

Although your personal statement goes near the top of your resume, you should write it last so you have a chance to think through which of your most important qualifications to feature in this section.

Once you’ve finished the other parts of your resume, compile your qualifications listed in your resume’s work experience section , education section , and skills section . Then pick the best, most relevant accomplishments to emphasize in your personal statement. Be sure you don’t restate them exactly in your personal statement, otherwise your resume might sound repetitive.

2. Start with your professional title

Open your personal statement with your professional title. If you wish, you can also add a resume-appropriate adjective before your title. For example, “Innovative Graphic Designer”.

If you’re working on a resume with no experience and aren’t sure what title to use, here are some common entry-level options:

• Use your college major: “Recent graduate with a BS in Communications”
• List a relevant skill: “Confident communicator”
• Reference a volunteer position: “Volunteer organizer”
• Emphasize your work ethic: “Hardworking student”

Conversely, if you’re an experienced professional with multiple titles, use the title most relevant to the job you want.

For instance, if you’re an entrepreneur and CEO applying for a C-suite position, don’t include “entrepreneur” in your professional title. Otherwise, your target employer may worry your focus would be divided between your work for their company and your side hustles.

3. Consider your audience

Tailor every word of your personal statement to your audience — the recruiter, hiring manager, and anyone else at your target employer who might read your resume. To get inside their minds and determine what they’re looking for, carefully read the job description and note skills-based resume keywords .

Here’s a sample telemedicine nurse practitioner job description with the keywords underlined:

What you’ll do:

• See patients via telemedicine using the platform provided by the practice
• Provide excellent, personalized patient care according to the guidelines provided by the practice
• Work with a care team including a Health Coach to help patients improve outcomes and achieve their health and wellness goals
• Oversee medical staff (including Health Coaches and Medical Assistants ) and assign appropriate aspects of care accordingly
• Provide mentoring to clinical staff
• Participate in patient care program development
• Help resolve patient inquiries and requests
• Complete online charts in an accurate manner
• Follow organizational policies, procedures, and protocols
• Represent Parsley Health in the local and broader community

If you were applying for the above position, this is what your resume’s personal statement might look like:

Nurse practitioner with 5+ years’ experience overseeing a team of health coaches and medical assistants. Developed a patient care program that provides personalized care and helps patients reach their health and wellness goals via telemedicine, and made maintaining accurate online charts easier for medical staff. Eager to wield proven telemedicine expertise as a Telemedicine Nurse Practitioner at Parsley Health.

4. Finish strong

The closing sentence of your personal statement should:

• summarize your best qualifications
• express your goals for the position
• offer value to the company

To impress the hiring manager, research the company and show how your skills fit the company’s values and goals.

Here’s a well-written final sentence for a personal statement:

Proven expertise and results in financial planning for rapidly growing companies are a perfect fit for your company as it undertakes aggressive international expansion.

Need a quick review of what we’ve just covered? Here’s a short TikTok video summarizing how to write a resume personal statement.

@resumegenius Writing your resume but you’re already stuck on your resume personal statement/resume summary? 🤔 I’ve been there. 🙋‍♀️ Here are some tips that will show you how to write your resume personal statement! You’ve got this! 💪 #resume #resumetips #resumesummary #jobsearch ♬ Sky Aesthetic – Tollan Kim

Here are five good examples of professional resume statements:

1. Entry-level applicant

Even without formal work experience, the following candidate shows how they’ve gained skills in their field through interning, studying, and volunteering.

Recent graduate with a BS in Audio Engineering and 2+ years’ experience interning at a local recording studio. Produced four EPs for friends’ bands, with three tracks receiving 20,000+ plays on Spotify and YouTube. Confident expertise in Pro Tools and music equipment setup will translate to success as an Assistant Audio Engineer at your studio.

2. Experienced applicant

As a more experienced job seeker, you’ll have plenty of relevant experience to choose from. See how this candidate selected their most impressive qualifications to feature in their resume personal statement:

Sales manager with over 10 years of experience training and supervising sales staff while planning and implementing sales strategies over a multi-state territory. Seeking to bring proven record in leading teams and launching successful marketing campaigns into a senior management position.

3. Nurse practitioner

This nurse practitioner emphasizes their nursing philosophy, accomplishments, and personality strengths in this personal statement:

Certified nurse practitioner with 5+ years of experience delivering compassionate care to patients. Instrumental in conducting patient assessment, physical examinations, and diagnostic studies. Eager to deliver high-quality, patient-centered health care as a Nurse Practitioner at [Hospital/Clinic].

4. Graphic designer

If the job you’re applying for requires familiarity with specific tools and software, it’s good to mention those in your resume’s personal statement, as this candidate does:

Senior graphic design specialist with 6+ years of experience managing the complete design process, from conceptualization to delivery. Skilled with Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign), Microsoft Office, and web design applications (Dreamweaver, HTML). Able to stretch the boundaries of web design and digital storytelling to help your brand stand out.

5. College student

If you’re still in school, you can use your personal statement to showcase awards, skills, and experience from your courses that have prepared you for the position you’re applying for.

English major seeking to use research and writing experience in the role of Junior Research Associate at Wexford Inc. Awarded multiple honors based on merits and expected to graduate with a B.A. in English from UCLA in June 2023. Fast learning abilities, commitment to succeed, and relevant studies align perfectly with this position’s listed requirements.

6. Software developer

In a field with a number of different specializations, you can use your resume personal statement to let employers know about your areas of expertise.

Detail-oriented Software Developer with 5+ years of experience specializing in frontend and backend development, data analysis, and web design. Highly proficient in various programming languages including JavaScript, Python, and HTML. Demonstrated ability to manage projects from concept to completion, and consistently meet project deadlines. Committed to creating user-friendly software and passionate about continual learning and growth.

7. Restaurant server

In a customer-facing role, such as a server, your personal statement is a good place to let hiring managers know what kind of customer experience you’ll provide.

Restaurant Server with over 2 years of experience in hospitality. Known for my exceptional customer service and ability to handle high-pressure environments with tact and efficiency. Passionate about creating a memorable and high-quality dining experience for guests while ensuring the cleanliness and safety of the restaurant for both guests and staff.

Emily Crowley

Career Advisor & Senior Content Writer

Emily Crowley loves helping job seekers overcome obstacles to advance their careers. She graduated from George Mason University with a degree in Foreign Language and Culture and relocated to Taipei shortly after. As a writer and career advisor, she takes a particular interest in empowering young professionals through practical knowledge and advice on topics like resume writing, interviewing, and navigating career changes. Emily’s career advice has been featured in online publications such as Global Trade Magazine and Parade. For media-related queries, she can be reached at emily [at] resumegenius [dot] com.

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How To Write A Resume Personal Statement (With Examples)

In This Guide:

The purpose of a resume personal statement, the elements of a good personal statement, the construction of a good personal statement, final words: writing a resume personal statement.

Quick Answer: A personal statement on a resume summarizes the benefits of hiring you and encourages recruiters to pay attention to your resume. It's the first section of the resume that recruiters see, so it should be brief, easy-to-read, and attention-grabbing. Your statement should include who you are, suitable skills, achievements, your target company, and what you hope to do for your new employer. It should be short and concise, mentioning only the most relevant information for your target roles.

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Landing a job interview requires a memorable resume. Including a good personal statement at the top of your resume is a perfect way to do it.

Essentially, your resume personal statement is a brief paragraph that aims to summarise the benefits of hiring you and encourage employers to pay attention to your resume.

If you are wondering whether you should include it.

And you will see why. In this article, we have all the information you need on how to write an eye-catching personal statement and a couple of useful examples.

Hundreds of resumes go through the hands of a Recruiter in just a day. So, you understand how important it is to grab his or her attention in just seconds. One really effective way is to write a personal statement at the top of a resume.

By including a strong personal statement you would for sure get more attention than one without.

1. State who you are

Begin with a description showing your current position in your profession and field of specialization. You could also include what you like most about your work and any characteristics and skills that would make you the perfect choice for the position.

2. Add measurements to your achievements

After that, you should communicate how suitable for the position you are and what is your value to the organization. This section should highlight accomplishments relevant to the position you are applying for. Show that you could be beneficial for the company.

If you are wondering which accomplishments to mention, select those that directly associate with your position. If the position requires managerial experience, mention previous situations that have placed you in such a role. This way, you could quickly establish yourself as the right candidate for the job.

3. State your career objectives

The third section of your personal statement should state why you are applying for this particular position. You have already communicated your skills and qualifications in the previous sentences, so you write the last one concise and direct.

4. Keep your personal statement short

Your whole personal statement should be short, concise, and easy to read. Keep in mind to use simple sentences telling the recruiter the most important information for you.

After telling you how to structure it, see how it is done.

“An efficient, and reliable administrative professional with 8+ years of experience supporting executives, sales personnel, and managers to improve the internal operations for their businesses.

Proficient in CRM applications and design programs. Diversified skill set covering administrative support, client relations, human resources and recruiting, account management, and project management. Excellent interpersonal, phone, and digital communication skills.”

“As a recent graduate from the University of Townville, with a 2:1 honors degree in marketing, I have undertaken internships at industry-leading agencies such as Beyond Imagination and Noah Freemans. These placements have allowed me to develop sector knowledge and gain hands-on experience, as well as expand transferable skills such as communication, negotiation, and analytical skills. My current goal is to gain a role that allows me to further my knowledge and take on increased responsibility at a market-leading digital marketing agency.”

“I am a highly competent IT professional with a proven track record in networking and managing databases. I have strong technical skills as well as excellent interpersonal skills, enabling me to communicate easily with clients. I am eager to be challenged in order to grow and further improve my skills. My greatest passion in life is using my technical know-how to benefit other people and organizations.”

Resume Personal Statement for Career Changers Example

Experienced Sales Manager

“As a Sales Manager with 7 years of experience, my tenacious and proactive approach resulted in numerous important contract wins. My excellent networking skills have provided my team with vital client leads, and my ability to develop client relationships has resulted in a 16% increase in business renewals for the organization I work for. I currently seek a new challenge which will utilize my meticulous attention to detail and friendly, professional manner.”

Resume Personal Statement for Entry Level Job

Entry Level Business Analyst

“Enthusiastic Business Analyst, skilled in leadership and communication. Seeking to enhance understanding of key metrics for IPSoft. As a business report writer for Valens Securities helped grow employee grasp of key concepts by 42%. My PowerPoint presentation of GBMP’s Policy Deployment plan was turned into a webinar that got 2,300 views.”

Resume personal statement for experienced professional

Experienced Teaching Assistant

“Enthusiastic teaching assistant with 6 years of experience. Seeking to maintain a graduate teaching assistant position at St. Andrews University. Mentored 70+ students for 3 years. Delivered lectures, edited 2 books. Commended by 2 professors for research quality. Graded 1000+ student papers. Skilled in materials development and research.”

And if you are still not sure how to write your personal statement, go through our Resume Examples . They are all approved by top Hiring Managers and have helped thousands get their dream job.

Your personal statement will be totally unique to yourself, but by using the above tips and tricks we gave you, you will be able to create one which shows the Hiring Managers everything they need.

Remember to keep it short and only include the most relevant information for your target roles.

Do you have any other questions about personal statements on a resume? Give us a shout-out in the comments below!

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Are you familiar with the resume personal statement?

It is the quickest way to introduce yourself to the recruiters and lay out your professional prospects in a short statement.

A resume personal statement can do the talking for you if crafted in the right way.

Let us discuss in detail about CV personal statement and get you started with all the dos and don'ts around it.

You can also get a deeper understanding of the following FAQs around resume personal statement:

• What is a good personal summary for a resume?
• Should I include a personal statement on my resume??
• What should you include in a personal statement?
• What is a resume summary and objective?

What Is a Personal Statement on a Resume?

A resume personal statement is like a summary or objective of your resume.

It is a short paragraph that sums up your work experience, skills set, and achievements. A CV personal statement validates your efficiency as a professional.

The resume personal statements consist of the following points:

• An introduction of who you are
• The value you add to the organization
• The objectives of your career

This short statement works magic on the recruiters during job applications. It makes it easier for them to identify your core skills and potential while raising your chances of landing the targeted job profile.

Also Read: How to Write Resume Summary Statement?

Do You Need a Personal Statement on a Resume?

Providing a resume personal statement is important as it makes it easier for the recruiters to recognize your potential right away.

The main benefits of a resume personal statement are listed below:

• It enables you to introduce yourself to the recruiters
• It gives you the chance to showcase what you can bring to the table
• It allows you to highlight your professional achievements
• It provides you the opportunity to showcase your skills and strengths
• It allows you to share your career goals or objectives

Simply put, resume personal statements are the window to your resume, and adding them to your resume can communicate your potential to the recruiters.

How to Write a Resume Personal Statement?

While some may think that drafting a resume statement is a complicated task, you should know that it is quite easy if done the right way.

You need to add only the important points that validate your professional capabilities in a resume summary statement.

Here is what you need to do to create the perfect CV personal statement.

Follow the given guideline to make your resume stand out amongst hundreds of applicants:

1. Introduce Yourself

Start your resume personal statement by introducing your professional self. Doing so will make the recruiters identify where you stand professionally right away.

Example: 5+ years experienced software engineer with a prolific track record in software and IT management.

From the given example, we can see how a short sentence is enough to make an impactful first impression on the recruiters.

It states who you are as a professional by highlighting your current or most recent job profile. It also states the years of experience and level of specialization you possess.

The trick here is to state the years of experience you possess and give an insight into your professional background.

2. Add Your Professional Achievements

State what you have achieved during your professional experience to demonstrate that you have the potential to produce desired results for the organization.

Example: Possesses extensive experience in administering development, implementation, and management of IT systems, resulting in improved accessibility.

This allows the recruiters to assess your caliber and determine your suitability for the targeted profile.

3. Mention Your Core Skills

A resume personal statement is not the place for you to brag about every skill that you possess, but a subtle mention of what your core skills are is enough.

Example: Highly skilled with Linux and Unix server architecture combined with an in-depth knowledge of a range of technological applications.

Mentioning some relevant skills, as shown in the example can make the recruiters recognize your efficiency in specific skills that they require their potential employees to possess.

4. Include Suitable Keywords

The Applicant Tracking System allows the recruiters to filter through hundreds and thousands of resumes to save time and select suitable applicants.

Hence, your resume needs to contain suitable keywords that are relevant to the targeted job profile. And the resume personal statement is one of the best places to include such keywords.

Practice drafting your resume personal statement after the rest of your resume is done and dusted.

Doing so allows you to pick important points and relevant keywords from the details listed in the main context of the resume and shed the spotlight on them.

Example: Junior web developer with 4+ years of experience in assisting the senior manager to develop and implement user interactive internal web pages by using languages such as HTML and CSS to enhance user interactions. Highly skilled in customizing content management systems to manage various website properties and deliver timely site redesigns.

If you are applying for a web developer profile, adding relevant keywords related to web development or programming languages can make your resume get past the ATS with ease.

Difference Between Resume Summary and Objective Statement

Both resume summary and objective statements give an overview of your resume but the messages they deliver are different.

A summary statement describes your qualifications and professional expertise that throws light on your suitability for the targeted job profile.

On the other hand, an objective statement describes your career goals and the kind of job or industry that you prefer.

A resume summary highlights what you have achieved and how it can benefit the organization. Whereas an objective highlights what you can bring to the table despite having no or very little experience.

Also Read: How to Draft a Resume Objective Section?

Tips for Writing The Perfect Resume Personal Statement

Here is a list of some dos and don'ts while drafting your resume personal statement:

• Limit your personal statement to 3-4 lines
• Include only important points
• Highlight the years of experience you have (if you are an experienced professional)
• Mention your relevant skills and expertise
• Add relevant keywords as per the job description
• Proofread your resume personal statement

Resume Personal Statement Examples

How do you write a personal statement for a resume?

The personal statement for resume needs to be customized according to the years of experience that you have and the skills that you possess.

Check out the given CV personal statement examples for reference:

Resume Personal Statement for Data Engineer

10+ years experienced data engineer armed with demonstrated capability of designing and maintaining data pipelines to facilitate deeper analysis and meet both functional and non-functional business requirements. Adept at liaising with product owners and business stakeholders to design scalable solutions by optimizing organizational processes. Proficient in creating highly scalable data processing frameworks to ensure a smooth business workflow.

Also Read: How to Create the Best Data Engineer Resume?

Resume Personal Statement for Graphic Designer

Enterprising graphic designer with 5+ years of experience in establishing brands through creative concepts. Proficiency with publishing tools comprising Photoshop, InDesign Quark, Illustrator, and Premiere Pro to deliver top-notch visual content. Efficient in analyzing products to create visuals that justify their worth and establish brands to elevate business growth.

Also Read: How to Curate a Professional Freelance Graphic Designer Resume?

Resume Personal Statement for IT Professional

15+ years experienced IT professional with a proven track record of handling web development, design, and various interactive projects based on languages such as HTML, PHP, SQL, and XML. Highly skilled in leading teams of web developers and programmers to develop state-of-the-art corporate intranet and implement advanced CMS solutions using open source tools and Drupal. Adept at providing dynamic and marketing-friendly front-end solutions to assist management in performing SEO, web analytics, and A/B testing.

Also Read: How to Create a Job-worthy IT Resume?

Resume Personal Statement for Certified Professional

Certified business intelligence developer with 3+ years of experience in designing software solutions by translating business requirements into scalable BI projects. Proficient in ensuring the integrity of data while diagnosing and troubleshooting technological issues.

Also Read: How to List Certifications on Resume?

Key Takeaways

• Draft your personal statement after you complete the rest of your resume.
• Always keep your resume personal statement short and precise within a 3-4 line limit .
• Include details that reflect your achievements and core skills to validate your potential.
• Customize your CV personal statement in line with the job description of the profile that you are applying
• Add suitable keywords in your summary statement to rank high on the ATS

Go to Hiration's 360-degree Career Service platform which has 24/7 chat support for any assistance with all your job & career-related queries.

You can also write to us at [email protected] .

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How to Write a Personal Statement for a Resume (with AI 🤖)

3 key takeaways 

• Learn how to craft a personal statement that defines your career goals, skills, and professional narrative.
• Discover the importance of tailoring your personal statement to a specific role.
• Understand how to leverage AI tools like Teal's AI Resume Builder to create and polish an effective personal statement.

You're skilled, ambitious, and ready to seize new professional opportunities. But so are many other job seekers.

So how can you stand out in a sea of applicants and make a lasting impact on hiring managers? That's simple : crafting a unique "Personal Statement" resume section that captures who you are as an individual—the "you-ness" that makes you an irresistible candidate.

The problem is that "simple" doesn't always mean "easy."

Luckily, by the end of this post, you'll be able to confidently write a resume personal statement for any opportunity that comes your way. 

Understanding personal statements on resumes and CVs

A personal statement is a concise paragraph or summary, similar to a resume headline , at the top of your resume. Its purpose is to articulate your career goals, highlight your skills, experiences, and what you can bring to the role.

This is a valuable opportunity to make a lasting first impression on the hiring manager or recruiter and stand out among the endless number of applicants you're likely competing with.

While building your resume, you may have also heard of a "professional statement" (sometimes called an " opening statement ") or a "resume objective." Though similar, they are subtly different from personal statements. 

Here's a breakdown:

Your resume's personal statement is a comprehensive declaration that outlines your career objectives and highlights your skills, experiences, and the unique value you can bring to a role. It provides a fuller picture of you as a professional, making it a great choice for experienced candidates with various skills and achievements they want to draw attention to. 

A resume professional summary , or short professional bio , is a concise summary that specifically targets your industry expertise and key achievements. It draws attention to your relevant professional experiences and successes. 

Typically, the resume summary statement is the ideal choice for seasoned professionals with a history of tangible results and accomplishments in their field.

A resume objective highlights your qualifications, but it's typically a straightforward declaration of your career goals, too. It's usually a bit shorter and focuses on what type of role or industry you want to work in. Resume objectives can benefit those who are at the beginning of their career or going through a career change, such as re-entering the workforce or transitioning between fields , and don't have an extensive track record to showcase.

The choice between a resume personal statement, professional statement, and a resume objective ultimately comes down to your career path and the specific requirements of the job you're eyeing. 

Once you've decided to write a compelling personal statement, you need to know the right way of going about it. 

How to write a personal statement for a resume

You'd think that writing about yourself would be easy. After all, who knows your past experiences and future ambitions better than you? 

And yet, it's those "About Me" resume sections and resume personal statements that are one of the most frustrating pieces of writing a resume; they're often the most impactful, too. Because, again, they're the hook that introduces the very uniqueness of you . 

Consider the following tips for writing a standout personal statement: 

1. Self-reflection: Look at your career goals, skills, resume bullets , current position, and any special value you bring to an organization. Reflecting on these aspects provides a solid foundation for your personal statement.

You might find it helpful to use a mind map or SWOT analysis to organize your thoughts. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, and it's a strategic planning tool used to evaluate these four aspects of a project or personal development.

This exercise will help you identify your resume strengths and selling points, providing a solid foundation for your personal statement.

2. Start with a strong opening: Your opening sentence should be compelling and immediately convey your professional identity. Think of it as your personal "elevator pitch." Here are some examples:

• Strong opening : "As a seasoned Project Manager with a decade of experience in the tech industry, I specialize in leading cross-functional teams to deliver complex projects on time and under budget. "
• Weak opening : "I'm a hard-working professional looking for a project management role."

The strong opening immediately establishes the individual's professional identity, highlighting their experience, industry, and key skills. On the other hand, the weak opening is vague and doesn't convey the person's unique value or area of expertise.

3. Align with the job description: Your personal statement should align with the role you're applying for. Read the job description carefully, then tailor your summary statement to highlight the skills and experiences most relevant to the role.

This is where Teal's Job Application Tracker and AI Resume Builder comes in. 

Leveraging the power of AI, Teal extracts and prioritizes the critical keywords, both hard and soft skills, present in the job description you're targeting.

Then, you can use AI to automate your personal statement: 

Create multiple versions of your professional summary using Teal’s AI integration feature within the AI Resume Builder.

Note: This feature is called "Professional Summaries," but it allows you to beat the blank page quickly. You can then tailor this to be more aligned with a professional statement to help you stand out.

Not only does this help you shape a compelling personal statement much more quickly, but it also gives you an edge with Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) . Hiring managers often use ATS software to prioritize candidates based on keyword matching (though it's worth mentioning that this software never filters out applicants altogether). 

By using Teal's AI Resume Builder to incorporate the necessary hard skills , soft skills, and keywords into your personal statement, you increase your odds of standing out in the crowded job market.

Sign up for Teal's AI Resume Builder today!

4. Keep it concise: A personal statement should be brief and to the point. Aim for no more than 150 words or three to four sentences. The best way to approach this is to draft your personal statement without any word limit, then review and revise it, cutting out any fluff or unnecessary details. 

Ask yourself if each sentence is critical to the narrative and truly adds value. Remember, every word counts. Writing an effective personal statement requires careful thought and attention to detail. 

However, advances in generative AI can help streamline this process. 

What to avoid when writing a resume personal statement

When writing a personal statement, it's just as important to know what to steer clear of as it is to know what to include. 

So, here are some key points to keep in mind:

1. Being vague: Remember, your personal statement is your unique story. Generic phrases like "hard-working professional" or "team player" won't help you stand out. Instead, aim for specific details about your experiences and achievements that demonstrate these traits.

2. Using complex jargon: While you need to communicate your industry knowledge, a personal statement loaded with jargon can be off-putting and difficult to understand. Keep your language clear and concise.

3. Writing an autobiography: A personal statement isn't a full personal profile. It's not meant to be a comprehensive rundown of your life story. It should focus on relevant skills, experiences, and goals that align with the position you're applying for. 

If it doesn't add value to your application, leave it out.

4. Using third-person language: Your resume personal statement highlights your qualifications, experiences, and skills. Opt to write a resume personal statement in the first person point of view using words like "I," "my," and "me" to provide a more personalized and authentic perspective.

5. Ignoring the job description: Tailoring your personal statement to the specific role is crucial. If you're not aligning your skills and experiences with the requirements mentioned in the job description, you're missing an opportunity to demonstrate how well you fit the role.

Again, this is something that Teal's AI Resume Builder helps you with natively. 

6. Negativity: Your personal statement should reflect positivity and enthusiasm for the role you're applying for and the value you can bring. Avoid mentioning negative experiences or failures unless you can highlight what you learned from them. 

Here's an example of a negative vs. a positive personal statement: 

• Negative : "After a string of unsatisfying jobs and a career path that lacked direction, I'm now looking for an opportunity in a company that values its employees and provides clear career progression."
• Positive : "With a passion for employee engagement and a track record in driving positive workplace culture, I'm eager to bring my experience and enthusiasm to a forward-thinking company that values innovation and employee development."

In the negative example, the focus is on past dissatisfaction, which can give a negative impression to the reader. But the positive example emphasizes enthusiasm, experience, and a clear vision of what the applicant can bring to the role and company. 

It also subtly communicates past success (i.e., a track record in driving positive workplace culture) without explicitly resting on your laurels.

Resume personal statement examples

So now that you know the best practices for crafting a resume personal statement, let's take a look at a few personal statement examples broken down by industry and role level. We'll explore personal statements for job examples in the following fields: 

• Management 

Let's dive right into writing personal statements for sales roles. 

1) Sales roles

Entry-level: "A recent graduate of Business Administration with a passion for sales and demonstrated customer service skills. Earned top sales honors during internship experience and eager to bring my dedication and drive to a dynamic sales team."

• Analysis : This personal statement showcases a recent graduate's passion and early success in sales. It emphasizes their eagerness to contribute to a team and references the valuable experiences that have prepared them for a sales role.

Mid-level: "Sales manager with five years of experience in the retail sector and a record of exceeding sales targets by up to 40%. Proven ability to build relationships and improve customer satisfaction. Seeking to leverage my skills to enhance profitability and growth in a forward-thinking organization."

• Analysis : Here, the candidate highlights their successful sales track record and solid, relevant experience, key selling points for a mid-level position. The candidate also presents their goal, which aligns with the interests of prospective employers.

Senior-level: "Seasoned sales leader with over a decade of experience managing high-performing teams in the tech industry. Expertise in strategic planning, market research, and contract negotiation. Committed to driving revenue growth while fostering a supportive team environment."

• Analysis : As a good personal statement, this example positions the candidate as a seasoned leader with significant industry experience. It emphasizes the candidate's commitment to revenue growth and team development, two critical areas of interest for employers at this level.

Here's a side-by-side comparison of CV personal statements for Sales Managers

2) Marketing roles

Entry-level: "Creative and detail-oriented Marketing graduate with a solid understanding of social media strategies and branding. I have proven skills in project management from internships and campus activities. Seeking to apply my innovative thinking and leadership skills in a dynamic marketing team."

• Analysis : This personal statement example communicates the applicant's foundational marketing knowledge, creativity, and leadership abilities. It hints at a well-rounded candidate with theoretical understanding and some practical experience.

Mid-level: "Results-driven marketing professional with six years of experience in digital marketing. Specialized in SEO and content creation, consistently increasing web traffic by 35%. Looking to leverage my expertise to drive brand growth and visibility in a challenging role."

• Analysis : This statement reflects the individual's experience and accomplishments in the field of digital marketing. The candidate exhibits a clear specialty, proven results, and an ambition to drive growth, which is appealing for a mid-level role.

Senior-level: "Strategic Marketing Director with over 15 years of experience leading cross-functional teams in the FMCG sector. Proven track record in executing successful global marketing campaigns, driving sales growth, and building strong brand identities. Looking to leverage my experience to drive strategic growth in a dynamic organization."

• Analysis : Here, the emphasis is on the senior role's leadership and strategic experience. The candidate effectively highlights their proven success in executing global marketing campaigns and driving growth, which is essential for senior roles.

Read more about writing a strong personal statement as a Marketing Manager

Entry-level: "Organized and empathetic HR graduate with strong employee relations and recruitment knowledge. Successfully implemented a new employee onboarding process during an internship. Excited to apply my people skills in a dynamic HR team."

• Analysis : This statement showcases the candidate's theoretical knowledge and some practical experience in HR, emphasizing their achievements during an internship and their enthusiasm for applying their skills.

Mid-level: "HR professional with five years of experience in benefits administration and talent acquisition. Expert in aligning HR strategies with business goals. Seeking to leverage my people-centric skills to drive employee satisfaction and retention."

• Analysis : The candidate presents their expertise in essential HR functions and their ability to align HR strategies with business goals—key to a mid-level role.

Senior-level: "HR Manager with a decade of experience in creating and implementing HR policies and procedures. Proven ability to enhance organizational performance through implementing effective HR strategies. Eager to drive change management initiatives in a large-scale organization."

• Analysis : This statement highlights extensive experience in HR management, demonstrating the ability to improve organizational performance. This strategic focus is ideal for senior-level roles.

Management roles

Entry-level: "Motivated business graduate with proven leadership skills acquired through student council and team sports involvement. Demonstrated ability in team coordination and project management. Ready to bring my strong decision-making skills to a promising management role."

• Analysis : As a good personal statement this example offers a glimpse of the applicant's leadership and decision-making skills—critical attributes for a management role.

Mid-level: "Experienced manager with a strong record in managing teams of up to 20 in the logistics industry. Excellent problem-solving and communication skills that have been used to turn around underperforming teams. Seeking to leverage my managerial skills in a challenging new role."

• Analysis : This statement presents the candidate's proven managerial and problem-solving skills, making them a strong contender for a mid-level management role.

Senior-level: "Dynamic executive with over 15 years of experience in strategic planning and business development. Proven ability to drive profitability and build strategic partnerships. Seeking to leverage my leadership skills to inspire and drive a successful team."

• Analysis : Here, the focus is on strategic, high-level skills and achievements which are suitable for an executive role.

Entry-level: "IT recent graduate with strong theoretical knowledge in software development and database management. Completed an internship that honed my skills in network solutions. Excited to bring my technical skills to a dynamic IT team."

• Analysis : This statement provides a solid base of IT knowledge with a hint of real-world experience, making it ideal for an entry-level candidate.

Mid-level : "IT specialist with over five years of experience in systems analysis and design, networking, and server management. Proven track record in resolving complex IT issues within tight deadlines. Looking forward to applying my problem-solving skills in a challenging IT environment."

• Analysis : The candidate here showcases their experience and problem-solving skills, two significant selling points for mid-level IT roles.

Senior-level: "IT Director with a decade of experience in managing diverse teams and implementing IT strategies that support business objectives. Expertise in cloud computing and IT infrastructure development. Seeking to leverage my technical and leadership skills in a forward-thinking organization."

• Analysis : The statement effectively displays the candidate's leadership skills, strategic abilities, and technical expertise, fitting for a senior IT role.

Each of these examples of personal statements for resumes should provide you with a framework to create and personalize your own. But if you need some help, there's always AI in your corner.

How to tailor your personal summary with AI 

Thanks to Teal's AI Resume Builder , creating the perfect personal statement has never been easier. Our built-in generative AI provides an excellent starting point, producing a draft tailored to your career level and role in seconds.

However, a personal statement shouldn't be a cookie-cutter paragraph— it needs to be uniquely you . 

Here's how you can make it happen with Teal .

1. Use AI to start: Type in your desired role and let the AI generate a custom draft. This provides a solid base, saving you time in getting started and providing a structure to work with.

2. Implement a SWOT analysis: Recall our advice about self-reflection? Apply that here . Use the SWOT analysis to reflect on your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats related to the desired job role. 

3. Revise the opening: Make the first line count. While AI provides a generic opening, you should edit it to make it more compelling. Remember, your opening line is your 'elevator pitch,' and it needs to stand out.

4. Tailor with keywords: Teal's AI Resume Builder automatically pulls critical keywords from the job description you're targeting, ensuring your personal statement aligns with what the employer is looking for. Just make sure these keywords naturally fit within your personal statement to maintain a coherent narrative.

In short, Teal is the easiest solution for creating personal statements as a unique resume personal profile. To see what you can do with Teal, we've crafted over 3,000 personal statement examples in our CV Samples collection . Take a look.

Final thoughts

Crafting a captivating personal statement on your resume is your golden ticket to making a memorable first impression. It's not just about what you say but how you say it, and that's where the distinction lies between good and great.

And what's even better? You don't have to do it alone. 

The AI Professional Summary feature is here to be your personal writing assistant. Are you ready to let your resume make an impact? 

Give Teal's AI Resume Builder a spin to try out the Professional Summary feature and see how quickly it improves your personal statement. 

Frequently Asked Questions

How can ai enhance the personalization of a resume's personal statement, what are the common pitfalls to avoid when using ai to write a personal statement for a resume, how long should an ai-assisted personal statement for a resume be.

Nathan Thompson

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How to Write a Personal Statement for a Job (with Examples)

Take this one personally

If you need to write a personal statement, here's your guide. We'll cover: 

• What a personal statement is

The 3 essential parts of a personal statement

• Tips for writing a personal statement
• Examples of a personal statement

What is a personal statement? 

A personal statement is a brief description of why you’re qualified for and interested in the job you’re applying for. Your personal statement should tell employers why your training, education, experience, and career goals make you the best fit for the job.

You may include a personal statement at the top of your resume (similar to an objective statement or resume summary ) or the employer may request that you attach a personal statement to your application (though this is not the same thing as a cover letter , which is longer and more detailed).

When writing your personal statement, start by telling the employer who you are as a professional. Maybe you’re a marketing consultant with five years of paid media experience, or maybe you’re a teacher with in-depth knowledge of diverse learning styles and the Montessori method.

2. The what

What skills, abilities, or qualities do you have that would be useful in the position? 

Do you have a relevant degree or hold an industry certification ? Do you have soft skills —like public speaking, mentorship, or adaptability —that are particularly relevant to the role?

Use this section to share why you want the job you’re applying for or why you’re passionate about the industry or the population you will serve in the role. For example, if you’re applying for a social media manager job, you could mention that you enjoy running a platform that helps people stay connected and that you like coming up with new ways to engage online followers.

The why is particularly important for those pursuing a career change or career shift. 

Read ore: How to List Work History on Your Resume

Tips for writing your personal statement

Do use a professional tone. 

Don’t include personal information, like your marital status, ethnicity, or age.  

Do include relevant skills, such as project management or data analysis, or qualities, like collaborative or flexible. 

Don’t use the personal pronoun I if the personal statement appears on your resume. If it is a separate part of your application, you can use the first person I.

Do adhere to word count requirements if the employer stipulates them. Otherwise, keep it brief—roughly three to five sentences (or fifty to sixty words).

Example #1 - Personal statement that does not appear on resume

I’m an experienced copywriter with 10+ years of experience writing quality digital content and adept at conveying the unique tone of a brand across channels. In my previous role, I increased clients’ social media followers from 15K to 30K in less than three months. I’m excited about using my writing, editing, and content management skills to fulfill the senior marketing copywriter position with XYZ Marketing. 

Example #2 - Personal statement that appears on resume

Web developer with wide-ranging knowledge of programming languages, including Java, HTML, Python, and SQL. Proficient in creating, maintaining, and improving user-friendly websites for B2B companies. Able to translate technical language and concepts to non-technical user groups. Eager to bring experience in UX/UI design, testing, and search engine optimization to a forward-thinking startup. 

Example #3 - Personal statement for a career change, does not appear on resume

I’m a tenacious customer service professional who can balance competing tasks while maintaining service quality. I’m empathetic, focused, and detail-oriented, and I’m skilled at training customers on products and services and increasing client adoption. I am seeking a role in product management where I can use my experience in customer service, product use cases, training, and client retention to build tools that drive business. 

Example #4 - Personal statement for a career change, appears on resume

Certified electrician with more than seven years in the field and five years as a manager seeking a role in maintenance project management. Experienced in contract work as well as staff positions with private companies and government agencies. Strong attention to detail that is useful when completing wiring installations, reviewing contracts, and performing quality checks. Prepared to bring a team-oriented approach to your organization.

Read more:  How to Ace a Panel Interview

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How to Write a CV Personal Statement [+4 Real-life Examples]

Creating an effective CV takes time and close attention to detail. You've already included your jobs and experience , and now you want to allow the recruiter or hiring manager to understand the strategic value you can add.

This is when you need to utilize a personal statement at the top of your CV.

How to Write a CV Personal Statement [+4 Real-life Examples] 

What is a Personal Statement? 

A personal statement is a few brief and direct sentences at the top of your CV. The personal statement is also referred to as a career summary or personal mission statement.

This is used to grab the attention of the recruiter or hiring manager and summarizes essential experiences or training that you can bring to this position.

Why do I Need a Personal Statement?

A recruiter or hiring manager is tasked with sorting through an enormous amount of resumes every single day. A personal statement is a way to separate yourself from the other applicants.

This statement summarizes your experience and highlights your unique talents . The CV personal statement is meant to demonstrate why you are the perfect fit for the job. 

Even med students need a medical school personal statement , as it is what differentiates them from all the other students applying. Plus, it allows them to share their personal stories and objectives.

Where do I Start? 

Always begin by reading the job description carefully and thoroughly.

Your personal statement should be tailored to each job description, so it explicitly states the value you’ll bring to the position you are applying. A generic personal statement cannot do that. 

Once you have a solid handle on the job description, you can begin writing. It’s important to keep your personal statement brief, about 50-200 words will do.

Don’t forget that you have your whole cover letter to show some personality and include engaging content.

The personal statement should be a quick summary that highlights why you are the best person for the job. 

You’ll need to decide whether you are writing your personal statement in first- or third-person. This should follow how you've written the rest of your CV.

For example, if you've already written, “I grew and developed a team of 50 salespeople,” in your CV then you will want to keep your personal statement in first-person to match the prevailing style.

No matter what you choose, make sure that you keep it consistent throughout. Do not switch between first- and third-person as that will get confusing to the hiring manager.

Writing a personal statement for your CV in first-person does not mean you need to start every sentence with “I.”

There are ways to craft your personal statement to sound snappy, concise and personal, and here are a few examples to help inspire your personal statement. 

CV Personal Statement Examples

It doesn’t matter what chose as your desired career or how much experienc e you have, use these examples to drive the creation of your own personal statement.

You can take snippets from each or write something completely different. Always remember that your personal statement is a reflection of yourself and should align with your own personal goals and experience.

If these examples don’t fit your exact career, feel free to take some pointers and write yours from scratch. 

#1: Personal Statement Example for Recent Graduate CV

“As a recent graduate from university, with an honors degree in communications, I held several internships within leading organizations, including Bertelsmann. These internships enabled me to gain experience in the field and learn how to serve up valuable contributions in a fast-paced, professional environment.”

Explanation: This example should be customized to include the university you’ve graduated from and any relevant internships. A compelling personal statement always highlights relevant skills and experiences.

In this case, a recent graduate does not have extensive experience in the workforce, so soft skills like experiencing success in a fast-paced work environment and becoming a trusted team member become even more critical.

#2: Personal Statement Example for Returning to the Workforce CV

“A highly motivated and experienced office administrator, I am currently looking to resume my professional career after an extended hiatus to raise my family. Proficient in all Microsoft Office programs, I can lead meetings and work with clients to keep your office running smoothly and efficiently. After spending several years volunteering as an administrative worker for a local charity, I am committed to resuming my professional career on a full-time basis.”

Explanation: After time off from a career, it can be hard to break back into the market. This personal statement outlines the reason for the break, the relevant qualifications and what the applicant has been doing in between jobs.

Any volunteer experience becomes highly relevant when there is no concrete professional experience to draw upon, to demonstrate the use of those skills. 

#3: Personal Statement Example for a Career Change CV

“With over 15 years as a sales manager, I have extensive experience building high-functioning sales teams that consistently achieve budget numbers. In fact, my ability to grow talent led to a 20% increase in annual renewals across the board. Now, after 15 years, I am seeking new challenges to flex my marketing muscles in a fast-paced environment.” 

Explanation: When changing careers , it's essential to highlight skills that are transferable between industries.

In this case, leadership and team-building experience can apply to any industry. Homing in on concrete numbers and percentages increases credibility when applying for a position.

The applicant ends with the reason behind the desired career change. This part is not necessary but may be appealing to some hiring managers who are wondering what the impetus for the career change.

#4: Personal Statement Example for a Experienced Professional CV

“As a friendly, professional and highly trained educator, I am passionate about teaching and have an innate ability to understand student’s needs. Creating a safe and productive environment for optimal learning is my top priority. I’ve worked as a teacher for nearly 10 years in a variety of subjects and my experience and skill set make me the perfect fit for your team.”

Explanation: With more experience comes more skills and a better idea of strengths and weaknesses. Showcasing your passion for the industry is a great way to begin a personal statement, as it shows the hiring manager your dedication to the craft. 

A personal statement can be written in many different ways, but it is ultimately up to you to determine what skills you want to highlight for your chosen position.

You can follow these examples or take learnings from each to contribute towards your personal statement. 

If you understand the job you are applying for and know the unique skill set that you bring to the table, you will have a stellar personal statement for your CV that will get you across the table from the hiring manager in no time.  

Suggested Reading:

• How to Write a CV (Curriculum Vitae) in 2024 [31+ Examples]
• 43+ Resume Tips and Tricks to Land Your Next Job
• 150+ Must-Have Skills for Any Resume  [With Tips + Tricks]
• How to Answer “Tell Me About Yourself”

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How to Write a Resume Personal Statement (with examples)

Published on:

• June 23, 2023

“I’m a recent graduate applying for a new job / changing careers or industry / returning to the workforce after a long break… How am I going to impress a hiring manager or recruiter?

The answer lies in your personal statement on your CV or resume.

Your personal statement should consist of a few short and direct sentences. It appears on top of your resume right after your name and contact information on your resume or CV. Your resume personal statement should be a short summary of why you’re the right fit for the job. Alternatively, it is also known as a career summary or resume profile.

A resume personal statement should be written in the same way as elevator pitches. The objective is to convince the hiring manager that your CV is worth reading while introducing yourself in a concise and clear manner.

CV Personal Statement/Profile: Why It’s Important

Your resume personal statement serves as a quick way to introduce yourself to potential employers. In a short paragraph, they summarize your qualifications and career goals, making it easier for a hiring manager to decide whether you’re fit for the job.

Located at the top of your CV, it’s your chance to really sell yourself to employers and showcase the relevant skills and experience you have.

You can express your career goals and showcase your strengths in a personal statement while proving to recruiters that you’re an ideal candidate for the position.

Essentially, the personal profile gives a few seconds of insight into who you are that should entice employers to look at your CV closely.

The summary serves as a concise introduction to what you can bring to the table, which will help the reader make a decision on whether they would like to proceed with reviewing your resume. Thus, it should be filled with related and concise information–the skills you have acquired and the key contributions you have made over the course of your career.

Do you know that a hiring manager takes only about 6 seconds to glance over a resume before deciding whether or not to read it?

So, it’s crucial for you to summarize in around 50-200 words what you can bring to the table, including who you are, your strongest skills, and accomplishments.

Want to make sure that your resume profile/personal statement will boost your chances of getting job interviews?

Then, remember to tailor your personal statement to the specific job description. It should explicitly demonstrates what value you’ll bring to the job you are applying for. Generic personal statements can’t achieve that.

Also, you must decide if you are writing your personal statement in the first-person or third-person perspective. It should be written in the same way as the rest of your CV and cover letter.

How to Write a Personal Statement for a CV/Resume?

In your CV personal statement or a profile, include the following five factors to give a good first impression to hiring managers:

• Who you are or your professional title
• Your  1–3 top skills
• Your 1–3 best achievements
• Your target company’s name
• Your goals for your new employer (how you hope to contribute to your new employer)

Personal Profile for a CV—Example

“Growth marketing specialist (who you are) with 7 years experience in multichannel digital marketing in the health and beauty industry (your skills). Increased organic social media strategies at Skin Naked leading to a 10% cost savings in ads and a 155% boost in revenue sales for 6 months (achievements). Looking to leverage sustainable growth strategies through social media, content, and email marketing for Sassy Lingerie   (the target company and the goals you hope to achieve).”

How to Write a CV Profile?

Creating a strong CV personal statement might seem challenging at first. Here’s a simple step-by-step strategy that’ll help.

• Identify the most important requirements and responsibilities in the job description.
• Highlight your most relevant skills and achievements on your CV.
• Include all your best and proudest achievements in your personal statement.

Personal profiles might work as both a CV summary and a CV career objective, depending on your level of experience.

It’s best to use a CV summary if you have years of relevant work experience . Give a brief description of your career — highlight your measurable accomplishments and showcase your skills.

When writing an entry-level CV or changing careers, use a CV objective . Explain the skills you’ve learned so far and how well your abilities will fit in. Focus on the value you can offer, make the employer aware that you’re there to help solve their pain points.

Check out some general tips for writing an effective CV personal profile and keep these in mind when applying for a variety of industries and job positions.

1. Keep your personal statement short

Each day, recruiters have hundreds of resumes to review. They won’t bother to read a 4-page resume. Your resume has approximately 6 seconds to impress a hiring manager – so make sure you utilize your space effectively.

When writing a personal statement, how long should it be?

A good rule of thumb is to write a short paragraph of 50 to 200 words. That is usually between 3 and 6 sentences. Be sure to highlight your most relevant accomplishments, but don’t overuse them. Take the time to make every word count on your CV as this will serve as your elevator pitch to sell yourself effectively to potential employers.

2. Add measurements to your achievements

When listing your achievements, show quantitative data if you can. Because employers love to see concrete evidence of your performance, it’s crucial that you show results in numbers and percentages. Whenever possible, include figures to illustrate your contributions to a project.

For your quantitative achievements, consider some of these questions:

• How much money savings did your company make? Ex. 10% early project delivered with 15% cost savings
• Have you increased your sales or revenue? Ex. Achieved $500K monthly recurring revenue consistent in 6 months
• How many colleagues have you trained or supervised on your team? Ex. Trained 7 junior programmers in 2 years.

3. Avoid jargon and CV buzzwords

It is important to utilize keywords from the job description when writing your CV. But avoid using them as jargon or generic buzzwords. You should avoid cliche words such as:

• Go-to person/guy/girl
• Hard-working team player
• Results-driven/detail-oriented
• Thinking outside the box

You can find more generic buzzwords here which will do more harm than good in your resume.

4. Don’t mix the grammatical person

If you’re writing your CV in the UK, it’s OK to write in either the first or third person. However, you can’t do both at once. Additionally, career experts recommend removing the pronouns completely.

CV Personal Statement/Personal Profile Examples for Different Professions

In the following examples, you’ll find samples for a variety of professions. Our CV personal statements are sorted into two categories: CV personal statements for experienced candidates and CV profiles for entry-level candidates or those without experience.

CV Personal Statements for Experienced Candidates

Example #1 – Copywriter CV Personal Statement

“A conversion-focused direct response copywriter and editor with 5+ experience in the health supplements space. Wrote a sales page for Free Your Gut that accumulated $1.8M in revenue sales for 3 months with conversion rates of 65%. Interested in expanding direct response copywriting expertise for a consultancy and media buyer position at Goodlife Naturals Inc.”

Example #2 – Marketing Specialist CV Personal Statement 

“Maryland-based growth marketing specialist, with 7+ years of experience converting users at a 53% rate for a local mobile carrier and increased sales by 66% in 12 months. Seeking to leverage leadership excellence and marketing skills to raise ROI and lead-generation efficiency for Talk Mobile.”

Note: The sample includes skills and accomplishments and measures them to prove them. Furthermore, it clearly states its value proposition or offer.

Example #3 – Accounting Clerk CV Personal Statement

“Highly-trained, efficient accounting clerk with 6 years experience in providing quality, error-free accounting and clerical support. Reduced reconciliation discrepancies by 55% by using QuickBooks effectively. Technically adept with modern accounting applications software to streamline processes. Ensured biweekly payroll and benefits of 350+ employees. Organizes and plans effectively so that key responsibilities can be completed within strict deadlines. Seeking to provide my accounting skills at AccountPro Corporation.”

Example #4 – Software Architect/Engineer CV Profile Examples

“Highly-motivated and detail-oriented software architect/engineer with 10+ years experience in tech space. Managed and trained a small group of 7 coders at Transferly Systems. Delivered projects 10% ahead of schedule with 15% fewer errors than any other team. Would like to work for KingSumo as a developer with strong programming skills. ”

“Computer science specialist with solid experience in Ruby, Oracle, C++, Java, and C#. A versatile software developer with experience in a wide range of projects. I am looking to join a fast-paced fintech/SaaS company.”

Tips: You should not list all your professional skills in your CV personal statement. Focus on what is important when you write. Provide examples of your expertise to validate your claims.

See some more samples:

Example #5 – Graphic Designer CV Personal Statement

“Creative graphic designer with 5+ years of experience. Seeks to use excellent time management, graphics design, and curation skills to lower project time at Tiny Steps Inc. Developed and curated over 200+ graphics projects which increased website traffic by 45%, conversion rate by 55% within 18 months for Moore Gears Corp.”

Example #6 – Civil Engineer CV Profile

“A seasoned civil engineer with eight years’ experience in project management and construction. With a proven track record of safety on construction sites. Completed project 21 days ahead of schedule at a cost saving of 17% with 0% incident on site. Leveraging safety, leadership, and project management skills handling 500+ workers and subcon Looking for a civil engineering job position in MegaCon Contracting Services Inc. to provide safety assurance during project execution.”

Not a fan of the plain paragraph style? Bullet points also work well in your CV personal statement. See the below sample:

Example #7 – Office Manager CV Profile

• A reliable and highly efficient office manager with more than five years of experience at a large corporation.
• Appointed an executive secretary position in under 2 years.
• Increased office productivity by 15% by introducing a time management system.
• Seeking excellent project management and organization skills to help Hogan & Paul’s Inc. reduce office administration costs.

We understand if you felt overwhelmed by the CV personal statement samples above. You can still effectively sell yourself in a CV profile even if you lack a great deal of work experience. Take a look at these examples:

Personal Statement Examples for CV with No Experience

Example #8 – Recent Graduate CV Personal Statement

“Highly-motivated B.A. Marketing graduate from Glendale University seeking a position as a PR assistant at MindView Corp. Leveraging on excellent data-analysis and creative storytelling techniques to create compelling and hyper-targeted marketing campaigns tailored to MindView customers.”

Case in point, you want to convey you’ve learned a lot already and you have what it takes to help their organization or company.

Example #9 – Graduating Student CV Personal Statement/Objective

My career goal is to join the Department of Marine Biology at Hawaii State University after graduating from California University with a degree in marine biology. Utilizing the skills I gained from volunteering at California University to maintain the university’s research databases and library in order to ensure students have easy access to them.”

“I’m  an enthusiastic and passionate senior year student of marine biotechnology. I’m  interested in joining a research team to gain experience in research, especially in collecting, dissecting, and analyzing clinical samples’ data.”

Note: The incorrect sample does not specify a position. Employers instantly see that as a red flag. This indicates that the job seeker is probably emailing the same CV to every company within 30 miles of home.

Example #10 – Graduating Student CV Personal Statement

“I am a recent Johnson University graduate with an honors degree in broadcast journalism with internships at ABC TV3 Corporation for 1 year.  My internship allowed me to realize invaluable experience in the broadcast industry and hone my skills to contribute to fast-paced, professional environment .”

Note: It is important to highlight relevant skills and experiences in your personal statement. Recent graduates lack practical experience in the workforce, so interpersonal and soft skills like being successful and a trusted team member are critical.

Example#11 – Junior Business Analyst CV Personal Profile

“With 5+ years as a finance & security analyst, currently seeking a role at ThriveSpot to make actionable insights on financial metrics. Created business reports for OmniSpring to grow employee understanding of key concepts by 19%. Helped create a slide presentation of SWOT analysis, which was turned into a webinar with 2,700+ views.”

Tip: It’s absolutely okay to mention impressive achievements in your CV personal statement even if you were just a mere part of the team.

Example#12 – Medical Assistant CV Personal Statement

“An efficient and passionate health care provider/medical assistant who has enjoyed volunteering and support for 55+ seniors in elderly care facility. Seeking to help CradleCare maintain and improve the company’s industry-leading patient satisfaction level through quality and dedicated health services.”

Example #13 – Personal Statement for a Career Change CV

“With 10+ years extensive experience as a sales manager building high-functioning sales teams that consistently achieve budget figures. Led a 20% increase in annual renewals across the board with the growth of the sales team’s talents. Seeking to further develop my sales skills after 10 years by taking on new challenges and opportunities in SaaS/Fintech.” 

Example #14 – Returning to the Workforce Personal Statement 

An accomplished and highly motivated office administrator, I seek a new career opportunity after taking time off to raise my family. Successfully conducted meetings and coordinated client projects to keep the office running smoothly and efficiently using Microsoft Office, Project Management, and communication software. After volunteering for a local charity for several years, I am now committed to returning to work full-time.”

In some cases, re-entering the workforce after a break can be difficult. In this statement, the candidate explains why they took a break from work, their qualifications, and what they did during that time. Moreover, whenever someone lacks professional experience during the hiatus, the candidate can use the skills they learned as a volunteer so it becomes highly relevant.

Marissa Letendre, SPHR, SHRM-SCP

Marissa Letendre is a senior HR leader and resume expert with over 12 years of experience. She has worked for both startups and Fortune 50 corporations and has helped thousands land jobs at top companies. Marissa has written on a wide range of topics, including employee engagement, career development, resumes, job searching, recruiting, and organizational effectiveness and has been featured on sites such as Slack and The Undercover Recruiter.

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How To Write A Personal Statement For Your Resume (With Examples).

You need to write a personal statement for your resume and are looking for examples.

You could make it easy for yourself and hire a professional resume writer such as myself .

But maybe your budget is limited – or maybe you don’t feel that hiring a professional resume writer is worth it ( Are Professional Resume Writers Worth The Cost? ).

Either way, no problems.

You’ve Come to the Right place.

The best way to write an eyeball-grabbing personal statement for your resume is by knowing what NOT to do.

I’m about to show you some examples of very underwhelming, yet typical personal statements. I will then explain what makes them so average – so that you don’t make the same mistakes when you write your own.

If you follow my advice, you’ll end up with a killer killer personal statement for your resume that will position you as the winning candidate in front of potential employers.

But before I get stuck into it, let me give you a quick heads-up. What I’m about to tell you will help you write a much more persuasive resume.

Brand Yourself.

The personal statement sets the foundation of your personal brand .

The idea of a professional or personal brand isn’t new. The term was first coined by business management consultant Tom Peters back in his 1997 essay The Brand Called You .

In it, Peters claimed that:

“You’re not defined by your job title and you’re not confined by your job description…You’re every bit as much a brand as Nike, Coke, Pepsi, or the Body Shop.”

What Peters described was a ‘value proposition’. You can begin to discover what yours is by asking yourself the following three questions:

• What makes you  uniquely attractive to employers ?
• What makes you uniquely different from the next similarly qualified candidate?
• And, most importantly, what organisational problems can you solve that no-one else can ?

Answering these three questions in your personal statement is your number one priority. To keep you on track, remember JFK’s famous inaugural quote:

“Ask not what your employer can do for you; ask what you can do for your employer.”

Example of a bad personal statement #1:

Let’s perform an autopsy of a personal statement taken from a typical run-of-the-mill resume that I found online.

Can you spot any problems with it – before I shine a light on them?

This example makes the wrong first impression with “Results-orientated…”.

Generic phrasing is a real snooze for recruiters . They look through dozens of resumes per day and most kick off with some variation of this line.

The second sentence in the above example starts well with an attempt to identify a skill that solves a problem and delivers an outcome:

“Possessing a track record helping to optimise operational processes whilst maximising profit…”

But then ends in a way that doesn’t make much sense:

“…within a challenging fast paced environment requiring high degree of communication, flair and the ability to meet tight deadlines.”

A personal statement for a resume needs to be snappy. A sentence should take up no more than 2 lines, have no more than 2 clauses or related to more than one core competency.

Snappy sentences bring impact. In the above for example, the writer could have made his/her point with much more impact by saying:

“I possess a track record of optimising operational processes whilst maximizing profit.”

What’s an objective?

It’s the once-popular resume item which now firmly belongs in the dustbin of history. You see it in the example above as part of this sentence:

“Seeks a challenging and varied position…”

Truth is, your objective is implied in the act of submitting your job application. By reiterating it on your resume you waste valuable real estate – and squander an opportunity to sell yourself.

Recruiters want to know how you can solve their problems, not how they can solve yours.

Example of a bad personal statement #2:

Let’s dissect another example of a personal statement. This one will teach us a few different lessons:

“Market strategy analist…”

This example shows us the typical shotgun approach – cramming all areas of experience in to cover the bases:

“…cross functional expertise in business and financial analysis, accounting, marketing and new business development…”

Serial entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk wisely told us: “ No matter what you do, your job is to tell your story”.

Great stories have structure, cohesion and flow – and so should the personal statement on your resume.

It needs to paint a clear and coherent picture of your expertise and value proposition, so avoid standalone sentences like the one in the above example:

“Proven history of improving operations and increasing profitability. Ability to talk and conduct business in French and Spanish languages…Excellent interpersonal and analytical skills.”

As personal statement examples go, the one isn’t ‘bad’ – but it is boring.

Whilst we get a good overview of skills and experience (albeit in a somewhat clumsy manner), it fails to tell us anything ‘personal’.

Research shows that more than ever, employers are recruiting for culture fit .

A personal statement for a resume should be an introduction to your brand – in your voice.

Absence of all pronouns (as we see in the example above), creates an impersonal, distant resume. Give your recruiters a voice that they can connect with by writing your personal statement in the first voice.

For example:

“I am a professional, committed and ambitious Chartered Internal Auditor with more than 20 years’ experience…”

The difference is subtle, but noticeable, isn’t it?

My Final Piece of Advice.

As you continue your research on how to write a personal statement for a resume, it’s important that you know a lot of the ‘advice’ out there is poor. Consistent, but poor.

Most of the guidance on writing a personal statement for a resume is dated. So-called ‘gurus’ will tell you to describe your best assets, focus on your strengths and highlight your accomplishments.

This approach might have worked 10 years ago.

To win in today’s job market, you need to focus on how your best assets, strengths and accomplishments solve organizational problems.

This is the core of your personal brand.

To find out more about my approach, you can read my interview with the Huffington Post – Building A Personal Branding Company .

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CV personal statement examples

If you want to secure job interview, you need a strong personal statement at the top of your CV.

Your CV personal statement is a short paragraph which sits at the very top of your CV – and it’s aim is to summarise the benefits of hiring you and encourage employers to read your CV in full.

In this guide I have included 17 CV personal statement examples from a range of professions and experience levels, plus a detailed guide of how to write your own personal statement that will get you noticed by employers

CV templates 

17 CV personal statement examples

To start this guide, I have included 10 examples of good personal statements, to give you an idea of how a personal statement should look , and what should be included.

Note: personal statements are generally used by junior candidates – if you are experienced, check out our CV profile examples instead.

Graduate CV personal statement (no experience)

Although this  graduate has no paid work experience, they compensate for it by showcasing all of the skills and knowledge the have gained during their studies, and demonstrating how they apply their knowledge in academic and personal projects.

When you have little or no experience, it’s important to draw out transferable workplace skills from your studies and extracurricular work, to showcase them to employers.

Graduate CV personal statement (part time freelance experience)

This candidate has graduated with a degree in biochemistry but actually wants to start a career in digital marketing after providing some digital freelance services to fund their studies.

In this case, they haven’t made much mention of their studies because they aren’t relevant to the digital marketing agencies they are applying to. Instead they have focused their personal statement around their freelance work and passion for the digital field – although they still mention the fact they are degree educated to prove their academic success.

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School leaver CV personal statement (no experience)

This candidate is 16 years old and has no work experience whatsoever, but they compensate for this by detailing their academic achievements that relate to the roles they are applying for (maths and literacy are important requirements in finance and accountancy roles).

They also add some info on their extracurricular activities and school work-placements, to strengthen this student CV further.

    Top tips for writing a CV personal statement

• Thoroughly research the jobs and companies you are planning to apply for to identify the type of candidate they are looking for – try to reflect that in your personal statement
• Don’t be afraid to brag a little – include some of your most impressive achievements from education, work or personal life
• Focus on describing the benefits an employer will get from hiring you. Will you help them to get more customers? Improve their workplace? Save them time and money?
• If you have no work experience, demonstrate transferable workplace skills from your education, projects, or even hobbies

School leaver CV personal statement (part time experience)

Although this person has only just left school, they have also undertaken some part-time work in a call centre alongside their studies.

To make the most of this experience, they have combined their academic achievements with their workplace exposure in this personal statement.

By highlighting their GCSE results, summer programme involvement, work experience and expressing their ambitions to progress within sales, this candidate really makes an appealing case for hiring them.

College leaver CV personal statement (no experience)

This candidate has left college with good grades, but does not yet have any work experience.

To compensate for the lack of workplace exposure, they have made their A level results prominent and highlighted skills and experience which would benefit the employers they are targeting.

Any recruiter reading this profile can quickly understand that this candidate has great academic achievements, a passion for IT and finance and the ability to transfer their skills into an office environment.

College student CV personal statement (freelance experience)

As this student has picked up a small amount of freelance writing work during their studies, they have made sure to brag about it in their personal statement.

They give details on their relevant A level studies to show the skills they are learning, and boost this further by highlighting the fact that they have been applying these skills in a real-life work setting by providing freelance services.

They also include key action verbs that recruiters will be looking for , such as creative writing, working to deadlines, and producing copy.

Academic CV personal statement

Aside from junior candidates, the only other people who might use a personal statement, are academic professionals; as their CV’s tend to be more longer and detailed than other professions.

This candidate provides a high level overview of their field of study, length of experience, and the roles they have held within universities.

School leaver CV personal statement with and sports experience

Although this person has no work experience, they are still able to show employers the value of hiring them by selling their other achievements and explaining how they could benefit an organisation.

They expand on their sports club involvement to demonstrate their teamwork, leadership skills, communication and motivation, which are all important traits in the workplace, and will be looked upon favourably by recruiters and hiring managers.

They also draw upon their future plans to study business studies and take a part time job, to further prove their ambition and dedication.

History graduate CV personal statement

This history graduate proves their aptitude for both academic achievement and workplace aptitude by showcasing valuable skills from their degree and voluntary work.

They do this by breaking down the key requirements for each and showing how their skills could be beneficial for future employers, such as listening, communication, and crisis management.

They also describe how their ability to balance studies alongside voluntary work has not only boosted their knowledge and skills, but also given excellent time management and organisational skills – which are vital assets to any employer.

Law graduate CV personal statement

This legal graduate makes the most from their work university work placements by using it to bulk out the contents of their CV personal statement.

They include their degree to show they have the necessary qualifications for legal roles, which is crucial, but more importantly, they showcase how they applied their legal skills within a real-life work setting.

They give a brief overview of the types of legal professionals they have been working alongside and the type of work they have been carrying out – this is all it takes to get the attention of recruiters and show employers they have what it takes to fulfil roles in the legal sector.

Medical student CV personal statement

This medical student proves their fit for the role by showcasing the key skills they have gained from their studies and their work experience placements.

In just these few sentences, they are able to highlight the vast amount of experience they have across different disciplines in the industry, something which is particularly important in the medical sector.

As they have not graduated yet and are still studying, they have provided proof of their most recent grades. This can give the recruiter some indication as to the type of grade they could be graduating with in the near future.

Masters student CV personal statement

This masters student has started by specifying their area of study, in this case, accounting, and given details about the specific areas of finance they are most interested in. This can hint towards their career goals and passions.

They have then carefully listed some of the key areas of accounting and finance that they are proficient in. For example, business finance, advanced corporate finance and statistics.

They have also outlined some of the transferable skills needed for accounting roles that employers will be looking out for, such as communication, attention to detail and analytical skills.

Finance student CV personal statement

As this finance student has recently undertaken some relevant work experience, they’ve made sure to shout about this in their personal profile.

But more than this, they have included a list of some of the important finance skills they gained as a result of this work experience – for example, financial reporting, processing invoices and month-end reconciliations.

Plus, through power words and phrases such as ‘prevent loss’ and ‘ improve upon accuracy and efficiency’, they have also showcased how they can apply these skills in a workplace setting to benefit the potential employer.

Internship  CV personal statement

This digital marketing professional has started their personal profile by outlining their most relevant qualifications and work experience, most notably their freelance role as a content manager.

They have also provided examples of some of the key marketing skills that potential employers might be looking for, including very detailed examples of the platforms and tools they are proficient in – for example, LinkedIn, Twitter and Pinterest.

They have then closed their statement by giving a detailed description of the type of role or opportunity they are looking for. In this case, an in-house position in a marketing company.

Graduate career changer personal statement

Switching careers as a graduate can be tough. Especially when it comes to writing a personal statement that will attract employers in your new chosen field.

This candidate is looking to move from history teaching into journalism, so they have created a statement which briefly mentions their current workplace, but mainly focuses on highlighting transferable skills which are relevant to journalism. They achieve this by discussing the writing skills they use in their current role, and mentioning their hobby of writing – including some publications they have been featured in for extra brownie points.

Business management graduate personal statement

This business management proves their ability to work within a junior business management position by swiftly highlighting their impressive degree (to ensure it is not missed) and summarising some of the real-life experience they have gained in management during their university placements and volunteering. They do not let their lack of paid work experience, stop them demonstrating their valuable skills.

PhD graduate

PhD graduate roles attract a lot of competition, so it’s important that your CV contains a personal statement that will quickly impress and attract recruiters.

This candidate provides a short-but-comprehensive overview of their academic achievements, whilst demonstrating their exceptional level of knowledge in research, languages and publication writing.

By highlighting a number of skills and abilities that are in high-demand in the academic workplace, this CV is very likely to get noticed and land interviews.

How to write a personal statement for your CV

Now that you’ve seen what a personal statement should look like and the type of content it should contain, follow this detailed guide to one for your own CV – and start racking those interviews up.

Guide contents

What is a CV personal statement?

Cv personal statement or cv profile, personal statement format, what to include in a cv personal statement.

• Personal statement mistakes

How to write persuasively

A personal statement is a short paragraph at the top of your CV which gives employers an overview of your education, skills and experience

It’s purpose is to capture the attention of busy recruiters and hiring managers when your CV is first opened – encouraging them to read the rest of it.

You achieve this by writing a tailored summary of yourself that explains your suitability for the roles you are applying for at a very high level, and matches your target job descriptions .

One question candidates often ask me is , “what is the difference between a personal statement and a CV profile?”

To be honest, they are almost the same – they are both introductory paragraphs that sit at the top of your CV… but there are 2 main differences

A personal statement tends to be used more by junior candidates (graduates, school leavers etc.) and is relatively long and detailed.

A CV profile tends to be favoured by more experienced candidates , and is shorter in length than a personal statement.

Note: If you are an experienced candidate, you may want to switch over to my CV profile writing guide , or example CV profiles page.

To ensure you grab recruiters’ attention with your personal statement, lay it out in the following way.

Positioning

You need to ensure that your personal statement sits at the very top of your CV, and all of it should be totally visible to readers, without the need to scroll down the page.

Do this by reducing the top page margin and minimising the space taken up by your contact details.

This will ensure that your whole personal statement can be seen, as soon as your CV is opened.

We have a Word CV template which can help you to get this right.

Size/length

Your personal statement needs to contain enough detail to provide an introduction to your skills and knowledge, but not so much detail that it bores readers.

To strike the right balance, anything between 8-15 lines of text is perfect – and sentences should be sharp and to-the-point.

As with the whole of your CV or resume , your personal statement should be written in a simple clean font at around size 10-12 to ensure that it can be read easily by all recruiters and employers.

Keep the text colour simple , ensuring that it contrasts the background (black on white is best) and break it into 2 or even 3 paragraphs for a pleasant reading experience.

It should also be written in a punchy persuasive tone, to help you sell yourself and increase your chances of landing interviews , I cover how to do this in detail further down the guide.

Quick tip: A poorly written CV will fail to impress recruiters and employers. Use our quick-and-easy CV Builder to create a winning CV in minutes with professional CV templates and pre-written content for every industry.

Once you have the style and format of your personal statement perfected, you need to fill it with compelling content that tells recruiters that your CV is worth reading.

Here’s what needs to go into your personal statement…

Before you start writing your personal statement, it’s crucial that you research your target roles to find out exactly what your new potential employers are looking for in a candidate.

Run a search for your target jobs on one of the major job websites , look through plenty of adverts and make a list of the candidate requirements that frequently appear.

This research will show you exactly what to include in your personal statement in order to impress the recruiters who will be reading it.

Education and qualifications are an important aspect of your personal statement, especially if you are a junior candidate.

You should highlight your highest and most relevant qualifications, whether that is a degree, A levels or GCSEs. You could potentially go into some more detail around modules, papers etc. if they are relevant to the roles you are applying for.

It’s important that you discuss the experience you have gained in your personal statement, to give readers an idea of the work you are comfortable undertaking.

This can of course be direct employed work experience, but it doesn’t have to be.

You can also include:

• School/college Uni work placements
• Voluntary work
• Personal projects
• Hobbies/interests

As with all aspects of your CV , the content should be tailored to match the requirements of your target roles.

Whilst discussing your experience, you should touch upon skills used, industries worked in, types of companies worked for, and people you have worked with.

Where possible, try to show the impact your actions have made. E.g . A customer service agent helps to make sales for their employer.

Any industry-specific knowledge you have that will be useful to your new potential employers should be made prominent within your personal statement.

For example

• Knowledge of financial regulations will be important for accountancy roles
• Knowledge of IT operating systems will be important for IT roles
• Knowledge of the national curriculum will be important for teachers

You should also include some information about the types of roles you are applying for, and why you are doing so. Try to show your interest and passion for the field you are hoping to enter, because employers want to hire people who have genuine motivation and drive in their work.

This is especially true if you don’t have much work experience, as you need something else to compensate for it.

CV personal statement mistakes

The things that you omit from your personal statement can be just as important as the things you include.

Try to keep the following out of your personal statement..

Irrelevant info

Any information that doesn’t fall into the requirements of your target roles can be cut out of your personal statement. For example, if you were a professional athlete 6 years ago, that’s great – but it won’t be relevant if you’re applying to advertising internships, so leave it out.

Generic clichés

If you are describing yourself as a “ dynamic team player with high levels of motivation and enthusiasm” you aren’t doing yourself any favours.

These cliché terms are vastly overused and don’t provide readers with any factual details about you – so keep them to a minimum.

Stick to solid facts like education, skills , experience, achievements and knowledge.

If you really want to ensure that your personal statement makes a big impact, you need to write in a persuasive manner.

So, how do you so this?

Well, you need to brag a little – but not too much

It’s about selling yourself and appearing confident, without overstepping the mark and appearing arrogant.

For example, instead of writing.

“Marketing graduate with an interest in entering the digital field”

Be creative and excite the reader by livening the sentence up like this,

“Marketing graduate with highest exam results in class and a passion for embarking on a long and successful career within digital”

The second sentence is a much more interesting, makes the candidate appear more confident, throws in some achievements, and shows off a wider range of writing skills.

Quick tip: A poorly written CV will fail to impress recruiters and employers. Use our quick-and-easy CV Builder to create a winning CV in minutes with professional templates and pre-written content for every industry.

Your own personal statement will be totally unique to yourself, but by using the above guidelines you will be able to create one which shows recruiters everything they need.

Remember to keep the length between 10-20 lines and only include the most relevant information for your target roles.

You can also check our school leaver CV example , our best CV templates , or our library of example CVs from all industries.

Good luck with the job hunt!

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CV Personal Statement:  Examples and Actionable Tips

Fact: recruiters spend only 6 seconds reviewing each CV. So poorly organized CVs inevitably get discarded. 

Having an effective CV layout is the first step to attracting their attention. And the second step is topping that CV with a compelling personal statement (also known as a personal profile, personal summary, or executive summary).

What is a Personal Statement in a CV? 

A personal statement for a CV is a short and compelling paragraph that summarizes why you’re the most qualified person for the offered role. It tells the reader who you are and what valuable qualifications you will be bringing to their company.

NB : Opening statement, personal profile, personal summary, or executive summary are the other common names for a personal statement. 

Many believe that the work experience section is the most important element of a CV. Yet, it is your personal statement that can end up making or breaking the success of your job application. 

Because it provides the reader with a quick answer to one question they have on their mind: Are you qualified for the job or not? 

Remember: You’ll be directly competing with numerous other applicants with similar skills and work experiences. A compelling CV statement sets you apart by giving the reader a condensed snapshot of who you are as a person. 

Do I Need To Include a Personal Statement On My CV?

The short answer is YES! A personal statement entices the reader to read your entire CV by giving them a preview of your most valuable skills. It also helps you differentiate from other candidates by explaining your background, motivation, and personal character traits concisely. 

In essence, a personal statement helps you express why you are the right choice for the job in one condensed paragraph.

Where Should a Personal Statement Go in a CV?

A personal statement goes into the header area of your CV. Include it right under your name and contact details as a separate, highlighted area. A good personal statement is about 3-4 sentences long and occupies not more than 1/4th of the page. 

Alternatively, you can design a two-column CV and allocate the upper sidebar area for your personal statement. As a recent survey found, 77% of recruiters prefer two-column CVs to single-column ones.

Sample personal statement placement on a CV template

What Do You Write in a CV Personal Statement?

A compelling personal statement summarizes your professional and educational background; highlights the main skills and accomplishments. It can also express your career objectives and/or interest in the particular industry or subject if you’re a current student or recent graduate.  

Personal Statement Examples for CV 

To give you an idea of how to write your statement, let’s look at some examples.

Remember: You need to write a unique personal statement for your CV. Simply copying and using these examples may not be the best move because the sample CV statements won’t reflect your unique experiences and personality. 

Good CV Personal Statement Examples

Employers want to see experts. Therefore, your personal statement must speak directly to your most marketable skills. 

You should never come off sounding desperate or diminish your worth (even if you have been recently laid off ). Use a confident tone with first-person implied and strong verbs to describe your core competencies and other benefits you can bring to the workplace. 

General Jobseeker Personal Statement Example

Highly motivated, fully trained engineer with 15 years of experience in the telecoms industry. Worked with XYZ Telecoms Ltd, Cool Mobile Carrier, and Acme Telco as a field engineer and project team leader. Successfully managed large commercial telecom infrastructure installations. Currently unemployed due to the relocation of the company. Open to new opportunities in NOC. 

Personal Statement CV Example For an Administration Position 

Adaptable and resourceful facilities manager with experience in supporting enterprise-sized organizations in real estate, pharmaceuticals, and manufacturing industries. Strong organizational skillset: Six Sigma, standardized method of procedure (MOP) policies implementation. Was responsible for facilities operations on 2.4 million square feet in a 20-building chemical manufacturing campus, serviced by a 20+ people team of building engineers, electricians, HVAC technicians, and cleaners.

Accountant Personal Statement CV Examples

Below are two samples for a senior and a junior accountant. 

Chartered Accountant 

ACCA-certified accountant for mid-market and enterprise-sized companies. Conducted due diligence and tax audits for FTSE 500 companies. Commenced for a 100% accuracy track record in financial reporting, as well as fast turnaround on complex analytical reviews. Provide on-demand advisory on trust setup, company incorporation, and tax deferrals. 

Account Assistant 

Detail-oriented, certified accounting assistant with experience in payroll administration. Familiar with Gusto, Xero, and Intuit software. Effectively process payroll, benefits, taxes, and social contributions for over 1500 employees per month. Possess a strong foundation in employee classification,  tax reporting, and financial management. 

CV Personal Statement Examples for Students

Whether you’re applying for an internship or looking for a part-time job , a compelling personal is a must-have for a student CV. 

Since your work experience history may be a bit “thin”, you need to persuade the employer via other means — your transferable skills, academic interests, and personal traits. A personal CV allows you to spotlight all of these. 

Remember that you are bringing your energy, dedication, enthusiasm, and willingness to learn to the table. As you will not have any employment history, you need to make sure to get your personality and your soft skills over in your statement.

CV Statement for a Student Looking for a Full-Time Summer Job 

Junior copywriter, enrolled in a BA Writing Program at the University of Manchester (graduation date: fall 2025). Alumni of the 2022 Copywriting Bootcamp program from Matters Agency. Well-versed in target audience analysis, brand positioning, and editorial campaign planning. Writing clips for eCommerce and SaaS brands are available in my portfolio.  

CV Statement for an Internship 

Second-year mechanical engineering student at the University of Leeds, seeking to apply theoretical knowledge in safety system design. Proficient in AutoCAD and completed a series of blueprints for fire and water safety systems as part of my coursework. Fast learner, self-starter, and team player, I’m excited to contribute my technical expertise to a dynamic engineering team.

CV Statement for a Student Looking for a Part-Time Job 

Junior front-end developer (React, Angular JS), seeking a part-time programming position in the Great London area. Current availability is 10-15 hours per week, preferably with hybrid work arrangements. Solid understanding of design systems and UX/UI best practices. Past work experience in finance and eCommerce sectors. 

CV Personal Statement Examples for 16-Year-Olds

Joining the workforce straight after high school makes sense if you want to take a gap year or pursue trade education later on. The wrinkle, however, is that most employers may be wary of your age and lack of experience.

The goal of a personal statement is to dispel those doubts by showing that you’re a serious, mature, and hard-working candidate, eager to learn and hone your craft. 

Personal Statement for a Barista Position 

Genuine coffee lover and frequent guest at Maddie’s Cafe, I would love to join the barista team. As a former head of the prom planning committee, I understand the importance of good teamwork, efficient planning, and following instructions. My main objectives are to learn more about beverage prep and deliver exceptional experiences to customers. 

CV Personal Statement Examples For A Graduate

Your personal statement should focus on your main educational attainments and experiences. If you are applying before you have had your degree results, it is fine to give a projected grade. You can also mention any specific modules you have studied that are relevant to the job on offer and how much you enjoyed working on them.

Remember: Your goal is to explain why you’re interested in this role and what you could bring to the table. 

Graduate Personal Statement Example

Business administration graduate with a 1:1 honors degree from XYZ University. Interested in an entry-level merchandising position within your Commercial Sales Department to expand my knowledge in retail merchandising, procurement, and inventory management. Looking to apply my analytical and data modeling skills for merchandising strategy optimization. 

Personal Statement for High School Graduate 

Energetic and enthusiastic high school graduate (June 2023) with top A-levels grades in English, Maths, and French. Seeking an entry-level role in sales, where I can make use of and develop my language skills. My long-term career goal is to further my language qualifications and position myself as a European sales manager living and working overseas for a global company.

Personal Statement Examples for CV With No Experience

Lack of experience in a particular role or industry should never discourage you from applying. Although you may not tick all the criteria boxes, you still have transferable skills and unique work experiences to showcase.

Moreover, ongoing talent shortages are prompting employees to reconsider their hiring criteria, plus invest more in new hire training and upskilling. Four in five companies now struggle to fill in open vacancies, which is the highest number in the past 17 years. 

So take your chances and apply even if you don’t have sufficient work experience. 

Personal Statement Example with No Relevant Work Experience 

Former front-desk hotel employee, looking for an opportunity to leverage strong service orientation and organizational skills in new roles (Customer Success or Customer Support). Familiarity with appointment booking software, digital chat apps, and CRM software. With my strong commitment to personal growth and my adaptable nature, I believe I could be a valuable asset to customer-centric teams.  

Personal Statement Example with No Industry Experience 

Self-starter with a BA degree in Communication and experience in corporate event management seeking a transition to music festival management. Experienced in organizing off-site events for 100+ people (including location scouting and travel coordination). I thrive in fast-paced environments and am eager to build a strong network of new partners. 

Discover even more personal statements from our collection of CV examples . 

CV Personal Statement For A Career Change

Career change is a big decision, but it can lead to a more fulfilling professional life. Besides, you’re not completely starting anew. Many of the hard and soft skills are quite universal. There is any number of different jobs that need the same set of skills that you have developed, so always try to lead with these and use real-life examples of your experience.

Career Change Personal Statement Example:

Working for the past 10 years as a regional sales manager has allowed me to develop keen skills in building strong working relationships and lucrative networks. Communication skills I developed during my time at my current employer enabled me to win vital contract wins that increased sales revenue by 20% over three years. I am now ready to take on a new challenge and want to work in the charity sector so that I can use my skills to give something back for the direct benefit of others.

How To Write A Strong Personal Statement for a CV 

An effective personal statement summarizes your skills and experience in a relevant way i.e., it indicates how you can be of help to the employer. 

In short, a compelling CV personal statement: 

• Lists your most marketable skills and qualifications 
• Highlights your industry knowledge and work experiences 
• Mirrors some of the key phrases, used in the job description 

And here’s how to write a personal statement that makes a mark.

1. Review the Job Description Once Again 

As you go through the role description, pay attention to the words, used by the employer, to describe the candidate’s requirements, duties, and personality. Keep those in the back of your head. 

These are the keywords you’d want to use all around your CV — in the personal statement, work experience, education, and skills areas. 

2. Do a Mental Tally of Your Skills 

Try to remember the times in your previous work roles when you accomplished notable objectives, went above and beyond expectations , or otherwise did better than your peers.  

Note down everything that springs to mind including your years of experience in a similar role, challenges you took on and the positive results achieved, new projects you kick-started – anything that has close relevance to this new position.

3. Make a Draft Personal Statement 

Write down a sample personal statement. Don’t worry about the length – just put as many details as you’d like on paper. Once you’re done, revisit the job description. See how your personal statement compares to the description. Does it paint a picture of someone who would fit the role? 

4. Edit for Clarity and Briefity 

A good CV personal statement shouldn’t be longer than 3-4 sentences. Take a critical look at your draft version and condense it to the bare essentials: 2-3 main skills, a major accomplishment, and a note on your motivation and/or personal traits. 

Other things that don’t belong in your personal statement are:

• Explanation of employment gaps or present unemployment status 
• Information about hobbies or personal interest 
• Any mention of references or recommendations 
• Irrelevant skills or work experiences 

Want to stand out even more? Add a persuasive opening statement that highlights your strengths as a candidate. 

A compelling personal statement can be the key between your CV making the ‘yes’ pile or the reject bin. Take some time to get your statement right and always write a new one for each job you apply for by mirroring the employer’s language. 

Finally, to give your CV a polishing touch, try out one of our fancy, but free CV templates , coming in multiple styles: professional, modern, simple, and creative!

Elena runs content operations at Freesumes since 2017. She works closely with copywriters, designers, and invited career experts to ensure that all content meets our highest editorial standards. Up to date, she wrote over 200 career-related pieces around resume writing, career advice... more

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• Knowledge Base
• Applying to graduate school
• How to Write Your Personal Statement | Strategies & Examples

How to Write Your Personal Statement | Strategies & Examples

Published on February 12, 2019 by Shona McCombes . Revised on July 3, 2023.

A personal statement is a short essay of around 500–1,000 words, in which you tell a compelling story about who you are, what drives you, and why you’re applying.

To write a successful personal statement for a graduate school application , don’t just summarize your experience; instead, craft a focused narrative in your own voice. Aim to demonstrate three things:

• Your personality: what are your interests, values, and motivations?
• Your talents: what can you bring to the program?
• Your goals: what do you hope the program will do for you?

This article guides you through some winning strategies to build a strong, well-structured personal statement for a master’s or PhD application. You can download the full examples below.

Urban Planning Psychology History

Table of contents

Getting started with your personal statement, the introduction: start with an attention-grabbing opening, the main body: craft your narrative, the conclusion: look ahead, revising, editing, and proofreading your personal statement, frequently asked questions, other interesting articles.

Before you start writing, the first step is to understand exactly what’s expected of you. If the application gives you a question or prompt for your personal statement, the most important thing is to respond to it directly.

For example, you might be asked to focus on the development of your personal identity; challenges you have faced in your life; or your career motivations. This will shape your focus and emphasis—but you still need to find your own unique approach to answering it.

There’s no universal template for a personal statement; it’s your chance to be creative and let your own voice shine through. But there are strategies you can use to build a compelling, well-structured story.

The first paragraph of your personal statement should set the tone and lead smoothly into the story you want to tell.

Strategy 1: Open with a concrete scene

An effective way to catch the reader’s attention is to set up a scene that illustrates something about your character and interests. If you’re stuck, try thinking about:

• A personal experience that changed your perspective
• A story from your family’s history
• A memorable teacher or learning experience
• An unusual or unexpected encounter

To write an effective scene, try to go beyond straightforward description; start with an intriguing sentence that pulls the reader in, and give concrete details to create a convincing atmosphere.

Strategy 2: Open with your motivations

To emphasize your enthusiasm and commitment, you can start by explaining your interest in the subject you want to study or the career path you want to follow.

Just stating that it interests you isn’t enough: first, you need to figure out why you’re interested in this field:

• Is it a longstanding passion or a recent discovery?
• Does it come naturally or have you had to work hard at it?
• How does it fit into the rest of your life?
• What do you think it contributes to society?

Tips for the introduction

• Don’t start on a cliche: avoid phrases like “Ever since I was a child…” or “For as long as I can remember…”
• Do save the introduction for last. If you’re struggling to come up with a strong opening, leave it aside, and note down any interesting ideas that occur to you as you write the rest of the personal statement.

Once you’ve set up the main themes of your personal statement, you’ll delve into more detail about your experiences and motivations.

To structure the body of your personal statement, there are various strategies you can use.

Strategy 1: Describe your development over time

One of the simplest strategies is to give a chronological overview of key experiences that have led you to apply for graduate school.

• What first sparked your interest in the field?
• Which classes, assignments, classmates, internships, or other activities helped you develop your knowledge and skills?
• Where do you want to go next? How does this program fit into your future plans?

Don’t try to include absolutely everything you’ve done—pick out highlights that are relevant to your application. Aim to craft a compelling narrative that shows how you’ve changed and actively developed yourself.

My interest in psychology was first sparked early in my high school career. Though somewhat scientifically inclined, I found that what interested me most was not the equations we learned about in physics and chemistry, but the motivations and perceptions of my fellow students, and the subtle social dynamics that I observed inside and outside the classroom. I wanted to learn how our identities, beliefs, and behaviours are shaped through our interactions with others, so I decided to major in Social Psychology. My undergraduate studies deepened my understanding of, and fascination with, the interplay between an individual mind and its social context.During my studies, I acquired a solid foundation of knowledge about concepts like social influence and group dynamics, but I also took classes on various topics not strictly related to my major. I was particularly interested in how other fields intersect with psychology—the classes I took on media studies, biology, and literature all enhanced my understanding of psychological concepts by providing different lenses through which to look at the issues involved.

Strategy 2: Own your challenges and obstacles

If your path to graduate school hasn’t been easy or straightforward, you can turn this into a strength, and structure your personal statement as a story of overcoming obstacles.

• Is your social, cultural or economic background underrepresented in the field? Show how your experiences will contribute a unique perspective.
• Do you have gaps in your resume or lower-than-ideal grades? Explain the challenges you faced and how you dealt with them.

Don’t focus too heavily on negatives, but use them to highlight your positive qualities. Resilience, resourcefulness and perseverance make you a promising graduate school candidate.

Growing up working class, urban decay becomes depressingly familiar. The sight of a row of abandoned houses does not surprise me, but it continues to bother me. Since high school, I have been determined to pursue a career in urban planning. While people of my background experience the consequences of urban planning decisions first-hand, we are underrepresented in the field itself. Ironically, given my motivation, my economic background has made my studies challenging. I was fortunate enough to be awarded a scholarship for my undergraduate studies, but after graduation I took jobs in unrelated fields to help support my parents. In the three years since, I have not lost my ambition. Now I am keen to resume my studies, and I believe I can bring an invaluable perspective to the table: that of the people most impacted by the decisions of urban planners.

Strategy 3: Demonstrate your knowledge of the field

Especially if you’re applying for a PhD or another research-focused program, it’s a good idea to show your familiarity with the subject and the department. Your personal statement can focus on the area you want to specialize in and reflect on why it matters to you.

• Reflect on the topics or themes that you’ve focused on in your studies. What draws you to them?
• Discuss any academic achievements, influential teachers, or other highlights of your education.
• Talk about the questions you’d like to explore in your research and why you think they’re important.

The personal statement isn’t a research proposal , so don’t go overboard on detail—but it’s a great opportunity to show your enthusiasm for the field and your capacity for original thinking.

In applying for this research program, my intention is to build on the multidisciplinary approach I have taken in my studies so far, combining knowledge from disparate fields of study to better understand psychological concepts and issues. The Media Psychology program stands out to me as the perfect environment for this kind of research, given its researchers’ openness to collaboration across diverse fields. I am impressed by the department’s innovative interdisciplinary projects that focus on the shifting landscape of media and technology, and I hope that my own work can follow a similarly trailblazing approach. More specifically, I want to develop my understanding of the intersection of psychology and media studies, and explore how media psychology theories and methods might be applied to neurodivergent minds. I am interested not only in media psychology but also in psychological disorders, and how the two interact. This is something I touched on during my undergraduate studies and that I’m excited to delve into further.

Strategy 4: Discuss your professional ambitions

Especially if you’re applying for a more professionally-oriented program (such as an MBA), it’s a good idea to focus on concrete goals and how the program will help you achieve them.

• If your career is just getting started, show how your character is suited to the field, and explain how graduate school will help you develop your talents.
• If you have already worked in the profession, show what you’ve achieved so far, and explain how the program will allow you to take the next step.
• If you are planning a career change, explain what has driven this decision and how your existing experience will help you succeed.

Don’t just state the position you want to achieve. You should demonstrate that you’ve put plenty of thought into your career plans and show why you’re well-suited to this profession.

One thing that fascinated me about the field during my undergraduate studies was the sheer number of different elements whose interactions constitute a person’s experience of an urban environment. Any number of factors could transform the scene I described at the beginning: What if there were no bus route? Better community outreach in the neighborhood? Worse law enforcement? More or fewer jobs available in the area? Some of these factors are out of the hands of an urban planner, but without taking them all into consideration, the planner has an incomplete picture of their task. Through further study I hope to develop my understanding of how these disparate elements combine and interact to create the urban environment. I am interested in the social, psychological and political effects our surroundings have on our lives. My studies will allow me to work on projects directly affecting the kinds of working-class urban communities I know well. I believe I can bring my own experiences, as well as my education, to bear upon the problem of improving infrastructure and quality of life in these communities.

Tips for the main body

• Don’t rehash your resume by trying to summarize everything you’ve done so far; the personal statement isn’t about listing your academic or professional experience, but about reflecting, evaluating, and relating it to broader themes.
• Do make your statements into stories: Instead of saying you’re hard-working and self-motivated, write about your internship where you took the initiative to start a new project. Instead of saying you’ve always loved reading, reflect on a novel or poem that changed your perspective.

Your conclusion should bring the focus back to the program and what you hope to get out of it, whether that’s developing practical skills, exploring intellectual questions, or both.

Emphasize the fit with your specific interests, showing why this program would be the best way to achieve your aims.

Strategy 1: What do you want to know?

If you’re applying for a more academic or research-focused program, end on a note of curiosity: what do you hope to learn, and why do you think this is the best place to learn it?

If there are specific classes or faculty members that you’re excited to learn from, this is the place to express your enthusiasm.

Strategy 2: What do you want to do?

If you’re applying for a program that focuses more on professional training, your conclusion can look to your career aspirations: what role do you want to play in society, and why is this program the best choice to help you get there?

Tips for the conclusion

• Don’t summarize what you’ve already said. You have limited space in a personal statement, so use it wisely!
• Do think bigger than yourself: try to express how your individual aspirations relate to your local community, your academic field, or society more broadly. It’s not just about what you’ll get out of graduate school, but about what you’ll be able to give back.

You’ll be expected to do a lot of writing in graduate school, so make a good first impression: leave yourself plenty of time to revise and polish the text.

Your style doesn’t have to be as formal as other kinds of academic writing, but it should be clear, direct and coherent. Make sure that each paragraph flows smoothly from the last, using topic sentences and transitions to create clear connections between each part.

Don’t be afraid to rewrite and restructure as much as necessary. Since you have a lot of freedom in the structure of a personal statement, you can experiment and move information around to see what works best.

Finally, it’s essential to carefully proofread your personal statement and fix any language errors. Before you submit your application, consider investing in professional personal statement editing . For $150, you have the peace of mind that your personal statement is grammatically correct, strong in term of your arguments, and free of awkward mistakes.

A statement of purpose is usually more formal, focusing on your academic or professional goals. It shouldn’t include anything that isn’t directly relevant to the application.

A personal statement can often be more creative. It might tell a story that isn’t directly related to the application, but that shows something about your personality, values, and motivations.

However, both types of document have the same overall goal: to demonstrate your potential as a graduate student and s how why you’re a great match for the program.

The typical length of a personal statement for graduate school applications is between 500 and 1,000 words.

Different programs have different requirements, so always check if there’s a minimum or maximum length and stick to the guidelines. If there is no recommended word count, aim for no more than 1-2 pages.

If you’re applying to multiple graduate school programs, you should tailor your personal statement to each application.

Some applications provide a prompt or question. In this case, you might have to write a new personal statement from scratch: the most important task is to respond to what you have been asked.

If there’s no prompt or guidelines, you can re-use the same idea for your personal statement – but change the details wherever relevant, making sure to emphasize why you’re applying to this specific program.

If the application also includes other essays, such as a statement of purpose , you might have to revise your personal statement to avoid repeating the same information.

If you want to know more about college essays , academic writing , and AI tools , make sure to check out some of our other language articles with explanations, examples, and quizzes.

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• College essay style
• College essay length
• Diversity essays
• Scholarship essays

Academic writing

• Writing process
• Avoiding repetition
• Literature review
• Conceptual framework
• Dissertation outline
• Thesis acknowledgements
• Burned or burnt
• Canceled or cancelled
• Dreamt or dreamed
• Gray or grey
• Theater vs theatre

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How to Write a Resume Branding Statement (Examples Included!)

If someone asked you to sum up your entire resume in a few sentences, could you do it? Crafting a concise resume branding statement can feel like a challenge, but it’s a powerful way to showcase your value.

In this article, we’ll break down how to write a personal brand statement—with actual examples of branding statements for a resume to help you make a memorable impact.

Get that resume out there! Browse open jobs on The Muse and find your dream job »

What is a branding statement on a resume?

“A branding statement is a brief sentence that highlights your most valuable qualities and what sets you apart professionally,” says Rob Stevenson, founder of BackupLABS , who has reviewed thousands of resumes as a hiring manager. “This is what a recruiter reads first, so it has to instantly convey why you’re the right fit for the role.”

This statement should summarize your main skills, experiences, and achievements in a way that sets you apart from other candidates.

Branding statement vs. other resume sections

A resume branding statement might get mixed up with other sections of a resume that also communicate your value to employers in a succinct and impactful way. However, they’re not the same. Here’s how they compare:

• Objective : This section, which some consider dated, focuses on what you want, such as a specific job or industry, while a branding statement emphasizes the unique value that you offer to the company.
• Headline : A headline is a brief, job title-like descriptor, such as Marketing Specialist or Software Developer. A branding statement expands on that, offering a snapshot of your professional value.
• Profile : Typically longer, a profile provides an overview of your career achievements. A branding statement is much shorter, serving as a quick summary of your most marketable qualities.
• Summary : Like a profile, a summary covers broader aspects of your career. In contrast, a branding statement is laser-focused on your key strengths and what makes you stand out.

Branding statement on a resume: Why you should include one

Including a branding statement on your resume gives you the opportunity to make a strong first impression. It immediately positions you as a candidate who knows their strengths and what they bring to the table.

A good branding statement can:

• Grab attention : In a competitive job market, hiring managers often skim resumes. A concise branding statement can make you stand out right away, prompting recruiters to take notice and motivating them to explore your resume further to understand the value you bring.
• Clarify your unique value : It succinctly communicates what sets you apart from other candidates, highlighting why you’re the best fit for the role.
• Set the tone : It frames the rest of your resume, guiding the reader’s understanding of your experience and strengths.
• Showcase your confidence : Including a branding statement demonstrates that you know your worth and have a clear understanding of the value you bring to the table. It presents you as a self-assured candidate, ready to contribute from day one.
• Differentiate you from the crowd : With many resumes looking similar, a branding statement is your opportunity to stand out. It’s a unique snapshot of your professional identity that makes hiring managers remember you, even among a sea of candidates.
• Align with company needs : A tailored branding statement can reflect the specific needs of the role or organization you're applying to. By highlighting relevant strengths, it shows that you've done your research and are a perfect match for the company's goals.

What is a good brand statement for a resume? 7 tips to craft one

Ready to learn exactly how to write a branding statement for a resume? Follow these six expert tips for creating a standout branding statement that showcases your value and sets you apart from the crowd.

1. Place it strategically

Place your branding statement at the very top of your resume, just beneath your contact information. This is prime real estate, as it’s one of the first things a hiring manager will see, increasing the likelihood that they’ll continue reading through the rest of your resume.

2. Be concise

“The length should be about two to three sentences,” says Vit Koval, a talent acquisition specialist and co-founder at Globy . This brevity ensures hiring managers can quickly grasp your professional identity without sifting through unnecessary information.

3. Focus on your value

Stevenson recommends highlighting your strengths and skills with specific, powerful words. “A branding statement should convey your unique qualities and what sets you apart from other candidates,” he says.

For example, you might describe yourself as an innovative thinker with a talent for developing creative solutions. You could also highlight being proficient in data analysis and strategic planning, while emphasizing your collaborative nature as a team member who thrives in diverse environments.

4. Use active language

Words like “achieve,” “drive,” or “innovate” can give your statement more impact, instead of using phrases like “was responsible for” or “was involved in.” Active language emphasizes your contributions and results, making your branding statement more compelling to employers. For example, instead of saying, “Was responsible for project milestones,” you could say, “Achieved project milestones ahead of schedule, improving team efficiency by 25%.”

This might help: 185+ Action Verbs to Make Your Resume Stand Out in 2024

5. Tailor it to the job

To make your branding statement stand out, customize it for each role you're applying to. Use keywords from the job description , which highlights how your skills align with the company’s specific needs.

For example, if you’re applying for a Marketing Manager position and the job description mentions terms like “data-driven strategies,” “campaign management,” and “brand awareness,” you can incorporate these keywords directly into your branding statement.

Also, research the company’s culture and values to understand their priorities. By aligning your branding statement with the company’s mission and the job’s specific requirements, you effectively demonstrate why you’re the perfect fit for the role. The goal is to reflect the qualifications and attributes the employer is seeking, Stevenson says.

6. Avoid jargon

Keep it simple and accessible, focusing on clear, powerful language. Avoid using jargon or overly technical terms that might confuse the reader, since clarity is key to making your statement reach a wider audience.

For example, instead of saying, “Leveraged synergistic paradigms to optimize operational efficiencies,” use clear language like, “Improved team collaboration to enhance productivity.”

What not to do in your resume branding statement

Make sure your resume branding statement is doing you justice by steering clear of common mistakes.

• Being vague : Avoid generic statements like “hardworking professional” or “dedicated worker.” Koval refers to them as “trivial phrases that do not add much weight or help the recruiter understand your value.”
• Focusing only on what you want : A branding statement should emphasize what you offer, not what you're seeking. Focus on how you can bring value to the company, rather than your personal goals.
• Making it too long : This section should be brief—two to three sentences at most. Don’t turn it into a mini- cover letter .
• Ignoring results : Not including measurable achievements or outcomes can weaken your statement. Whenever possible, mention a specific result to show how you’ve added value.

Your resume branding statement is your chance to stand out, so make it concise, results-driven, and tailored to the employer's needs. By avoiding these common pitfalls, you’ll create a compelling statement that clearly showcases your value and strengths.

10 resume branding statement examples

No matter your field—whether it's marketing, IT, or sales—a strong branding statement captures the essence of what you bring to the table. To spark your creativity, here are 10 standout examples from various industries and roles to inspire your own statement:

Example #1: Resume branding statement for a marketing manager

Dynamic marketing professional with a proven track record of increasing brand engagement by 40% through innovative digital campaigns and data-driven strategies.

Example #2: Resume branding statement for a project manager

Results-oriented project manager with 8+ years of experience leading cross-functional teams to deliver complex projects on time and within budget, driving operational efficiency.

Example #3: Resume branding statement for a software engineer

Passionate software engineer with expertise in developing scalable, user-centric applications that enhance productivity and optimize performance for fast-growing startups.

Example #4: Resume branding statement for a sales executive

Top-performing sales leader with a record of exceeding quarterly sales targets by 20%, leveraging strategic partnerships and relationship-building skills to drive revenue growth.

Example #5: Resume branding statement for a human resources specialist

HR professional with a talent for fostering a positive work environment, streamlining recruitment processes, and reducing employee turnover by 15% through employee engagement programs.

Example #6: Resume branding statement for a graphic designer

Creative graphic designer with a passion for developing visually compelling brand identities, driving a 25% increase in client satisfaction through innovative design solutions.

Example #7: Resume branding statement for a data analyst

Detail-oriented data analyst with expertise in transforming raw data into actionable insights, enabling businesses to make informed, data-driven decisions and achieve a 10% increase in efficiency.

Example #8: Resume branding statement for a customer service manager

Customer-focused leader with 7+ years of experience in building high-performing teams and improving customer satisfaction scores by 30% through process improvements and team development.

Example #9: Resume branding statement for a financial analyst

Results-driven financial analyst with a proven ability to develop strategic financial models that have increased profit margins by 12% through accurate forecasting and risk management.

Example #10: Resume branding statement for an operations manager

Efficient operations manager with a track record of optimizing processes to reduce costs by 15% while increasing productivity, ensuring seamless operations across multiple departments.

Resume branding statement template

Examples are great—but templates can be even better if you're looking for a solid starting point. So, here are two templates to help you craft a compelling resume branding statement that highlights your years of experience, key accomplishments, and unique strengths:

Template #1:

I am a [ profession or role ] with [ number ] years of experience in [ industry or area of expertise ]. I specialize in [ specific skill or strength ] and have successfully [ mention key accomplishment, e.g., increased revenue, led teams, improved processes ] by [ specific result, e.g., 20% over 6 months ].

Template #2:

As a [ profession or role ] with [ number ] years of experience, I have a proven track record of [ specific achievement or skill ]. My expertise in [ relevant area ] has helped [ company or team ] achieve [ specific result or outcome ], positioning me as a valuable asset in [ industry or field ].

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CV Examples Mechanical Engineer CV

Mechanical Engineer CV Example & Writing Tips

Learn how to create a mechanical engineer CV that effectively showcases your technical expertise and problem-solving skills.

Find the right design with our expertly crafted CV templates tailored to highlight your experience and expertise.

Ensure your CV format is structured to best highlight your unique experience and life situation.

Mechanical Engineer CV Template (Text Format)

PERSONAL STATEMENT

Experienced Mechanical Engineer with over 6 years in mechanical design and project management, specialising in CAD software and Finite Element Analysis (FEA). Proven track record of reducing production costs by 10% and enhancing product safety by 20% through innovative engineering solutions. Adept at leading cross-functional teams and optimising manufacturing processes to improve efficiency and quality in high-stakes environments.

WORK EXPERIENCE

Mechanical Engineer Northern Engineering Solutions, Tynemouth January 20XX – Present

• Spearhead mechanical design projects using SolidWorks and AutoCAD, leading to a 15% reduction in design time
• Implement Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to enhance product reliability, achieving a 20% improvement in safety ratings
• Manage cross-functional teams in large-scale projects, ensuring timely completion and alignment with client specificationsed
• Optimise manufacturing processes, reducing production costs by 10% without compromising quality
• Conduct quality assurance inspections, resulting in a 25% decrease in defects over 3 years

Mechanical Engineer Tyneside Engineering Ltd, Tynemouth January 20XX – December 20XX

• Designed mechanical components for industrial machinery, contributing to a 12% increase in production efficiency
• Supported senior engineers in project management, helping deliver projects 10% under budget on average
• Developed CAD models and simulations, which improved design accuracy by 18%
• Facilitated team collaboration through regular communication and problem-solving initiatives

Graduate Mechanical Engineer TyneTech Innovations, Tynemouth July 20XX – December 20XX

• Assisted in developing mechanical designs for prototype equipment, leading to the successful launch of 3 new products
• Collaborated with senior engineers on the testing and refinement of mechanical systems, improving performance by 10%
• Created detailed CAD drawings and technical documentation to support the engineering team
• Contributed to continuous improvement efforts, resulting in a 5% reduction in production waste

BEng (Hons) Mechanical Engineering Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne Graduated: July 20XX

• Honours: Upper second-class
• Relevant Modules: Thermodynamics, Fluid Mechanics, Mechanical Design, Finite Element Analysis (FEA)
• Final Year Project: ‘Design and Analysis of a Sustainable Energy System for Industrial Applications’

QUALIFICATIONS

• Chartered Engineer (CEng) – Engineering Council UK (20XX)
• Certified SolidWorks Professional (CSWP) – Dassault Systèmes (20XX)
• Health and Safety (HSE) Certification – Institution of Mechanical Engineers (20XX)

How to write a mechanical engineering CV

Before you begin writing, make sure you know how to write a CV in a way that best emphasises your strengths.

Mechanical engineering is a broad field that covers the design, development, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems.

To stand out in this competitive field, your CV must effectively showcase your technical skills, hands-on experience, and problem-solving abilities. Here’s how to write a compelling CV tailored for mechanical engineering roles:

1. Write a clear and impactful personal statement

Your personal statement is your opportunity to summarise your engineering background and career goals in a few concise lines.

Start by mentioning your years of experience, areas of expertise (e.g., HVAC systems, CAD design, robotics, etc.), and any specific sectors you have worked in.

Highlight a key achievement or skill that makes you stand out, such as leading a complex project to successful completion or developing a cost-saving engineering solution. Finish with a sentence about what you are looking to achieve in your next role.

Example mechanical engineer personal statement

Results-driven Mechanical Engineer with 7+ years of experience in the automotive and aerospace industries, specialising in thermal management systems and computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Proven track record of leading cross-functional teams to deliver complex engineering projects on time and within budget, including a recent £2 million project that improved fuel efficiency by 15%. Seeking to leverage my technical expertise and innovative mindset to contribute to the engineering excellence at Rolls-Royce.

2. Detail your professional experience with measurable achievements

The professional experience section is where you provide detailed information about your engineering roles, responsibilities, and achievements.

Employers look for candidates who have a proven ability to solve problems, manage projects, and contribute to team success, so make sure that you show these skills prominently.

Use bullet points to list your key responsibilities as a mechanical engineer, and focus on quantifiable achievements, such as improving efficiency, reducing costs, or enhancing safety. Highlight any significant projects you led or were a key contributor to, and mention the methodologies, software, or tools you used.

Example of mechanical engineering experience on a CV

Mechanical Engineer AECOM, Manchester | June 20XX – Present Design and optimise HVAC systems for commercial and industrial buildings, leading to a 20% reduction in energy consumption across multiple projects Conduct finite element analysis and computational fluid dynamics simulations to validate designs and ensure compliance with safety and environmental standards Manage a team of 5 junior engineers, overseeing project planning, risk assessment, and resource allocation to ensure timely project delivery within a budget of £3 million. Implement lean manufacturing principles that reduced production time by 30% and decreased material waste by 15% Graduate Mechanical Engineer Siemens, Newcastle-upon-Tyne | September 20XX – May 20XX Assisted in the development and testing of turbine components, contributing to a project that increased turbine efficiency by 10% through innovative blade design Supported senior engineers in conducting root cause analysis for equipment failures, resulting in a 25% decrease in downtime for the production line Created 3D models and technical drawings using SolidWorks and AutoCAD, making sure that all designs met ISO 9001 standards for quality and safety

3. Emphasise your relevant education

In mechanical engineering, your educational background is essential for showcasing your expertise in applying principles of physics, maths, and materials science to real-world engineering problems. Employers look for a solid grounding in these core areas to make sure you have the analytical and technical skills needed to design, test, and optimise complex mechanical systems.

Begin with your highest degree and work backwards. Include your degree classification (e.g., 2:1, First Class) if it is 2:1 or higher. Mention any coursework, projects, or research that are particularly relevant to the engineering job you’re applying for.

If you’re a recent graduate, you can provide more detail about your academic projects, especially if they involved real-world applications or industry partnerships.

How to format your education section

Master of Engineering (MEng) in Mechanical Engineering University of Leeds, Leeds | Graduated: July 20XX Modules included Advanced Thermodynamics, Computational Fluid Dynamics, and Mechanical Vibrations Final Year Project: ‘Design and Optimisation of a Heat Exchanger for Enhanced Energy Efficiency in Industrial Applications’ — achieved a 25% improvement in thermal performance Bachelor of Engineering (BEng) in Mechanical Engineering University of Manchester, Manchester | Graduated: July 20XX Relevant units: Materials Science, Fluid Mechanics, Dynamics and Control Systems

4. List your professional qualifications and certifications

Beyond formal education, additional mechanical engineering certifications and qualifications can significantly enhance your CV by demonstrating your specialised expertise and commitment to professional development.

List any professional registrations, such as Chartered Engineer (CEng) or Incorporated Engineer (IEng) status with the Engineering Council. Additionally, include relevant certifications that highlight specialised skills or knowledge areas.

Example of mechanical engineering certifications to list on your CV

Chartered Engineer (CEng), Engineering Council, UK | 20XX Certified SolidWorks Professional (CSWP) | Dassault Systèmes, 20XX Six Sigma Green Belt Certification | British Quality Foundation, 20XX Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) Certificate | Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), 20XX

Our library of CV examples has hundreds of tailored CVs you can use to fine-tune your job application and stand out from other applicants.

Lauren Mastroni

Lauren Mastroni is a CV expert and careers counsellor dedicated to crafting engaging content and providing actionable advice that empowers people in their job searches. An enthusiastic contributor to the CV Genius team, Lauren has a passion for developing valuable resources for job seekers. Lauren holds an MSc in Psychology from the University of Derby. She enjoys learning all she can about the career space, and is committed to helping job seekers of all experience levels navigate the job hunt and advance their careers. You can reach Lauren at [lauren] AT [resumegenius.com].

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Writing Guides  /  How to Write a Personal Essay: A Step-by-Step Guide

How to Write a Personal Essay: A Step-by-Step Guide

Introduction

A personal essay is a short piece of writing that reflects the author’s personal experiences, thoughts, feelings, memories or sensations—usually with a unifying or deeper theme or purpose. It is like personal narrative in which the writer is given the freedom to explore his own inner world while also connecting with readers on a meaningful level. Personal essays are most frequently used for college applications, where applicants share their life stories to illustrate a finer point. They are often seen in creative writing courses, where writers allow their voice to shine.

Understanding the personal essay genre is beneficial because of how it can improve self-expression and develop one’s ability to communicate. Mastering the art of personal essay writing can empower you to articulate your stories and experiences, your thoughts and feelings, in a way that will resonate with others. Ever heard of Dale Carnegie or How to Win Friends and Influence People ? Well, therein is a perfect example of how far one can get when mastering the personal essay. All in all, personal essay writing is a great way for self-discovery and self-development.

What is a Personal Essay? (Definition & Purpose)

The definition of a personal essay.

A personal essay is a short, non-fiction narrative essay that is entirely written from the writer’s point of view. That means it’s okay to use the “I” or first-person perspective. It is the one type of essay writing in which the author can simply use his own thoughts and experiences as reference point.

Unlike academic or technical essays, personal essays are very flexible in terms of structure and tone. They may take a storytelling approach—or they may be even more creative by adopting a poetic tone and dreamlike structure. There is really no right or wrong way to do it. The defining characteristic of a personal essay is simply its intimate, conversational voice, which lets the reader glimpse into the writer’s mind and personal life. It is like a sit-down with the author.

Thus, at its core, a personal essay is a platform for self-expression. The writer gets to reflect on and explore memories, challenges, defining moments, or comment on anything by looking at it from his own personal POV. Usually, the writer can give insights or lessons learned along the way—and good essayists like Stephen King do this well . That is why personal essays have the power to transcend mere storytelling; they can be a way to experience personal growth indirectly or vicariously. The essay can be a humorous anecdote or a heartfelt reflection, or a strong and visceral condemnation. It can be anything—so long as it is an authentic representation of the writer’s own mind and heart.

Why Personal Essays Matter

Personal essays are used in a range of situations. You will write them for college applications. You will find them on blogs. People publish their memoirs, which are basically like long personal essays. They are common in creative writing workshops. They are great because they get the writing and critical thinking juices flowing.

In college applications, for example, applicants are often asked to write short personal essays that demonstrate some aspect of their personalities, voice, values, perspective, or experiences. A good personal essay could even end up being the difference between acceptance and rejection.

On blogs, personal essays are ways for authors to share relatable stories and anecdotes that connect to other readers’ lives somehow—and, thus, bloggers win followers and fans.

In creative writing, personal essays are valued for their ability to blend narrative with introspection. It is a form that encourages experimentation with voice and form.

Memoirs often consist of interconnected personal essays, stitched together to form a kind of patchwork quilt of personal reflections.

Overall, the emotional impact of a personal essay lies in its authenticity. The more authentic it is, the more cathartic it can be.

When authors make themselves vulnerable by sharing honest thoughts and perspectives, they invite readers into their soul to see the world through the writer’s eyes. It is unlike any other type of connectivity—nothing matches it: not drama, not technical writing, not even familiar correspondence. This connection created by the personal essay (because it is structured and refined) can spark empathy, understanding, inspiration and change.

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How to Structure a Personal Essay

Typical personal essay format.

The structure of a personal essay is open and flexible. That means it can be set up almost any which way. However, a traditional approach offers the most compelling structure, as it consists of an introduction, body, and conclusion. The essay introduction sets the tone and presents the main theme, the body develops the narrative with ample reflections, and the conclusion wraps up the essay with a final reflection or takeaway. It’s a good, solid approach.

Crafting an Engaging Introduction

The introduction of a personal essay should capture the reader’s attention. Use a strong hook (a good intriguing anecdote usually does the trick) to draw readers in. Effective personal essay introduction tips include keeping it concise, setting the tone, conveying your voice accurately, and presenting the main theme or purpose of the essay. This way, the reader gets a sense of what to expect and is more inclined to read on. The perfect phrasing of the first sentence or two can be a great personal essay opening.

Developing the Body of the Essay

The body of a personal essay is where the writer gets into the personal experiences and considerations that he wishes to share. The body should be organized logically, but the writer is free to use anecdotes and vivid reflections as he sees fit to create an engaging narrative.

The pacing of the essay is important: it should be balanced between reflection and storytelling. You want the essay to emotionally resonate while also speaking to the mind with insight and learning. Each section should focus on an aspect or moment of the story until, gradually, the essay’s deeper meaning is revealed.

If you can foreshadow the full meaning or point in your introduction, even better.

Writing a Strong Conclusion

A well-crafted conclusion leaves a lasting impression. You can summarize the main points, but it’s also a good place to reflect more broadly on the deeper meaning of what you’ve written about. So, instead of restating what has already been said, go for a conclusion that goes deeper still, to reveal an impressive final thought that ties everything together. Personal essays often end on a note of ultimate reflection.

Personal Essay Writing Tips

Be authentic and vulnerable.

One of the most important aspects of a personal essay is its authenticity. Readers connect with genuine, honest experiences, which is why you have to be truthful in your writing. Sharing personal thoughts, emotions, real experiences, worries, concerns, and even insecurities—all of it makes it easier for the reader to relate to you. Writing with vulnerability means being open about your feelings and reflections, even if they make you uncomfortable.

Here’s a tip: balance vulnerability with intention, so that the shared details serve the essay’s ultimate purpose. To be more authentic, avoid trying to impress the reader; instead, focus on simply being sincere and true. No need to apologize—just convey.

Use Descriptive Language and Sensory Details

To create a vivid and engaging personal essay, use descriptive language and sensory details that bring your experiences to life. Show, don’t just tell—describe how things looked, smelled, felt, and sounded. This is how your reader gets absorbed into the writing.

For example, instead of saying “I was nervous,” actually describe the sensation of nervousness: “My hands trembled, my flesh tingled, a cold sweat broke out all over me, and my heart flopped twice in my chest.”

But remember: try to strike a balance between detail and clarity. Overloading your essay with excessive descriptions can bog it down. Too little detail can leave the reader disengaged. Focus on using precise, exciting imagery to improve the narrative when it is most needed.

Editing and Revising Your Personal Essay

Editing and revising are always going to be helpful when it comes to improving your personal essay. After writing the first draft, step away for a bit and come back later with fresh eyes. Read it again and note any areas that could use clarification or expansion. Next, check for common mistakes like awkward phrasing or over repetition.

Be careful, too, not to lose your unique personal voice during the editing process. Avoid the temptation to over-edit, as this can make the essay sound forced or mechanical. When in doubt, have someone else read your essay to offer feedback.

Personal Essay Topics & Essay Prompts

Finding inspiration for your personal essay.

When writing a personal essay, finding the right topic will help you to more easily create a compelling narrative. Common themes often revolve around pivotal life-changing moments that shaped who you are. It will be different for everyone—but just think about who you are and why—what made you that way?

You can look at life-changing moments, relationships, personal growth, achieving personal milestones, difficult decisions you made. Think about family, friends, mentors—how they’ve influenced your development. Think about how experiences have helped strengthen you, or moments of self-discovery that led to deeper understanding of your identity and beliefs.

Personal Essay Topics

High school topics.

• A Challenge I Overcame Reflect on a difficult situation in your life and how you grew from it.
• My Most Memorable High School Experience Write about a specific event during high school that had a significant impact on you.
• How a Teacher Changed My Perspective Discuss how a teacher or mentor influenced your views on education or life.
• The Impact of Extracurricular Activities Share how involvement in a sport, club, or activity has shaped your high school experience.
• A Time I Failed and What I Learned Write about a failure that taught you an important lesson about perseverance.
• How My Friends Have Shaped Who I Am Explore how your friendships during high school have influenced your character.
• The Importance of Balancing Academics and Personal Life Discuss the challenges of managing schoolwork with social and personal activities.
• A Time I Stood Up for What I Believe In Share a story about standing up for your values or beliefs in a difficult situation.
• My Biggest High School Regret Reflect on something you wish you had done differently during high school.
• How I Prepare for Life After High School Write about how you are preparing for the transition from high school to college or the workforce.

College Topics

• The First Time I Felt Independent Describe the moment you first experienced real independence, such as moving to college or making an important life decision.
• A College Course That Changed My Life Write about a class that expanded your worldview or shaped your future goals.
• Balancing School and Life Reflect on how you’ve managed the responsibilities of academics and personal life in college.
• A Time I Took a Risk and Succeeded Share a story about a time you took a big risk and what the outcome taught you.
• How My College Major Has Shaped My Identity Explore how your chosen field of study has influenced who you are becoming.
• The Best Advice I Ever Received in College Write about a piece of advice that helped you navigate college life.
• How My Hometown Shaped Who I Am Today Reflect on how your upbringing or hometown influenced your college experience.
• A College Internship That Changed My Perspective Describe how a work experience or internship impacted your career goals.
• Dealing with Homesickness in College Share your experience of missing home and how you overcame it.
• How College Friendships Have Helped Me Grow Write about how friendships in college have helped you grow personally or academically.

Middle School Topics

• My First Best Friend Share a story about your first close friendship and what it taught you about relationships.
• A Time I Helped Someone Describe a moment when you lent a helping hand to someone, and how it made you feel.
• The Most Exciting Day of My Life Write about a day that stands out in your memory as one of the happiest or most thrilling experiences.
• My Favorite Hobby and Why I Love It Write about a hobby or activity you enjoy and why it’s important to you.
• What I Want to Be When I Grow Up Describe your dream job or future career and why it appeals to you.
• A Family Tradition That Means a Lot to Me Write about a special family tradition and why it’s important to you.
• How I Felt on My First Day of Middle School Reflect on the emotions and experiences of your first day in middle school.
• A Time I Made a New Friend Share a story about how you made a new friend and what it taught you about building relationships.
• My Favorite School Subject Write about the subject you enjoy the most in school and why.
• How I Overcame My Biggest Fear Describe a time when you faced a fear and how it helped you grow.

Unique Topics

• A Mistake That Turned Into a Valuable Lesson Share a story where you made a mistake, and how it led to unexpected growth or insight.
• A Conversation That Changed My Perspective Write about a meaningful conversation that caused you to think differently about an important topic.
• The Time I Experienced a Culture Shock Describe a moment when you were exposed to a different culture or way of life and how it impacted you.
• A Time I Broke the Rules Share a story about when you broke a rule and what the consequences taught you.
• My Favorite Place in the World Write about a place that holds special meaning for you and why it’s significant.
• How a Book or Movie Changed My Life Discuss how a specific book or film impacted your way of thinking or inspired you.
• A Time I Got Lost Share a story about getting physically or emotionally lost and what you learned from finding your way.
• If I Could Live in Another Time Period Write about which historical time period you would want to live in and why.
• A Skill I Taught Myself Describe a time when you learned something on your own and how it shaped your confidence or abilities.
• The Most Unexpected Lesson I Learned from a Stranger Share a story about learning something valuable from someone you didn’t know well.

Sample Prompts for Personal Essays

If you’re struggling to come up with an idea, here are some personal essay topic ideas and essay prompts for personal writing to get you started:

• Write about a moment when you had to make a difficult decision. What was at stake, and how did it change you?
• Describe a time when you experienced failure. How did you respond, and what did you learn from the experience?
• Reflect on a relationship that has deeply impacted your life. What did it teach you about life, yourself, or others?
• Share a story about a time when you stepped outside of your comfort zone. What fears did you overcome, and what did you gain?
• Write about a personal achievement that made you feel proud. What steps did you take to get there, and why does it matter to you?
• Discuss a moment of self-discovery that changed the way you view the world or yourself.
• Describe a significant challenge or hardship you’ve faced and how it shaped your character.
• Reflect on a cultural or family tradition that holds personal meaning for you.
• Write about a time when you had to stand up for something you believed in. What motivated you, and what was the outcome?
• Share a memory that brings you joy and explain why it’s important to you.
• Write about a moment when you learned a hard truth about yourself or someone else.
• Reflect on a time when you felt out of place or misunderstood. How did you cope, and what did it teach you?
• Share a story about a person or event that inspired you to pursue a particular path or goal.
• Discuss how a personal hobby or interest has shaped your identity.
• Write about a time when you faced a moral dilemma. How did you resolve it, and what did you learn?

Examples of Well-Written Personal Essays

Analysis of famous personal essays.

One of the most well-known personal essays is Joan Didion’s “Goodbye to All That,” where she reflects on her time in New York City. Didion’s essay is effective because of its emotional depth and objective storytelling. She blends personal reflection with sharp, sensory details. The reader lives through her experience. Didion’s honesty and vulnerability in discussing her fading love for the city help create the sensation of disenchantment—and the reader feels it completely.

Another excellent example is “The Death of a Moth” by Virginia Woolf. In this essay, Woolf transforms a seemingly mundane event—the death of a moth—into a profound reflection on life and mortality. Woolf’s ability to take a small, ordinary moment and imbue it with universal meaning is what makes her essay stand out. The essay is less about her own life and more about life in general, but it is all her in the sense of perspective. Her prose and insights, and use of symbolism, gives the reader some big themes to chew on.

Key Takeaways from Successful Personal Essays

To make a personal essay impactful, here are a few techniques to follow:

• Authenticity : Share personal stories and emotions honestly and openly.
• Vivid descriptions : Use sensory details to make the narrative come alive for the reader.
• Emotional depth : Convey your inner thoughts and feelings to create a connection with the audience.
• Universal themes : Relate personal experiences to broader, more relatable human experiences.
• Reflection : Go beyond storytelling by offering insights or lessons learned.
• Symbolism and imagery : Elevate ordinary moments into meaningful reflections by using literary devices.

How to Get Feedback on Your Personal Essay

The importance of peer review.

Receiving feedback can help with refining your personal essay. Peer review can give you new perspectives on your writing, help identify unclear sections, and allow you to see what you didn’t see before. Constructive criticism from others can give you an idea of what your audience might be thinking. When seeking feedback, be open-minded and accept critiques as opportunities for growth. Not every suggestion needs to be followed—after all, it’s your essay. But focus on the suggestions that improve clarity, emotional impact, and narrative flow, and don’t be afraid to make revisions.

Online Tools & Writing Communities

There are numerous online platforms where you can share your work and receive valuable feedback. Writing forums like Reddit’s r/writing or Scribophile are spaces where writers can exchange critiques. Social media groups dedicated to writing are also great places to get input from fellow writers. So are structured writing workshops, like those offered by Writer’s Digest or The Write Life. These platforms help you to connect with a community of writers. With them you’ll have a chance to get personalized peer review for essays and online writing feedback.

Common Mistakes to Avoid in Personal Essays

Overloading with unnecessary details.

One common mistake in personal essays is including too many irrelevant or trivial details that detract from the core message. Descriptions are important, but don’t overload the essay with unnecessary information. Describe what needs to be described to communicate the themes. Don’t overwhelm the reader and dilute the emotional impact by focusing on insignificant details. Give, instead, details that add to the story and contribute to the overall idea. Every sentence should serve a purpose—if it doesn’t add value or further the narrative, it’s best to leave it out.

Lack of Focus or Clear Theme

Another mistake is writing without a clear theme or losing focus as the essay progresses. A personal essay should revolve around a specific idea, experience, reflection, or lesson. When the essay lacks focus, it just ends up feeling disjointed and confused. To avoid this, establish a central theme early in the essay and stick to it; make sure every detail somehow relates back to it so as to deepen its meaning or enlarge it somehow. Every story, anecdote, reflection, and detail should tie back to that theme. A strong narrative thread will make the essay more engaging and meaningful.

Over-Editing or Losing Personal Voice

Be careful to avoid over-editing, which can result in an essay that feels too polished and impersonal. In an effort to perfect grammar or structure, writers sometimes lose their own unique voice and emotional authenticity. Avoid editing to the point where the essay becomes mechanical—try to keep the raw, honest tone that makes personal essays compelling. Trust your voice and trust your gut and let it shine through.

Final Checklist Before Submitting Your Personal Essay

Editing and proofreading tips.

Before submitting your personal essay, run through this quick checklist:

• Grammar and spelling : Correct any grammatical errors and typos to ensure professionalism.
• Flow and structure : Ensure that your essay follows a clear, logical progression, with smooth transitions between paragraphs.
• Clarity : Make sure your main points are easily understood and that your theme remains focused throughout.
• Emotional impact : Review whether the essay evokes the intended emotions and resonates with readers.
• Personal voice : Ensure that your unique voice and perspective shine through without sounding overly polished or formal.

Confidence in Sharing Your Story

As you prepare to submit your essay, remember that your story is uniquely yours. Embrace your experiences and insights with pride. Your personal essay is a reflection of you. Don’t apologize for it. Confidence in your writing comes from understanding that no one else can tell your story the way you can. Trust your voice and be proud of your work!

Writing a personal essay is a powerful way to express your experiences, thoughts, insights, lessons learned, feelings, and memories. You can structure it however you want—but be consistent. The traditional way is to start with an engaging introduction, followed up by a well-organized body, and finished off with a reflective conclusion. Use that approach and you have the backbone for a compelling narrative.

Remember to maintain authenticity by writing with honesty. Let yourself be vulnerable—it’s okay and expected in a personal essay. Use descriptive language to bring your story to life—but don’t overdo it. Take time to revise carefully. Polish your essay, but don’t kill it with too much care. Let your personal voice live and shine in your words and ideas. This is, after all, a reflection of you and who you are and what you’ve seen and where you’ve been!

Need additional help?  Download our personal essay writing worksheet to help get you started!

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Police CV Examples & UK Templates

Choosing the right CV format for a police officer

Include your contact information, make use of a summary, outline your police work experience, how to write a police officer cv with no experience , include the relevant key skills that make you a great police officer , detail your education & relevant certifications, pick the right cv layout and design for a police cv, what type of salary you can expect as a police officer.

Last year, the UK saw the highest number of employed police officers since records began back in 2003. If you’re looking to join the Old Bill , your application needs to be clear, persuasive, and impressive. While the hiring process often requires you to submit an application form, you may need to send a CV, too. Fortunately, we’ve got the inside scoop for you right here. 

CV guide for a police CV

Land your next job with the help of Resume.io. Our detailed guides and CV examples cover 150+ professions. When you’ve read this guide, use our easy CV builder to swiftly create an interview-winning application in no time at all. 

This CV guide and corresponding police CV example will cover the following:

How to write a police CV

• Choosing the right CV format for police work
• How to add your contact information
• Using summaries
• Adding your police force experience
• Listing education and relevant experience
• Picking the right CV design/layout
• What the police job market looks like, and what salary you can expect

Seven steps to success! 

Before you can join the police force, you will undergo a seven-step process . Here’s what you need to know about the hiring structure: 

• Step 1: Eligibility check . This involves answering a few online questions to see whether you’re eligible to apply to the police.
• Step 2: Application . You need to apply to the specific force you want to join. Usually, you can do this via the local police website.
• Step 3: The Sift . This is a test that you have to complete. It checks your decision-making abilities and core behaviours.
• Step 4: Online assessment . This includes a Competency-Based Interview (CBI), a written assessment, and a briefing exercise.
• Step 5: Medical and fitness tests . If you get to this stage, you’ll need to complete both a fitness test and a medical examination.
• Step 6: Pre-employment checks . Next up, the police will run background checks. You will need to consent to finger-printing and DNA checks.
• Step 7: Decision . This is the final stage of the hiring process. You will find out whether you have a job offer to join your preferred police force.

Before you can start writing your police CV, you need to know what elements to include. As standard, you should add the following sections to this document:

• The CV header
• The CV summary (aka profile or personal statement)
• The employment history section
• The CV skills section
• The education section

Think you have what it takes to crack the case? When applying for police vacancies, you’re up against a lot of eligible candidates. It’s your job to ensure that your CV stands out from the crowd for all the right reasons. Let’s take a look at some of the ways you can do just that: 

• Highlight your achievements . Whether you’re new to the force or a seasoned professional, focus on your achievements from past roles. Avoid simply stating the duties that you took care of and, instead, offer results-based points that showcase your value.
• Keep things simple . Use a straightforward CV template that has a professional style. Remember that policing is a traditional career path and the reader will expect you to have a CV that reflects this.
• Tailor your CV to the job . When applying for police roles, consider the nitty-gritty duties that the job involves. Read the job advert closely and ensure that you match the core criteria. Do all that you can to align your application with the demands of the job.
• Optimise your CV with keywords . The hiring team may use CV scanning software to filter incoming applications. Include relevant keywords and phrases organically throughout your police CV. This could boost your chances of landing the interview.

Optimise for the ATS

As we’ve mentioned, the hiring team may use an applicant tracking system (ATS). These systems use algorithms to screen CV for keywords aligned with the job description. Only the highest ranking CVs pass the text and get read by an actual human.

For example, a police job posting may include the following requirements: 

• “Police officer”
• “Seven years of experience”
• “Must hold a UK drivers' licence”
• “Criminal justice system knowledge”
• “Ability to work cooperatively and unsupervised”

Your CV profile summary, when integrating the keywords, could read: 

“Experienced police officer having served in the force for seven years. Extensive knowledge of the criminal justice system, police investigations, and human rights legislation. Boasts a full UK drivers’ licence and has ability to work cooperatively and unsupervised.”

Your police CV needs to be clear, professional, and easy to read. If you’ve previously worked for the force, we recommend using a reverse chronological format . That means listing your relevant work experience and qualifications from most recent to least recent. This is the traditional CV format and showcases your former employment over the rest of your application. 

However, there are times when other CV formats will be more appropriate. For example, if this is your first time applying to the police force — but you have other experience — you might find a skills-based CV format works better. This structure puts more weight on your transferable skills than it does on your work history, positioning you well for the vacancy. 

If in doubt, take a look at our selection of CV templates in our CV builder and choose one that suits your needs. We’ve also got plenty of CV examples using different formats. 

Let your experience speak for itself! 

Don’t make the mistake of opting for a flashy or over-the-top CV design. This approach is not right for the police force and will undermine your credibility. Instead, make sure the style you use is simple and traditional. This move sets the tone for your entire application package. 

Next up, you need to work on your CV header . This section of your CV works as a business card, sharing your basic contact details with the hiring manager. 

It’s important to make this simple and legible. Here’s what you need to include in this section: 

• Full name & title . Start with your first name, last name, and the role.
• Professional email address . Include a suitable-for-work email address. You might choose one that has your first and last name in it, for example.
• Phone number . Add a number that you can be reached on. You should also check the answer phone message to make sure that it is professional.
• Location . You don’t need to include your entire address. Instead, simply list your city or town and country here. (You will give your address on the supplementary documents.)

Don’t include:

• Date of birth : Don’t include this detail as it can lead to subconscious age discrimination .
• Personal details : Equally, you should include your marital status, passport number, etc.

Mark Smith 

Police Officer 

Sheffield, UK 

[email protected]  

0114 523 2374

(Soon-to-be!) Police Officer 

Apartment 24, Bowland Street, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, UK, S34 7GH 

Your professional summary is likely the first thing that the hiring manager will read. So, you need to make sure that it has a real impact. You only have between two and four sentences to make your point. The language that you use has to be formal and professional. However, you don’t want to bore the hiring team. For that reason, it should also be punchy and interesting. 

One way to keep the reader engaged is to use action verbs throughout your summary. You can stick to either the simple past or present tense, depending on the tense you are writing in. Here are some examples that you might include—excelled, delivered, achieved, and accomplished. 

While it may be tempting to just regurgitate information from the rest of your police CV, this is a real mistake. It’s a missed opportunity. Instead, you need to wow the reader with specific insights into who you are professionally and why they should give you a shot. For example, you might write “ Successful Police Officer with 10 years of experience. Previously led investigations resulting in a 72% increase in case closure rates.” That opener gives the reader something to really sink their teeth into, while providing evidence of your expertise and talents. 

Need inspiration for your summary? Check out our related public sector CVs: 

• Firefighter CV example
• Nurse CV example
• Doctor CV example

You can find adaptable police officer CV example summaries below:

Entry-level Police Officer position with a strong commitment to public service and community safety. Recently completed a Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship (PCDA). Committed to delivering high-level results and taking a proactive approach to working on the force. Physically fit and ready to hone existing skill-set with the right team.

Experienced Police Officer with over 5 years of experience in law enforcement at Kent Police. Organised and participated in over 12 community outreach programs. Swiftly responded to an average of 300 emergency calls per month. Demonstrated ability to handle high-pressure situations with professionalism and efficiency. 

Senior Police Officer with over 10 years of experience, specialising in high profile criminal cases. Previously provided expert testimony in 40+ court cases with a 59% success rate in securing rightful convictions. Contributed to a 12% reduction in local crime rates across Kent.

Once you’ve perfected your summary, it’s time to move onto your work experience. As a rule, you should only go back 10-15 years here. If you've worked for longer than that, stick to your most recent experience. You should use the reverse chronological order again. That means starting with your most recent experience at the top of the page and working backwards. 

Start out with the basic details for each role. That is your title, the employer name, location, and your dates of employment. Below this, you can add bullet points to cover the achievements you gained in the position. You want to keep these as brief as possible. Avoid using personal pronouns, such as “I” and “my” to save yourself some valuable space in this section. 

It’s important to showcase tangible outcomes instead of simply listing job duties. That means including quantifiable results, wherever possible. For instance, you should steer clear of basic statements, such as the following:

• "Trained new recruits”
• "Responded to emergency calls”
• "Prepared incident reports”

While these points may be true, they add very little to your police application. These are duties, not results. The hiring team will read them and quite literally think “So, what?” To improve this section, you should use statistics and details to highlight your value instead. For example:  

• “Trained 50+ new recruits on police procedures and protocols”
• “Responded to 100+ emergency calls per month”
• “Prepared at least 20 detailed incident reports and witness statements per month”

Take a look at the police employment history CV sample below:

Police Sergeant at Merseyside Police, Liverpool  June 2018 - Present 

• Supervise a team of constables in responding to emergency calls and conducting patrols
• Manage complex investigations, gather evidence, and prepare cases for prosecution
• Collaborate with community leaders and organizations to address local crime issues
• Mentor and train junior officers in best practices and procedures

Police Constable at Police Scotland, Glasgow  April 2013 - May 2018 

• Responded to emergency calls and conducted patrols to maintain public safety
• Investigated crimes, interviewed witnesses, and apprehended suspects
• Participated in community outreach programs to build trust and relationships
• Received commendation for bravery during a high-risk incident

Police Constable at Northumbria Police, Newcastle upon Tyne  September 2008 - March 2013 

• Conducted foot and vehicle patrols to deter crime and ensure public safety
• Investigated reports of crime, gathered evidence, and prepared cases for court
• Provided support and assistance to victims of crime and vulnerable individuals
• Participated in training exercises and professional development courses

If you’re new to the force, you need to prove your mettle. As we have already covered, you will need to follow the seven-step process that all new recruits have to go through. Don’t let the fact that you have a lack of direct experience hold you back. There are plenty of ways that you can position your CV for a police officer with success. Here are some tips:  

• Focus on your transferable skills and the reason you want to join the police force. You can do this by detailing your work history (in other fields) and highlighting how the duties of previous roles overlap with this one. Be specific when drawing comparisons here.
• Showcase your character throughout. When applying to become a police officer, your character, integrity, and values matter. Make sure that these key aspects of your personality shine through your police officer CV.
• Use an objective , not a summary. This short paragraph should explain why you’ve chosen to embark on a policing career. Explain what you hope to gain, achieve, and learn from this move and how it aligns with your career history so far.
• Consider adopting a skills-based CV format instead of the standard reverse chronological approach. This structure will help you to emphasise your skill-set over your lack of policing work experience.
• Include any relevant education or certificates. For example, if you’ve undertaken a Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship (PCDA) , that speaks to your dedication and skills.

To be a well-rounded police officer, you will need to have a balance of hard and soft skills. When completing your police CV, make sure you include both of these on the document.  

Hard skills are demonstrable skills that your manager can assess objectively. Much of the time, these relate directly to the position. Soft skills , on the other hand, are what you use to get the job done. These may include communication, interpersonal, and organisation skills. 

When you use our CV builder, the tool provides a range of pre-selected skills to choose from and proficiency levels, too. You can also add your own key skills into the document. 

Here’s what the skills box looks like in our CV template for police officers. 

Key Skills and Proficiencies

When you can, try to put your skills into context. It’s one thing to simply list the talents that you have. But it’s quite another to show off how you use them in a professional setting. 

You can mention and reference your varied skills in other sections of your CV. For example:

• You can illustrate your legal procedure understanding by detailing the types of cases you’ve worked on in your policing work experience.
• You might highlight your investigative skills by sharing how you solved certain cases, especially if they happen to be high-profile.

If you’re having trouble figuring out which skills to include, the job advert is a great place to start.

Next up, let’s walk through the education section of your police CV. This part of your application is relatively straight forward. Once again, you should use the reverse chronological order when listing your certificates and educational feats. Since there are many routes into the force, the things you include will depend on your experience. Here are some examples: 

• Degree . While not a requirement, if you have a degree, you should include it on your police CV, especially if it’s in a subject like law, criminology, or sociology. When you complete your police training, you will gain a degree in Professional Policing Practice .
• Degree apprenticeship . If you don’t have a university degree, there’s another option. Many people join the force by gaining a Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship (PCDA) or the Entry for Police Constable Entry Programme (PCEP) . You will need to have a Level 3 qualification (two A-levels or equivalent).
• Level 3 qualification . Of course, if you are applying for the apprenticeship route, you will need to include your level 3 qualification . This could be two A-Levels, preferably in a relevant subject, or something equal like a level 3 NVQ.
• GCSEs . If you already have a degree, omit your GCSE grades. They are not relevant. However, if you’re applying for the apprenticeship, you may want to include them.

Bachelor of Science in Criminology and Criminal Justice, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne  September 2004 - June 2008

The content of your police CV matters the most. However, that doesn’t mean that you should overlook the design and layout. Getting this right means that your credentials can be easily read and understood. Here are some tips to get you started: 

• Keep the font plain and simple. Opt for something standard, such as Times New Roman or Georgia. These are legible and fit the formal criteria.
• Use a two-column layout. This approach means that you can fit more information onto one or two pages.
• Avoid the use of too much colour. Adding loud colours can make your CV design look unprofessional. That’s the last thing that you want.
• Choose a modern or professional template from our selection of CV templates to make the job quick and easy.

If you’re not a natural designer, don’t worry. Using our tried and tested CV builder is a speedy way to create a flawless police CV without any hassle. 

Police officer text-only CV example

Highly experienced and dedicated police officer with a proven track record of serving and protecting communities across the UK. Skilled in criminal investigations, community policing, and crisis management. Adept at building strong relationships with colleagues, partnering agencies, and the public. Committed to upholding the highest standards of integrity, professionalism, and service. Seeking a challenging role that utilizes my expertise and leadership abilities to make a positive impact on society.

Employment history

• Criminal Investigations
• Evidence Gathering and Preservation
• Interviewing Witnesses and Suspects
• Patrol and Surveillance Techniques
• Firearms Handling and Safety
• Report Writing and Case Documentation
• Teamwork and Collaboration
• Leadership and Mentoring
• Problem-solving and Decision-making

Police officer job market and outlook

The police force has recently hired a mass of new recruits. Back in July 2019, the government launched plans to recruit 20,000 police officers across England and Wales by March 2023. There are plenty of roles across the country with 45 geographical police forces in the UK.

Upon joining the police, you can expect to make £28,551. However, your police officer salary will rise with your experience level. For example, when you reach pay-point seven, you will be on a £46,044 annual salary. 

Key takeaways for building a police officer CV

Your police officer CV must be clear, concise, and professional. Avoid overly creative designs or adding too much “fluff” and stick to the facts. Follow the advice we have shared to help you create an impressive application. Use our online CV builder to get started now.

Attractive CV templates at your fingertips