20 Feb How to Find Keywords from Job Descriptions for Your Resume
When you send your application for a job, oftentimes it runs into an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) bot first. ATS bots are designed to scan through applications and weed out the “bad apples”—or the people who don’t fit the role. Depending on the company or job, these scanners can look for specific keywords, past experiences, individual skills, and more.
One of the most important things to have on your resume is tailored keywords. If you’re a bit lost on how to find the right keywords for your resume, keep reading.
What are Keywords & Why do We Need Them?
By definition, keywords are words or concepts that hold significance. This means that they stand out above the rest and can bring important information.
On a resume, a keyword is usually just one or two words throughout that show action, skill, or experience. These can range from things you’ve accomplished and your daily tasks to the specific programs you’ve used and your education.
Including these keywords not only show that you have experience for the job you’re applying to, but it can help ensure your resume passes through the ATS bot and into the hands of a hiring manager. Even if you have the proper skills and experience for a job, incorrectly using keywords will have your resume tossed out before it even has a chance. The ATS bot isn’t as forgiving if you use slightly different verbiage or terms.
Basic Ones to Include throughout Your Resume
There are a ton of keywords you can include on your resume. They differ depending on the industry you’re in, the company you’re applying for, and even the responsibilities you hold.
To find basic keywords to include on your resume, try searching through multiple different job descriptions for your industry. Soon enough, you should start to notice a few familiar words on each of them.
For example, if you’re applying for a management role, you might see keywords such as:
- Manage
- Oversee
- Direct
- Lead / Leader
- Guide
And if you’re applying for a role in IT, you might see keywords such as:
- Data Entry
- Technologically Savvy / Certified
- Design
- Analyze
- Utilize / Use
How to Find Specific Keywords to Match a Job Description
When you’re applying for a job, the best place to find keywords for your resume is in the job description. You just need to know how to find them.
Where to Look
It’s quite easy, actually. When you look at a job description, there are always a few different sections on it—no matter which platform you’re looking at it from.
There is usually a section dedicated to expected responsibilities you will have to perform at this job, the experience they want you to have (often labeled as About You), and possibly sections detailing information about the company as a whole. The sections you want to focus on for keywords are the responsibility and experience/about you sections.
Keywords vs. Regular Words
The most difficult part about finding keywords is determining which words from a job description are important and which ones are just regular, boring words. Once you figure out the system, you will be able to find the best possible words to use easily.
For example, let’s take a look at a responsibility of Customer Service Representatives (CSRs). Most often, job descriptions have these responsibilities in a listed fashion. However, it’s not uncommon to find these within paragraphs as well.
Most job descriptions for CSRs will include a responsibility similar to this: “assist customers with complaints, questions, and any other issues.”
Though this is a full sentence with seemingly all important information to include, you can actually cut out most of it. The heart of this responsibility is summed up in just two words: “assist customers.” That’s it.
The things that follow those two words are all filler responsibilities. Of course, it wouldn’t hurt to still include keywords around “complaints,” “questions,” or “issues.” But it’s more important to include both “assist” and “customers,” preferably right next to each other.
More Examples!
From a Sales Executive job description: “Sell products by establishing contact and developing relationships. Maintain relationships with clients and provide guidance and support throughout the full sales cycle. Utilize Microsoft Teams and make phone calls daily.”
Keywords: sell, establishing contact, develop/maintain relationships, provide guidance, support, full sales cycle, utilize, Microsoft Teams, phone calls
From a Healthcare Administrative job description: “Plan and supervise all medical services, including monitoring budgets, filing paperwork, updating health records, and more.”
Keywords: plan, supervise, medical services, monitoring budgets, filing, updating
From an IT Specialist job description: “Install, monitor, and troubleshoot computer hardware and software systems. Write programs, analyze systems, and provide various technical support.”
Keywords: install, monitor, troubleshoot, hardware, software, write, analyze, provide, technical support
How to Use Those Keywords on Your Resume
Now that you have found the keywords you need to include on your resume, you have to implement them correctly. It’s not helpful to just list them on your resume, they need to be in a cohesive order.
Try including those keywords throughout your summary paragraph by detailing the hard skills you bring to each job. Are you hard-working, excellent at time management, and strong with both verbal and written communication? Definitely something to include in your summary paragraph.
Throughout your past job experiences, you can start sprinkling in each keyword in relation to the tasks you did. Have you written reports, organized files, and helped customers? Great! If those keywords match the job you will apply to, make sure you include those on your resume.
Remember, though, that you should not overload your resume with too many repeat keywords. Too many of the same word will be obvious keyword stuffing to get through the ATS bot and will be tossed out for missing other important words. So be cautious and change things up enough to not be repetitious.
When in Doubt… Have a Professional Help!
Nowadays, there are professionals available to help you get wherever you need to be. If you’re struggling to find tailored keywords for your resume, then it might be time to find a Career Service professional!
At the Jonus Group, we have a team of Career Services experts that can help you optimize your resume, fix up your LinkedIn, support you throughout your job search, give interview help, and more. You can see a full list of our Career Services here.
If you would like to meet with a professional, you can schedule a free, 15-minute consultation on our calendar here.