Formatting Your Skills Section

One of the most important parts of your resume is the skills section. You can follow a variety of formats when creating that section, but your skills may parse incorrectly if it is not properly formatted. 

First things first! Your skills section needs to be at the end of your resume as one of the last sections. Your skills section is not the same as your related experiences. Each bullet point in your experience section should emphasize the skills you used to achieve in each position. Use the skills section at the end to highlight additional skills not previously listed on your resume. 

Next, you must list your skills separately in this section. The ATS may struggle to read your skills and only see a jumbled mess when they are combined. The easiest way to separate each skill is by using commas or bullet points.  DO NOT use sentences to explain your skills. If they are on your resume the employer will assume you are proficient in them. 

Examples

Using commas to list each skill separately: 

Using bullets to separate each skill: 

DO NOT use columns without bullets. When the computer reads them from left to right, it won't make any sense. Watch this video to learn more about formatting columns. 

Finally, make sure you only list skills. You don't need intro words like  Proficient in xyz. The ATS will have an easier time reading your resume and can easily identify each of your skills.