How to Highlight Your Area of Expertise in a Resume

That means that by including your area of expertise in a resume, you can increase your chances of getting hired. Therefore, this is one area where you should pay a lot of attention if hired. This article will examine the importance of an area of expertise and how to include it in your CV. But before we do that, let’s explain what an area of expertise is.

What Does a Specific Area of Expertise Mean?

An area of expertise in a resume demonstrates to the employer the skills and abilities you bring to the organisation. By including this part, you will show potential employers that you are qualified for the position. Remember that recruiters don’t have much time to review your resume, so you should capture their attention quickly.

The area of expertise cna be technical or general. For instance, if the employer is searching for a customer care staff, listening skills or proficiency with a certain customer management software can help you land an interview.

Therefore, by understanding your area of expertise and including it in your resume, you can easily stand out from the other candidates. Remember to highlight the area of expertise throughout the resume, not just in one section.

Types of Areas of Expertise

Also known as skills, areas of expertise can be categorized into:

Hard Skills

Hard Sills refer to abilities that you learn in school. These are tangible and measurable, meaning that the results can be seen. For instance, an accountant learns how to balance the book of accounts while in school. These are his hard skills.

Soft Skills

Soft skills aren’t tangible. They aren’t also learned in schools but are instead developed over time. The skills aren’t measurable but can be seen in your behaviors. For instance, communication skills are soft skills.

Transferable Skills

These are skills that are transferred from one career to another. For instance, if you have worked as an accountant, you can use those skills to work as an auditor.

Job Skills

These are technical skills that can be used in a particular job. This is one of the key skills that employers are looking for. For instance, if you are applying for the job of an accountant, you will need to prove that you are trained as an accountant. You could be CPA or hold a degree in the field. If you have experience in the field, you increase your chances of getting hired, as you will not need any further training for the position.

Examples of Areas of Expertise

While the areas of expertise will depend on your abilities, skills, and experience, here are examples of areas of expertise:

Leadership
Communication
Time management
Strategic planning
Performance improvement
Sales and marketing
Growth management and many more

How to Include the Area of Expertise in a Resume

Here are the steps to follow in including the area of expertise:

Read the Job Description

To understand the skills the employer is looking for, you should carefully read the job description. It will also help you determine whether you fit the position well. Research skills in high demand for your position and adjust our resume accordingly.

Determine Your Abilities

Ideally, your area of expertise in a resume shows what you can do without struggling. Therefore, consider your gifting, talents, and abilities and include them in your resume. You can ask a colleague for their input if you need help pinpointing them. You should compare these strengths and abilities to see if they match the job description.

Add a Section for Areas of Expertise.

In one section of your resume, below the Executive Summary, list the areas of expertise in bullet points. You can add between five and 10 of these skills in this section. Ensure you begin with the skills most relevant to the job you are applying for. When listing the specific areas of expertise, use keywords that are used in the job description.

Add Your Area of Expertise in Job Experience

Remember to highlight your area of expertise in your job experience section. For instance, when listing your duties and responsibilities, you can mention the special skills that helped you perform well in those duties.

Tips for Including Areas of Expertise in Your Resume

Here are a few things to know when including the area of expertise:

Be specific. If you have specific training that may be helpful to the employer, list it in this section.
Show your proficiencies. When describing your area of expertise, use words such as intermediate or advanced to show your skills.
Show all types of skills. Dont just include one type of skill. Show different kinds of skills. For instance, you can list listening and computer programming as your areas of expertise.

Where to Include Areas of Expertise in a Resume

Unlike the skills section, which is usually located at the bottom, the areas fo expertise should be shown prominently. You can include it at the top of your resume, below the executive summary and the professional experience.

Area of Expertise Resume Template

Here is an example of how to include the field of expertise:

Howard Webb

(555 667 893)

Work Experience

Accountant PWC

Duties and responsibilities

Dail maintenance of the books of accounts
Ensuring that books of accounts are kept in compliance with financial reporting and accounting standards
Ensuring that proper fiscal policies are observed within the organization
Reconciling bank statements

Education

University of Carolina

Bachelors of Commerce

August 2014-Ma 2018

Skills

Communication Skills
Attention to details
Multitasking
Report writing

Final Thoughts

Remember that when applying for a job, you are trying to show the manager you are best suited. There is no better place to put your best foot forward than in the area of expertise section. However, you should remember that every other candidate will add this section. Therefore, you must be creative enough to stay ahead of the competition. You can use the above guidelines to include the area of expertise in your resume.