How to Write the Perfect Administrative Assistant Resume

Let’s face it: administrative assistants are often the unsung heroes of any office. They’re the front lines in the war against chaos and misplaced information. It’s a career path that can lead you anywhere because the skills you pick up and build along the way are so universal and adaptable—but it’s also a great path in and of itself if you have the right skills and willingness to be the one who keeps all the trains running.

To help you build your administrative assistant resume at any stage of this career path, let’s look at three different resumes: one administrative newbie right out of school, a midlevel admin assistant, and a later-career executive assistant. We have put together a library of editable resume templates that you can download over at the Resume Library.

First up is Joy, who’s fresh out of school and hoping to parlay her good organization skills and part-time receptionist gig into an entry-level assistant position.

You may download this resume in a Word Document through our resume library.

Joy Brown
876 4^th Ave, #5C
Brooklyn, NY 11111
(212) 555-5555
JoyBrown95@emaildomain.com

OBJECTIVE

Hard-working, recent college graduate with office and internship experience looking for a position that leverages strong organizational and communication skills into a growth position.

SKILLS

100 WPM
Expert in Microsoft Outlook and Word
Proficient in Microsoft Excel
Bilingual (English and French)
Graphic design
Presentations
Personable, enthusiastic attitude
Professional demeanor

EDUCATION

College of New York Rye, NY

B.A., English, 2016

85/4.0 GPA
Minored in American Studies and Mathematics
Chairperson of the CoNY Volunteers Association, 2015-2016
Studied abroad in Montreal

EXPERIENCE

The Berman Agency New York, NY

Copy Intern 6/2015 – 8/15

Provided administrative support for a copy department of six people
Drafted preliminary copy for ad campaigns
Managed the company’s social media accounts (posts and customer interaction)
Coordinated meetings and calendars
Scanned and digitized archival content for newly implemented digital filing system

Joy is looking for her first full-time job out of college. She may not know what she wants to do with her career long-term, but neither that nor a lack of experience should be a drag on her resume. She uses the objective statement to summarize her situation, and the qualities she wants to translate into a full-time, experience-gathering administrative job. She’s not trying to hide her relatively short experience, but rather emphasize who she is and what she brings to a job. The functional, or skills-based, resume format works best for Joy. She puts her skills and education up in front to show what she has going for her, and what she’s been working on.

For her experience, she works with what she has—internship and part-time student work in the bursar’s office. These aren’t necessarily full-time jobs, but in each one her bullet points show that she gained solid office experience.

Next up is Javier, who has been an administrative assistant for years, and is looking to move up, either in pay or in title.

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Javier Chen

238 Hanover Street, Apt 3B

Boston, MA 98798

(444) 858-5858

Javier@emaildomain.com

LinkToMe profile: JavierXChen.linktome.com

Administrative professional with 8+ years of experience providing first-class support across industries.

SKILLS

Administrative: Multitasking pro, able to handle scheduling meetings, coordinating staff travel needs, ordering and maintaining office supply inventories, and handling incoming client and colleague emails and phone calls.
Communications: Courteous, professional demeanor with all levels of staff; able to work effectively with people at all levels and working styles; comfortable presenting different kinds of information in front of large or small audiences.
Computers: Expert in the Microsoft Office suite; proficient in Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Acrobat, and QuickBooks Pro. Certified graphic designer.
Event Planning: Experienced in coordinating large and small corporate events, including parties, gallery openings, and customer appreciation events.

EXPERIENCE

Boston Financial Management Boston, MA
Administrative Assistant, July 2013 – present

Provide administrative support to the VP of Hedge Fund Management and a 10-person team of hedge fund managers.
Coordinate meetings and maintain the VP’s Outlook calendar, as well as schedule weekly staff meetings.
Book travel for staff, process travel reimbursements, and keep detailed records.
Proofread outgoing correspondence.
Oversaw the implementation of a new phone and telepresence system.

Skylark Gallery Boston, MA
Gallery Assistant, April 2011 – July 2013

Provided day-to-day administrative report for the gallery’s Director and Associate Director.
Planned and oversaw gallery openings and other in-house events.
Fielded media and public relations queries.
Managed an office staff of 3, including interns and student employees.
Greeted and attended to artists and customers.

When it comes to administrative assistant roles, Javier is a pro—he’s worked for a number of different companies, and has a variety of experiences under his belt. So while he could very well go with the standard reverse-chronological resume that emphasizes his experience, he chooses to open with the skills-based format instead, listing his skills in buckets that are important in his line of work (administrative, communication, tech, and event coordinating). This way, he gives the reader a snapshot of the skills he has that go above and beyond his work history, and sets a narrative for his career path: Javier is good at organizing, wrangling, and presenting. These are good skills to emphasize if he wants to move into more senior roles and less administrative assisting, but would also open up further opportunities as an admin.

For his experience, Javier emphasizes the companies over the job titles, which supports his narrative of working for a diverse set of companies, and shows his flexibility as an admin professional.

Let’s go (last but not least) to Elizabeth, who has chosen the administrative career path, and has risen to the level of executive assistant.

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Elizabeth Torres
543 Hearth Street
Detroit, MI 77777
(777) 456-7890
ElizTorres@emaildomain.com

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT

Experienced: Resourceful executive assistant with more than 13 years of experience supporting executives at the CEO, VP, and manager levels.
Motivated: Highly self-motivated, with a strong work ethic and a career-long commitment to providing highest-quality administrative support.
Adept: Experienced at handling complicated logistics and sensitive information.
Adaptable: Able to organize high volumes of work in different office environments.

EXPERIENCE

Executive Assistant, 2011 – present General Automobiles; Detroit, MI

Provide business and administrative support to the CEO of a major national auto manufacturer, as well as 6 members of the Executive Management Board.
Maintain and update the CEO’s schedule of meetings, appointments, and teleconferences.
Coordinate travel logistics for the CEO on a monthly basis, including domestic and international travel.
Oversee team of two Administrative Assistants who support the Executive Management Board.
Improved filing efficiency by implementing a digital archiving system.
Saved the company more than $10K annually by auditing travel and business vendors and negotiating reduced rates for premium services.

Executive Assistant, 2007 – 2011 The Argyle Group; Detroit, MI

Supported the CEO and two Executive Vice Presidents’ day-to-day administrative needs.
Coordinated meetings and maintained schedules.
Arranged high-level board and management meetings, company events, and international teleconferences for the CEO and EVPs.
Assisted the senior management with special projects (including research and presentations) on an as-needed basis.
Oversaw a large-scale office move of 600+ employees to a new facility, and coordinated building renovations. Also chaired the internal-facing Office Move Committee.

Administrative Assistant, 2003 – 2007

Provided administrative support to a team of six account managers within the Argyle Group.
Maintained calendars and scheduling, including travel arrangements and regular staff meetings.
Served as a point of contact with clients, vendors, and internal stakeholders on behalf of the account managers to streamline email and phone correspondence.
Developed and implemented a new filing system for the firm’s 85+ years’ worth of paper records.
Managed office interns and temporary employees assigned to the executive offices.
Maintained office supply inventory and the related budget, and implemented a new ordering process that reduced office supply waste by 33% in the first year.

Elizabeth is looking to emphasize her long experience as an executive administrative assistant, so she does this with a simple headline at the top of her resume. Like Javier, she follows this with the categories she sees as most important to her brand as an executive assistant: experience, motivation, organization, and flexibility. Much of her career so far was spent at one company, but multiple positions—so in the experience section, Elizabeth breaks these into two clear sections. This emphasizes her upward mobility at the Argyle Group, and shows the breadth of what she worked on in her years there. She’s also careful to mention the titles of those whom she’s supported over the years, knowing that words like “CEO” and “VPs” are impressive ways to flesh out her extensive experience.

Her education, while important, is less important to Elizabeth’s career goals than her experience, so she’s parked this section at the end. With this resume, she’s well equipped to move into another executive assistant position, or move into a different kind of administrative position, as well.

Want more? Check out our resume samples on other jobs:

How to Write the Perfect Administrative Assistant Resume

About the author

Kate Lopaze

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About the author

Kate Lopaze