How to Write an Effective Administrative Officer Resume

Updated 30 September 2022

A career as an administrative officer usually requires an interest in business management, leadership and accounting and excellent time management and organisational skills. When seeking a role in this field, a professional resume outlining how you meet these requirements may help you impress recruiters. Understanding the components of a successful resume for an administrative officer can help you write an effective one. In this article, we discuss what an administrative officer resume is, offer resume writing steps, explore skills you can include and share a template and example.

What's an administrative officer resume?

An administrative officer resume is a document that outlines your skills, education and experience managing the daily administrative functions of a business. When applying for a new job, a well-written resume forms part of your application, usually alongside a cover letter. When writing a resume for an administrative officer role, the credentials you choose to focus on can vary depending on your educational background and experience. It's common for a resume for an administrative officer to include information about experience managing and supervising employees, implementing new procedures, managing budgets and ensuring smooth administrative operations.

How to write a resume for an administrative officer's job

Below, you can find steps that can help you successfully write a resume for an administrative officer's job:

1. Provide your contact details

It's important to begin your resume with accurate contact details so the recruiter can identify your resume and contact you if required to initiate the next steps in the recruitment process. Your contact details can include your full name, mobile number, professional email address and the city and state in which you live. Consider having your name in bold so it's easily noticeable.

2. Write your professional summary

A professional summary is an effective way to describe your strengths and what you can bring to the role of an administrative officer. A well-written professional summary can help you make a great first impression on the recruiter and encourage them to read the rest of your resume. In two to three concise sentences, you can showcase your experience, skills, goals and motivations. This could include your outstanding administrative achievements, impressive teamwork skills or exciting career objectives.

3. Describe your work history

After writing your professional summary, you can include a work experience section outlining your experience as an administrative officer or in related roles. It can be beneficial to list previous positions in reverse chronological order, beginning with your most recent or current job title. Consider including the name of the employer, your job title and the dates of your employment. For each position, you may list a few of your typical duties in bullet point form. It's helpful to review the duties listed on the job description and refer to some of them when describing your previous experiences.

4. Detail your education

While there are usually no formal requirements for working as an administrative officer, recruiters often look favourably upon candidates who've completed tertiary education. If you have qualifications, such as a bachelor's degree, a diploma or a certificate, it's a great idea to include them on your resume. Doing this can further elaborate your training and expertise. Qualifications commonly found on resumes for jobs in this field are a Bachelor of Business Administration, a Diploma of Business (Operations) or a Certificate IV in Business Administration.

5. Share your skills

Your resume is a great place to showcase your skill set to the recruiter. You can list your relevant skills on your resume in bullet point form, or list them, separated by commas. To determine which skills to include on your resume, it's helpful to review the skills mentioned in the job description. Doing this can also help an Application Tracking System (ATS) notice your resume. Recruiters commonly use an ATS, which helps them shortlist resumes based on their use of relevant keywords.

6. Proofread and edit

Before submitting your resume with your application, it's important to proofread it. Proofreading your completed resume can help you notice any spelling mistakes, grammatical errors, missing information or areas that can benefit from improvement. Many people choose to do this task the day after completing their resume, with fresh eyes that may notice mistakes more easily. Once you have proofread and edited your document, you may even like to ask a family member or friend to do a double-check for you.

Administrative officer skills for a resume

If you're wondering what skills may be best to include on your resume when applying for an administrative officer role, the list below can give you some inspiration. Here are some of the top skills recruiters look for in administrative officer candidates:

Teamwork skills

Equipped with great teamwork skills, you're likely to collaborate effectively with others, which is often a significant part of your role as an administrative assistant. Hiring managers often seek candidates for this position who they feel can confidently support a range of operational functions while working with a range of individuals and departments. Teamwork skills can include coordination, cooperation, active listening and empathy, for example.

Communication skills

A range of soft skills contribute to your ability to communicate well and are a critical component of an administrative assistant role. As there's a requirement for you to interact with a range of people from employees, managers and customers, recruiters look favourably upon candidates with strong communication skills. Skills you may commonly find in an administrative officer's resume can be verbal and written communication and interpersonal ability.

Time management skills

As an administrative officer, you're likely to work in a fast-paced environment with many moving elements. If you possess great well-developed time management skills, you're likely to work well under pressure, while managing tasks and schedules effectively. It can be beneficial to include time management skills such as delegation, decision making and strategy on your resume for an administrative officer position.

Technology skills

Many common duties of an administrative position involve the use of technology, whether it be for communication, marketing or accounting purposes. Because of this, recruiters for these positions may like to see a range of technology skills on your resume to confirm your competence. These technology skills may include email, social media and Microsoft Office Suite proficiency.

Organisation skills

The ability to maintain order in a fast-paced environment is essential in administrative roles. Showcasing your organisational skills on your resume can highlight to employers that you possess the qualities required to coordinate and supervise a multitude of tasks. Some examples of great organisational skills to include on your resume for a job in this field can be attention to detail, calendar management and record-keeping.

Problem-solving skills

Businesses often seek administrators who are natural problem-solvers. Listing problem-solving skills on your resume can highlight your ability to keep business operations running smoothly, despite unexpected occurrences. Some good problem-solving skills to include on your resume for an administrative officer role might be critical thinking, conflict resolution and research skills.

Resume template for an administrative position

Below, you can explore a template for writing a resume for an administrative officer position:

[Full name]
[Email address] | [Phone number] | [City, State]

Professional Summary
[Here, you can summarise your primary employment attributes in two or three sentences.]

Work History
[Most recent job title]
[Employer name], [Employment dates]

[job responsibility]
[job responsibility]
[job responsibility]
[job responsibility]
[job responsibility]

[Job title]
[Employer name], [Employment dates]

[job responsibility]
[job responsibility]
[job responsibility]

Education
[Degree, diploma or certificate name]
[Institute name], [Date of graduation]

Skills
[You can reference your skills in this section on one line, using a pipe character or comma to separate each skill.]

Resume example for an administrative position

Below, you can find a resume example for an administrative officer's job application:

Anika Petal anikap@email.com.au | 042 347 3561 | Adelaide, SA

Professional summary
Dedicated administrative officer with over five years' experience in corporate business. Seeking employment opportunities in the non-profit and government sector. Personable and proficient professional with advanced time management skills who can ensure smooth business operations and achievement of project objectives.

Work history
Administrative Officer
Ellis & Igor, June 2021–current

establishing effective workflow processes to boost productivity
training new employees in company policy and procedures
supervising office inventory activities, such as the placing of orders
scheduling meetings between members of the executive team and customers
managing the customer relationship management database

Operations Coordinator
Rand Properties, November 2018–May 2021

facilitated feedback from employees and clients to management
worked with senior team members to determine departmental requirements and objectives
observed operational processes to identify areas requiring improvement

Education
Bachelor of Business Administration
Hawkins South University, 2017