Personal Statement/Personal Profile for Resume/CV: Examples

Recruiters spend an average of 7.4 seconds on a single CV. That’s barely enough time to read two sentences. But you can encourage recruiters to read your application in full. How? Start with a CV personal profile.

A personal profile, also called a CV summary, is a short paragraph at the top of your application. It’s like an elevator pitch: a catchy summary of your expertise, skills, and achievements.

Think of it as an introduction to your CV. Write it well, and you’ll make your whole application memorable as well as buy yourself much more of the recruiter’s time!

This guide will show you:

• Why you need a CV personal statement on every CV you send.
• How to write a CV profile to land more job interviews.
• 20+ right vs wrong examples of what to include in a CV personal statement to grab attention.

First, have a look at a sample CV with a personal statement at the top. We made it with our builder. (Notice how the paragraph at the top stands out!)

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Sample resume made with our builder—See more resume examples here.

Are you looking for resume examples? See:

• Resume for College Application
• Student Resume Example
• Graduate Student Resume Example
• Academic Resume Examples
• Research Assistant Resume Example
• Career Change Resume Example
• Part Time Job Resume Example
• Customer Service Resume Example
• Personal Assistant Resume Example
• Resume Examples for All Jobs and Industries

A personal statement isn't the only way to start a CV. See:

• Summary of Qualifications Examples
• Career Goals Examples
• Personal Mission Statement Examples
• Self Introduction Examples
• Resume Headlines and Titles

1

Here’s Why You Need a Personal Statement/Profile for a CV

Some career experts claim that a CV personal statement is a relict of the past. In short—these experts are wrong.

Why?

Let’s confront popular belief with science.

Recent research has proven that all top-performing CVs have several common traits. One of them is a CV profile or statement located at the top of the first page of the CV.

To understand why it’s so powerful, have a look below at the results of an eye-tracking study by the Ladders. You’ll see two sample CVs juxtaposed. Only the one to the right has a CV personal statement.

Notice two things:

• The heatmap shows visible eye activity on the personal statement area—that means it’s an effective attention-grabber.
• More importantly, the CV with a personal statement got much more eyetime for all its contents. A CV personal profile worked as a “trailer,” encouraging the recruiter to find out more about the candidate.

Long story short: a CV personal profile will drastically boost your chances of getting invited for an interview. Time to learn how to write one.

If you're curious what the difference between a CV and a resume is, check out our guide: CV vs. Resume: Definitions, Difference & When to Use Which (Samples)

A good CV personal statement or a personal profile has 5 ridiculously simple ingredients:

1. Who you are
2. 2–3 skills
3. 2–3 achievements
4. The name of your target company
5. What you hope to do for your new employer

See this CV profile example for reference:

Personal Profile for a CV—Example

At first, it might seem difficult to come up with an equally good CV personal profile. Luckily, there’s an easy step-by-step strategy you can follow.

How to Write a CV Profile?

1. Read the job description carefully and identify the most important requirements and responsibilities.
2. Write your CV, focusing on your skills and achievements most relevant to the job ad.
3. Skim the cream: find the best, proudest wins on your CV and include them all in your personal statement.

Depending on your level of experience, your personal profile will work as a CV summary or a CV career objective.

Write a CV summary if you have a lot of relevant experience. Provide a snapshot of your career: list your measurable achievements and showcase your skill set.

Go for a CV objective if you’re writing an entry-level CV or a career change CV. Describe what you’ve learned so far and how well you’ll fit in.

Whichever one is right for you—I can’t stress that enough—don’t just write about what you want out of the job. Focus on the offer you bring to the table. Make the employer realize you’ll be there to solve their problems.

Before we move on to CV profile and CV personal statement examples for different industries and positions, remember about these universal tips for a good CV personal profile:

1. Keep your personal statement short

How long should a personal statement for a CV be?

A single paragraph of 30–80 words is about the sweet spot. That usually means 3 to 6 sentences. Try to include all of your most relevant achievements, but don’t repeat yourself. Make every word earn its place on your CV profile. End game: it's supposed to be your elevator pitch.

2. Add measurements to your achievements

Employers love to see quantified proof of your performance. Here are some questions to help you come up with metrics for your personal statement:

• Did you save your company money? How much?
• Have you boosted sales or revenue?
• How large were the budgets you’ve handled?
• How many colleagues were there on your team? How many have you trained or supervised?
• How much work were you able to complete within a day or a week?
• How often did you perform certain tasks?

3. Avoid jargon and CV buzzwords

Using CV keywords from the job description is a must. But don’t confuse them with industry jargon or generic buzzwords. Avoid phrases such as:

• Go-getter
• Hard working team player
• Synergy
• Go-to person
• Thinking outside the box

4. Don’t mix the grammatical person

In a UK CV, it’s fine to write in either the first or the third person. But not both at the same time!

All that information above seem like too much to process at once? Don’t worry.

When making a CV in our builder, drag & drop bullet points, skills, and auto-fill the boring stuff. Spell check? Check. Start building a professional CV template here for free.

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When you’re done, Zety’s CV builder will score your resume and tell you exactly how to make it better.

If you think writing a non-traditional skills-based CV might be a good idea for you, apart from the CV profile, you’ll need to write a CV skills summary. Find out how: Skills Based CV Examples and Writing Guide

3

CV Personal Statement/Personal Profile Examples for Different Professions

Below you’ll see right vs wrong CV personal profile examples for XYZ professions. We’ve divided them into two categories: CV personal statements for experienced candidates and CV profiles for entry-level job seekers and recent school leavers.

CV Personal Statements for Experienced Candidates

Marketing Specialist CV Personal Statement Examples

The difference is clear—the right example lists skills and achievements, and proves them with metrics. On top of that, it makes a clear offer. The wrong example, in turn, is far too unspecific and impersonal.

Teaching Assistant CV Personal Statement Examples

Computer Science CV Profile Examples

Remember: a CV personal statement is not a place to randomly list all your professional skills. Write only about what’s important. Always provide examples that validate your expertise.

See some more samples:

Food Service CV Personal Profile

IT Consultant CV Personal Statement

Graphic Designer CV Personal Statement

Marketing Executive CV Profile

Not too keen on the plain paragraph style? In your CV personal statement, you can experiment with bullet points, too!

Office Manager CV Profile

If the CV personal statement samples above seemed too intimidating, don’t worry. Even without a wealth of job experience, you can successfully sell yourself in a CV profile. Have a look:

CV Personal Statements for Recent Graduates and Entry-Level Candidates

Graduate CV Personal Statement

See that? The bottom line is “I’ve learned a lot already and I have what it takes to help you.”

That one is actually not awful. But there’s no real value for the hiring manager. Most candidates have similar skill sets. Not to mention, a majority has more experience.

School Leaver CV Personal Statement

The wrong example doesn’t mention any specific position. That’s an instant red flag for recruiters. It suggest the candidate is probably spamming identical CVs to all employers within a 30-mile radius.

Entry-Level Business Analyst CV Personal Profile

Even if you were just a part of a team that achieved impressive metrics, it’s perfectly fine to refer to that on a junior CV personal statement.

Medical Assistant CV Personal Statement

If you can’t find a personal statement for your position or industry, see our list of full CV examples for most professions. We break down how to write each section: 100+ CV Examples for All Jobs: Samples and Writing Guides

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your CV will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

See more cover letter templates and start writing.

To write a perfect CV personal statement or a CV personal profile, follow these key tips:

• Write your personal statement after you’ve written the rest of your CV. Pick the best bits that highlight your skills and achievements.
• Tailor every personal statement to the job you’re targeting: use the name of the company and the name of your prospective role.
• Center every personal statement around these details: who you are, your skills, your achievements, and what you hope to do for your new employer.
• Keep your personal statement/profile between 30 and 80 words.
• Don’t overuse jargon or generic buzzwords.

If you have any questions on how to write a job-winning personal statement or need help crafting yours, drop me a line in the comments. I’ll get back to you right off!