3 key takeaways
- Learn what a skills based resume is and who should use one
- Find out the benefits of this type of resume for your specific experience
- Learn how to write a skills based resume in 5 steps (and how Teal makes it easy)
Not every career follows a linear path—that’s where a skills-based resume can help.
Instead of focusing on job titles and timelines like a traditional resume, this format highlights your top skills and what you bring to the table. It’s a smart choice if you’re changing industries, have a nontraditional work history, or want to emphasize abilities over experience.
Below, you’ll learn what a skills-based resume is. You'll also learn how to write one in just five steps and get templates, examples, and practical tips to make it work for you.
What is a skills based resume?
A skills-based resume (also called a functional resume) emphasizes abilities and competencies rather than focusing on your chronological work history.
Instead of organizing your experience by job titles and dates, this format highlights specific skill sets that directly relate to the job you're applying for.
Who benefits from this format
Overall, hiring managers tend to prefer a reverse-chronological resume that shows clear career progression; however, the situations below might warrant using a proficiency-forward format when your work history might otherwise overshadow your relevant capabilities.
This also aligns with broader workplace trends—according to a Deloitte survey, 89% of executives report that skills are becoming more important in defining work, deploying talent, managing careers, and valuing employees.
This approach may work particularly well for these job seekers:
- Career changers transitioning to a new industry
- People with large employment gaps or a non-traditional career path
- Recent graduates with no work experience but relevant skills
- Those with a diverse work history that doesn't show clear progression
- People returning to the workforce after an extended break
Skills based resume vs. chronological resume
The key difference between a skills-based resume and a chronological resume comes down to structure and focus.
A chronological resume—the most common format—lists your employment history by job title in reverse chronological order, emphasizing career progression and continuity.
A skills based resume format, on the other hand, organizes your experience by skill categories rather than job positions. Your work history is still included, but in a condensed section after your key skills, shifting the focus to what you can do rather than just where you’ve worked.
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When to use a skills-based resume
The right format choice depends on your specific circumstances and career goals. Consider using a competency based resume in these situations:
✅ Changing careers: Using a skills based format as a career change resume helps you connect the dots between seemingly unrelated experiences. It does this by highlighting transferable skills that matter in your target industry. TL;DR: A skill based resume answers the "Why should we hire you when you haven't done this before?" question upfront.
✅ When you have significant employment gaps: Rather than drawing attention to large timeline breaks, a skills approach focuses on consistent skill development throughout your career. It presents your qualifications based on capability rather than continuity.
✅ If you're a new graduate: Turn academic achievements into professional qualifications by organizing your resume around skill sets developed through coursework, projects, and internships. This approach compensates for limited work experience by demonstrating job-ready abilities.
✅ When you work in a skills-driven industry: Fields like tech, healthcare, and design often value specific technical know-how. This format can help create a clear match between your specialized abilities (like software and tools) and the technical requirements in job descriptions.
Pro Tip: If you find you fall into one of these categories but aren't sure it's enough to warrant highlighting competencies rather than work history, consider a hybrid resume format that places equal emphasis on skills and experience.
How to format a skill based resume
To format a skills based resume, your strengths need to stand out at a glance. Structure and visual hierarchy matter—here’s how to keep it clean, scannable, and professional for maximum clarity and impact:
Layout and order:
- Contact information
- Target title
- Professional summary
- Skills section with achievements (Front and center)
- Education and certifications
- Additional sections such as Work Experience (condensed), Volunteer Work, or Projects
Write a skills-based resume in 5 steps
A strong skills based resume takes a different approach than a traditional chronological one. To help you write a resume that highlights your abilities, we’ve broken the process into five simple steps.
Step 1: Start with a strong resume summary
After your contact information and target title, your resume summary serves as a professional introduction and sets the tone for the skills that follow. To focus on your capabilities, this section should highlight your core competencies and career achievements rather than job titles or years of experience. Keep it short, impactful, and results-focused.
Example: Customer service professional with expertise in conflict resolution, client relationship management, and technical troubleshooting. Consistently improved customer satisfaction scores by 25%+ through empathetic communication and efficient problem-solving. Strong customer service skills demonstrated across retail, call center, and digital support environments.
Step 2: Create a targeted Skills section
Instead of just listing skills in this resume section, you'll organize them into categories that showcase your expertise in areas relevant to a specific job.
Focus on the top 3-5 skills from the job description, including both hard and soft skills. If you're changing careers, include the most transferable skills you have for that job.
The idea is to match the language used in job descriptions when naming your skill categories. This helps your resume get found in ATS systems and catches the hiring manager's attention.
Example format:
[Skill Category 1]
- [Achievement with measurable result]
- [Achievement with measurable result]
- [Achievement with measurable result]
[Skill Category 2]
- [Achievement with measurable result]
- [Achievement with measurable result]
- [Achievement with measurable result]
Step 3: Add accomplishments that prove your skills
A skills list isn’t enough—you need to show results. Even if you're making a first job resume, it's key to show how you've used skills to have an impact or get results.
- For each category, include specific accomplishments that prove how you’ve used these abilities.
- Include numbers, metrics, and data whenever possible—percentages, timeframes, cost savings.
- If exact metrics aren’t available, focus on clear outcomes like improvements or efficiencies.
Pull examples from work, freelancing, volunteering, or projects—whatever best supports your qualifications. Relevance is what matters.
Using the example above, those bullets become:
Step 4: Include education and certifications
Your education and credentials also add credibility to your professional skills. In a skills-based resume they help validate your expertise and fill any experience gaps. Focus on the following (as long as they support your qualifications or requirements for the role):
- Degrees
- Certifications
- Relevant courses
- Projects
Start with your highest level of education, then add certifications, continuing education, and specialized training.
If you're a recent grad, include coursework, projects, or activities that showcase job-ready skills. Keep it concise—focus on what strengthens your case for the position.
Pro Tip: Want to add more sections like a condensed Work Experience section or Projects? With the Teal AI Resume Builder's flexible design, you can use the Drag-and-Drop Editor to move and rename every section of your resume so it always works for your unique background.
Step 5: Optimize for ATS and readability
Your skill based resume needs to be scanned by digital filters and human eyes. Much like with a reverse-chronological resume, that means making it ATS-friendly while keeping it easy to read for hiring managers.
✅ Use keywords wisely: Pull key terms from the job description, especially in your skills and achievements. Recruiters search the ATS for these, so match both technical and soft skills naturally.
✅ Keep formatting clean: Use simple fonts, clear headers, and consistent spacing. Avoid tables, text boxes, or graphics that can't be parsed easily by the ATS.
✅ Stick to standard section titles: Labels like "Skills," "Experience," and "Education" help recruiters find what they need fast.
Skills based resume templates and examples
Now that you know how to write one, let's take a look at some templates and examples to help you create a resume based on your skills.
Skills based resume template for career changers
When changing careers, your job skills are your biggest asset. This fill-in-the-blank template helps you highlight what you can do while keeping past industry experience in the background.
Use this framework to connect your existing skills to the employer’s needs—showing them how you’re already equipped for the job.
[Your Name]
[Phone Number] | [Email Address] | [LinkedIn URL]
[TARGET TITLE]
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
[3-4 sentences highlighting your most relevant transferable skills, years of professional experience, and how your background prepares you for this new role. Focus on capabilities that bridge your previous experience with your target industry.]
CORE SKILLS
[Transferable Skill Category 1 relevant to new industry]
- Achieved [specific measurable result] through [action you took] that demonstrates this skill
- Led [specific initiative] resulting in [quantifiable outcome] by applying this capability
- Developed [solution or approach] that [benefit or improvement] for the organization
[Transferable Skill Category 2 relevant to new industry]
- Improved [process or metric] by [percentage or specific amount] by implementing [your approach]
- Created [project or initiative] that [specific positive outcome] affecting [scope of impact]
- Collaborated with [team or department] to [accomplishment], resulting in [measurable benefit]
[Technical or Specialized Skill Category relevant to new industry]
- Applied [specific technique or tool] to [challenge], resulting in [positive outcome]
- Mastered [relevant software or methodology] to [accomplish goal] which [specific benefit]
- Adapted [previous skill] to address [new industry challenge] leading to [positive result]
EDUCATION & CERTIFICATIONS
[Degree], [Institution], [Year]
[Relevant Certification], [Issuing Organization], [Year]
[Recent Course or Training relevant to new career]
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
[Job Title], [Company], [City, State] — [Start Date–End Date]
[Job Title], [Company], [City, State] — [Start Date–End Date]
[Job Title], [Company], [City, State] — [Start Date–End Date]
Skills-based resume templates for different industries
The templates below are customized for specific industries, with skill categories and achievement formats tailored to what hiring managers in these fields typically value. Choose the template most relevant to your target role and personalize it with your own experience and accomplishments.
Skills based resume template - Tech
[Your Name]
[Phone Number] | [Email Address] | [LinkedIn URL] [GitHub URL if applicable]
[TARGET TECH POSITION]
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
[Brief overview highlighting your technical expertise, years of experience, and 1-2 significant achievements or specializations in the tech field. Include relevant programming languages, platforms, or methodologies.]
TECHNICAL EXPERTISE
Software Development
- Developed [specific application/feature] using [programming languages/frameworks] that [specific impact or improvement]
- Reduced [performance metric] by [percentage] through optimization of [specific code or system]
- Implemented [architectural pattern or approach] that improved [scalability/security/performance] by [measurable outcome]
Data Management & Analysis
- Created [specific data solution] that processed [volume of data] resulting in [business impact]
- Designed [database structure or analytics dashboard] that improved [decision-making process or efficiency metric]
- Automated [specific repetitive task] saving [number] hours weekly and improving [accuracy/consistency]
Project Management & Collaboration
- Led development team of [team size] to deliver [product/feature] [timeframe relative to deadline]
- Coordinated [cross-functional initiative] between [departments involved], resulting in [business outcome]
- Implemented [agile methodology or collaboration tool] that improved team velocity by [percentage]
EDUCATION & CERTIFICATIONS
[Technical Degree], [Institution], [Year]
[Industry Certification], [Issuing Organization], [Year]
[Specialized Training or Bootcamp]
WORK EXPERIENCE
[Technical Role], [Company], [City, State] — [Start Date–End Date]
[Technical Role], [Company], [City, State] — [Start Date–End Date]
PROJECTS & OPEN SOURCE CONTRIBUTIONS
[Project Name], [GitHub/Demo Link if applicable] — [Date/Duration]
- Brief description of technologies used and your specific contributions
Skills based resume template - Healthcare
[Your Name], [Credentials if applicable]
[Phone Number] | [Email Address] | [LinkedIn URL]
[TARGET HEALTHCARE POSITION]
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
[Concise overview of your healthcare experience, clinical or administrative specialties, and patient care philosophy. Mention any special populations served or healthcare settings where you've worked.]
HEALTHCARE COMPETENCIES
Patient Care & Clinical Skills
- Provided care for [number/type of patients] with [specific conditions] resulting in [improved outcomes]
- Implemented [specific care protocol or approach] that [measurable improvement in patient outcomes]
- Coordinated with [healthcare team members] to develop [treatment plans/interventions] for [patient population]
Healthcare Administration & Operations
- Managed [administrative function] for [department/unit size], resulting in [efficiency or quality improvement]
- Reduced [specific metric like wait times/costs/errors] by [percentage] through implementation of [process change]
- Ensured compliance with [specific regulations] across [scope of responsibility], maintaining [perfect/high] audit scores
Communication & Interpersonal Skills
- Educated [number of patients/families] on [health topics] improving [compliance/outcomes/satisfaction rates]
- Facilitated [type of communication] between [parties involved,] resulting in [improved coordination/outcomes]
- Developed [training/educational materials] that improved [staff performance/patient understanding] by [metric]
EDUCATION & CERTIFICATIONS
[Healthcare Degree/Diploma], [Institution], [Year]
[Clinical/Professional Certification], [Issuing Organization], [Year]
[Specialized Training relevant to target position]
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
[Healthcare Role], [Facility/Organization], [City, State] — [Start Date–End Date]
[Healthcare Role], [Facility/Organization], [City, State] — [Start Date–End Date]
CONTINUING EDUCATION & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
[Relevant Courses/Workshops], [Date]
[Professional Association Memberships]
Skills based resume template - Education
[Your Name]
[Phone Number] | [Email Address] | [Professional Profile URL]
[TARGET EDUCATION POSITION]
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
[Brief overview highlighting your educational philosophy, years of teaching/administrative experience, and special areas of expertise. Mention grade levels, subjects, or educational approaches you specialize in.]
EDUCATIONAL COMPETENCIES
Curriculum Development & Instruction
- Designed [specific curriculum/lesson plans] for [subject/grade level], resulting in [improvement in student outcomes]
- Implemented [teaching strategy or technology] that increased [student engagement/test scores] by [percentage]
- Differentiated instruction for [diverse learning needs] leading to [inclusive learning outcomes/improvements]
Student Engagement & Classroom Management
- Created [specific classroom environment/system] that reduced [behavioral issues] by [percentage]
- Developed [student motivation strategy] resulting in [increased participation/completion rates]
- Facilitated [collaborative learning activities] that improved [peer relationships/teamwork skills]
Assessment & Educational Technology
- Utilized [assessment tools/methods] to track student progress, resulting in [data-driven improvements]
- Integrated [educational technology platforms] into [learning context], enhancing [specific learning outcomes]
- Created [digital or traditional resources] that supported [learning objectives] for [student population]
EDUCATION & CERTIFICATIONS
[Education Degree], [Institution], [Year]
[Teaching Certification/License], [State/Authority], [Year]
[Specialized Educational Training]
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
[Teaching Position], [School/Institution], [City, State] — [Start Date–End Date]
[Teaching Position], [School/Institution], [City, State] — [Start Date–End Date]
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT & ACTIVITIES
[Relevant Workshops/Conferences Attended], [Date]
[Committee Work or Leadership Roles]
[Educational Community Involvement]
Skills based resume examples
To help you better understand how a skills-based resume works in practice, let's look at real-world examples. The following examples show how professionals organized their experience around skill categories rather than chronological work history. Pay attention to how the skills sections take center stage, with specific achievements demonstrating each capability,
Skills based resume example
Example skills based resume
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Common mistakes when writing a skills based resume
Before finalizing your resume, watch for these pitfalls that can weaken your application. Avoiding these common errors will help ensure your resume highlights your strengths effectively.
- Being too vague with skill descriptions instead of providing specific examples
- Omitting dates entirely from work history (if you list it) raises red flags for employers
- Overloading with technical skills while neglecting important soft skills and vice versa
- Including irrelevant skills that don't align with the target position
- Using skill categories that are too broad or generic
- Failing to quantify achievements with metrics, numbers, or results
- Making the skills section too text-heavy and difficult to scan
Create a great resume based on your skills
A skills-based resume can help you showcase your abilities when changing careers, returning to the workforce, or highlighting specialized expertise. The key is thoughtful organization, specific examples, and strategic formatting that puts your most relevant qualifications front and center.
If you're looking for a tool to help you create a great skills-based resume without the guesswork, Teal's AI Resume Builder has you covered. Use the Drag-and-Drop Editor to easily reorganize and rename sections so you can use the best resume format for your specific experience.
