What Should I Include on a Front Desk Receptionist Resume?
When writing a front desk receptionist resume, you should normally include any past experience you have with related job duties. These can include typing, operating a multi-line phone, using email management software, and greeting customers as they enter the lobby of a business or organization. If you have not held this type of office support job before, your receptionist resume could list any previous customer service experience you may have in other areas such as retail or food service. Many employers prefer to hire receptionists who have pleasant personalities and a professional demeanor even in stressful situations, so listing any related on-the-job accomplishments can also be a plus for your resume.
Some receptionist positions may require completion of a college degree or certificate, particularly for jobs in specialty areas such as law or medical offices. Other types of businesses may offer these front desk jobs to motivated high school graduates who are able to learn the responsibilities quickly. If you have not completed a higher education degree, include relevant skills you may have learned through short-term secretary training courses. Useful skill sets often include word processing and inputting numbers with a 10-key pad on a computer keyboard.
Even if your prior job experience is limited, your front desk receptionist resume should ideally showcase your organizational skills. Many receptionists also work in an administrative assistant capacity that entails scheduling employers' meetings and appointments on a daily basis. Keeping this schedule current is often one of the most important job duties in this kind of receptionist position. A qualified receptionist also needs good spoken and written communication skills, and these should also usually be highlighted on your resume. Clear speech is ideal for telephone answering duties, and many receptionists also need to take neatly written phone messages throughout each day.
When you list your qualifications and past accomplishments on your front desk receptionist resume, include action verbs such as "organized", "scheduled", or "maintained." These words communicate to hiring managers that you are competent at managing sets of data and communicating relevant information from that data to other people. This kind of skill set does not necessarily need to come from previous jobs. You can also list these qualifications you gained through volunteer work or school extracurricular activities. While references are usually not listed directly on a front desk receptionist resume, keep a separate list of at least three past employers or other people who are familiar with your skills and work ethic.
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![It is generally a good idea to include job history on a medical receptionist resume.]()
By: ElenathewiseIt is generally a good idea to include job history on a medical receptionist resume. -
![Including professional references on a resume may be appropriate in certain situations.]()
By: NANIncluding professional references on a resume may be appropriate in certain situations. -
![Communication skills are important to highlight in receptionist resumes.]()
By: Marcel MooijCommunication skills are important to highlight in receptionist resumes. -
![Receptionist resumes should highlight a candidate's rate of typing speed.]()
By: pressmasterReceptionist resumes should highlight a candidate's rate of typing speed. -
![The ability to multitask is often sought after from receptionist candidates.]()
By: WavebreakMediaMicroThe ability to multitask is often sought after from receptionist candidates. -
![Receptionists need to have good multi-tasking skills to be an effective employee.]()
By: arthurhiddenReceptionists need to have good multi-tasking skills to be an effective employee. -
![Experience with office equipment such as photocopiers, fax machines and telephone systems are important for a front desk receptionist.]()
By: Gianluca RasileExperience with office equipment such as photocopiers, fax machines and telephone systems are important for a front desk receptionist.
Discussion Comments
@mobiian33 - You would think that the references listed on a resume would naturally say that Jane Doe is a great worker and she always arrives on time and stays late and she is a pleasure to work with and an asset to any company and so on. However, these are often not the responses I get when I call the references given to me by applicants for jobs at our company.
When you get the average person on the phone and ask them point blank questions, it is difficult for them to lie. I have started talking with references and they give me the usual good comments, but when I dig deeper and ask specific questions, the references don't have an answer prepared, so they simply tell the truth, which isn't always flattering to the applicants.
@Drentel - I agree with you that your work history is important and this goes a long way in determining whether you will or will not get hired for a new job. However, if you have common sense then you are not going to put down references who you know are going to say bad things about you.
So I'm not sure you can really learn much about an applicant from the references they give you. Maybe I should say that you can't learn much about the bad stuff a potential employee has done from the references he puts on a resume or on an application.
The last paragraph talks about references and this is the most important part of a resume to me. When I am hiring people to work for me, I want to hear what the people they have worked for and the people they have worked with have to say about them.
A person can fib a bit on a resume to make himself sound like a better person and better worker. I'm not saying the person is lying, but he or she may be stretching the truth or leaving out a few details that might be seen as negative to a potential employer.
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