Administrative Assistant Resume Example

Also called Admin Assistant, Office Assistant, Secretary.

An administrative assistant keeps other people's days running. Show how many people you supported, which tasks you owned from start to finish, and the tools you use without thinking.

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Opens in the builder with this text in place, ready for you to replace with your own.

What this example does well

  • The number of people supported is stated in the summary and the first bullet.
  • The filing bullet shows initiative and gives a result anyone in an office can picture.
  • Typing speed and a Microsoft certificate give concrete proof of everyday skills.

Updated

Megan Price

Administrative Assistant

Summary

Administrative assistant with six years of experience supporting a 40-person architecture office. Manages calendars for three partners, handles travel, orders and invoices, and set up a filing system that cut time spent looking for documents in half. Fast and accurate in Microsoft 365.

Experience

Administrative Assistant, Willamette Design Studio

Feb 2021 – Present · Portland, Oregon

  • Manage calendars, meetings and travel for three partners and support a staff of 40.
  • Process about 120 vendor invoices a month and match them to purchase orders before payment.
  • Reorganized shared project files and naming rules; staff now spend half as long finding documents.
  • Plan the yearly client event for 150 guests within budget.

Office Assistant, Pearl District Dental

Sep 2018 – Jan 2021 · Portland, Oregon

  • Answered a four-line phone and greeted about 60 patients a day.
  • Scheduled appointments and sent reminders, cutting missed appointments by a quarter.
  • Ordered office and clinical supplies within a monthly budget.

Education

Associate of Applied Science in Administrative Office Management, Portland Community College

2016 – 2018 · Portland, Oregon

Skills

Calendar management, Travel booking, Invoice processing, Microsoft 365, Filing and records, Event planning, Phone and front desk, Typing 75 wpm

Certifications

  • Microsoft Office Specialist: Excel Associate — Microsoft, 2022
An example: Megan Price is not a real person, and the details show the kind of thing to write rather than a real career. Shown in the Manuscript template. Words that postings for this job often use are marked in yellow.

How do you write a summary for an administrative assistant resume?

Two to four lines at the top that say what you do, for how long, and what you are best at. Here is one for each stage of a career.

  • Entry level

    Organized and friendly person looking for a first administrative role. Worked two years as a retail supervisor, handling schedules for 12 staff, cash reports and supplier orders. Completed a Microsoft Office certificate course and types 65 words per minute.

  • Experienced

    Administrative assistant with five years of experience in busy offices. Manages calendars, travel and meetings, processes invoices and keeps records in order, working in Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace.

  • Senior

    Senior administrative assistant and office coordinator with twelve years of experience. Supports a leadership team of five, runs the office budget, trains new administrative staff and has moved two offices without losing a day's work.

How to write a resume summary, with more examples

What are good bullet points for an administrative assistant resume?

Each starts with a verb and says what was done. Change the details and numbers to your own; a number you cannot explain in an interview is worse than none.

  1. Managed calendars and booked meetings for four managers across three time zones.

  2. Arranged domestic and international travel within company policy.

  3. Processed 100 invoices a month and matched each to a purchase order.

  4. Prepared agendas, took minutes and followed up on actions after meetings.

  5. Created and maintained filing systems for paper and digital records.

  6. Answered phones and emails and directed questions to the right person.

  7. Ordered supplies and kept spending within the office budget.

  8. Prepared letters, reports and presentations from drafts and notes.

  9. Planned team events and client visits from booking to follow-up.

  10. Welcomed new employees and set up their desks, accounts and first-week schedule.

Which skills should an administrative assistant put on a resume?

Pick the ones the job posting asks for and that you can back up with an example from your work.

Hard skills

  • Calendar and meeting management
  • Travel booking
  • Office software (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint)
  • Google Workspace
  • Invoice and expense processing
  • Records management
  • Minute-taking
  • Data entry

Soft skills

  • Organization
  • Discretion
  • Friendly professionalism
  • Prioritizing
  • Reliability

Licenses and certifications

  • Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS)
  • Certified Administrative Professional (CAP)

Which keywords belong on an administrative assistant resume?

The words recruiters and applicant tracking systems search for.

  • calendars
  • travel
  • invoices
  • meetings
  • Microsoft 365
  • filing
  • phone
  • scheduled
  • supplies

Use the ones that are true for you, written the way the posting writes them, and put each where it shows something you did. A list of keywords with nothing behind it helps nobody. To keep them readable by software, choose an ATS-friendly template, and read how applicant tracking systems read a resume.

How do you make an administrative assistant resume stand out?

Show ownership. Instead of listing tasks you helped with, name the ones that were yours from start to finish: the invoice process, the travel booking, the filing system, the yearly event.

Add one improvement you made. Almost every office has a process that wastes time, and an assistant who fixed one is remembered.

Which software should an administrative assistant list?

The office suite you use, with the programs you are strongest in, especially Excel. Then any systems for booking, expenses, accounting or customer records.

If you can, add proof: a Microsoft Office Specialist certificate or your typing speed. Both are easy to check and many employers ask.

What do employers look for in a business resume?

  • Give the scale of what you handled: budget, team size, number of sites, how many executives you supported.
  • Write about outcomes other people felt. A project delivered three weeks early or a process that went from five days to one is easy to picture.
  • Name the software you use every day. Many postings for these roles filter on it.

All business and administration resume examples

Questions about an administrative assistant resume

What should I put in the summary?

Your years of experience, the type of office and how many people you supported, plus one thing you are known for.

Is typing speed still worth listing?

For administrative roles, yes, if it is good. Anything above 60 words per minute is worth mentioning.

Should I include receptionist or retail jobs?

Yes. Front-desk, scheduling, cash handling and customer service are all part of administrative work.

How long should an administrative assistant resume be?

One page.

Make this administrative assistant resume yours.

Start from the example, swap in your own jobs and numbers, and switch to any template without retyping a word.

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