The phrase special skills for a resume refers to skills highly specific to the job, industry, or employer you’re applying for. Employers highly value them because candidates who have them are more likely to adapt quickly and contribute meaningfully to their organization.
Nowadays, targeted skills are screened by ATS systems and human reviewers, so highlighting the right skills is crucial to passing the initial phase of the recruitment process.
In this article, we’ll explain how to identify and highlight special skills for a resume and ensure your application catches the attention of the hiring managers.
Why Special Skills Matter on Your Resume
Special skills are the key to getting noticed by recruiters and hiring managers. Research by the National Citizen Service indicates that recruiters spend an average of 8.8 seconds looking at resumes, and according to a study by Miroslava Peicheva, 90% of large companies use ATS (applicant tracking systems).
Obviously, the first phase of the selection process is very challenging unless you know how to draw attention to your application and pass the ATS check.
This practically means you have 5-7 seconds to convince the recruiter that you are the right candidate, and there’s no better way to do that than to highlight your special skills.
The first thing recruiters and ATS focus on are keywords related to targeted special skills relevant to the job you’re applying for, and if they don’t find them in your resume quickly, your CV will end up in the wrong pile.
Not to mention that the latest hiring trend is based on skills, as employers are no longer looking for degrees and titles but demonstrable competencies.
Depending on the job you’re applying for, you may want to focus on soft, hard, or technical skills, or most probably the combination. The point is to identify the right set of skills to convince the recruiters you’re the candidate they are looking for.
Hard Skills vs. Soft Skills: What's the Difference?
Hard skills refer to measurable, teachable, job-specific skills necessary to complete work, while soft skills refer to personal and interpersonal qualities and traits that affect how you work. Hard skills are highly job-specific, whereas soft skills are transferable across jobs.
The key to a resume that stands out is the right combination of hard and soft skills. For example, if you have all of the necessary hard skills for a nurse but lack communication and interpersonal skills, you may be able to do the job technically. Still, your relationships with coworkers and clients will suffer.
Employers place a high value on the right combination of soft and hard skills because it ensures you can thrive in the organization while achieving the desired results.
4 Top Hard Skills for Your Resume in 2025
While hard skills tend to be highly specific to particular jobs, certain hard skills are becoming increasingly popular across various industries. Let’s go over the top 5 hard skills in 2025:
#1. Technical Skills
Regarding technical skills, proficiency in Microsoft Office and data analysis tools like Excel, Tableau, Power BI, and similar platforms has become necessary for success in almost every industry. These tools are especially significant in finance, operations, and marketing.
In tech and data-driven fields, proficiency in programming languages like Python, JavaScript, and SQL is in high demand.
#2. Digital Literacy Skills
Considering the importance of digital marketing, certain skills tightly linked with roles in this field are now highly valued in many other fields, since digital marketing is needed in almost every industry. These skills include SEO, SEM, content creation, social media management, and CRM systems like Salesforce and HubSpot.
#3. Language Skills
Despite the availability of many language and translation tools, multilingualism is highly appreciated in every industry, especially in international companies.
Although particular languages may be more sought after depending on the industry, the most in-demand languagesat the moment are Spanish, Mandarin, and German.
The most important thing when listing languages on a resume is to state your proficiency level. Being fluent in French isn’t the same as being able to read French newspapers. Any level of language knowledge can be an advantage. Even if you’re only a beginner in a certain language, that shows you’re willing to advance if necessary.
#4. Analytical Skills
Employers value candidates skilled at interpreting data and using it to solve complex problems efficiently. Having analytical skills shows the employer that you can use a critical thinking framework and make data-driven decisions, which are highly sought in a wide range of industries.
4 Best Soft Skills That Impress Employers
While hard skills ensure you get the hiring manager's attention, soft skills determine how far you will go in your career. Here’s a list of the most sought-after soft skills in 2025:
#1. Leadership Skills
Leadership skills and people-management skills aren’t necessary just for leadership positions. Having them indicates that you can take initiative, own your work, and provide direction and guidance to others. Moreover, leadership implies strong decision-making and delegation skills as well as accountability.
Employers welcome candidates with such abilities because they indicate openness to growth and ambition.
#2. Communication Skills
Whether you work in a team or independently and apply for a managerial, executive, or leadership role, communication skills are essential in every industry, company, and position. Depending on the role, you may want to highlight specific aspects of communication skills, such as:
Written communication
Verbal communication
Presentation skills
#3. Collaboration Skills
If you’re applying for a highly independent role, you may think that collaboration skills aren’t particularly important for you to emphasize. However, they are highly valued by employers because they indicate that you are capable of creating a positive work environment. Depending on your job scope, you may want to highlight certain collaboration skills like:
Team building
Conflict resolution
Cross-functional collaboration
#4. Adaptability Skills
The technological and business trends are constantly evolving, making adaptability one of the key skills in 2025. Being open to learning, flexible in changing environments, and resilient through the ever-evolving changes is important in every role. Therefore, you may want to highlight:
Learning agility
Flexibility in changing environments
Resilience and stress management
Industry-Specific Special Skills
The probability that many candidates will have a similar combination of soft and hard skills outlined in their resumes is high, so industry-specific special skills can give you a real competitive advantage.
Today’s job market is highly specialized, and possessing targeted skills shows that you can quickly keep up with the team at the new company, so it’s no wonder they are in high demand.
#1. Tech Industry Skills
The tech industry skills require knowledge of cloud platforms such as AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, cybersecurity frameworks, and AI/ML applications. These skills indicate that you can keep up the pace with innovations in the digital world.
#2. Healthcare Industry Skills
Working in healthcare may demand a wide range of highly specific skills, but all healthcare workers are usually expected to have certain industry-related skills. So, the special skills to put on a resume for applying in the healthcare industry include:
Patient care capabilities
Medical coding/billing knowledge
Healthcare compliance knowledge
#3. Business and Finance Skills
In the finance sector, candidates who have advanced knowledge of financial analysis and field-specific certifications will always have an advantage over those who don’t. Some good special skills to put on a resume for the role in the finances of this kind include:
Financial analysis
Project management certifications (PMP, Agile)
Business intelligence tools (Tableau, Power BI, SQL)
How to Identify Your Special Skills
The key to identifying your top resume skills that can provide you a competitive advantage with the employer is analyzing the employer’s needs and job requirements thoroughly so that your resume matches the job description.
If possible, it would be very beneficial to have an informational interview with someone who works in the industry and/or in the position you’re interested in, so that you know which skills are highly appreciated apart from those that are already stated in the job description.
After establishing which skills are mandatory and which are highly desirable, and assuming that you possess both, reflect on other skills you have that complement either of these categories.
It would also be very useful to get feedback from colleagues/managers, so don’t hesitate to ask them what they value in you.
In addition, platforms like LinkedIn Skills Assessments, Coursera, or MyNextMove.org offer skill evaluations and industry benchmarks that can help you assess and evaluate your skills.
How to Showcase Skills Effectively on Your Resume
The purpose of your resume isn’t just to list your skills, but to convince the employer that you effectively use them. Here are a few strategies on how to list skills on a resume effectively to demonstrate your fitness for the role:
How to Highlight Skills
Use a clean, scanable format like bullet points or columns for the skills list and divide the skills into categories like technical, leadership, languages, etc
Provide examples of the key skills using quantifiable achievements, like ‘Optimized the sales process, which led to a 17% increase in sales’ to validate skills.
Make sure your skills match the skills from the job description. For example, if the role requires “Agile,” emphasize Scrum experience.
Use the right keywords to ensure you pass the automated screenings, and use both their acronyms and full terms (for example: SEO - Search Engine Optimization).
6 Ways to Develop New Special Skills
Staying competitive in the contemporary job market requires you to proactively develop new skills. Here are the most effective, proven ways to build your expertise:
#1. Online Courses and Certifications
LinkedIn Learning, Coursera, Udemy, and similar platforms offer courses and certificates that are valued and recognized by employers. Certificates from Google, Microsoft, and PMP also enjoy a lot of credibility.
#2. Industry Conferences and Workshops
Attending events relevant to your industry gives access to the latest trends in your field while also offering the benefits of networking.
3. Volunteer for Skill-Based Projects
Explore freelance platforms like Upwork or Fiverr and the possibilities of applying your new skills to volunteer projects. This is a great way to build your portfolio.
#4. Mentorship Programs
Many companies offer sponsored mentorships based on which they later recruit candidates. So check if any companies you’re interested in organize such programs. Besides that, platforms like ADPlist also offer quality mentorship programs for which you can apply.
#5. Self-Teaching Strategies
Nowadays, there are plenty of free resources on the internet you can use to learn new skills or expand knowledge on specific subjects. Browse YouTube tutorials and GitHub projects, or start your own project, which will allow you to practice a specific skill (like writing a blog, for example).
#6. Professional Associations
Joining professional associations like the American Marketing Association (AMA) if you’re a marketing professional or IEEE if you belong to technology fields usually offers many benefits, from basic ones like networking to specialized training and certifications.
Common Mistakes When Listing Skills on Resumes
While having plenty of skills to include in a resume is generally a good thing, including too many or not including them in the right way may cost you a job opportunity. So, let’s go over common mistakes to avoid when listing skills on resumes:
Skill Listing Mistakes to Avoid
Overloading generic skills: Listing too many skills may undermine your credibility, especially if you use vague terms like “team player” or “hardworking.” So be as specific as possible. For example, instead of team player, list ‘cross-functional collaboration’.
Not providing context or evidence: Mentioning skills without connecting them with achievements is almost like not listing them at all.
Inflating skill levels: Claiming to be an expert in a field you’re vaguely familiar with may look good on a resume, but you may be exposed in the interview, so it is better to be honest and show readiness to learn than to exaggerate your skill level.
Including outdated or irrelevant skills: Including obsolete skills or abilities of no importance for the role may give off the impression you haven’t invested effort in preparing your resume well.
Not tailoring skills to the job description: Avoid submitting the same skills for every job. Without keyword optimization for ATS, you’re not giving yourself a real opportunity to land an interview.
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Including the right special skills for your resume can significantly boost your chances of landing interviews in competitive job markets and transform your CV from ordinary to outstanding. However, remember that skill development doesn’t stop once you land the job. Continuous learning is key to long-term career success.
So, invest in your growth, take the next step, and start assessing your skills today. Update your resume with the strategies learned in this article and land the job of your dreams!
Special Skills for a Resume - FAQs
What are special skills on a resume?
Special skills on a resume refer to unique abilities that demonstrate your value beyond basic qualifications. Some special skills on a resume example are Python programming, bilingual fluency, conflict resolution, and similar.
What skills should I put on my resume for 2025?
The skills you should put on your resume include AI literacy, data analytics, emotional intelligence, and cloud computing. Depending on the job you are applying for, you might want to list specific kinds of special skills that look good on a resume.
How many skills should I list on my resume?
You should list around 10-15 well-chosen special skills on your resume. It is important you prioritize relevance over quantity. You should also group your skills into industry-specific, technical, and soft categories for easy scanning.
What are the skills employers are looking for that are most in demand?
The most in-demand skills employers are looking for, according to LinkedIn’s data for 2025, include AI literacy, conflict mitigation, adaptability, and process optimization. In addition, adaptability remains essential across all industries.
How can I prove my skills on my resume?
You can prove your skills on your resume by pairing them with quantifiable achievements. For example, if you state that you have SEO knowledge, follow that statement with a relevant accomplishment such as “Boosted engagement 40% via SEO”.
