As an aspiring financial wizard, spreadsheet enthusiast, and number cruncher, you’re likely aware of the importance of a financial analyst resume in the world of job hunting. It represents more than a piece of paper; it’s a golden ticket to the realm of career opportunities.
Now, you might be wondering why your resume matters so much and why your financial competence doesn't speak for itself. The truth is that you need to introduce your sharp skills and comprehensive experience to recruiters before they start paying attention. And it’s hard to find a better way to do that than with a riveting resume.
So grab your pens and calculators, and let’s learn how to write a financial analyst resume that will grab the attention of even the most stoic CFOs!
Key Takeaways
The three most often used formats for financial analyst resumes are chronological, functional, and hybrid.
A concise, information-packed resume that fits on one page often has the most chances of success.
Use your resume summary or objective to grab the recruiter’s attention before impressing them with your work experience.
Show willingness to go the extra mile by submitting a position-specific cover letter with your resume.
What is the Right Format to Use for a Financial Analyst Resume?
The right format for your financial analyst resume will optimally present your information to recruiters, giving you the best chance of success. There are three proven formats that most candidates use, and they are:
Common Resume Formats
The chronological resume format is usually the best option. This format puts your work history in focus, listing your past jobs in reverse-chronological order. Recruiters are used to that arrangement, and it works well with the ATS.
The functional resume format emphasizes your skill set. That makes it perfect for new financial analysts with formal education but no work experience.
The combination (hybrid) resume format incorporates the features of the previous two. It also highlights your skills and bolsters each one with relevant professional achievements. That makes it good for remarkably experienced individuals or those who switched professions and want to showcase transferable skills.
Resume Layout
A solid resume layout ensures a pleasant visual experience for recruiters and potential employers. Moreover, it makes your financial analyst resume appealing and easy to read. Here are some tips to help you make a professional one:
Resume Layout Tips
Keep your resume one page long unless you have decades of experience and absolutely need to showcase all of it.
Choose a professional font (e.g., Arial, Roboto, or Times New Roman), set its size between 10 and 12 pts, and increase section headings by 2-4 pts.
Set the margins to 1 inch and use comparable space between sections.
What Sections Should a Financial Analyst Resume Contain?
Mandatory resume sections comprise the necessary information every recruiter wants to see on a resume. These are:
Mandatory Resume Sections
Contact information
Resume summary or objective
Work experience
Education
Skills
Optional sections can add more value to your resume and help you stand out from the competition. Some of them include:
Optional Resume Sections
Certifications
Languages
Hobbies and interests
Now, if all this talk about formats, layouts, and sections feels overwhelming, stick around as we dive deeper into the matter. We’ll also give you visual examples to help you put the pieces together.
Even then, you don’t have to do everything by yourself. You can use our resume builder to expedite the process and minimize the chances of making a mistake. You can craft a standout financial analyst resume in three easy steps:
How to Build a Financial Analyst Resume
This way, you can have a submission-ready resume in minutes!
Financial Analyst Resume Template
Speaking of financial analyst resume templates that you can find in our collection, here’s one as an example.
Financial Analyst Resume Template
Name and Surname
Phone number: 000-000-0000 | Email: namesurname@gmail.com | Location: City, State
[Adjective] [your job title] with [years of experience, if applicable] in [your area of expertise, if applicable] looking for a [position] job at [company name]. Eager to apply [relevant skills] gained through [work/volunteer/other experience] to help [company name] [mention what you can do for the company].
Skills Summary
Skill #1
Mention any achievements relevant to this skill
Explain how you used this skill
Explain how you used this skill
Skill #2
Mention any achievements relevant to this skill
Explain how you used this skill
Explain how you used this skill
Skill #3
Mention any achievements relevant to this skill
Explain how you used this skill
Explain how you used this skill
Work Experience
Most Recent Relevant Job TitleCompany City, State[Start date] — [End date]
For recent jobs, use 5-6 bullet points to list your top achievements and responsibilities
Use action verbs to make your responsibilities and achievements stand out
Add numbers to quantify your achievements
Less Recent Relevant Job TitleCompany City, State[Start date] — [End date]
For recent jobs, use 5-6 bullet points to list your top achievements and responsibilities
Use action verbs to make your responsibilities and achievements stand out
Add numbers to quantify your achievements
Education
[Degree] in [Major][University/college name][Start date] - [Graduation date]
Additional Sections
Add any relevant additional sections if you have space (soft and hard skills, languages, licenses, publications, etc.)
Financial Analyst Resume Contact Information
Your contact information should go in the resume header and feature the following details:
Mandatory Contact Information
Your name
Job title, which should match the one in the job ad
Phone number
Email address, which should be professional (e.g., firstname.lastname@example.com)
(Optional) Location, but only if you’re applying for a job abroad and are willing to relocate
(Optional) LinkedIn profile, as it’s an often used platform in the business environment
Now let’s see that in an example:
Contact Information Section Example
Jeffrey Rodriguez
Financial Analyst
+ 727 562 7972
jeffreyrodriguez@example.com
Clearwater, FL
linkedin.com/in/jeffreyrodriguez75
Financial Analyst Resume Objective or Summary
A resume objective or summary is the opening section of your financial analyst resume. It’s a brief introductory paragraph that highlights your biggest strengths with the purpose of grabbing recruiters’ attention right from the start.
In general, you want to showcase one or two of your most impressive accomplishments, along with your years of experience in the field. That’s when you should write a financial analyst resume summary.
However, if you’re light on work history, you’ll want to emphasize your skills, goals, and motivation, in which case you should write a resume objective.
Financial Analyst Resume Objective
To present yourself as an up-and-coming candidate, you should mention your most prominent skills along with any academic accomplishments in your resume objective. If applicable, you can also include relevant experience obtained through internships or similar activities.
Here’s a good example:
Resume Objective Example
“Attentive financial analyst with a Master’s degree in Business Administration looking for an entry-level position at [name of the company]. Adept at budget development and project management. Recognized for adaptability and attention to detail and awarded Intern of the Month at [previous company you worked for].”
However, if you don’t include any information of substance, your resume objective won’t stand out to recruiters. Here’s an example of a poorly written one:
Bad Example
“Recent finance graduate looking for a job as a financial analyst.”
Financial Analyst Resume Summary
As its name suggests, a resume summary should represent a synopsis of your document. Use it to grab the recruiters’ attention with your notable achievements, and they’ll keep reading to find out more about you.
Let’s see that in an example:
Resume Summary Example
“CFA-certified financial analyst with 7+ years of experience. Proficient in debt and market analysis, boosting [previous company's] market share by 15% and increasing their revenue by $1.1M. Looking for a senior position at [your company] to improve finance processes and increase ROI.”
Now compare that to the uninformative resume summary that offers no proof of the candidate’s skill or experience:
Bad Example
“Knowledgeable senior financial analyst with years of experience looking for a challenging position to apply my skills.”
Financial Analyst Resume Work Experience
The work experience section is usually going to be the main selling point of your financial analyst resume. Let’s see how we can perfect it.
General Tips
It’s important to follow a proven formula when writing your work experience section. For every previous job that you had, you should include the following details:
Your role
Company and its location
Years/Months of employment
Notable achievements and results obtained
One of the most important aspects when it comes to crafting an impeccable work experience section is relevance. Your recent jobs are often more important than those you had years ago. Moreover, you shouldn’t include irrelevant experiences, such as bartending gigs during your student years and similar.
Also, it’s crucial to list your results and achievements correctly. For starters, you want 3–5 bullet points for each previous role. Instead of focusing on ordinary tasks and daily responsibilities, go for exceptional accomplishments.
Lastly, you can make those bullet lists pop by using numbers to quantify them and action verbs and power words to make them pop.
Financial Analyst With No Experience
When writing an entry-level financial analyst resume, it’s sufficient to leverage your internships, school projects, volunteer work, and similar activities. Recruiters know they can’t expect years of experience from junior candidates, but you can still make a gripping work experience section by following the guidelines we outlined previously.
Here’s a good example:
Work Experience Section Example (No Experience)
Work Experience
Financial Analyst Intern
Cyber Investments Pittsburgh, PA
December 2021–October 2022
Assisted in conducting financial analysis and prepared reports for senior analysts, speeding up decision-making processes by up to 15%.
Helped develop and maintain financial models to ensure accurate forecasting and analysis.
Contributed to the implementation of a cost-tracking system, improving expense management and reducing the departmental overhead rate by 9%.
Experienced Financial Analyst
A senior-level financial analyst resume should feature matching, first-rate achievements. You want to emphasize achievements that demonstrate the great impact your actions had on teams, organizations, and clients.
Let’s take a look at an example:
Work Experience Section Example (w/ Experience)
Work Experience
Senior Financial Analyst
State Wise Capital Atlanta, GA
November 2017–Current
Identified emerging trends through market and competitor analysis, leading to an 11% increase in market share.
Conceptualized, designed, and implemented refined financial models to achieve a 95% accuracy rate on revenue projections.
Personally mentored 9 junior financial analysts, fostering their professional growth and facilitating their transition into more advanced roles.
Financial Analyst Resume Education Section
The education section is one of the simplest ones—it’s often enough to just list the following details:
Education Section Format
Your highest degree
The institution issuing it and its location
Years of attendance
This is what this looks like in practice:
Education Section Example
Education
Master’s in Business Administration
Liberty University, Lynchburg, USA
2018–2020
If you lack work experience, you can make this section more prominent by adding a bullet-point list of notable academic achievements. You can include feats such as a GPA of 3.5 or more, relevant courses, extracurricular activities, and more.
You can also include multiple degrees in reverse-chronological order, though you should still omit your high school diploma. Moreover, you can add an unfinished degree by marking a graduation date as “expected” or putting “current” instead.
Financial Analyst Resume Skills
The trick to making a strong financial analyst resume skills section is to only mention relevant skills—not your entire skill set. After all, recruiters are interested in your ability to do the job that you’re applying for. That means you want to show them the specific qualifications that will allow you to do just that.
To do this more easily, read the job ad before creating the skills section. After that, it’ll be easy to put together a list of abilities for recruiters and potential employers, as you will know what hiring managers are expecting to see on your resume.
Furthermore, you want to demonstrate your prowess by linking your key abilities to relevant accomplishments and results obtained throughout your resume. The best places for doing this are your resume summary, objective, and work experience sections.
Hard Skills
Hard skills are career-specific and are often the main focus of recruiters when they examine your resume. Here are some that you can include:
Financial accounting
Financial modeling
Financial reporting
Data analysis
Data visualization
Data validation techniques
Mathematics
Economics
Microsoft Excel
Soft Skills
Soft skills are also known as people skills, and they have a complementary role. While they can be incredibly important, it’s often best to only list a select few highly desired ones and keep them separate from hard skills. Here are some examples:
Communication
Leadership
Attention to detail
Persuasion
Problem-solving
Financial Analyst Resume Optional Sections
Stand out from the competition by including additional valuable information through optional sections. Here’s what they may consist of:
Certifications
Certifications enhance your credibility in the competitive job market by validating specialized knowledge and skills. They also demonstrate commitment to learning and improving, which are valuable traits recruiters love to see. Whether you have CFA, CFP, FRM, or other relevant certifications, list them in a dedicated section to boost your chances of landing an interview.
Languages
Language skills are becoming more important due to the global nature of the financial industry. By highlighting your ability to communicate in and comprehend different languages, you can gain a competitive edge.
When listing language skills on your resume, it’s important to specify your levels of proficiency using a dedicated framework. Then, you simply list them in descending order, starting with the one you’re most competent in.
Hobbies & Interests
While hobbies and interests seem unrelated to the technical nature of the financial analyst’s profession, this section offers impressive benefits to your resume. It portrays you as a well-rounded individual with passion and pursuits, highlights your teamwork and leadership skills, showcases your networking and relationship-building potential, and more.
Should You Submit a Cover Letter With Your Financial Analyst Resume?
When applying for a job, you want to take every opportunity to show motivation and commitment and further underline your skills and achievements. A position-tailored cover letter that matches your financial analyst resume does all that for you.
Keep this document concise (250–400 words) and use it to explain why you’re going for the specific role in the company that you’re applying to. You should also include a few achievements that you didn’t add to your resume. Lastly, it’s advisable to try to find out who the recruiter is and personally address them, building rapport and increasing your chances of getting contacted.
Financial Analyst Resume Tips
Now that we’ve explored everything related to building a financial analyst’s resume, let’s see how you can polish it to perfection with a few final expert tips:
Submitting your financial analyst resume as a PDF file ensures the document preserves its formatting on any device.
In the soft copy of your financial analyst resume, your LinkedIn profile and email address can be turned into hyperlinks. That makes it easier for recruiters to access them and shows you have attention to detail.
Even though your resume objective or summary belongs at the top of the document, you should write them last. That way, you’ll easily extract the best bits from your entire resume.
Use a cover letter to give recruiters more information about yourself instead of just repeating what you already said in your resume.
This financial analyst resume sample will help you visualize everything that you’ve learned so far. You can also use this as inspiration in your resume-building endeavors.
Closing Thoughts
As we reach the end of our resume-building journey filled with numbers and formulas, let’s remember that this document is all about making a good first impression. By following the rules and guidelines outlined in this article, you’ll create an arresting exhibit of your skills, experience, and personality.
Combine this newfound knowledge with your attention to detail, and your document will strike a fine balance between professionalism and charisma. That way, you’re bound to catch the eye of any recruiters!
