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Explore these 385 power words to make your résumé pop if you are struggling to find the right powerful keywords or phrases to include in your CV or résumé.

385 Keywords to Make Your Résumé Stand Out

By Catherine Adenle

If you are looking for a job, these 385 power words to make your résumé pop will be useful when you prepare your résumé or CV.

The importance of knowing and using the right words on your résumé cannot be ignored. Having the right industry related power words or action verbs in prominent positions on your CV or résumé can go along way in getting you noticed by recruiters.

Remember, you will first be judged on how well your résumé is written and how good it is at communicating your skills, attributes and past achievements to recruiters. Properly incorporating some of these 385 power words to make your résumé pop will help convey strong writing skills and increase the strength of your résumé.

According to a research done by TheLadders.com where they used an eye-tracking software to study the behavior of 30 recruiters over a 10-week period, to see what they read in résumés, the study showed that recruiters spend 6.25 seconds looking at a candidate’s résumé. Out of this minuscule time, recruiters spend 20% of the 6.25 seconds résumé-scanning time looking for keywords that matched the open position after they had spent 80% of the 6.25 seconds looking at just six things: your name, current title/company, previous title/company, previous position, start and end dates.

If your résumé is scanned electronically by a potential employer, the selecting computer scanner will only pick up on these much needed keywords by employers. All electronic résumé scanners are programmed to look for key terms that fit the position that you are applying for on your résumé. Without these résumé keywords, your résumé could easily be discarded.

It is not usually difficult to come up with power keywords as demonstrated with the list of 385 power words provided below to make your résumé pop.

Recruiters know the keywords that they are looking for and will usually be included in the job posting. For this reason, you need to review the terms used in the job description. However, if you are just preparing a core CV to tweak each time for a job application, then using some of these 385 power words to make your résumé pop is a good starting point. Regardless, we recommend that you always need to read job descriptions, highlight the keywords used and cleverly repeat such keywords in your résumé to beat résumé scanners and insure your résumé makes the cut.

Write your resume keywords in past tense

By writing your action words in past tense, it creates the impression of something you have previously done or completed. If you use the present tense then it may convey the message that you are still in the process of doing it.

You can list some of these 385 power words to make your résumé pop using bullet points to communicate the problem, action taken and the result in the right section of your résumé usually under ‘Achievements’, ‘Expertise’ and ‘Experience’. Whatever you do, ensure to plant some of these 385 power words to make your résumé pop in sentences in the body of your résumé. However, the most effective way to strengthen your résumé with these 385 power words to make your résumé pop is to use them sparsely and effectively.

How to use some of the 385 power words to make your résumé pop

First, research the job you are applying for and find relevant associated keywords to fit the job. Read the job descriptions about three times highlighting the keywords, then check another vacancy of similar jobs and note down strong industry related technical words that stand out. Then, check the list of these 385 power words to make your résumé pop to find and use a link-able power keyword that will showcase your past achievement effectively.
Any of these 385 power words to make your résumé pop can also be used with industry specific words that can impress the recruiter by showing your in-depth knowledge and understanding of your field.

Use some of these 385 power words to make your résumé pop:

1.      Accelerated 201.                      Judged
2.      Accomplished 202.                      Justified
3.      Achieved 203.                      Kept
4.      Acquired 204.                      Launched
5.      Acted 205.                      Learned
6.      Activated 206.                      Lectured
7.      Adapted 207.                      Led
8.      Addressed 208.                      Lifted
9.      Adjusted 209.                      Located
10.  Administered 210.                      Logged
11.  Advanced 211.                      Maintained
12.  Advertised 212.                      Managed
13.  Advised 213.                      Marketed
14.  Advocated 214.                      Maximized
15.  Aided 215.                      Measured
16.  Allocated 216.                      Mediated
17.  Analyzed 217.                      Merged
18.  Answered 218.                      Minimized
19.  Anticipated 219.                      Mobilized
20.  Applied 220.                      Moderated
21.  Appraised 221.                      Modified
22.  Approved 222.                      Monitored
23.  Arbitrated 223.                      Motivated
24.  Arranged 224.                      Navigated
25.  Ascertained 225.                      Negotiated
26.  Aspired 226.                      Netted
27.  Assembled 227.                      Observed
28.  Assessed 228.                      Obtained
29.  Assigned 229.                      Opened
30.  Assisted 230.                      Operated
31.  Attained 231.                      Ordered
32.  Audited 232.                     Orchestrated
33.  Augmented 233.                      Organized
34.  Authored 234.                      Originated
35.  Automated 235.                      Outlined
36.  Awarded 236.                      Overcame
37.  Balanced 237.                      Overhauled
38.  Began 238.                      Oversaw
39.  Boosted 239.                      Participated
40.  Briefed 240.                      Performed
41.  Budgeted 241.                      Persuaded
42.  Built 242.                   Photographed
43.  Calculated 243.                      Pinpointed
44.  Captured 244.                      Piloted
45.  Catalogued 245.                      Pioneered
46.  Centralized 246.                      Placed
47.  Changed 247.                      Planned
48.  Chaired 248.                      Predicted
49.  Charted 249.                      Prepared
50.  Checked 250.                      Prescribed
51.  Clarified 251.                      Presented
52.  Classified 252.                      Presided
53.  Coached 253.                      Prevented
54.  Collaborated 254.                      Printed
55.  Collected 255.                      Prioritized
56.  Combined 256.                      Processed
57.  Commanded 257.                      Produced
58.  Communicated 258.                     Programmed
59.  Compared 259.                      Projected
60.  Compiled 260.                      Promoted
61.  Completed 261.                      Proofread
62.  Composed 262.                      Proposed
63.  Computed 263.                      Protected
64.  Conceptualized 264.                      Proved
65.  Condensed 265.                      Provided
66.  Conducted 266.                      Publicized
67.  Conferred 267.                      Published
68.  Conserved 268.                      Purchased
69.  Consolidated 269.                      Qualified
70.  Constructed 270.                      Questioned
71.  Consulted 271.                      Raised
72.  Contacted 272.                      Ran
73.  Contained 273.                      Rated
74.  Continued 274.                      Reached
75.  Contracted 275.                      Realized
76.  Contributed 276.                      Reasoned
77.  Controlled 277.                      Received
78.  Converted 278.                  Recommended
79.  Cooperated 279.                      Reconciled
80.  Coordinated 280.                      Recorded
81.  Correlated 281.                      Recruited
82.  Corresponded 282.                      Reduced
83.  Counselled 283.                      Referred
84.  Created 284.                      Regulated
85.  Critiqued 285.                     Rehabilitated
86.  Cultivated 286.                      Related
87.  Customized 287.                      Remodelled
88.  Cut 288.                      Rendered
89.  Debugged 289.                      Reorganized
90.  Decided 290.                      Repaired
91.  Decreased 291.                      Replaced
92.  Defined 292.                      Reported
93.  Delegated 293.                      Represented
94.  Delivered 294.                      Researched
95.  Demonstrated 295.                      Reshaped
96.  Designated 296.                      Resolved
97.  Designed 297.                      Responded
98.  Detected 298.                      Restored
99.  Determined 299.                     Restructured
100.                      Developed 300.                      Retrieved
101.                      Devised 301.                      Reversed
102.                      Diagnosed 302.                      Reviewed
103.                      Directed 303.                      Revised
104.                      Discovered 304.                      Revitalized
105.                      Dispatched 305.                      Routed
106.                      Dispensed 306.                      Saved
107.                      Displayed 307.                      Scheduled
108.                      Dissected 308.                      Screened
109.                      Distinguished 309.                      Searched
110.                      Distributed 310.                      Secured
111.                      Diversified 311.                      Selected
112.                      Documented 312.                      Separated
113.                      Doubled 313.                      Served
114.                      Drafted 314.                      Set up
115.                      Earned 315.                      Shaped
116.                      Edited 316.                      Shared
117.                      Educated 317.                      Simplified
118.                      Eliminated 318.                      Simulated
119.                      Emphasized 319.                      Sketched
120.                      Employed 320.                      Sold
121.                      Enabled 321.                      Solidified
122.                      Enacted 322.                      Solved
123.                      Encouraged 323.                      Sorted
124.                      Enforced 324.                      Spearheaded
125.                      Engineered 325.                      Specialized
126.                      Enhanced 326.                      Specified
127.                      Enlarged 327.                      Sponsored
128.                      Enlisted 328.                      Stabilized
129.                      Ensured 329.                      Staffed
130.                      Entertained 330.                     Standardized
131.                      Established 331.                      Started
132.                      Estimated 332.                      Stimulated
133.                      Evaluated 333.                      Stored
134.                      Examined 334.                      Streamlined
135.                      Executed 335.                     Strengthened
136.                      Expanded 336.                      Structured
137.                      Expedited 337.                      Studied
138.                      Experimented 338.                      Summarized
139.                      Explained 339.                      Supervised
140.                      Explored 340.                      Supplied
141.                      Expressed 341.                   Supplemented
142.                      Extended 342.                      Supported
143.                      Extracted 343.                      Surpassed
144.                      Fabricated 344.                      Surveyed
145.                      Facilitated 345.                      Sustained
146.                      Familiarized 346.                      Synthesized
147.                      Fashioned 347.                     Systematized
148.                      Finalized 348.                      Tabulated
149.                      Fixed 349.                      Targeted
150.                      Focused 350.                      Taught
151.                      Forecasted 351.                      Terminated
152.                      Formed 352.                      Tested
153.                      Formulated 353.                      Tightened
154.                      Fostered 354.                      Totalled
155.                      Found 355.                      Tracked
156.                      Founded 356.                      Traded
157.                      Fulfilled 357.                      Trained
158.                      Furnished 358.                      Transcribed
159.                      Gained 359.                      Transferred
160.                      Gathered 360.                      Transformed
161.                      Generated 361.                      Translated
162.                      Governed 362.                      Transmitted
163.                      Guided 363.                      Travelled
164.                      Handled 364.                      Treated
165.                      Headed 365.                      Trimmed
166.                      Heightened 366.                      Tutored
167.                      Helped 367.                      Typed
168.                      Hired 368.                      Uncovered
169.                      Honed 369.                      Undertook
170.                      Identified 370.                      Unified
171.                      Illustrated 371.                      United
172.                      Imagined 372.                      Updated
173.                      Implemented 373.                      Upgraded
174.                      Improved 374.                      Used
175.                      Improvised 375.                      Utilized
176.                      Incorporated 376.                      Validated
177.                      Increased 377.                      Verbalized
178.                      Indexed 378.                      Verified
179.                      Indoctrinated 379.                      Vitalized
180.                      Influenced 380.                      Volunteered
181.                      Informed 381.                      Weighed
182.                      Initiated 382.                      Widened
183.                      Innovated 383.                      Won
184.                      Inspected 384.                      Worked
185.                      Inspired 385.                      Wrote
186.                      Installed
187.                      Instituted
188.                      Instructed
189.                      Insured
190.                      Integrated
191.                      Interacted
192.                      Interpreted
193.                      Interviewed
194.                      Introduced
195.                      Invented
196.                      Investigated
197.                      Inventoried
198.                      Involved
199.                      Issued
200.                      Joined

See 200 Action Words to Make Your CV Pop!

See What words should I use on my CV?

Now that you have explored these 385 power words to make your résumé pop, are there other powerful keywords that you can share with us? Leave your comments below.

Catherine Adenle
Founder, Catherine's Career Corner. The career site empowering and inspiring ambitious candidates of all ages and professions to thrive and work smarter on their careers. Gladly helping all career-minded people worldwide to explore their career, manage change and understand how new technologies are changing and enhancing the future of work.
Catherine Adenle
Catherine Adenle

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