How Do You Describe Analytical Skills on a Resume?

How do you say you have analytical skills on a resume?

As the economy becomes ever more complex, employers are increasingly prioritizing employees who know how to resolve problems and overcome challenges. To succeed in your job search, you need to demonstrate those abilities in a way that helps you stand out from the competition. One of the best ways to accomplish that goal is to include analytical skills in your resume that highlight your problem-solving abilities.

In this article, we'll show you how to describe analytical skills on your resume and explain why they're so important for making the right impression on today's employers.

What are analytical skills?

Analytical skills include all those abilities that enable you to investigate a problem and find the ideal solution in a timely, efficient manner. These skills are used whenever you're identifying patterns, brainstorming for ideas, interpreting data, integrating information, or making decisions based on multiple factors.

If you're unsure which analytical skills you possess, take a detailed look at your accomplishments and your methods for getting the best results. You might have more of these abilities than you think. Here are just a few of the many analytical skills you may possess:

Creativity

A creative eye can spot trends in data that others may not see. Creativity is also useful for problem-solving when the obvious solution is not always the best solution. Creative thinkers often find effective solutions to big problems. Creative skills include:

Brainstorming
Collaboration
Optimization
Predictive modeling
Restructuring
Strategic planning
Integration

Critical thinking

Critical thinking involves the ability to evaluate information and make decisions based on your findings of fact. The ability to use critical thinking is vital for employees who are tasked with solving problems for their employers. Critical thinking skills include:

Process management
Auditing
Benchmarking
Big data analytics
Case analysis
Causal relationships
Comparative analysis
Correlation
Deductive reasoning
Inductive reasoning
Diagnostics
Dissecting
Evaluating
Data interpretation
Troubleshooting

Communication

Of course, you also need to communicate solutions to your colleagues so that ideas can be shared and implemented. Effective communicators know how to discuss patterns, conclusions, and recommendations. They're also able to lead and collaborate with co-workers to find the best possible solution for any challenge. Analytical communication skills include:

Active listening
Reporting
Surveying
Collaboration
Verbal communication
Written communication
Persuasion
Effective presentation

Data analysis

Data analysis is the ability to evaluate information to identify patterns and dependencies. It's a skill that enables you to examine a large volume of data and identify trends, recognize broader concepts, and present conclusions for top decision-makers. Data analysis skills include:

Observation
Business analysis
SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats)
Cost analysis
Credit analysis
Financial analysis
Industry research
Policy analysis
Predictive analytics
Process analysis
Qualitative analysis
ROI analysis

Why are analytical skills important on your resume?

Companies are always looking for employees who have the analytical skills they need to find new solutions to problems and challenges. Those problems solvers can be vital for leading teams down new paths that bolster efficiency, productivity, and profitability. By highlighting key analytical skills on your resume, you can make the right impression on employers who need experienced problem-solvers for their teams.

The ability to see trends, draw conclusions, and communicate options is a must in finance, data science, medicine, marketing, law, and many other industries.

That's why it's crucial to showcase your analytical skills in your resume for any potential hiring manager. It's not enough to simply say that you have “analytical” or “critical thinking” skills in a cover letter. To properly illustrate those capabilities, you need to use your resume to demonstrate those essential skills.

How to demonstrate analytical skills on your resume

The keyword here is to figure out how to use your resume narrative to illustrate those analytical skills. Many resumes will use words and phrases like “critical thinker,” “communicator,” or “solution-oriented,” but just listing those skills won't be enough to impress employers. To do that, you'll need to show how you've utilized those skills to create value for past employers. You can do that by:

Giving examples of situations in your job where those skills lead to a solution
Describing a specific process that you utilized
Listing major achievements enabled by your analytical skills
Including specific training courses related to analytical skills
Using synonyms to avoid repeating the words “analyzed,” “analysis,” and “analytical skills”

Where do I list analytical skills on the resume?

The resume summary section

The summary is a good place to introduce a skill that has served you repeatedly throughout your career. If you've assisted clients in analyzing their workflow, have often been called upon to find unique solutions, or are a manager known for leading teams through difficult situations, this is the place to introduce that in a section that serves as your initial pitch to any employer. For example:

Solutions-driven market analyst with 6+ years of experience advising businesses on trends and product strategies. Lead partner for Consulting Company X. Extensive experience with digital transformation, data analysis, and identifying insights that lead to innovative solutions. Created and implemented an online strategy that revolutionized a client's market outreach and increased their market share by 20%.

Related reading: Resume Profile Explained (with Examples)

The work experience section

Your professional work history section is another great place to list analytical skills that have contributed to demonstrable successes. Here, you have the opportunity to use stats, percentages, and dollar amounts to show how your ability to assess and solve problems increased revenue, advanced market share, enabled team success, or provided other significant benefits to the company.

In the work history section, you're less likely to use the terms that define analytical skills and more likely to describe them indirectly by showing the success they've brought.

Make use of the STAR (Situation–Task–Action–Result) model when selecting accomplishments to list in your work history.

Situation: The employer wanted to achieve a target.
Task: You were tasked with devising solutions to meet this target.
Action: What steps you took to perform the task.
Result: How your actions benefited the company.

When phrasing the accomplishment in your work history, follow the ATM model: Action verb // Task // Metric. Here's an example:

Analyzed $80k/month marketing spend // to optimize reach; // increased conversion by 15% MoM and decreased cost per acquisition by 20%

Take a look at the following example. This resume shows how this person's strong data analysis and market research skills helped advance his company into a new market; how their process analysis skills helped optimize their inventory system; and how their communication skills helped them train and manage staff. The words “invented” and “generated” help to illustrate the candidate's creativity.

WORK HISTORY

Project Manager

Artus Springs - Phoenix, AZ

01/2017 - 02/2020

Developed a market entry strategy for the Northwest market, leading to $1.3 million in new market revenue in the first 2 years of operations
Increased stock turnover by 30% and KPIs by 15% by overhauling the inventory management process
Successfully managed a 5-member leadership team
Organized and led events with 40 suppliers
Recruited and trained a diverse team composed of 100+ brand ambassadors
Invented cross-category marketing solutions, bringing +12% market advertising penetration

The skills section

Because analytical skills are often listed in job descriptions, hiring managers will look for them in the skills section. ATS systems will also scan the skills section to filter for resumes with relevant skills. So, if the job listing to which you are applying clearly lists specific analytical skills that you have, make sure they are listed in your skills section as well.

The key here is to list skills that specifically relate to the job and industry. Remember, it's crucial to tailor each resume to a specific job offer. That includes the skills section. Always look for keywords in the job description that relate to analytical skills. Is it a management position? If so, then communication skills are a must.

Also, be prepared to discuss those skills in an interview. Before you add any skill to your list, make sure that you can back it up with a story of how you used it to accomplish something of value for your employer.

You should also focus on word choices that are as specific as possible. If the job description calls for “communication”, you should definitely include that skill. But is there a specific area of communication in which you excel? Are you experienced in team presentations, persuasive speaking, team management, or other specific types of communication?

Remember there are both soft skills and hard skills that qualify as analytical skills. “Data analysis” can be trained, but “market prediction” is a skill developed with experience. When considering which analytical skills you possess, consider both categories.

Here are some example skills for a Research Assistant resume:

SPECIAL SKILLS

Analytical skills
Deductive reasoning
Problem-solving
Communication
Qualitative analysis
Quantitative analysis
Strategic thinking
Data management systems

A special achievements section

An achievements section may not be needed for every resume, but there are times when it's helpful to include one. For example, an accomplishments section can be useful if you have impressive achievements outside of the workplace, such as community organizing, volunteering, or hobbies with impressive, relatable skills.

If you're in a senior executive position in your career, it can be helpful to add a Career Highlights section at the top of your resume, showcasing the many accomplishments you've achieved throughout your career.

On the other hand, if you're just beginning your career journey but have significant achievements in school or your community, an accomplishments section can be a great place to list them.

If you're looking to use this section to highlight your analytical skills, focus on accomplishments with demonstrable results. We've provided some examples below to help you get started.

Example #1: outside the workplace

ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND ACHIEVEMENTS

Raised $10,000 for lymphoma research through community fundraisers
Created annual “Feed the Homeless” events within my community, raising $1,500 avg.
Led Girl Scout Troops on hikes of the full length of the Appalachian Trail in 2018-2022

Example #2: career highlights

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

Led a team of 15 employees in a local call center location for more than 5 years
Created and implemented a new training program, which resulted in a 25% increase in customer satisfaction
Managed an international customer service team of 25+ employees
Implemented Lean Management directives at company X, which cut overall operating costs by 35%

Example #3: recent graduate

EXTRACURRICULARS

Tutored SAT and ACT, improving their test scores by 40% for the average student.
Tutored 4 students in linear algebra, helping them improve by two grades on average.
Organized debate club travel logistics for away meets.

Analytical skills in your education section

If you have a degree, advanced training, or other qualification that could help demonstrate analytical skills, make sure you list it in your education section. Majors in computer science, engineering, mathematics, or statistics demonstrate analytical skills. If you're a recent graduate, include relevant minors. If the job is specifically looking for particular skills and you've taken seminars or have received certifications for new skills, be sure to highlight them under education.

EDUCATION

Davis University, Bachelor of Science

Major in Computer Science

Minor in Statistics

Teaching assistant Sept 2019 - May 2020

Analytical skills in your resume can help you stand out to employers

Analytical skills are in high demand. Knowing how to effectively highlight those analytical skills on your resume can help to differentiate you from the competition and make a great first impression on employers. By using the tips and examples in this guide, you can ensure that your resume showcases those critical skills in a way that helps employers to understand the type of value you can provide as a new hire.

TopResume understands that talking about your own skills and achievements can be a difficult challenge. Reach out to our expert team of resume writers to help build your resume that successfully highlights analytical skills on your resume.

This article was originally written by Robert Lyons. It has been updated by Ken Chase.