How to put self-employment on a resume

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Embedding your self-employment status into your resume can enhance your qualifications and also indicate the depth of your experience to potential employers. In this article, we are going to expose to you how to write a self-employed resume.

Table of Contents

What is a self-employed resume?

A self-employed resume primarily includes work experience gained while running your small business, freelancing or contracting for clients. This highlights the candidate’s role as a self-employed professional and includes some of their most significant achievements. It’s important to state that a resume that is centered on self-employment can also include experiences gained from working for employers, especially when the resume is tailored to incorporate all relevant qualifications possessed by the candidate.

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How to write a self-employed resume

In order to create a resume that accentuates your self-employment history effectively, uses the following formatting guidelines:

Begin with contact information.
Add an objective or a summary.
Outline your work experience.
Outline your self-employment history.
Focus on your key accomplishments and responsibilities.
List your academic qualifications and achievements.
List all certifications held.
Itemize your soft and technical skills.
Include references.

Begin with contact information

As a rule of thumb, it’s important to start your resume by listing all your necessary contact information at the top of your resume. This necessary contact information includes your full government name, mailing address, phone number, email address and professional website if applicable. Always reconfirm to make sure your contact information is up to date and accurate so potential employers can easily contact you.

Add an objective or a summary

After putting down your contact information, the next step is to add either a summary of your career or a brief description of your professional objectives. Many entry-level professionals tilt towards an objective, while mid-level and senior professionals in most cases, write a summary of their achievements. Ensure to keep it short, as it shouldn’t include more than two sentences.

Outline your work experience

The next step in creating a phenomenal resume is, creating a list of all relevant work experiences, starting with the most recent one. Indicate the name of your employer and highlight your role and employment dates. Then, u can create a list of all your primary responsibilities and contributions. It’s advisable to utilize action-oriented verbs to showcase what you did and accomplished during the course of each job.

Outline your self-employment history

When listing your work experience, it is important to outline all relevant self-employment history in a singular entry. If you’re the type that has freelanced or worked in more than one industry, create more entries in this segment. Ensure to use the same format as the rest of the work experience segment, don’t forget to include your company name, the position occupied, and work dates. Just in case you don’t have a legal business name, list your position and indicate whether you worked as a freelancer or a contractor.

Focus on your key accomplishments and responsibilities

When indicating your self-employment history, include a list of the major projects led by you. Highlight your main responsibilities, major achievements, and the client’s name when possible.

List your academic achievements

After listing your work experience, state your academic accomplishments, beginning with the highest educational level you have achieved. Include associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees. Do not include information about your high school diploma or equivalent if you pursued post-secondary education. After each diploma or degree, mention the issuing institution, graduation date, major, GPA and honors if applicable.

List all certifications held

List all your professional certifications in a separate segment from your diplomas and degrees. In this segment, ensure to state the name of each credential, the issuing organization and the date you received it.

Itemize your technical and soft skills

After listing all certifications held by you, then list all relevant soft and technical skills you possess. Depending on the field of concentration, you may need to include the software you utilize, the computer languages you’re conversant with or other related keywords that potential clients and employers seek. Mention your level of fluency when applicable.

Include references

Finally, you should consider including client references. If they permit and agree to act as your reference, list their names, titles and contact information from current or former clients.