Security Officer Resume

The demand for security officers is on the rise, but that doesn’t mean finding a job is easy. Employers need to be able to trust security officers with their safety and the security of their valuables, so they need to see that you’re qualified before offering you a job.

Show employers that you have the skills and physical fitness required to prevent crime with a convincing resume. Here are four effective tips to help you craft the perfect security officer resume:

1. Highlight your security officer resume skills

A security officer’s job is more complex than just guarding residential and commercial places. There are certain technical skills and personality traits (otherwise known as hard and soft skills) that employers in this field are looking for in a prospective candidate.

A strong security officer resume skills section helps you gain a competitive edge over other people applying for the same security role.

Here are some top skills to add to your security officer resume:

• Psychology coursework/training
• Knowledge of basic security and fire inspection procedures
• Interpersonal skills
• Multitasking
• Firearms training
• Knowledge of relevant federal and state laws
• Safety management
• Written and verbal communication
• First aid & CPR
• Communications skills
• Time management skills
• Physical fitness
• Martial arts/physical combat training
• Patrolling
• Reporting skills
• Surveillance equipment knowledge
• Ability to operate facility equipment and machinery

2. Emphasize your soft skills

Being a great security officer isn’t only about technology and training. Security guards also need to possess a host of soft skills to do their jobs well.

For instance, you need to have strong communication skills in order to coordinate with your team, with the general public, or even with potential threats.

Not only that, but security officers also need to be able to reliably diffuse dangerous situations without resorting to physical force, which requires exceptional interpersonal skills.

Some of the other most desirable soft skills for a security officer are:

• Verbal communication
• Critical thinking
• Courage
• Teamwork
• Personal responsibility
• Resilience
• Critical thinking
• Humility
• Problem solving
• Communication
• Analytical thinking
• Attention to detail
• Honesty
• Clear and calm thinking
• Patience
• Confidence
• Empathy

Add hard numbers to your achievements

As a security officer, you need to show proof of your qualifications.

The most direct way to do this is to explain your accomplishments in surveillance and security using hard numbers.

For example, specify the scale of the area you protect, the number of security cameras you monitor, or the number of personnel that you trained or managed. Then, add these achievements to your resume experience section to demonstrate to employers exactly what you’re capable of.

Here are some examples of how one candidate used specific achievements to emphasize their security-related contributions on their security officer resume:

“Conducted regular and thorough investigation of specific sectors of the building which reduced the number of suspicious incidents by 47%”

 “Perform foot patrol and implement effective security measures to ensure the safety of 1500 visitors on a daily basis”

4. Include strong security officer action verbs

Security officers provide a host of services ranging from surveillance, patrolling, screening, to guarding schools, apartments, and commercial establishments.

Including strong security officer related action verbs like these in your resume will help communicate your previous responsibilities and accomplishments in this field.

To get you started, here are some relevant action verbs to include in your security officer resume:

• Call
• Investigate
• Open
• Lift
• Check
• Manage
• Operate
• Conduct
• Monitor
• Respond
• Warn
• Patrol
• Facilitate
• Report
• Perform
• Inspect