What does a Human Resources Specialist do?

Recruit, screen, interview, or place individuals within an organization. Day to day that includes work like interpret and explain human resources policies, procedures, laws, standards, or regulations and Hire employees and process hiring-related paperwork.

What skills should a Human Resources Specialist put on a resume?

O*NET rates Speaking, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, and Writing among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Human Resources Specialist list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Creative Cloud software, Adobe Dreamweaver, Adobe Human Capital Application Solution Accelerator, and Adobe Illustrator. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Human Resources Specialist work?

O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including HR Coordinator, Human Resources Coordinator, HR Generalist, and Human Resources Generalist. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Human Resources Specialist need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 47% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Human Resources Specialist role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Human Resources Specialist resume example

A resume for a Human Resources Specialist needs to show the work itself: recruit, screen, interview, or place individuals within an organization. Day to day that means work like this: interpret and explain human resources policies, procedures, laws, standards, or regulations; hire employees and process hiring-related paperwork. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

HR Coordinator
Human Resources Coordinator
HR Generalist
Human Resources Generalist
HR Specialist
Recruiter
Corporate Recruiter
Employment Representative
HR Analyst
Human Resources Analyst
Human Resources Representative
HR Rep
Personnel Analyst
Personnel Officer
HR Advisor
HR Associate
HR Business Partner
HR Consultant

O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation in total.

What people in this job call themselves

Titles reported by people actually doing this work, which is often not the title on the job posting.

HR Analyst (Human Resources Analyst)
HR Coordinator (Human Resources Coordinator)
HR Generalist (Human Resources Generalist)
Human Resources Representative (HR Rep)
Human Resources Specialist (HR Specialist)

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Interpret and explain human resources policies, procedures, laws, standards, or regulations.
Hire employees and process hiring-related paperwork.
Maintain current knowledge of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and affirmative action guidelines and laws, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Prepare or maintain employment records related to events, such as hiring, termination, leaves, transfers, or promotions, using human resources management system software.
Address employee relations issues, such as harassment allegations, work complaints, or other employee concerns.
Review employment applications and job orders to match applicants with job requirements.
Inform job applicants of details such as duties and responsibilities, compensation, benefits, schedules, working conditions, or promotion opportunities.
Select qualified job applicants or refer them to managers, making hiring recommendations when appropriate.
Schedule or conduct new employee orientations.
Maintain and update human resources documents, such as organizational charts, employee handbooks or directories, or performance evaluation forms.
Confer with management to develop or implement personnel policies or procedures.
Contact job applicants to inform them of the status of their applications.

26 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Interpret and explain human resources policies, procedures, laws, standards, or regulations, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Hire employees and process hiring-related paperwork, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Maintain current knowledge of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and affirmative action guidelines and laws, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Prepare or maintain employment records related to events, such as hiring, termination, leaves, transfers, or promotions, using human resources management system software, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

Adobe Acrobat
Adobe Creative Cloud software
Adobe Dreamweaver
Adobe Human Capital Application Solution Accelerator
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe InDesign
Adobe LifeCycle Enterprise Suite
Adobe Photoshop
ADP Workforce Now
Advanced business application programming ABAP
Airtable
Apple Final Cut Pro
Apple macOS
Applicant tracking software

172 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

10-key calculators
Computer scanners
Desktop computers
Digital audio recorders
Digital video disk DVD players
Laptop computers
Laser facsimile machines
Liquid crystal display LCD projectors
Multi-line telephone systems
Office inkjet printers
Personal computers
Photocopying equipment

Skills an ATS reads for

Worth naming only if they are genuinely yours. Keyword overlap is one input to a resume's score, not a verdict.

recruiting
onboarding
HRIS
employee relations
benefits administration
compliance
Applicant tracking
Oracle HRIS
Adobe Creative Cloud
Adobe Illustrator

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Speaking
02Active Listening
03Reading Comprehension
04Critical Thinking
05Writing
06Service Orientation
07Social Perceptiveness
08Active Learning
09Judgment and Decision Making
10Complex Problem Solving

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

Personnel and Human Resources
Administrative
Administration and Management
English Language
Customer and Personal Service
Law and Government
Education and Training

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

47%Bachelor's Degree
25%Master's Degree
14%High School Diploma, or the equivalent

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Considerable Preparation Needed”. Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Common questions

What does a Human Resources Specialist do?: Recruit, screen, interview, or place individuals within an organization. Day to day that includes work like interpret and explain human resources policies, procedures, laws, standards, or regulations and Hire employees and process hiring-related paperwork.
What skills should a Human Resources Specialist put on a resume?: O*NET rates Speaking, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, and Writing among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Human Resources Specialist list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Creative Cloud software, Adobe Dreamweaver, Adobe Human Capital Application Solution Accelerator, and Adobe Illustrator. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Human Resources Specialist work?: O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including HR Coordinator, Human Resources Coordinator, HR Generalist, and Human Resources Generalist. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Human Resources Specialist need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 47% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Human Resources Specialist role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.