What skills should a Nanny put on a resume?

O*NET rates Active Listening, Monitoring, Social Perceptiveness, Service Orientation, and Speaking 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 Nanny list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Educational software, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word, Scheduling software, and Web browser software. 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 Nanny work?

O*NET records 11 titles for this occupation, including Nannies, Family Assistant, House Manager, and Household Manager. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Nanny need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 60% reported their level of education as "High School Diploma, or the equivalent". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Nanny 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.

Nanny resume example

A resume for a Nanny needs to show the work itself: care for children in private households and provide support and expertise to parents in satisfying children's physical, emotional, intellectual, and social needs. Day to day that means work like this: instruct children in safe behavior, such as seeking adult assistance when crossing the street and avoiding contact with unsafe objects; remove hazards and develop appropriate boundaries and rules to create a safe environment for children. 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.

Nannies
Family Assistant
House Manager
Household Manager
Family Manager
Governess
Special Needs Nanny
Travel Nanny
Babysitter
Care Attendant
In-Home Care Provider

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.

Instruct children in safe behavior, such as seeking adult assistance when crossing the street and avoiding contact with unsafe objects.
Remove hazards and develop appropriate boundaries and rules to create a safe environment for children.
Perform first aid or cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) when required.
Instruct and assist children in the development of health and personal habits, such as eating, resting, and toilet behavior.
Regulate children's rest periods and nap schedules.
Teach and perform age-appropriate activities, such as lap play, reading, and arts and crafts, to encourage intellectual development of children.
Help prepare and serve nutritionally balanced meals and snacks for children.
Model appropriate social behaviors and encourage concern for others to cultivate development of interpersonal relationships and communication skills.
Organize and conduct age-appropriate recreational activities, such as games, arts and crafts, sports, walks, and play dates.
Assign appropriate chores and praise targeted behaviors to encourage development of self-control, self-confidence, and responsibility.
Observe children's behavior for irregularities, take temperature, transport children to doctor, or administer medications, as directed, to maintain children's health.
Work with parents to develop and implement discipline programs to promote desirable child behavior.

19 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.

Instruct children in safe behavior, such as seeking adult assistance when crossing the street and avoiding contact with unsafe objects, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Remove hazards and develop appropriate boundaries and rules to create a safe environment for children, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Perform first aid or cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) when required, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Instruct and assist children in the development of health and personal habits, such as eating, resting, and toilet behavior, 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.

Educational software
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Word
Scheduling software
Web browser software

Tools and equipment

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

Baby bottles
Child car safety seats
Digital medical thermometers
Domestic dishwashers
Dryers
Emergency first aid kits
Irons
Kitchen stoves
Laptop computers
Medicine dosing syringes
Microwave ovens
Passenger cars

What this job rates as most important

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

01Active Listening
02Monitoring
03Social Perceptiveness
04Service Orientation
05Speaking
06Critical Thinking
07Judgment and Decision Making
08Persuasion
09Coordination
10Time Management

Knowledge areas

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

English Language
Customer and Personal Service
Psychology
Education and Training
Public Safety and Security

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.

60%High School Diploma, or the equivalent
16%Some College Courses
8%Post-Secondary Certificate, awarded for training completed after high school

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Some Preparation Needed”. These occupations usually require a high school diploma.

Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is usually needed. For example, a teller would benefit from experience working directly with the public.

Common questions

What does a Nanny do?: Care for children in private households and provide support and expertise to parents in satisfying children's physical, emotional, intellectual, and social needs. Day to day that includes work like instruct children in safe behavior, such as seeking adult assistance when crossing the street and avoiding contact with unsafe objects and Remove hazards and develop appropriate boundaries and rules to create a safe environment for children.
What skills should a Nanny put on a resume?: O*NET rates Active Listening, Monitoring, Social Perceptiveness, Service Orientation, and Speaking 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 Nanny list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Educational software, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word, Scheduling software, and Web browser software. 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 Nanny work?: O*NET records 11 titles for this occupation, including Nannies, Family Assistant, House Manager, and Household Manager. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Nanny need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 60% reported their level of education as "High School Diploma, or the equivalent". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Nanny 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.