If you’re ready to supervise multiple officers and oversee daily precinct operations, then a career as a police sergeant is perfect for you.
But if you’re having trouble creating a persuasive resume that will secure you an interview, we’re here to bail you out.
We’ve put together a detailed writing guide and police sergeant resume example below, packed with tips and advice to help you.
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Police Sergeant Resume Example
This Police Sergeant resume example gives you a good idea of how a good Police Sergeant resume should look and read.
The information is presented professionally and the content is well structured to ensure that time-strapped recruiters and hiring managers can find the important skills and knowledge quickly.
Refer to this example as you write your own resume.
Police Sergeant resume layout and format
When it comes to holding the attention of recruiting managers, the format and layout of your resume play a key role.
Your resume needs to strike a perfect balance between looking awesome, and being easy for recruiters to read (which is not always easy to achieve)
Use the following formatting tips to get started.
Formatting your resume
- Length: Attention spans in recruitment are notoriously short, so keep your resume short and sweet. There’s no exact rule for resume length, but aim for 2 pages or less if you want to ensure yours gets read in full.
- Font & readability: To create a resume that is easily digestible for hiring managers, it’s essential to use an uncomplicated font and structure your content with bullet points and short paragraphs.
- Layout: Your resume should look appealing – but don’t overlook functionality when it comes to design. Organise the page into clear sections using bold headings and borders.
- Photos: You don’t have to add a photo to your resume in the States, but some regions and industries like to see them.
Quick tip: Achieving a professional look for your resume can be difficult and time-consuming. If you want to create an attractive resume quickly, try our partner’s Resume Builder and use one of their eye-catching resume templates.
Resume layout
When writing your resume, you should always include the following sections:
- Name and Contact Details – Place this information at the top of your resume to make it easy for employers to contact you.
- Resume Summary – Write a brief introductory paragraph at the top of your resume summarizing why you are the best candidate for the job.
- Skills Section – Create a concise list of your most important skills that can be quickly skimmed over by potential employers.
- Work Experience – List your previous jobs in reverse chronological order, including volunteer work and college placements if you have no paid experience.
- Education – List your educational qualifications and any professional training you have received.
- Additional Information – This is an optional section for including details about hobbies, interests, or any other relevant information that may help distinguish you from other candidates.
Here’s what to add to each section of your Police Sergeant resume.
Contact Details
Keep your contact details short to save resume space and include the following.
- Name and profession title
- Cell phone number
- Location – Add your local area such as Silicon Valley or New York, unless you are looking for work in a different location
- Email address – Keep it professional and don’t use an old address that you thought was cool in high school, but now looks a bit embarrassing.
You can add a link to your LinkedIn profile if you have one – you do not need to include personal details like date of birth or marital status.
Police Sergeant Resume Summary
Make a strong first impression on recruiters by beginning your resume with a powerful summary that highlights your most valuable skills and experience.
This brief summary provides an opportunity to showcase why you’re the ideal candidate for the job and persuade recruiters to read further into your resume.
How to create a resume summary that will excite recruiters:
- Keep it short: To capture a recruiter’s attention and keep them interested in your resume, limit your summary to 4-7 lines as you only have a few seconds to make an impression
- Tailor to target jobs: Ensure your profile makes an impact by matching it closely to the requirements of the job description, copying as many key terms as possible.
- Avoid using cliches: To capture the attention of recruiters you must provide factual information, such as hard skills and qualifications, and avoid using empty phrases like “Go-getter who thinks outside the box.”
Police Sergeant resume summary example
What to include in your Police Sergeant resume summary?
- Summary of your experience: Summarize the type of work you have done in the past and the ways in which you have contributed to the success of your previous employers.
- Relevant skills: Scatter your most in-demand Police Sergeant skills through your summary to ensure they are noticed quickly by hiring managers.
- Qualifications: To make a strong impression on potential employers when applying for Police Sergeant jobs, be sure to mention any relevant qualifications in your summary.
Quick tip: Choose from hundreds of pre-written summaries across all industries, and add one to your resume with one-click in our partner’s Resume Builder. All written by recruitment experts and easily tailored to suit your unique skillset and style.
Core skills section
Underneath your summary, write a core skills section to make your most relevant skills jump off the page at readers.
It should be made up of 2-3 columns of bullet points of your relevant skills.
Before you do this, look over the job description and make a list of any specific skills, specialisms or knowledge required.
Then, make sure to use your findings in your list. This will paint you as the perfect match for the role.
Best skills for your Police Sergeant resume
Leadership – Leading and motivating police officers, providing direction, and making decisions that support the department’s goals and objectives.
Law Enforcement Procedures – Maintaining an in-depth knowledge of laws, regulations, and protocols related to law enforcement to ensure compliance and proper enforcement.
Crisis Management – Effectively managing crisis situations, making quick decisions, and maintaining control under high-pressure scenarios.
Investigative Techniques – Conducting and supervising criminal investigations, gathering evidence, and analyzing data to solve cases.
Conflict Resolution – De-escalating tense situations and resolving conflicts to maintain community safety and officer well-being.
Communication – Interacting with the public, colleagues, and superiors effectively.
Training and Development – Training and mentoring junior officers, providing guidance and support to enhance their skills and performance.
Emergency Response – Utilizing knowledge of emergency response procedures, including active shooter situations, natural disasters, and civil unrest.
Policy Implementation – Maintaining familiarity with department policies and procedures and ensuring they are followed consistently within the team.
Community Engagement – Building positive relationships with community members, businesses, and organizations to foster trust and collaboration.
Quick tip: Our partner’s Resume Builder contains thousands of in-demand skills for every profession that can be added to your resume in seconds – saving you time and greatly improving your chances of landing job interviews and getting hired.
Work experience
Now that you’ve reeled recruiters in with your awesome summary, it’s time to delve into your work experience.
Here you’ll list your previous jobs (starting with your most recent and working backward) and showcase how you apply your skills in the workplace.
Provide lots of detail in recent jobs, and less in older roles.
If you have no relevant paid experience, you can include voluntary work and placements – but if you have lots of experience, you can leave out some of the really old jobs.
Structuring your jobs
Resume job descriptions contain lots of information, so its crucial to structure them well.
Use the structure below to ensure hiring managers can consume the information easily.
Job outline
Kick off each role with a high-level overview to summarize the focus of the job, what the organization/department does, and how you fit into the bigger picture.
Key responsibilities
Next, write up a punchy list of your daily duties and responsibilities, using short bullet points.
Describe how you apply your skills and contribute to the running of the employer’s business – highlighting skills which are applicable to your target jobs.
Key achievements
Round off each job by adding some impressive achievements you made in the role.
Anything you’ve done that has made a big impact on your employer will make a good impression, think; generating revenue, saving costs, or improving a product.
Quantify your achievements with number where possible e.g. “reduced call wait time by 10%”
Example job for Police Sergeant resume
Outline
Lead a team of Police Offers within the Grays County Sheriffs Office, overseeing law enforcement operations and ensuring the safety and security of the county’s residents.
Key Responsibilities
- Implement strategic plans to enhance public safety, reduce crime, and improve community relations
- Supervise and mentor a team of officers, providing guidance and fostering professional development
- Collaborate with community organizations, local government, and civic leaders to address community concerns and promote positive police-community relations
- Conduct thorough investigations, gather evidence, and ensure adherence to due process and legal protocols
Quick tip: Create impressive job descriptions easily in our partner’s Resume Builder by adding pre-written job phrases for every industry and career stage.
Education section
Near the end of your resume add your education section.
Experienced candidates should keep it brief and focus on professional qualifications – and junior candidates can include high school diplomas, college degrees etc.
Additional information
If you have anything else to add which is relevant to the jobs you are applying for, the additional info section is the place to add it.
Perhaps you have a hobby which involves relevant skills, or maybe you have some awards or publications worth mentioning.
Writing your own winning Police Sergeant resume
A winning Police Sergeant resume should look great, read well, and sell your skillset to hiring managers.
If you follow the steps above, you should be able to bag yourself a top job in no time.
Good luck with your job search!