A LinkedIn profile is an important professional material. All students should have a LinkedIn profile to be competitive in the job market. This profile can be used as a more complete record of skills and achievements than the resume; to network with other students; and for students to be visible to recruiters.
The Basics
As with all professional documents, ensure that your LinkedIn profile has:
- Accurate spelling and punctuation
- Consistent tone throughout
- Working links
Compelling Introductory Information
- Professional profile photo
- Customized background image
- Catchy headline that incorporates your target role.
In this screenshot of Jordan Doe’s LinkedIn profile, we can see that her profile picture is zoomed in on her face, that her background shows a row of books, and that her headline includes her industry and area of expertise.
Contact Information
Ensure that all of your contact information is accurate and up-to-date. In addition, ensure that you list your professional email.
Summary Statement
A compelling summary statement is written in clear language, speaks to your experience and background, and demonstrates your professional qualifications.
Jordan Doe’s Sample Summary Statement
Public health professional currently working towards a Master of Public Health focusing on health services administration. I bring 3 years of experience working on behalf of public health systems to provide support, plan, and manage systems. Analytical and solution-focused professional able to work in a fast-paced environment to deliver results. Experienced in training staff members, managing projects under time constraints, and organizing and managing state contracts and budgets.
Education
Your Education section should be in reverse chronological order with MSW listed first.
Experience
This section should be listed in reverse chronological order.
Each entry should include the following:
- Job title
- Company name and location
- Dates of employment
Your experience section should include your accomplishments, not just your job duties. Use results-driven bullets to highlight progress in your career.
Jordan Doe’s Sample Experience Section
Public Health Intern
Laurel Department of Public Health
Sept 2020-Present
Everywhere, MD
- Establish and maintain federal/state compliance program for 500 bed city hospital
- Review, revise, and refine processes and policies to create cross-discipline understanding of compliance procedures
- Create service provider resource guide for staff and patients to utilize
Health Compliance Intern
Silver Spring Health Center
Sept 2019-May 2020
Anywhere, MD
- Evaluation and assessment of health policy for compliance with federal and state regulations in the trauma center
- Recommended and implemented policy changes resulting in faster and more efficient processing of trauma victim admissions and coding
Skills
Your skills section should include at least 20 skills and interests. The skills should be a mixture of technical and transferable, and the interests should be a mixture of personal and professional.
Jordan Doe’s Sample Skills
Industry Knowledge
- Working with at-risk populations
- Qualitative Research
- Project Management
- Monitoring and Evaluation
- Case Management
- Policy Analysis
- Program Development
- Treatment Planning
Tools and Technologies
- SPSS
- Microsoft Word
- Doxy.me
- Excel
- Google Sheets
- Salesforce
Interpersonal Skills
- Adaptable
- Collaborative
- Leadership
- Solution-Focused
Other Skills
- Wellness program development
- Spanish fluency
Licenses, Endorsements, and Recommendations
Include any relevant trainings listed in reverse chronological order. Also include at least 2-4 recommendations that attest to your skills and work ethic.
Jane Doe’s Sample Relevant Trainings and Recommendations
Jane has listed her Qualified Bilingual Staff Certificate in her Licenses and Certifications section, three entires in her Skills and Endorsements section, and included recommendations from one former supervisor and one former instructor.
Recommendations
Course Instructor
If you were to ask any of the other members of our cohort who has helped them the most, they would all unanimously say Jane. She is always first in line to put her knowledge tot he test and solve problems. Jane is also a natural leader, yet humble enough to join the ranks, pulling her share of the heavy duties.
Former Supervisor
Jane is highly organized, a strong communicator, and a truly wonderful health administrator. I got to work with her on a public advocacy initiative and I loved hearing her solution-focused perspective on ways to manage the project and deadline.
