The Top Keywords Recruiters Use to Find You
by Thad Peterson
Monster Staff Writer
The Top Keywords Recruiters Use to Find You

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    Total votes: 74

    Just as you use keywords to search for jobs on Monster, recruiters and hiring managers use them to identify qualified candidates in the Monster resume database who match their available positions.

    Knowing which keywords appear most frequently in recruiters' searches can help you use the right words and terms in your resume. But remember: While it makes sense to use these keywords in your resume if they pertain to you, littering your resume with irrelevant words can backfire.

    "For the astute recruiter, it's going to come across as spam," says Felix Heimberg, a Dallas-based recruiter. "We become very good at spotting something that looks contrived."

    One Hundred Most Popular Keywords

    What do recruiters and hiring managers search for? Here is a list of the top 100 resume keyword search phrases used by recruiters and hiring managers on Monster for a representative three month period:

    1. Sales
    2. Recruiter
    3. Administrative assistant
    4. Accountant
    5. Receptionist
    6. CPA
    7. Customer service
    8. Accounting
    9. Java
    10. Mortgage
    11. Manager
    12. Executive Assistant
    13. Human Resources
    14. Pharmacist
    15. Accounts Payable
    16. Insurance
    17. Payroll
    18. Staff accountant
    19. "Administrative assistant"
    20. Physical therapist
    21. Outside sales
    22. SAP
    23. "business analyst"
    24. Collections
    25. Audit
    26. Engineer
    27. Controller
    28. Financial analyst
    29. Project manager
    30. Marketing
    31. C#
    32. .net
    33. "Project manager"
    34. J2EE
    35. "Administrative
    36. Oracle
    37. Construction
    38. Warehouse
    39. Inside sales
    40. Business analyst
    41. Paralegal
    42. RN
    43. "Financial analyst"
    44. Data entry
    45. Nurse
    46. Peoplesoft
    47. Restaurant Manager
    48. Loan officer
    49. Staffing
    50. "executive assistant"
    51. Retail
    52. Legal secretary
    53. "Customer service"
    54. Call center
    55. "Outside sales"
    56. Bookkeeper
    57. "Inside Sales"
    58. Auditor
    59. Autocad
    60. Tax
    61. Registered Nurse
    62. Buyer
    63. "C
    64. Spanish
    65. Japanese
    66. Underwriter
    67. "sales"
    68. Account executive
    69. "Technical writer"
    70. Medical
    71. Cnc
    72. Finance
    73. "Staff accountant"
    74. Civil engineer
    75. Telemarketing
    76. Accounts receivable
    77. Senior accountant
    78. Manufacturing
    79. Sql
    80. Unix
    81. Architect
    82. HVAC
    83. Help desk
    84. Oracle DBA
    85. Clerical
    86. Purchasing
    87. Bilingual
    88. "help desk"
    89. Analyst
    90. "accounts payable"
    91. "Technical writer"
    92. Pharmaceutical
    93. Loan processor
    94. Occupational therapist
    95. Qa
    96. Pharmaceutical sales
    97. Real Estate
    98. Maintenance
    99. "Human Resources"
    100. Entry Level