05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

JOB SEARCHING BASICS

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The Top Hard Skills Employers Seek

BY ALISON DOYLE Updated February 28, 2020

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Image by Emilie Dunphy © The Balance 2019

Hard Skills De ned

IfTypes of ever
you’ve Hard spoken
Skills with a career counselor or spent much time learning about the job
search process,
Top Hard Skills you’ve probably heard of hard skills.
Employers Want

More Examples of Hard

Skills

Types of Soft Skills

Hybrid Skills

The Importance of
Workplace Skills

Focus on Your Most

Relevant Skills
Table of Contents
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

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Hard Skills De ned

Types of Hard Skills

Top Hard Skills

Employers Want

But what
More exactly
Examples ofare
Hardhard skills, and how are they di erent from soft skills? What are the most
Skills
in-demand hard skills that employers look for?
Types of Soft Skills

Hybrid Skills

The Importance of
Workplace Skills

Focus on Your Most

Relevant Skills
Table of Contents
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

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Hard Skills Defined

Hard skills are part of the skill set that is required for a job. They include the expertise
necessary for an individual to successfully do the job. They are job-speci c and are typically
listed in job postings and job descriptions. [1]

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Hard Skills De ned

Types of Hard Skills

Top Hard Skills

Employers Want

More Examples of Hard

Skills

Types of Soft Skills

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Hybrid Skills

The Importance of
Workplace Skills

Focus on Your Most

Relevant Skills
Table of Contents
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

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Hard skills are acquired through formal education and training programs, including college,
apprenticeships, short-term training classes, online courses, and certi cation programs, as
well as on-the-job training.

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Hard Skills De ned
Types of Hard
Types of Hard Skills Skills
Hard skillsSkills
Top Hard include the speci c knowledge and abilities required for success in a job. These
Employers
types Want
of skills are learned and can be de ned, evaluated, and measured.
More Examples of Hard
Skills

Types of Soft Skills

Hybrid Skills

The Importance of
Workplace Skills

Focus on Your Most

Relevant Skills
Table of Contents
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

They are most Advertisement

commonly used during the hiring and interview process to compare candidates
for employment.

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Note: In some industries, employers may even test candidates’ hard skills to make
sure that they can really do what their resume claims they can do.

Once you have the job, your employer may evaluate your hard skills again, if you’re up for a
promotion or a transfer.

Hard Skills De ned

Types of Hard Skills

Top Hard Skills

Employers Want

More Examples of Hard

Skills

Types of Soft Skills

Hybrid Skills

The Importance of
Workplace Skills

Focus on Your Most

Relevant Skills
Table of Contents
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

Top Hard Skills Employers Want

LinkedIn reported on the hard skills that are in greatest demand in 2020: [2]

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• Blockchain

• Cloud Computing

• Analytical Reasoning

• Arti cial Intelligence

• UX Design

• Business Analysis

• A liate Marketing

• Sales 
Hard Skills De ned

• Scienti
Types of Hard Skills
c Computing
Top Hard Production
• Video Skills
Employers Want

More Examples of Hard

More
Skills Examples of Hard Skills

The following
Types are examples of some of the hard skills required for di erent occupations:
of Soft Skills

Hybrid Skills
• Accounting
The Importance of
• Administrative
Workplace Skills

• Analytics
Focus on Your Most
Relevant Skills
• Auditing
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

• Automotive Technology

• Banking Operations

• Bookkeeping
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• Budgeting

• Carpentry

• Construction

• Database Management

• Design

• Editing

• Electrical

• Engineering
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• Financial

• Hardware

• Healthcare

• Java Script

• Languages

• Legal

• Manufacturing Technology

• Marketing Research
Hard Skills De ned
• Mechanical
Types of Hard Skills

• Medical
Top Diagnosis
Hard Skills
Employers Want
• Nursing
More Examples of Hard
• Optimization
Skills

Types of Soft Skills Coding

• Pharmaceutical
Hybrid
PipeSkills
• tting
The Importance of
• Python Skills
Workplace
Programming

• Project
Focus Management
on Your Most
Relevant Skills
• Proposal Writing
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

• Reporting

• Science

• Software
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• Social Media Marketing

• Spreadsheets

• Teaching

• Technical Writing

• Testing

• Translation

• Transcription

• Word Processing
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Types of Soft Skills

Conversely, soft skills are attributes and personality traits that impact interpersonal
interactions and productivity. While di erent, they are equally as important as hard skills in
the workforce. [3]

LinkedIn rated the following ve soft skills as most valued in the workplace: [2]

• Creativity

• Persuasion
Hard Skills De ned
• Collaboration
Types of Hard Skills
• Adaptability
Top Hard Skills
• Emotional
Employers WantIntelligence

More Examples of Hard

Hybrid
Skills Skills
Types
As the of Soft Skillsevolves, candidates with hybrid skills are becoming increasingly valuable.
workplace
Employers seek applicants with a blend of soft and hard skills because they have the exibility
Hybrid Skills
that enables them to add value to the organization and to keep up with change. [4]
The Importance of
Workplace Skills

The
FocusImportance
on Your Most of Skills in the Workplace
Relevant Skills
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

Both hard skills and soft skills are important in the workplace, and the top skills
employers look for will depend on what the employer is seeking for a particular position.

The main di erence between hard skills and soft skills is that hard skills can usually be taught
in a series of concrete steps. From an instructor’s or a manager’s perspective, teaching
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someone how to code is a more easily de ned process than teaching them to listen and
communicate e ectively with a client.

Soft skills can’t be learned by rote, and they involve emotional intelligence and empathy,
which often makes them more complicated to impart to a student.

The bottom line is that both hard and soft skills are important to career readiness. Once you
have both, you’ll be able to do your job well in the real world, where it’s essential to know what
you’re talking about—and be able to talk about it so that other people can understand. [5]

Focus on Your Most Relevant Skills

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When job searching, it’s important to include the skills the employer is seeking in your resume
and job applications. The desired skills (both hard and soft) will be listed in the requirements
section of job postings and help wanted ads.
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Highlight the Skills That Qualify You for the Job: Start by highlighting the skills that are the
closest match to the job requirements in your job application materials.

Match Your Quali cations to the Job: But while you need to match your quali cations to a job,
there is more to it than just looking for keywords in the listing. It’s also essential to go beyond
the job posting.

Hard Skills De to
Tip: Go ned
the employer’s website to see if their listing provides additional
information
Types of Hard Skills that might not have made it onto a job board or a referral from a friend.

Top Hard Skills

Employers
See Want
More Skills: Finally, review employment skills by the job or a general list of skills for job
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applications,
More Examplesresumes,
of Hard and cover letters.
Skills
ARTICLE SOURCES
Types of Soft Skills

Hybrid Skills

The Importance of
Workplace Skills

Focus on Your Most

Relevant Skills
Table of Contents
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

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SKILLS & KEYWORDS

List of Technical Skills for Resumes,

Cover Letters, and Interviews

Set of business people

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RESUMES

Examples of the Best Skills to Put on

Your Resume

SKILLS & KEYWORDS

RESUMES
Hard Skills vs. Soft Skills: What's the
Top Soft Skills Employers Value With Di erence?
Examples
Hard Skills De ned

Types of Hard Skills

Top Hard Skills

Employers Want

More Examples of Hard

Skills

Types of Soft Skills

Hybrid Skills

The Importance of
Workplace Skills
SKILLS & KEYWORDS
Focus on Your Most Important Employability Skills For
Relevant Skills
Workplace Success
Table of Contents
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

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BASICS LISTED BY JOB

What Are Soft Skills? Physical Therapy Assistant Skills for

Your Resume and More

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LISTED BY JOB

Do You Have the Top Skills Employers

Want?

Hard Skills De ned

Types of Hard Skills

Top Hard Skills

Employers Want

More Examples of Hard

Skills

Types of Soft Skills

Hybrid Skills

The Importance of
SAMPLES SKILLS & KEYWORDS
Workplace Skills
Cover Letter Examples Emphasizing Important Personal Skills That
Focus on Your Most
Transferable Skills Employers Value
Relevant Skills
Table of Contents
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

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GLOSSARY SKILLS & KEYWORDS

What Is a Skill Set? Important Soft Skills for Workplace

Success

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LISTED BY JOB

Here Is a Comprensive List of RESUMES

Phlebotomy Skills to List on Your Administrative Assistant Resume

Resume Example and Writing Tips

RESUMES COLLEGE GRAD SKILLS

What You Should Include in a What Are Problem-Solving Skills?

Resume Skills Section
Table of Contents
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05/02/2021 What Are Hard Skills?

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