Commanding officer resume examples from 2026
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How to write a commanding officer resume
Craft a resume summary statement
A resume summary is your opening statement that highlights your strongest skills and top accomplishments. It is your chance to quickly let recruiters know who you are professionally - and why they should hire you for the commanding officer role.
Step 1: Mention your current job title or the role you're pursuing.
Step 2: Include your years of experience in commanding officer-related roles. Consider adding relevant company and industry experience as relevant to the job listing.
Step 3: Highlight your greatest accomplishments. Here is your chance to make sure your biggest wins aren't buried in your resume.
Step 4: Again, keep it short. Your goal is to summarize your experience and highlight your accomplishments, not write a paragraph.
These four steps should give you a strong elevator pitch and land you some commanding officer interviews.Please upload your resume so Zippia’s job hunt AI can draft a summary statement for you.
List the right project manager skills
Your Skills section is an easy way to let recruiters know you have the skills to do the job. Just as importantly, it can help your resume not get filtered out by hiring software. Here is how to make the most of your skills section and make sure you have the right keywords:
- Look to the job listing. You often need to include the exact keywords from the job description. Take note of the skills listed for the job.
- Put all relevant hard and soft skills in your skills section.
- Be specific. If you are too broad, you may not be giving the best picture of your skills and leave the hiring manager uncertain of your abilities.
- Be up to date. Software names change and companies merge. Don't look out of touch by being careless.
- Be accurate. Spelling and even upper or lowercase can dramatically change meanings. Make sure you are correctly listing your skills.
Here are example skills to include in your “Area of Expertise” on a commanding officer resume:
- Logistical Support
- Emergency Situations
- Combat
- Law Enforcement Agencies
- Direct Oversight
- Coast Guard
- Incident Reports
- Financial Management
- Human Resources
- Professional Development
- Sailors
- DOD
- Criminal Investigations
- CCTV
- Training Programs
- Terrorism
- Risk Management
- Operational Readiness
- Fire Alarms
- USCG
- Direct Support
- Support Operations
- NYC
- US Army
- Public Affairs
- Direct Reports
- Air Station
- Process Improvement
- Flight Operations
- Administrative Functions
Zippia’s AI can customize your resume for you.
How to structure your work experience
Your work experience should be structured:
- With your most recent roles first, followed by earlier roles in reverse chronological order.
- Job title, along with company name and location on the left.
- Put the corresponding dates of employment on the left side.
- Keep only relevant jobs on your work experience.
How to write commanding officer experience bullet points
Your resume is not a list of responsibilities or a job description. Instead, it is your chance to show your accomplishments and show why you're good at what you do.
- Use the What, How, and Why format. Answering these questions turns a bland job description into an effective showcase of your abilities.
- What were your responsibilities or goals?
- How did you accomplish them?
- Why were your results important? (How did it impact your company? Can you quantify the results in numbers? )
Here are great bullet points from commanding officer resumes:
Work history example #1
Commanding Officer
Air National Guard
- Awarded distinguished unit medal for working with 116th Air Control Wing in a joint active duty and Guard task force.
- Awarded Global War on Terrorism medal for support of air and ground troops during war time.
- Led teams of Airmen in ensuring eligible passengers and freight are properly documented and shipped to forward destinations during designated missions.
- Supervised up to 22 Airmen and Civil Service employees, scheduled work hours, resolved conflicts and wrote appraisals.
- Worked with Global Security (Merck Security) for VIP's in the Command Center as a Command Center Officer.
Work history example #2
Commanding Officer
Air National Guard
- Awarded distinguished unit medal for working with 116th Air Control Wing in a joint active duty and Guard task force.
- Supervised up to 22 Airmen and Civil Service employees, scheduled work hours, resolved conflicts and wrote appraisals.
- Led teams of Airmen in ensuring eligible passengers and freight are properly documented and shipped to forward destinations during designated missions.
- Established five Logistics Support Areas that functioned as warehouse, cross-dock, trans-shipment points and medical evacuation & maintenance collections points.
- Conducted witness interviews and depositions; investigated noncompliance, criminal, and civil activity.
Work history example #3
United States Marine
United States Department of Defense
- Traveled and performed system training and testing for the USMC Combat Operations Centers (COC).
- Facilitated team training that enhanced both physical and mental capacity needed to endure direct counter-intelligence and combat environments.
- Coordinated with military units for mission planning and execution of combat missions.
- Led world-wide deployments from planning to execution for multiple squadron aircraft, personnel, and support equipment.
- Reported system analysis and test results to USMC Project Managers at daily briefings.
Work history example #4
Commanding Officer
DynCorp International
- Created procedures for referring employees for Fitness-For-Duty evaluations in concert with the WMATA Office of Civil Rights and Medical Office.
- Tracked Maintenance to attain 35 FW 84.9% Full Mission Capable rate FY06; top AF F-16 combat readiness in PACAF.
- Executed non-appropriated and appropriated budgets for Human Resource management, combat support, family, education, and training programs.
- Received the Navy Commendation Medal for leading this Command to its highest level of readiness ever.
- Prepared the Squadron for deployment to Afghanistan in support of the war on terrorism.
Zippia’s AI can customize your resume for you.
Add an education section to your resume
The education section should display your highest degree first.
Place your education section appropriately on your resume. If you graduated over 5 years ago, this section should be at the bottom of your resume. If you just graduated and lack relevant work experience, the education section should go to the top.
If you have a bachelor's or master's degree, do not list your high school education. If your graduation year is more than 15-20 years ago, it's better not to include dates in this section.
Here are some examples of good education entries from commanding officer resumes:
Associate's Degree in law
Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY
2007 - 2009
Highlight your commanding officer certifications on your resume
If you have any additional certifications, add them to the certification section.
Start simple. Include the full name of the certification. It's also good to mention the organization that issued the certification. Next, specify when you obtained the certification.
If you have any of these certifications, be sure to include them on your commanding officer resume:
- Project Management Professional (PMP)
- Certified Manager Certification (CM)
- Certified Professional - Human Resource (IPMA-CP)