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Prison guard skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Below we've compiled a list of the most critical prison guard skills. We ranked the top skills for prison guards based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 28.0% of prison guard resumes contained security procedures as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a prison guard needs to be successful in the workplace.

11 prison guard skills for your resume and career

1. Security Procedures

A security procedure is a verification protocol used to check if an electronic signature, record, or performance belongs to that specific person. It is a set of necessary procedures that need to be performed to maintain security. These procedures are step-by-step guidelines on how to implement, enable, or enforce security.

Here's how prison guards use security procedures:

Performed Security procedures in the Culinary section Guarded the prison Tower Completed cell block security rounds
Informed inmates and visitors of rules, safety and security procedures and responsibilities.

2. Emergency Situations

Here's how prison guards use emergency situations:

Maintain accurate inventory of working radios and provide instruction for usage during normal operations and emergency situations.
Maintained necessary files and reference publications, required to respond to all mobilizations or emergency situations.

3. Incident Reports

An Incident Report, in a medical facility such as hospitals and nursing homes, is a type of paperwork filled out immediately after and in the case of an incident of some sort, with the goal of describing the incident and its consequences, as well as the measurements taken after or during the incident, as well as any other information relevant to said incident. Such an incident might be a patient acting out or a patient being injured.

Here's how prison guards use incident reports:

Generated incident reports and all necessary documents to present during critical incidents that determined the outcome of disciplinary actions against inmates.
Prepared behavior and incident reports on detained juveniles, including documentation of module checks and daily activities.

4. Security Checks

A security check is the processing of manually or automatically checking if a person is armed before entering a building. It's also the checking of a perimeter to see if it's secure. It goes further into the investigation on the background of an individual before the person is employed in an organization to check if there's any criminal record of the person in the past.

Here's how prison guards use security checks:

Ensured prisoner safety, conducted security checks and searches.
Conducted frequent security checks for evidence of unauthorized activities and infractions of rules, responded to situations, and documented accordingly.

5. Correctional Facility

A correctional facility is a place where people who commit crimes and have been lawfully arrested are kept for some time. The facility is also reserved to correct bad behaviors in citizens of a particular region. A correctional facility can be a prison, jail, penitentiary, detention center, or any other building exclusive for housing incarcerated people (people sentenced to jail terms by law).

Here's how prison guards use correctional facility:

Inspected conditions of locks, doors and gates at the correctional facility to ensure security and help prevent escapes.
Worked within a minimum to medium adult correctional facility that housed over 300 inmates of varying criminal methodologies.

6. CPR

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation or CPR is a medical procedure that involves chest compression to help a patient breathe. This artificial ventilation helps in keeping the brain function in place and regulates blood throughout the body. CPR is a lifesaving procedure that is used in emergencies.

Here's how prison guards use cpr:

Certified in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) for adults and children, as well as automated external defibrillator (AED).
Trained in ground control and self-defense techniques, CPR, ethics and security management.

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7. Law Enforcement

Law enforcement is the task of certain members of the community who work together to uphold the law by identifying, preventing, rehabilitating, or prosecuting others who break society's laws and norms. The phrase refers to the police, the judiciary, and the correctional system.

Here's how prison guards use law enforcement:

Worked well with other law enforcement agencies and with the public I was in contact with.
Provided appropriate information and assistance to the public, department, and law enforcement agencies concerning facility activities and operations.

8. Head Counts

Here's how prison guards use head counts:

Guard inmates and protect facility property, conduct head counts, and searches off cells and common areas for contraband.
Executed daily operations of conducting a head count of the offenders.

9. Control Room

A control room, also known as an operations center, is a room that serves as central control and monitoring station for security, building, and other types of systems of a large facility or physical area. Control rooms act as the central nervous system of a facility and require a reliable and efficient communication system to effectively handle emergencies, as well as critical incidents and decisions.

Here's how prison guards use control room:

Provided computer and telephone repair services and maintenance for inmate telephones and internal detention center computers to include control room systems.
Performed housing inspections-Aided in unit shakedowns-Hosted visitation at the Annex-Book in/receiving of inmates-Worked control room at the downtown facility

10. Electronic Equipment

Electronic equipment is equipment in which electrons are conducted in a controlled manner, especially in a gas or vacuum, or semiconductor amplifier. These equipment are components for controlling the flow of electrical current for information and signal processing, telecommunications, and system control.

Here's how prison guards use electronic equipment:

Maintain mechanical and electronic equipment needed to perform duties.
Operated telephones, electronic equipment, and security devices.

11. Telephone Calls

Telephone calls are a communication means through which a caller is connected to the called party. The call is done through a telecommunications device called a telephone. The caller can use a landline, mobile phone, or satellite phone to make the call.

Here's how prison guards use telephone calls:

Supervised inmates during meals, visits, medication pass, recreation and telephone calls.
Supervised inmates during meals, visits, recreation, telephone calls and shower time.

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List of prison guard skills to add to your resume

The most important skills for a prison guard resume and required skills for a prison guard to have include:

Security Procedures
Emergency Situations
Incident Reports
Security Checks

Correctional Facility
CPR
Law Enforcement
Head Counts

Control Room
Electronic Equipment
Telephone Calls

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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