LinkedIn and online profiles alongside your resume – Page 2

A recent, clear head-and-shoulders photo where your face fills most of the frame, with a plain background and the clothing you would wear to work. It should look like you on an ordinary working day.

Tips:

• Use natural light, facing a window.
• Smile or look approachable.
• Avoid group photos, sunglasses, filters and party pictures.
• A good phone camera is enough; no studio needed.

Note that ResumeBuilder.ae does not support photos in resume PDFs, partly to keep resumes easy for applicant tracking systems to read. Your profile is the natural place for a photo if you want one.

Show your current location honestly, and state your target city in your headline or About section. Some people change their location to the target city once the move is confirmed and imminent.

Options:

• Current location + "Relocating to Dubai in February 2027" in the headline or About.
• Target location, only if you have a confirmed move date and can attend in-person interviews there.

Recruiters searching by location may filter by city, so a clear relocation note helps them understand your situation. Be consistent with your resume and applications, and never claim residence or visa status you do not have.

Use the platform's career break option if available, or add a simple entry in your experience section, such as "Career break – family care", with dates. A short, honest note looks better than an unexplained gap.

Tips:

• Mention any useful activity: courses, volunteering, freelance work.
• Keep personal details private; "family reasons" or "health reasons" is enough.
• Update your headline to show your target role.

Example entry: "Career break, 2023–2025: Caring for a family member. Completed Google Project Management Certificate and volunteered as treasurer for a community association."

Create an experience entry with a clear title, such as "Freelance Graphic Designer" or "Owner, Ahmed Bookkeeping Services", and describe your services, sectors and results. Treat it like any other job.

Tips:

• Use your business name if you have one, or "Self-employed".
• Mention client types without naming confidential clients.
• Add portfolio items or testimonials to the Featured section.
• Ask satisfied clients for recommendations.

Keep the same description on your resume so the two are consistent. If you freelanced alongside a job, show both entries with their correct dates.

Add each title as a separate position under the same company, with its own dates. Most profiles group them together, which clearly shows your progression.

Example:

• Senior Accountant, Gulf Star Trading, 2024–present
• Accountant, Gulf Star Trading, 2021–2024
• Junior Accountant, Gulf Star Trading, 2019–2021

Write a short description for each role, focusing on new responsibilities at each level. Keep it consistent with your resume, which may list promotions under one employer heading.

Your education, relevant projects, internships, part-time work, volunteering, skills and a clear headline about your goals. A student profile shows potential and direction.

Sections to complete:

• Education: degree, university, expected graduation and relevant modules.
• Projects: what you built or researched, with links if possible.
• Experience: internships, part-time jobs, society roles.
• Volunteering and awards.
• Skills: tools and languages you can actually use.

Connect with classmates, lecturers, internship managers and alumni. Keep your profile professional, because recruiters may review it during campus hiring.

Add each certification with its full name, issuing organisation, issue date, expiry date (if any) and credential ID or verification link, if available. This lets recruiters verify it quickly.

Example:

• Name: Project Management Professional (PMP)
• Issuer: Project Management Institute
• Issued: March 2025; Expires: March 2028
• Credential ID: [your ID]

Tips:

• List only certifications you have actually earned.
• Remove or mark expired certifications if the role requires current status.
• Use the same names and dates on your resume.

Many professional networking platforms let you add a secondary-language version of your profile, which can help if you apply to employers in both languages. Check the current profile language settings.

Tips:

• Keep your main profile in the language most of your target employers use, often English in the Gulf private sector.
• Make sure both versions say the same thing.
• Have a fluent speaker check the second version.
• Use the same spelling of your name across both versions and your resume.

ResumeBuilder.ae can produce resumes in English or in Arabic (right to left), so you can match your resume language to the employer too.

Update it whenever something important changes, such as a new job, promotion, qualification or major project, and review it fully every few months. Keeping it current avoids rushed edits when a recruiter is about to look.

A quick review checklist:

• Headline still matches your direction.
• Current role, dates and title are accurate.
• New skills, certifications and achievements added.
• Old or irrelevant content removed.
• Contact details correct.

Update your resume at the same time, so the two stay consistent.

No, posting is optional. A complete, keyword-rich profile with a clear headline is the foundation. Posting can add visibility and credibility, but it is not required.

If you choose to post:

• Share lessons from projects, industry news with your view, or short how-to tips.
• Comment thoughtfully on posts in your field.
• Keep it professional; avoid complaints about employers or sensitive topics.

If you are discreetly job hunting, a sudden burst of activity may draw attention. Quiet, consistent activity often looks more natural.

Keep it short, specific and polite: who you are, what you do and why you want to connect. Many notes have a strict character limit, so one or two sentences work best.

Examples:

• "Hello Ms Nair, I am an HSE Officer with NEBOSH and six years in Qatar construction. I would like to connect as I follow your recruitment for energy projects."
• "Hi James, I am a final-year finance student interested in your graduate programme. I would value staying in touch."

Avoid sending your CV or asking for a job in the first message. After they accept, you can share more if relevant.

Yes. Profiles on job boards, such as regional sites popular in the Gulf or India, should use the same job titles, employers and dates as your resume. Recruiters often compare them.

Tips:

• Upload your latest resume and update the profile fields to match.
• Remove outdated resumes from old accounts.
• Check privacy settings: some boards make your CV searchable by recruiters, which can reveal your search to your current employer.
• Keep a list of every board you have joined so you can update or close accounts later.

Inconsistent profiles across boards can confuse recruiters and raise questions about accuracy.

It depends on the job board's privacy settings. Many boards let recruiters search CVs unless you choose a private or confidential mode. Check the settings before uploading.

Things to check:

• Whether your CV is searchable by all recruiters or only sent with applications.
• Whether you can hide your current employer's name or block specific companies.
• What personal details appear in search results.

If your search is confidential, consider a private setting or remove your current employer name from the searchable version. Delete old CVs from boards you no longer use.

Some do, so assume anything public could be seen. Practices vary by employer and country, and some places have rules about how employers use such information.

Steps to take:

• Search your name online and review what appears.
• Set personal social media accounts to private if you prefer.
• Remove or hide posts you would not want an employer to see.
• Keep your professional profile accurate and consistent with your resume.

Your professional profile is the one employers expect to view; personal accounts are better kept separate and private.

Use clear job titles and skill keywords people actually search for, complete every main section and set your location and job preferences accurately. Search systems differ, but complete, relevant profiles tend to be easier to match.

Practical steps:

• Use standard titles in your headline and experience.
• Include specific skills and tools in the About, Experience and Skills sections.
• Set your location correctly.
• Add certifications and education fully.
• Connect with people in your industry and region.

Do not stuff keywords unnaturally. Recruiters still read the profile, and repetitive lists look unprofessional.

You can shorten them, and you can remove very old or brief ones if they add nothing. Keep anything that explains your career path or fills what would otherwise look like a gap.

Options:

• Keep older roles but reduce them to a title and one line.
• Remove short student jobs once you have several years of experience.
• Keep unrelated jobs if removing them would leave unexplained gaps.

Your profile can be fuller than your resume, so there is less pressure to remove items. Make sure what remains is accurate.

Usually not on a public profile. These details are personal and are better shared directly with employers when relevant, for example on your resume for Gulf applications or on application forms.

Exceptions:

• If your right to work is a strong advantage for the roles you target, you might mention it briefly, such as "Based in Dubai with a residence visa".
• If you are relocating, mention your plans rather than visa details.

Keep your public profile focused on skills and experience. Share personal details only when an employer needs them.

Keep the profile polished and current, avoid public job-seeking signals and let executive recruiters approach you discreetly. Senior moves are often handled privately.

Tips:

• Use a strong headline focused on leadership scope and sector.
• Highlight board-level achievements without confidential figures.
• Use recruiter-only job preferences, if you use any.
• Connect with reputable executive search consultants in your sector.
• Avoid public posts about leaving or changes in your role.

Make sure your profile tells the same story as your executive resume, including dates and titles.

Usually you can list your employer and job title; confidentiality agreements typically cover information such as clients, projects and figures rather than the fact that you work there. Check your agreement or ask HR if unsure.

Tips:

• Describe your work in general terms: "Lead security reviews for a regional bank's online services."
• Avoid naming confidential clients, products or numbers.
• Follow any company social media policy.

If your employer asks staff not to list the company publicly, respect that and use a generic description, such as "Confidential – Government sector".

Yes, if it shows relevant skills, values or leadership, or if it fills a gap. Many profiles have a separate volunteering section for this.

Good examples:

• Organising community events.
• Tutoring or mentoring.
• Professional work done pro bono, such as accounting or design for a charity.

Describe your role and impact as you would for a job: "Coordinated weekend food distribution for 150 families, managing a team of 12 volunteers."

Keep it consistent with your resume, and remove very old or minor volunteering if your profile becomes cluttered.

Use the platforms and profiles your target employers actually check: local job boards, portfolio sites, professional association directories or a simple personal website. The goal is a reliable, professional online presence where employers expect it.

Options:

• Regional job boards with profiles.
• Portfolio platforms for designers, writers and photographers.
• Code repositories for developers.
• Professional body membership listings.
• A one-page personal site with your resume summary and contact form.

Whatever you use, keep it consistent with your resume and free of personal details you would not want strangers to see.

Yes, when you know their work well and can be specific. Writing recommendations is a good way to support colleagues, and people often return the favour.

How to write one:

• Say how you worked together and for how long.
• Mention one or two specific strengths with an example.
• End with a clear endorsement.

Example: "I managed Joseph for two years in our Abu Dhabi warehouse. He redesigned our picking routes, which cut late dispatches noticeably, and he trained every new team member patiently. I would happily work with him again."

Only write what you genuinely believe; recommendations are public and linked to your name.

It is fine for them to have different emphasis, as long as the facts match. Your resume for the new field highlights transferable skills; your profile can show your full history while clearly stating your new direction.

How to align them:

• Use a headline that names your target field.
• In the About section, explain your move in two or three sentences.
• Keep job titles and dates identical in both.
• Add courses, projects and volunteering in the new field to both.

A recruiter should be able to read both and see one consistent person with a clear plan.

It is optional but a simple, relevant banner can make your profile look complete. Choose something clean that relates to your field or city, or a plain colour.

Ideas:

• A photo of your city skyline or workplace setting (without confidential details).
• A simple design with your specialism or a short tagline.
• An image of your work, for designers or architects.

Avoid busy images, copyrighted photos or anything controversial. Check how it looks on a phone, where parts of the banner may be hidden behind your photo.

Log in to each old account, update or delete the profile, and remove old CVs. Outdated profiles can show wrong information and expose personal details.

Steps:

• List every job board and networking site you have joined.
• Delete old resumes and personal data from accounts you no longer use.
• Use each site's account deletion or data request option.
• Keep one or two main profiles up to date.

If you cannot access an old account, use the site's help or privacy contact to request deletion. Searching your name online can help you find forgotten profiles.