In 2025, employers are leaning more and more towards a skills-first hiring future, one where the practical business and technical skills you possess have equal or greater bearing to the degree credentials you hold on your resume.
But it’s not enough to merely state that you have job-specific skills, or list them verbatim in your resume’s skills section. You need to evidence them.
To accomplish this, you’ll need two assets at your disposal: a portfolio of results, and certificates or short courses (also referred to as microcredentials) that demonstrate that you’re an expert and have mastered learning core skills.
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Coursera’s 2025 Microcredentials Report demonstrates just how impactful including a course or certificate in your resume can be to your job-search outcome:
According to the report’s findings, about “96% of American employers say micro-credentials strengthen a candidate’s application; 90% of employers are willing to offer higher starting salaries for micro-credential holders, with even higher premiums for credit-bearing or GenAI credentials;” and finally, “86% of employers hired at least one microcredential holder in the past year,” it says.
So, having a microcredential listed on your resume can make all the difference between getting hired or progressed to the next application stage, or getting tossed into the all-too-familiar rejection pile.
But how do you know which ones to include?
Which Certifications Do I Need To Put On My Resume?
The most important factor when deciding what courses or certifications to study and include on your resume, is relevance. You don’t need to include a life coaching certification for example, if you’re applying for a software developer job, unless of course, the company has a coaching culture or your role is a more senior role and you want to demonstrate your coaching and leadership capabilities. In that case, it would be relevant.
Find out what skills are most needed in your specific industry, desired employer, and specific job title, and search for online courses and certifications that teach them.
The other way to know what courses to include is to look at reports like Coursera’s mentioned above, or even the World Economic Forum’s latest report on the future of jobs and skills for 2025 and beyond.
Coursera highlights that in the U.S., there are seven skills that stand as most prominent and in highest demand by employers, regardless of industry or job title. These include:
Top Technical Skills
- Generative AI (GenAI)
- Data strategy
- Cybersecurity
Top Everyday Skills
- Business communication skills
- Resilience and adaptability
- Collaboration
- Active listening
With these skills in mind, here are six helpful certifications that you can study for free. Some may require you to pay at the end to get the certificate, or in the case of Coursera, offer a free trial to access the course and start studying to begin with (Coursera courses are not listed below, however).
- Generative AI For Beginners, by Microsoft
- DelftX: Big Data Strategies to Transform Your Business, edX
- ISC2 Free Cybersecurity training
- Effective Communication course by Great Learning
- Diploma in Emotional Intelligence, Alison
- Harvardx Remote Work Evolution for Everyone
When was the last time you upskilled in any of these core areas? Make it your priority today to embark on one of these courses so you can be prepared for what lies ahead in the future of work, and so that you’re ready to embrace new career opportunities that would otherwise remain firmly closed.
