Personal Assistant CV Example (UK)

A Personal Assistant in a London professional services firm is usually chosen by the partner or director they will work for, after a recruitment agency has shortlisted on the CV. Both read for the same signals: the seniority of the people you have supported, how complicated their diary and travel were, the confidential work you handled, and whether you ran things before being asked. A PA CV that gives the scale of the job beats one that lists every software package.

The Sample CV below is for a PA with eight years' experience, now supporting the managing partner of a mid-sized City law firm and the firm's management board. It covers diary and inbox management across time zones, board papers and minutes, client entertaining, billing and time recording support, and a partners' retreat run end to end.

Adjust it for each role. A private office or family office wants household and personal affairs; a financial services role wants regulatory awareness and expense controls; a team PA role in a consultancy wants juggling several partners at once. The US counterpart of this page is the personal assistant resume example, written for American employers; the Boardroom template suits a senior PA's CV.

Updated . The person and employers in this Sample CV are fictional. Written for applicants in the UK; the page for applicants in the US is the personal assistant resume example.

Personal Assistant sample CV

Drawn at A4 proportions, the paper a UK CV is printed on.

Henrietta Vasquez-Doyle

Personal Assistant to the Managing Partner and Management Board, City Law Firm

Islington, London N1henrietta.vasquezdoyle@example.com07700 900649

Summary

Personal Assistant with eight years supporting senior partners in law and accountancy, currently PA to the managing partner of a City firm and secretary to its management board. Run a diary that spans London, New York and Singapore, manage the inbox to agreed rules, prepare board papers and minutes, and keep confidential matters on partner pay, hiring and disputes contained. Calm, discreet and a step ahead.

Experience

PA to the Managing Partner and Board Secretary, Cresswell Thorne LLP

– Present

London EC4

  • Manage the managing partner's diary, inbox and phone, prioritising client, board and regulatory commitments and protecting time for strategy work across three time zones.
  • Prepare and circulate papers for the monthly management board, take the minutes and track actions to completion, and keep the board's confidential records on partner remuneration and recruitment.
  • Organised the firm's two-day partners' retreat for 70 partners, from venue shortlist and contract to agenda, travel, dietary needs and the follow-up survey, delivered under the agreed budget.
  • Book complex travel to New York and Singapore client meetings, with visas, briefing packs and backup plans for delays.
  • Support time recording and billing for the managing partner's client matters, chasing narratives and reconciling expenses each month before invoices go out.
Team PA to Three Partners, Real Estate, Pellingham Grove Solicitors

–

London WC2

  • Supported three real estate partners and their associates, managing diaries, document production and client meetings on busy completion days.
  • Set up a shared matter tracker for completions that the team adopted, cutting last-minute chasing on exchange days.
  • Opened new client files, ran conflict checks and kept anti-money laundering documents complete for each new matter.
Administrative Assistant, Halberd & Finch Chartered Accountants

–

London EC1

  • Provided reception and administrative support to an audit team of 25, booking meeting rooms and arranging client visits.
  • Covered for the senior partner's PA during holidays, managing his diary and correspondence.

Education

BA (Hons) History

University of Wessex Downs, Winchester, SO22

Skills

  • Senior diary and inbox management
  • Board papers and minute taking
  • Complex international travel
  • Event and retreat planning
  • Time recording and billing support
  • Expense reconciliation
  • Confidential HR and partner matters
  • Microsoft 365 including Teams and SharePoint
  • Document management (iManage)
  • Shorthand-style note taking

Certifications

  • Diploma in Business Administration and PA Skills, Thamesbank Institute of Secretarial Studies,
  • Minute taking for boards and committees, Cresswell Thorne LLP learning and development,

Start yours from this example

Opens this sample in the editor, in one of the templates below. Swap in your details, then tailor it to each vacancy in about two minutes.

Use this example

How a UK CV differs

A UK Personal Assistant CV is usually read first by a specialist secretarial recruitment agency, then by the principal and HR. It differs from the American personal assistant resume in its language: the title is PA or Senior PA, firms are LLPs or plcs, the work includes board secretariat and billing in professional services, and many London roles go through agencies rather than direct applications.

For a personal assistant in the UK

  1. Who you support, by title

    Name the role of each principal, such as managing partner, finance director or chief executive, and the size of the firm or team. Seniority of the principal is the first thing an agency screens on.

  2. Scale in plain numbers

    Give the number of people you support, the size of events you ran and the countries you book travel to. These are the figures that show the size of the job without claiming more than you did.

  3. Professional services detail

    In law and accountancy, mention time recording, billing, client inception, conflict checks and anti-money laundering documents. They are part of the job there and set you apart from general admin candidates.

  4. Confidentiality, shown not claimed

    Rather than writing discreet, say what confidential work you handle, such as partner remuneration or board papers, without revealing anything about it.

  5. Systems by name

    List Microsoft 365, your firm's document management and practice management systems, and any expense or travel tools. Agencies search for them by name.

Every CV in the UK

A4 paper
Set the page to A4, 210 by 297 millimetres. A Letter-sized PDF prints with odd margins on A4 and reads as imported from the US.
Two pages is normal
Most UK CVs run to two pages. One page suits a first job; three is rare and only for senior roles with a lot to show.
No photo, no date of birth
UK employers do not expect a photo, a date of birth, marital status or nationality on a CV, and most prefer not to see them.
Dates as DD/MM/YYYY
Day first where a full date appears, and month and year for each role: "Mar 2022 – Present". Never the US month-first order.
British English
Organise, programme, centre, licence, specialise. A CV in American spelling reads as written for somewhere else.
Town and postcode area, not a street address
A line such as "Manchester, M4" is enough. A full postal address, and the US-style "City, ST 12345" line, are not expected.

More on applying in the UK, with every CV example for it, on the UK page.

Templates for the personal assistant CV

All templates

Every template exports on A4. The previews are drawn on Letter; the editor sets the page size when you export.

How the CV changes with experience

The same personal assistant CV, written at three levels: a profile and three bullets for each.

Entry level

Zero to two years, or a first post in the title

Organised graduate with temping experience on reception and in a busy events team, quick on Microsoft 365 and comfortable with confidential information. Looking for a junior or team PA role.

  • Temped on reception and in team support at three firms in the City, picking up each firm's systems within a day.
  • Helped coordinate a student society's annual ball for 300 guests, managing suppliers and the budget.
  • Typed at speed with high accuracy and produced documents to house style.

Mid level

Three to seven years, owns a process or a workload

PA to the Finance Director of a listed retailer with five years' experience, supporting board reporting, investor meetings and a finance team of 40.

  • Manage the Finance Director's diary around results, audit committee and investor roadshows.
  • Coordinate the timetable and papers for audit committee meetings with the company secretary.
  • Book and reconcile travel and expenses for the finance leadership team.

Senior

Eight years or more, leads people, budgets or programmes

Senior PA and Head of the Chair's Office with fifteen years' experience, supporting the chair of a FTSE board and leading a team of four assistants.

  • Run the chair's office, managing a team of four assistants and the chair's board, shareholder and charity commitments.
  • Coordinate the annual general meeting logistics with the company secretariat.
  • Act as the trusted point of contact for non-executive directors and major shareholders.

Skills to put on the personal assistant CV

Hard skills

Senior diary management
A partner's diary is their most valuable resource, and the PA who protects and plans it is the one they will not let go.
Inbox management
Many senior PAs run their principal's inbox to agreed rules, and saying so shows the level of trust you hold.
Minutes and board papers
Board work is a step up from team support, and accurate minutes are a skill partners and company secretaries notice.
Travel and events
International trips and firm events are where a PA's planning shows most, and they are easy to describe with numbers.
Billing and time recording
In law and accountancy, chasing time narratives and expenses keeps the partner's billing on track, so firms ask about it.
Firm systems
Document management and practice management systems vary by firm, and naming yours shows how fast you will settle in.

Soft skills

Discretion
PAs see partner pay, disputes and hiring before anyone else, and the principal needs to know it goes no further.
Anticipation
The best PAs solve the problem before it reaches the partner, and interviewers ask for examples.
Composure
Diaries collapse and flights get cancelled, and a calm PA keeps the day on track.

Mistakes that cost personal assistant interviews

  1. A list of software with no scale

    Proficient in Outlook, Word and Excel tells the reader nothing about the job. Lead with who you supported and what you ran, and keep the software in one skills line.

  2. Not naming the principal's role

    PA to the managing partner and PA to a team of six associates are very different jobs. Say who you support in the job title of each post.

  3. Revealing confidential matters

    A CV that hints at a client, a dispute or a partner's pay suggests you would share theirs too. Describe the type of work, never the content.

  4. Hiding agency temping

    Temping is normal in London PA careers. Group short assignments under one heading with the agency's name so the dates make sense.

  5. Using American job titles

    Executive Administrative Assistant reads as a US role in the UK. Use PA, Senior PA or Executive Assistant, matching the advert.

Write bullets with the XYZ formula: what changed, the number that shows it, and how you did it, in one line.

Questions about the personal assistant CV

What is the difference between a PA and an Executive Assistant in the UK?

The titles overlap. A PA usually supports one or a few senior people with their diary, travel and correspondence; an Executive Assistant often supports a C-suite principal and takes on projects, board work and business management. Use the title in the advert and show the scope.

What should a PA CV include?

Who you support and their seniority, diary, inbox and travel scope, events and board work, confidential responsibilities, the systems you use, and a short education and training section.

How long should a Personal Assistant CV be?

Two pages of A4. Put the current post and the principal you support on page one, and keep older roles to two or three lines each.

Do I need a qualification to be a PA?

No. Most PAs progress from reception, team support or temping. A secretarial or business administration diploma can help early on, but experience with senior principals counts most.

Should I include typing speed on a PA CV?

Only if the advert asks for it or you are early in your career. A senior PA's CV is stronger on scope and judgement than on typing speed.

How do I tailor a PA CV for a new sector?

Lead with the transferable work, such as board papers, travel and confidential matters, and learn the sector's terms from the advert. Paste the advert into Resume Master and it rewrites the CV against it in about two minutes.

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