LinkedIn’s skills and endorsements features allow members to showcase their expertise and have their skills validated by other members. However, sometimes these features seem to disappear from LinkedIn profiles, leading to confusion for users who can no longer find them.
LinkedIn’s Skills and Endorsements Features
LinkedIn introduced the skills feature in 2012 as a way for members to add skills to their profiles to highlight their professional capabilities. LinkedIn also allows other members to endorse your skills, serving as validation that you have that skill.
Skills are displayed prominently on LinkedIn profiles under the “Skills” section, with the most endorsed skills showing up first. Users can add up to 50 skills to their profiles across job functions, industries, and more. Endorsements from connections appear next to each skill as social proof.
Endorsing someone’s skill is easy – members just click the “+” icon next to a skill on someone’s profile that they want to validate. Endorsements are an integral part of LinkedIn and help members stand out by highlighting their most prominent skills.
Why Skills and Endorsements Sometimes Disappear
There are a few reasons why skills and endorsements may no longer show up on your LinkedIn profile:
You Removed the Features
The most straightforward reason is that you deliberately removed the skills and endorsements sections yourself. You can remove skills individually or delete the entire skills section. Endorsements automatically disappear if you remove a skill.
To manage skills:
- Go to your profile
- Click “Add profile section”
- Click the pencil icon next to “Skills”
- Delete skills using the “X” icon or “Remove” link
If you want to reinstate skills and endorsements, simply go back to the “Skills” section and add them back to your profile.
LinkedIn Removed Them
In some cases, LinkedIn itself removes skills and endorsements from profiles, usually due to violations of LinkedIn’s terms of service. Reasons LinkedIn may take down these sections include:
- Fake or inaccurate skills
- Artificially inflated endorsements (e.g. swap endorsements with others)
- Buying or selling endorsements
- Automated bots used to add endorsements
LinkedIn tries to maintain the integrity of skills and endorsements as an accurate representation of someone’s capabilities. If they detect misuse, they may take down the sections completely.
A/B Testing
LinkedIn is known to run A/B tests, where they test different versions of the site with a small subset of users. Sometimes these tests involve removing certain features like skills and endorsements to see how it impacts engagement.
If you notice these sections suddenly missing, it may be due to being included in an A/B test group. Usually these tests are temporary, so your skills and endorsements should reappear after a while.
Troubleshooting Missing Skills and Endorsements
If your skills and endorsements sections have gone missing from your profile, here are some steps to troubleshoot:
- Check your profile visibility settings – ensure your skills and endorsements are set to be visible to others.
- Refresh the page – sometimes page glitches hide sections temporarily.
- Check different viewing formats – view profile in desktop mode vs. mobile app.
- Update your LinkedIn app – if viewing on mobile, make sure you have the latest version.
- Sign out and sign back in – this forces a refresh of your account which can restore missing sections.
- Contact LinkedIn support – if all else fails, reach out to LinkedIn to investigate further.
How to Add Skills and Endorsements Back to Your Profile
If your skills and endorsements are definitively gone, you can add them back yourself through the following steps:
- Go to your profile page
- Click “Add profile section”
- Select “Skills”
- Use the “Add a skill” area to search for and add skills – add up to 50
- Hover over each skill and click the “Ask for endorsements” link
- Send messages to connections asking them to endorse your skills
Rebuilding your Skills and Endorsements section takes time, but can be worthwhile to once again showcase your top skills and expertise.
Preventing Skills and Endorsements Removal
To avoid having your Skills and Endorsements removed by LinkedIn in the future:
- Only add accurate, relevant skills that represent your true capabilities
- Refrain from swap endorsements or buying endorsements from third-party providers
- Limit endorsement requests to connections who can legitimately validate your skills
- If you make a mistake, proactively remove inaccuracies or endorsements that violate policy
Staying within LinkedIn’s terms for these features is the best way to ensure your Skills and Expertise sections remain intact.
Other LinkedIn Profile Sections Disappearing
In addition to Skills and Endorsements disappearing, sometimes other LinkedIn profile sections seem to vanish as well. Common examples include:
Profile Photo
If your profile photo disappears, it’s likely because:
- You removed it
- It was flagged for violating LinkedIn policies
- There’s a glitch
Try uploading a new professional photo that complies with LinkedIn’s photo guidelines.
Profile Background Photo
Background photos may be removed if:
- You delete it
- It gets flagged for inappropriate content
- Your LinkedIn membership level changed
Background photos are only available with a Premium account, so if you downgrade your account level it will disappear. Upload a new background that meets LinkedIn’s requirements.
“Featured” and “Activity” Sections
Featured and Activity sections showcase your best content but can be hidden by:
- Deleting sections
- Hiding them in profile edit settings
- LinkedIn tests
Double check your profile edit options and visibility settings to restore these sections.
Conclusion
LinkedIn’s Skills and Endorsements are valuable profile features but can sometimes disappear due to actions by you or LinkedIn. Troubleshooting profile settings, refreshing your profile, and contacting LinkedIn support can typically resolve missing sections. Be sure to follow LinkedIn’s policies around profile content to avoid unjust removals in the future.