diff --git a/src/components/HGNHelpSkillsDashboard/SkillsOverviewPage.jsx b/src/components/HGNHelpSkillsDashboard/SkillsOverviewPage.jsx
index 191480bc0d2..e6e3cc341a2 100644
--- a/src/components/HGNHelpSkillsDashboard/SkillsOverviewPage.jsx
+++ b/src/components/HGNHelpSkillsDashboard/SkillsOverviewPage.jsx
@@ -1,5 +1,9 @@
-import { useState } from 'react';
+import jwtDecode from 'jwt-decode';
+import { useEffect, useState } from 'react';
 import { useSelector } from 'react-redux';
+import config from '~/config.json';
+import httpService from '~/services/httpService';
+import { ENDPOINTS } from '~/utils/URL';
 import RadarChart from '../HGNSkillsDashboard/SkillsProfilePage/components/RadarChart';
 import Accordion from './Accordion';
 import { PreferenceFilterButtons, SkillFilterButtons } from './FilterButtons';
@@ -12,11 +16,48 @@ function SkillsOverviewPage() {
   const [selectedPreferences, setSelectedPreferences] = useState([]);
   const [searchQuery, setSearchQuery] = useState('');
   const darkMode = useSelector(state => state.theme.darkMode);
-  const userProfile = useSelector(state => state.userProfile);
+  const [profileData, setProfileData] = useState(null);
+  const [loadingProfile, setLoadingProfile] = useState(true);
+
+  // The skills survey lives behind its own endpoint and is not part of state.userProfile,
+  // so this page has to fetch it itself rather than read it from the store.
+  useEffect(() => {
+    const token = localStorage.getItem(config.tokenKey);
+    let userId;
+    try {
+      userId = token ? jwtDecode(token)?.userid : undefined;
+    } catch (_) {
+      userId = undefined;
+    }
+
+    if (!userId) {
+      setLoadingProfile(false);
+      return;
+    }
+
+    httpService.setjwt(token);
+    httpService
+      .get(ENDPOINTS.SKILLS_PROFILE(userId))
+      // isPlaceholder means the user has not filled in the survey yet
+      .then(({ data }) => setProfileData(data?.isPlaceholder ? null : data))
+      .catch(() => setProfileData(null))
+      .finally(() => setLoadingProfile(false));
+  }, []);
 
   const hasFilters =
     selectedSkills.length > 0 || selectedPreferences.length > 0 || searchQuery.trim().length > 0;
 
+  let radarContent;
+  if (loadingProfile) {
+    radarContent = <p className={styles.noDataMsg}>Loading your skills radar...</p>;
+  } else if (profileData?.skillInfo) {
+    radarContent = <RadarChart profileData={profileData} compact={false} />;
+  } else {
+    radarContent = (
+      <p className={styles.noDataMsg}>Complete the skills survey to view your radar chart.</p>
+    );
+  }
+
   return (
     <div className={`${styles.container} ${darkMode ? styles.darkMode : ''}`}>
       <h1 className={styles.title}>Skills Overview</h1>
@@ -24,13 +65,7 @@ function SkillsOverviewPage() {
       {/* Radar Chart for logged-in user */}
       <div className={`${styles.radarSection} ${darkMode ? styles.radarDark : ''}`}>
         <h2 className={styles.sectionTitle}>Your Skills Radar</h2>
-        <div className={styles.radarWrapper}>
-          {userProfile?.skillInfo ? (
-            <RadarChart profileData={userProfile} compact={false} />
-          ) : (
-            <p className={styles.noDataMsg}>Complete the skills survey to view your radar chart.</p>
-          )}
-        </div>
+        <div className={styles.radarWrapper}>{radarContent}</div>
       </div>
 
       {/* Search Bar */}
diff --git a/src/components/HGNSkillsDashboard/SkillsProfilePage/components/RadarChart.jsx b/src/components/HGNSkillsDashboard/SkillsProfilePage/components/RadarChart.jsx
index 29ad3f0b503..d2b3248c67d 100644
--- a/src/components/HGNSkillsDashboard/SkillsProfilePage/components/RadarChart.jsx
+++ b/src/components/HGNSkillsDashboard/SkillsProfilePage/components/RadarChart.jsx
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ const SKILL_MAPPINGS = [
   },
   {
     label: 'Leadership Skills',
+    shortLabel: 'Leadership Skl',
     value: (general, frontend, backend) => general?.leadership_skills || 0,
     description: 'Skills in team leadership and management',
   },
@@ -153,6 +154,7 @@ const SKILL_MAPPINGS = [
   },
   {
     label: 'Markdown & Graphs',
+    shortLabel: 'Markdown/Graphs',
     value: (general, frontend, backend) => frontend?.Documentation || general?.markdown_graphs || 0,
     description: 'Markdown writing and data visualization',
   },
@@ -234,7 +236,10 @@ function RadarChart({ profileData, compact = true, onSkillsDataReady }) {
   const { general = {}, frontend = {}, backend = {} } = profileData?.skillInfo || {};
 
   const chartData = {
-    labels: skillsData.map(skill => (compact ? skill.shortLabel || skill.label : skill.label)),
+    // Always prefer the abbreviated label: with 28 dimensions, the wrap-around
+    // labels at the top (last <-> first) sit within a ~26deg arc and collide
+    // regardless of chart size, so shortening text is what actually buys room.
+    labels: skillsData.map(skill => skill.shortLabel || skill.label),
     datasets: [
       {
         label: 'Skills',
@@ -300,6 +305,7 @@ function RadarChart({ profileData, compact = true, onSkillsDataReady }) {
         },
 
         pointLabels: {
+          centerPointLabels: true,
           font: {
             size: function(context) {
               const w = context.chart.width;
@@ -321,7 +327,9 @@ function RadarChart({ profileData, compact = true, onSkillsDataReady }) {
         },
         ticks: {
           stepSize: 2,
-          display: compact ? false : true,
+          // Always shown: the radial scale numbers are information, not chrome,
+          // so (like labels above) they shouldn't be gated behind compact.
+          display: true,
           color: darkMode ? '#dcdcdc' : '#666',
           font: { size: 10 },
           backdropColor: darkMode ? '#1f1f1f' : '#ffffff',
diff --git a/src/components/HGNSkillsDashboard/SkillsProfilePage/components/__tests__/RadarChart.test.jsx b/src/components/HGNSkillsDashboard/SkillsProfilePage/components/__tests__/RadarChart.test.jsx
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..8a05d2d18ed
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/components/HGNSkillsDashboard/SkillsProfilePage/components/__tests__/RadarChart.test.jsx
@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+import { render } from '@testing-library/react';
+import { Provider } from 'react-redux';
+import configureMockStore from 'redux-mock-store';
+import RadarChart from '../RadarChart';
+
+// react-chartjs-2 renders to a real <canvas>, which jsdom doesn't implement.
+// Capture the props chart.js would receive instead of rendering the chart.
+let lastRadarProps;
+vi.mock('react-chartjs-2', () => ({
+  Radar: props => {
+    lastRadarProps = props;
+    return null;
+  },
+}));
+
+const mockStore = configureMockStore([]);
+
+const profileData = {
+  skillInfo: {
+    general: { leadership_experience: 5, leadership_skills: 6, markdown_graphs: 7 },
+    frontend: {},
+    backend: {},
+  },
+};
+
+const renderChart = compact => {
+  const store = mockStore({ theme: { darkMode: false } });
+  render(
+    <Provider store={store}>
+      <RadarChart profileData={profileData} compact={compact} />
+    </Provider>,
+  );
+};
+
+describe('RadarChart', () => {
+  it('uses abbreviated labels even when compact is false, to avoid overlap at high dimension density', () => {
+    renderChart(false);
+    expect(lastRadarProps.data.labels).toContain('Leadership Skl');
+    expect(lastRadarProps.data.labels).toContain('Markdown/Graphs');
+    expect(lastRadarProps.data.labels).not.toContain('Leadership Skills');
+  });
+
+  it('centers point labels between grid lines to reduce crowding near the wrap-around seam', () => {
+    renderChart(true);
+    expect(lastRadarProps.options.scales.r.pointLabels.centerPointLabels).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  it('shows the radial scale numbers regardless of compact, so /hgn/profile/skills matches skills-overview', () => {
+    renderChart(true);
+    expect(lastRadarProps.options.scales.r.ticks.display).toBe(true);
+
+    renderChart(false);
+    expect(lastRadarProps.options.scales.r.ticks.display).toBe(true);
+  });
+});