Job seekers may be tempted to create a resume that lists all of their skills and experience and call it done. But in the competitive tech world, you’ll have to tailor your software engineer resume for each position to get attention.
Taking the time to use keywords and jargon and cut out any extraneous information could put your software engineering resume at the top of the page. Read on to find out how.
Tailor your resume to each job you apply for
Technology company Use applicant tracking software to scan resume keywords before they go to the hiring manager. By tailoring your resume to match the job listing, you greatly increase your chances of making the first cut and getting a job interview.
Use the employer’s job description as a template for your software engineer resume. Highlight the responsibilities and skills required of the listing, and reflect the employer’s language and keywords in your resume, and job application. Just make sure to integrate them naturally (and not ask for skills you don’t really have).
For example, if you are interested in becoming software engineer at Amazoninclude phrases like “X years of software development experience with Java, Python, and C#/C++.”
You may have heard recommendations to hide keywords in white text on the page. Candidate tracking software converts your resume to plain text, so those keywords won’t be hidden. Focus on highlighting the relevant skills you possess instead of getting complicated with formatting.
How to format your software engineer resume
Hiring managers don’t have a lot of time to read resumes, so limit yours to one page. If you have years of relevant experience, you can get to the top at two pages.
Font sizes of 11-12 will allow you to fit everything without being crowded. Present your work and education experiences in reverse chronological order.
Keep your resume design simple and professional. As much as possible, use a single, pleasing color alongside black and white. Impress recruiters with your skills, not a blinding bright red background.
Use a clear and intuitive structure – one-column or two-column format. Bullets aid readability, and whitespace helps keep your resume sharp and in focus.
A software engineering resume should include the following components:
- Title
- Summary/goal
- Work/work experience
- Skill
- Project
- Education
Title
Your resume title introduces potential employers to your professional identity and personal brand.
In addition to your name, email address, and phone number, include hyperlinks to your LinkedIn page, GitHub profile, website, portfolio, and anything else that showcases current skills and talents. have yours.
Headlines not only tell the employer how to approach you, but also emphasize what you can do.
Summary/goal
The summary/goal is right below the title, but consider writing it last. That way, it can capture the spirit of your resume and describe how your experience and skills will add value to the job you want.
This section should consist of only one or two sentences and include a few of the most important keywords of the job description.
Using the example of Amazon, a strong summary/goal could say, “Skilled Software Engineer looking for a position at Amazon Financial Technology where I can develop my 5+ years of experience. my software development experience with Java, Python, and C#/C++.”
Work experience
The work experience and employment section of your resume is where you can demonstrate the impact and results of your work. The goal is to show the employer what you can do for the company, not tell the employer.
Don’t just list job duties. Instead, help the hiring manager visualize you’ve done the job successfully by using the STAR method to describe past projects and responsibilities: Situation, BILLIONask, Oneaction, CHEAPlest. Here you can highlight how your work has benefited the organization or how you have worked on an issue.
Whenever possible, describe the impact of your work with statistics. For example:
|
Instead of… |
Implemented timely fixes |
|
To try on… |
Cleared backlog of 120 fixes in my first six months on the job |
|
Instead of… |
Update quality control process |
|
To try on… |
Give quality control processes the first update in five years, reducing QC completion time by 15% |
Phrases and sentence fragments are acceptable.
If you are new to this area, visit How to become a software engineer to learn how to gain experience for your resume.
Skill
The skills section of your software engineer resume should be short and easy to see. Try listing relevant skills in a bulleted list. Again, only include skills that apply to the job.
For our hypothetical Amazon position, your list of technical skills might include:
- Java
- Python
- C#
- C++
- Agile, nimble
- UNIX / Linux
- Data structure
- Service Oriented Architecture
- Object Oriented Programming
Avoid listing soft skills. A bulleted list leaves no room for context where you’ll need to demonstrate that you have an abstract skill like “getting started” and recruiters can hardly trust your self-assessment. without that context. Save everyone’s skills for your cover letter instead.
Project
Now that your resume has caught the hiring manager’s attention, your projects section should showcase your passion for software engineering and include projects most applicable to location you want. Includes one-line descriptions of a few projects and links to your portfolio for more details.
In addition to work projects, you can use finished projects for classes or bootcamps, contribute to open source projects, and your own projects.
Commonly used portfolio formats include websites, blogs, LinkedIn pages, or GitHub Pages. For inspiration, explore How to build a crypto portfolio.
Education
The education section should list the schools you attended, their location, the date you graduated, and degrees/certificates earned. Even if you earn something other than software engineering degreeCompleting a college education demonstrates dedication and critical thinking skills to employers.
There is no need to include your GPA unless the specific job description requires it. Exception: If you’re a recent graduate with little work experience and your GPA is high, listing it may prove your studious.
You can also include internships you completed while in school and any software engineering or coding bootcamps you attended.
Extras
If you have the space and the extras will add depth to your resume, consider including the following.
Certificate
Are you a certified software engineer? Do you have a certification in a specific programming language or platform? List them, especially if the job description mentions them.
Volunteer
Only include volunteer work that is relevant to the job you are applying for. Be specific about the projects you have worked on and your role.
The language you speak
If the job description mentions an interest in a particular language or you are applying for a position at an international company, listing the languages you speak could give you an advantage.
Professional organizations you join
Include these if directly applicable to the position or if you already know people who could supervise you from the same organization.
UNDERSTAND: 12 professional organizations that enhance DEI value in technology
Courses you have taken
If your work or volunteering experience lacks the key to the job, include any courses that can help refine your skill set.
If your previous experience did not include a key job skill, but you took a course on that topic,
Hire insights from HackerEarth’s chief technology officer
Vishwastam Shukla is chief technology officer at HackerEarth, a platform to engage and source top developers with hackathons. HackerEath allows businesses to evaluate, interview, and upskill developers. Previously, Vishwastam was the site lead and software development director at Amazon.
Answers have been lightly edited for length and clarity.
ZDNet: What are the top things you look for when reading a software engineer candidate’s resume?
Vishwastam Shukla: I often look for what I call a “performance surge”. These spikes can appear in many forms. For example, it could be experience working at a large organization, a high-impact personal project, or sometimes even ivy alliance education for junior engineers.
These spikes tell me that an individual can, when necessary, outshine themselves and demonstrate resilience in the face of great hardship.
ZDNet: What are the most common mistakes you see on people’s resumes that move them to the interview stage, and what else can they do?
VS: Long, wordy résumés are the factors that bring you down in an instant. You can include your life’s work in up to 1.5 to two pages. Short, clear resumes are best.
Instead of listing 20 different skills you may have learned over time, talk about them in the context of your work. It can be helpful to focus on your experience that best matches the role you’re applying for.
ZDNet: When reading a candidate’s software engineer resume, what makes you immediately want to book an interview with them?
VS: I would like to hold an interview with a candidate when they describe their previous experience and the impact or complexity is completely clear.
This article has been reviewed by Sierra Gawlowski, PE
Sierra Gawlowski, PE, earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and is a licensed professional engineer in the state of Washington. She has worked for a private engineering consulting firm as well as for government agencies. Sierra enjoys mentoring engineering students and junior staff. She also leads a project team for Engineers Without Borders and currently sits on the board of directors of Kilowatts for Humanity.
Gawlowski is a paid member of the Red Ventures Educational Integrity Network.
Last reviewed on May 23, 2022.
