You may possess the right skills and knowledge for your dream job, but if you don’t know how to reflect them on your resume, you might miss valuable opportunities. This article prepared by TalentGrid equips you with the most essential things you need to pay attention to when writing an effective developer resume.
With the digitalization of the markets, the software development space is becoming more and more crowded – competition keeps rising, leaving those who are late to adapt behind. So how can you get noticed in this densely-populated space?
A well-written resume can help you stand out from the crowd and get noticed by the hiring managers. Remember, recruiters are short on time, so use that time wisely to break through an enormous pool of other applicants.
We are aware of the fact that meeting recruiters’ expectations can be quite hard. But we are here to help. This article shares what you should and shouldn’t do when writing a top-notch developer resume. Read on, and you’ll see exactly how it’s done!
Resume Do’s
1. Provide context
Focus on listing relevant experience and accomplishments – the ones that are related to the job role you’re applying for. Mention your past positions, which allowed you to practice relevant skills that recruiters are paying attention to. Organize your work in bullet-ins, emphasizing your achievements, not just your duties and obligations. Show the recruiters what you got. You should also include any relevant professional certifications, boosting your credibility.
2. Tailor your resume
This will help you pass through the Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) used by some companies to score the resumes and send the passing ones to the hiring manager. The ATS looks for words used in the position’s job description, filtering out the candidates who don’t reflect the expectations of the role they’re applying for.
3. Use numbers
When describing your results or achievements, you should quantify them by using numbers. Why? Numbers are quite powerful in the business world as they create a potent impact on the reader.
Quantifying your achievements or results will help you boost your credibility as a developer, helping hiring managers understand what you’re capable of and what you can deliver to the company.
4. Optimize for readability
Your resume is not a mere description of what you did in the past; it’s a story behind your journey.
You should be highly selective of what you include in your resume, filtering out irrelevant details. Organize your information in bullet points, demonstrating your skills, experience, and achievements in a well-structured, concise manner. This will help the readers scan quickly through your resume, finding the critical information at first glance.
Keep your resume one or two pages long. Recruiters and hiring managers might review hundreds of resumes for the same position, so you only have about six to seven seconds to make a good impression.
Resume Don’ts
5. Don’t get too excited with keywords
Including keywords will increase the discoverability of your resume, but using too many of them might do more harm than good.
Stuffing your resume with keywords is a common pitfall among job seekers who don’t understand the actual effect of that strategy.
With the idea that adding relevant keywords to your resume helps it go up the rank, people try using as many of them as possible. Overstuffing your skills list with keywords will lead to your resume being filtered out as it acts as a red flag to the recruiters. So, instead of being ‘impressive,’ you may come out as ‘suspicious,’ decreasing your chances of being asked for an interview.
6. Don’t mention every technology you’ve touched
Avoid mentioning too many details, such as every technology you’ve ever touched or worked with, as it might overwhelm the hiring manager who barely has a few seconds to skim through your resume.
Don’t include information that is not relevant to the position you’re applying for. Including irrelevant information will only distract the reader, decreasing your chances of being selected from the pool of other candidates.
7. Don’t go in-depth without explaining why it’s relevant
If you keep in mind key points we’ve covered in this article, you’re good to go! Show recruiters what you got.
By the way, did you know that you can find your dream job on TalentGrid’s platform? Just sign in and tell us a little bit more about yourself. That will help us find a tech position that best matches your skills, experience, salary expectations, and interests. So no more anxious mouse clicks, trying to update the job listing platforms to catch that dream job – we do that for you!!
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