Xue's Tech Resume Fundamentals
Tech resume fundamentals for students, new grads, and early career
Who's this for?
Introduction
Hello, hello! Welcome to ✨ Xue’s Tech Resume Fundamentals ✨
First things first, there is no one-size-fits-all resume. We all have different experiences. Conveying value is an iterative process. Expect to get conflicting feedback from different sources.
Recruiters and other decision makers are people and different people have different preferences!
Philosophy
Most folks struggle with resume writing because they fail to answer core questions before they start:
Why you? Why should I hire you? What’s your evidence?
Your resume should highlight why you specifically are the best fit for this specific role.
It should not read like a job ad but showcase your technical ability, competency and how you could potentially contribute to the company or team’s bottom line (e.g. ⬆️ profit, ⬇️ costs, and how to work together without losing our minds, etc.).
It should express,
“Yes, I am competent in this role and here is my evidence”
It should shout
“Yes! I am a great person to work with!”
Your resume needs to convince a recruiter/hiring manager that you can do the job and that they should pick you over everyone else.
Why should you listen to me / follow this guide?
- You don’t have to.
- I have been on hiring teams for interns, new-grads, and entry-level to junior engineers.
- I have reviewed 300+ tech resumes since 2019. Majority get improved callback rates.
- I regularly have meetings and conversations with experienced recruiters in tech to determine the most effective strategies and if my advice is industry relevant.
⛰️The Basics
- Build in Microsoft Word or Google Docs, export as PDF
- Use a sans-serif font for easy readability (e.g. Arial, Verdana)
- Keep it one page
- 1-column format
- Please, no graphics, no charts, no logos and no unnecessary information
💬 The Building Blocks
Header and Contact Information
- Full name
- Phone number
- Your target role/position
- Address (City, State): Don’t put your full address. City, State.
- Website, GitHub, etc.
Experience or Relevant Experience
- Just list the roles for now (we will flesh this out in Content and Descriptions)
- Include company name, position, and dates (month and year)
If you’re running out of space, trim your experience down to experience relevant to the target role. Label this section as ‘Relevant Experience’.
Feel free to include location, I never did, and it’s never been an issue for me.
Education
- Include school name and degree you attained or are pursuing
For internships/new grad,
- Include graduation dates or expected graduation dates
- Include GPA if its above 3.5, I personally never included it lol
For bootcamp grads,
- Include your bootcamp and how long the bootcamp took
- You can include relevant coursework if you want and have space, but I would rather use the space to convey impact in my experience/projects
- Relevant certifications/licenses also go here
Skills
- Split your skills to ‘Languages’ and ‘Technologies’, ‘Other’ is optional
- Please try to keep it to relevant technical skills you’re confident in
Do not use up too much space in this column. Your Experience and Projects section will showcase your proficiency in these skills
Projects (optional)
- List technical projects, go into depth if it features relevant experience and technologies.
Objective Summary (highly recommended)
This is a really controversial section. I know a lot of people say not to do it because it doesn’t add value. The solution to that is to add value 🙃
Do this by answering:
Why are you specifically the best fit for this specific role?
Jump to Content & Description: Objective Summary to learn how to write an effective Objective summary TODO
Other Sections
- Achievements, Leadership Experience, and Extra-Curricular are nice to have but are the lowest priority unless the job posting specifically ties into it
- Interests sections are… unnecessary in my opinion and can lead to bias (good or bad, we don’t want it!)
👑Content & Description (most important part !!)
- Again, do not write a Job Ad Description. Recruiters know that software engineers develop programs and code.
- TAILOR YOUR DESCRIPTIONS TO THE JOB POSTING
- Use past-tense and strong action verbs
Framework - Content & Description
Show your impact
- How did you measure/prove them?
Use metrics when possible
- Please don’t just come up with random numbers
Passively demonstrate soft skills
- At least one example of Leadership and Teamwork skills
Always be asking yourself
- “Why would a recruiter care about this?” Know your audience.
You will get rejected if you don’t express how you meet minimum requirements.
Most recruiters are trained in discerning if you are a fit.
Recruiters care about:
- Specific, relevant technologies and skills (this is #1)
- Ability to work independently and in teams
- Collaboration skills
- Problem-solving skills
- Measurable results and impact
Description Examples
| 🚩 Weaker | ✅ Stronger |
|---|---|
| Developed a full stack application. | Independently developed a full stack application that predicted solar eclipses using Node, JavaScript, and React. Utilized Agile Development cycle methodologies to stay organized and on-task. |
| Helped increase efficiency of application and overall productivity. | Collaborated with stakeholders directly to increase efficiency of application by 20%+ over a 3-month period. This contributed to overall productivity in the office by reducing wait times from 10 minutes to 2 minutes. |
| Applied problem-solving skills for senior robotics project which received a grade of ‘A’. | Implemented and programmed solution to solve “line-tracking” problem which blocked robot from detecting lines with the use of IR sensors and Regression Algorithms in C. Outperformed class average and received the highest grade available. |
| Managed and facilitated daily activities of fast-food restaurant with 20 employees. Responsible for making sure orders were delivered on time and receiving a 4/5 satisfaction rating. Experienced in POSTech, Cashier+, Kronos. | Managed 20+ employees daily, ensuring that orders were delivered according to company deadlines. Improved delivery rates by designing and implementing a “1-2-3” productivity system. Corporate implemented this system as a protocol across all restaurant chains. |
Action verbs for your resume (source: Harvard)
☁️ Objective Summary Content
Alright!! You’ve made it!! I am such an advocate for this section. Sadly, if you don’t have space, this is the first one to cut ✂️
Framework - Objective Summary
Here’s my formula:
Why you should pick me =
Why I’m different (hook)
+
What I’m good at
+
Why we’re a good fit
Please, please, please don’t just repeat information in your resume
Don’t be generic and boring. Here’s the perfect place to express your creativity and individuality!
Examples - Objective Summary
- Highly-motivated software engineer with 3+ years of experience building scalable solutions in JavaScript and React. Strong advocate for effective system design and tech-debt reduction. Seeking a company that builds large-scale applications that directly impact customer satisfaction.
- Aspiring Product Manager with proven record of contributing to open-source front-end projects. Proficient in Agile Development and thrives in fast-paced settings. Pivoted from teaching English and posses transferable skills such as people management. Passionate about delivering high-quality products to clients and seeking to join a team that values creativity and independent input.
- Results-driven Computer Engineering student with strong leadership skills. I drive impact through my involvement with Women Who Code by providing coding lessons to high-school students. Personable team member and effective collaboration skills as proven in completed projects. Seeking first internship with company that also focuses on impact through programming applications in the Environmental industry.
️🪜 The Order of Your Resume
So, you have a few options, but basically you want to put your most relevant towards the top.
Early Career / Mid-Career
If you have strong relevant experience,
- Header → Objective Summary → Relevant Experience → Projects → Skills → Education
or
- Header → Objective Summary → Skills → Relevant Experience → Projects → Education
If you’re pivoting from a non-tech industry or role,
- Header → Objective Summary → Skills → Projects → Experience → Education
Internships / New Grad
- Header → Objective Summary → Education → Relevant Experience → Projects → Skills
- Header → Objective Summary → Education → Skills → Projects → Experience
- Header → Objective Summary → Education → Projects → Skills → Experience
⭐ Tips and Notes
- I like to use the Narrow Margins to give me more space (0.5 inches)
- Pops of color are nice
- Use AI to proofread, never to generate facts you don’t have
- Make sure everything is consistent, devil is in the details! (e.g. periods on every sentence if you have them)
- Again, this is an iterative process. Don’t be afraid of feedback and several revisions
Next Steps
Good luck, now go out there and crush it :)