Job-hunting is a complicated process, and if you’re hired it probably won’t be for just one reason. While you can never be sure what will resonate with a particular company, however, there are things that will help you stand out. One thing is to have a professional resume that shows you at your best and shows why your best is a great fit for the position.
Our IT Resume 101 series is going to show you how to make your resume do just that.
Over the next few weeks, we’ll discuss all the features of a resume — from showcasing your technical qualifications to the best resume formats.
In the meantime, here are some basic resume tips to get you started.
Sections of an IT Resume
While resumes vary widely, most are organized chronologically around your job history. The following features are close to universal:
- A Header that provides your contact information, including name, address, phone number, and email. If you have a professional website, you can also include it in this section.
- An Education section, highlighting your time spent at an institution of higher learning, as well as relevant information like major projects, grade-point average, and degree (or degrees) received. This section is sometimes combined with IT certifications, though these sometimes receive a section to themselves, especially if you have multiple IT certifications.
- A Work Experience section describing your experience and positions at different companies. This section begins with the most recent job and works backwards. Details about accomplishments for each job are described in bullet points.
- A showcase of Technical Qualifications. The first round of screening in IT jobs often involves weeding candidates out based on who meets a minimum level of technical expertise. Consequently, most IT resumes create a section showing off technical proficiency.
- A section or two devoted to your other skills or qualifications, if they are relevant to your target position. This can include language skills, volunteer experience, or even hobbies/interests. The key word here is relevant. If the information enhances your aptitude for the position, it should be included; if it doesn’t, it should be left off.
Occasionally, IT candidates with unconventional backgrounds use a functional resume, organizing around specific skill sets rather than job history. Most candidates, however, use a chronological resume.
In addition to these basic sections, here are some other dimensions of IT resumes of which you should be aware.
The Best IT Resumes Are Job Specific
Many job seekers craft a single resume, believing it will satisfy all situations and positions. The thinking is that a resume simply describes the candidate’s background — like a biography in bullet point form. This viewpoint, while not exactly wrong, isn’t complete either. The best resume, in addition to showing off an applicant’s accomplishments and qualifications, also target a position’s stated or implied criteria.
Think of it this way: every candidate has a wealth of experiences at their disposal. The best resumes are selective about what experiences they make prominent, and which ones they diminish. They aren’t just informational documents — they’re persuasive, making a clear argument about why the candidate is an ideal fit.
A help-desk operator, a SQL programmer, and a Business Objects Administrator (to name a few) have profoundly different job criteria, not only in terms of hard technology proficiencies, but also soft skill objectives. A highly successful IT resume will be clear in its objectives, and sensitive to each position’s set of needs.
Job Hunting Is About Not Getting Bumped From The Pile
Imagine yourself in the comfy chair of a hiring manager looking to fill an open position. It might be natural to imagine the manager carefully and joyfully poring over every resume, looking for the perfect fit. More commonly, though, the selection process — at least at first — is more about removing unqualified applicants than it is about selecting qualified ones.
In a job climate where almost every position attracts over three-hundred applicants, a hiring manager’s first step is usually to knock as many people out of the pile as possible, making the pile more manageable. The manager moves through resumes quickly, making a first cut.
How long do you have to avoid this first cut? Less than twenty seconds.
That’s right. Twenty seconds. Maybe less.
So what might get you dinged from the pile? Here are some examples:
Inadequate Technical Knowledge
As mentioned, the first step in IT screening is to boot out candidates not meeting basic proficiency. So make your qualifications clear and accessible.
Inaccessible Format
If a reader can’t get a reasonably full sense of your background by scanning your resume, they’re moving on to more desirable candidates (ones who can present themselves efficiently). So divide your resume into easily scanable sections, and highlight accomplishments with bullet points.
Unprofessional Presentation
Printed resumes should be on resume paper, with standard margins, twelve-point letters, and conventional font (i.e. Times New Roman or Garamond). They should also be free of smudges, wrinkles, creases, photos, or clip art.
Typos and Grammar Errors
Hiring managers assume resumes show candidates at their best. If that “best” doesn’t include basic language ability and proofreading, the manager moves on.
More IT Resume Tips
In the initial stages of a hiring process your IT resume is crucial. Once they’ve made first cuts, hiring managers examine resumes in more detail, seeking candidates they want to interview. In this phase, they’re looking for people who stand out for positive reasons, rather than negative ones.
The next few articles in our Resume 101 series will show you how to be one of the IT professionals that make them take notice.
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