Building your resume is a major step in your tech career.
Building a strong tech resume can help you land the IT job you want rather than having to settle for something less than fulfilling. Here are some best practices for building your tech resume quickly so you can have a successful (and short) job search.
1. Think outside the box.
As companies become more tech savvy, they are able to appreciate unique approaches to the resume submission process. Some tech professionals are beginning to use mediums like Facebook or Instagram to create their digital resumes and attract the attention of companies that want the best and most creative people on their payroll.
2. Get points for style.
Business Insider showcased some creative thinkers who formatted their resumes to look like a Google search page, an Amazon product page, and other familiar (but not for resumes) formats. There’s always a chance that an employer will think a resume like this is over the top, but a little bit of creativity may also get you noticed.
3. For entry level positions, format your resume for applicant tracking software.
If you haven’t yet reached the ranks of top talent that can command attention by being different, it might be a good idea to keep your formatting simple and compatible with applicant tracking systems (ATS) that will reject your resume from the system altogether if you don’t set it up correctly. ATS look for keywords and accomplishments, and can even require your information to be in a particular order to be accepted, like date first or position first.
If you aren’t sure which keywords to use, check out job listings for the same position on Monster and incorporate the ones that pop up frequently.
A tech professional needs a top notch resume to get the best possible job.
4. Focus on how you’ve made things work.
Having completed projects or led a team isn’t enough anymore. A resume screener, whether computer or human, is more likely to be impressed by how the results of your work impacted your organization. If you can quantify your impact — you increased profits 8 percent, or completed projects 15 percent faster — prospective employers will get a better picture of what you are capable of than through more vague descriptions.
5. Increase your demonstrated skills with certifications.
When it comes to building your resume, adding skills can be just the thing you need to make your resume stand out from others with similar work experience. Certifications show that you were able to pass an exam on the relevant subject matter, which indicates that you have mastered the knowledge base and skills covered in the exam. Certifications are difficult to achieve independently, so there are often courses available to teach the material that will be covered.
PC AGE offers courses that prepare students to pass certification exams and earn certifications that can help to show potential employers that they have the expertise to meet their tech needs. Contact us about all the programs and courses PC AGE has to offer.
Rameez Khizer, IT Marketing