Despite recent layoffs at tech giants, the IT job market still offers countless job opportunities. According to the BLS, the employment of software developers and quality assurance analysts is expected to grow by 25% by 2031. However, as the competition for well-paying jobs remains high, you need a strong technical resume that articulates your value to an employer.
In this post, we will explain what elements to include in your IT resume in 2023 and what mistakes to avoid to land more interviews.
Should you hire a resume writing service?
If you want to expand your career prospects or lack time to compose a resume, turn to information technology IT resume writing service writers. These specialists will prepare a resume that presents your unique strengths, tech skills and accomplishments using a well-structured format. The best tech resume writing service will work on your resume and a cover letter until you are satisfied and adapt them to your target job to boost your interview chances.
7 Tips to write a technical resume that works
Keep your resume to 1-2 pages
Most hiring managers prefer two-page resumes, and the IT sector is no exception. As a tech professional, you might be tempted to list every job you had in detail. Yet, the better strategy is to list only the relevant and most recent jobs to keep your resume short and concise. If your resume takes multiple pages, consider removing jobs you had over 10 years ago, irrelevant job descriptions, or outdated skills.
Choose an effective resume format
If you are stable in your tech career, use a reverse chronological format. List your jobs and projects in reverse chronological order, starting with the most recent one. If you are moving to the IT industry from another sector and your past experience is not relevant to the target career, consider a functional format. This format focuses on competencies, skills and education, and the jobs are listed briefly.
Include the attention-grabbing career summary
A Summary section can add context to your professional history, show how your background aligns with the target position, or explain any issues in your career. For example, if you are moving from customer support to a front-end developer role, you can ‘connect the dots’ for the reader. Write 3-5 sentences in this section, focusing on your biggest professional milestones and achievements, and adding figures where possible.
Here’s an example:
Proactive Front-End Developer with 3+ years of experience in developing, designing and testing user-friendly web applications. Experienced in introducing a new responsive website approach that generated a traffic increase of 32%. Seeking to contribute expertise to large-scale projects at XYZ company.
List your work history and projects
The professional history section is an asset to your resume, as the potential employers are interested in your past projects and contribution. List relevant jobs only, including 6-8 bullet points per role to keep your job descriptions concise. In addition to listing your areas of responsibility, include the accomplishments and metrics to illustrate your impact. Numbers add credibility and position you as a result-oriented professional.
Here’s an example:
Redesigned the company’s web application, increasing efficiency by 18% and user-friendliness by 25%.
Include tech and soft skills
Listing tech skills is a must for an IT resume, as these skills are often a decisive factor for employers. List all technical skills and competencies you’ve learned throughout your career, including programming languages, databases, operating systems, and software tools. Example:
Technical skills: Java, Python, HTML/CSS, SQL, AWS, Linux, Windows
If you have a long list of tech skills, consider dividing them by categories, for example, Programming skills, Frameworks, Operating systems, Databases, etc. When listing such skills, it is also helpful to indicate your level of proficiency: intermediate, expert, or other. This helps the employer evaluate your skillset better and determine if you’re the right fit.
In addition to tech skills, include technical competencies and soft skills. Here are good examples of skills for a software developer’s resume:
- Website optimization
- Project management
- Object-oriented programming
- Code review
- Debugging
- Visual thinking
- Problem solving
- Adaptability
- Collaboration
Adjust the resume to the job posting
Generic resumes get tossed, so you need to adapt the resume to each job posting. Read the job ad carefully to determine what qualifications and skills the company is looking for, and reflect those qualifications on your resume. Thus, the hiring manager will be able to draw connections between your experience and what the company is looking for.
Moreover, most large IT companies use software to sort the incoming resumes these days, so if your resume doesn’t have the skills the job posting requires, you’ll be eliminated from the competition.
Add links to professional profiles
Adding links to your professional profile boosts credibility and trust. Moreover, if you add one or several links to your work samples, it will let the employer better evaluate your skillset. If you have a completed LinkedIn profile, online portfolio, a professional website, or GitHub account, add links to them after your contact information. However, do not add links to your private accounts, as this is considered unprofessional.
Proofread carefully
Many hiring managers reject resumes because of typos and poor grammar. To avoid this, look through the written resume several times to make sure it is free from mistakes, every sentence is complete and the word choice is accurate. You may proofread a document on your own or use online tools, such as Grammarly. However, the best strategy is to show your resume to a professional editor or a resume consultant, who can fix all kinds of mistakes and give you suggestions to make your resume more appealing to IT recruiters.
