how to write a software developer resume

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13 Software Developer Resume Examples - Here's What Works In 2024

Software developers are the magicians behind the applications we use daily on our mobiles or computers. they design, develop, and maintain programs by using programming languages. most software developers are problem-solvers, logical thinkers, and lifelong learners, as this industry is always evolving. according to the bureau of labor statistics, software developers are highly in-demand. their job outlook is expected to increase by up to 25 percent, which is significantly high compared to other occupations. yet, a good resume can elevate even more those expectations. this guide will help you create the best software developer resume..

Software development is the process of creating computer applications, including mobile apps, desktop programs, video games, IoT software, etc. Developers build the skeleton of the software by using backend techniques and design the visual aspect through front-end development. 

Computers are programmable, meaning that you can give them instructions to perform certain tasks. However, they don’t speak the same language we do. We must learn how to interact with them in their own vocabulary. This is what programming languages are for. 

There are numerous of them and each one has a different purpose and syntax. Programming languages like Python, Ruby, or Java are focused on the backend process, allowing us to interact with servers and databases. HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, on the other hand, are used for the client side of the development process. 

There are two types of roles in the development community that often overlap and interact with each other: programmers, and software engineers/developers. Although both terms are often used interchangeably, programmers have a more specific role. They are responsible for tasks like writing code, displaying graphics, and merging databases.

Software developers have a wider spectrum of responsibilities. Developers design software by considering the perspective of end-users or business needs. Yet, they are also programmers themselves. Hence we’ve mentioned that these roles generally overlap. However, programmers are limited to writing functional code and app maintenance.

Today, we’ll show you how to create your own software developer resume. Take a look below to see some resume templates for each software developer role.

Software Developer Resume Templates

Jump to a template:

• Software Developer
• Senior Software Developer
• Junior Software Developer
• Entry Level Software Developer
• React Developer
• Backend Developer
• Node JS Developer
• AngularJS Developer

Jump to a resource:

• Keywords for Software Developer Resumes

Software Developer Resume Tips

• Action Verbs to Use
• Related Engineering Resumes

Get advice on each section of your resume:

Template 1 of 13: Software Developer Resume Example

A developer designs software solutions with an end-user perspective. They develop the software infrastructure with engineering principles and design the visual aspect of the platform. Software developers are part of the entire lifecycle process, meaning that they also debug, troubleshoot, and maintain the infrastructure. The traditional path to becoming a software developer is by earning a bachelor’s degree in computer science. However, today we have many other alternatives such as online courses, community college, and even self-training. Let's take a look at a strong resume example you can use when applying for a software development role.

We're just getting the template ready for you, just a second left.

Tips to help you write your Software Developer resume in 2024

   indicate your familiarity with the agile and scrum development approach in your resume..

The agile and scrum methodologies are project management systems that consist of an increase in efficiency and productivity. In this system, deliverables are broken down into shorter sprints to facilitate the project life cycle. Most tech companies these days use this methodology to improve their productivity. Therefore, it is crucial to mention your familiarity with this method in your resume.

   Mention the programming languages you are proficient at.

Companies can have a wide variety of needs in terms of software development and each computer solution has its own requirements, such as a particular programming language or framework. Therefore, you should try to include all those coding languages and tools you are familiar with in your resume to expand your possibilities.

Skills you can include on your Software Developer resume

Template 2 of 13: software developer resume example.

Software developers are assigned to do tasks similar to a software engineer. The difference is that a developer will be more focused on a specific project versus the broad work done by an engineer. For this, your resume needs to have achievements and results from a particular project.

   Strong action verbs related to software developers

When working on a particular project, stating the results is key. Examples listed in the sample include “resolved”, “documented”, and “customized”. All of these are action verbs that will help recruiters see that you played a major role in the improvements of a project.

   Focused on software development

Recruiters like to see tasks that solely pertain to software development. This sample has experience fully relevant to the position without much mention of skills for other fields.

Template 3 of 13: Software Engineer/Developer Resume Example

Software developers should always stress their technical programming and software development skills. They should do that throughout their work experience and skills section, and if you don't have enough work experience, use a projects section like this resume does.

Tips to help you write your Software Engineer/Developer resume in 2024

   add a projects section if you need to showcase more technical experience.

It's becoming increasingly standard for software developers to include one or two projects which stress their software development experience, outside their professional experience. This is what's been done in this template. Only do this, however, if you don't have enough work experience or your work experience doesn't emphasize enough technical skills (or doesn't emphasize technical skills relevant to the actual job you're applying to).

   Shows growth with promotions

Recruiters look for evidence of professional growth, and promotions are a great way to show recruiters that.

Skills you can include on your Software Engineer/Developer resume

Template 4 of 13: senior software developer resume example.

Senior software developers are experienced engineers that often lead the development team. They usually have four to ten years of experience in the field and are familiar with up-to-date trends in the industry. A senior software developer is responsible for designing the product standards, delegating, tasks, and monitoring colleagues to make sure they are following the specifications and delivering their job on time.

Tips to help you write your Senior Software Developer resume in 2024

   quantify your achievements with metrics..

Your role as a senior software developer can have a big influence on the development team's operations. Therefore, your achievements can be easily quantified. By doing this, you will provide more reliability to your resume by illustrating your influence on the organization’s bottom line.

   Demonstrate your project management skills.

Senior software developers have a managerial role. They are responsible for overseeing the development team’s performance and providing guidance. You must make sure everyone is on track with deadlines and following technical standards. That’s why it is important to include your project management skills in your resume.

Skills you can include on your Senior Software Developer resume

Template 5 of 13: junior software developer resume example.

Junior software developers assist their colleagues in the development team with all types of production activities such as software design, debugging, and coding. They will also be part of the design meetings. In this role, they will obtain industry experience to aspire to higher positions.

Tips to help you write your Junior Software Developer resume in 2024

   highlight your problem-solving skills..

Junior software developers are expected to fix bugs and perform testing to identify potential errors in the application. Therefore, having problem-solving skills is key for this role. If you want to make your resume stand out, highlight your problem-solving skills and your critical thinking.

   Use programming-specific keywords.

When writing your resume, you should always try to customize it to the software development industry. Most resumes go through an ATS filter that analyzes keywords to identify ideal candidates. Therefore, you must ensure your resume is optimized and will get past the ATSs. Try to include programming or software development-specific keywords throughout your resume.

Skills you can include on your Junior Software Developer resume

Template 6 of 13: entry level software developer resume example.

An entry-level software developer is a great role for gaining experience in the industry. You will be part of the development team by doing junior-level tasks such as coding or designing. This experience will help you enrich your toolkit and learn more about software development in the field.

Tips to help you write your Entry Level Software Developer resume in 2024

   include software development projects that you’ve done on your own..

As an entry-level software developer, you may not have a lot of industry experience, but that doesn’t mean you can’t apply for this role. You can use non-work-related experiences such as volunteering or your software engineering projects. These facets have more value than you may think.

   Highlight your transferable skills.

Another great way to enrich your entry-level software developer resume is by leveraging your transferrable skills. These are competencies you may have earned in previous jobs that are also relevant for a particular occupation. In this case, you can mention your organizational skills, graphic design, or logical thinking.

Skills you can include on your Entry Level Software Developer resume

Template 7 of 13: react developer resume example.

React is a front-end tool developed by Facebook. It works with JavaScript and it’s used for building desktop or mobile applications. React is actually a library and not a framework, meaning that it contains prewritten code and templates to ease the developer’s work. A React developer is a programmer who uses React/React.Js to create JavaScript-based applications.

Tips to help you write your React Developer resume in 2024

   mention your proficiency with responsive web principles..

Responsive web design is a popular approach these days that consists of developing software that adapts to users’ behavior based on their device (mobile, tablet, desktop). This means that the application should respond to the screen size, orientation, and users’ preferences based on their device. React developers must have high proficiency in developing web-responsive applications, so you should indicate this in your resume.

   Demonstrate your testing and debugging skills.

Just like any other programmer, React developers must perform testing techniques to ensure there are no bugs in the platform and that everything is up and running. We could say that this is a crucial skill in terms of functionality and security, so many employers expect you to have it.

Skills you can include on your React Developer resume

Template 8 of 13: backend developer resume example.

As a Backend Developer, you're responsible for crafting the backbone of applications and ensuring seamless data flow between server and user interface. Nowadays, many companies are transitioning to microservices architecture and cloud-based systems, so it's essential to demonstrate your expertise in these areas when tailoring your resume. Additionally, highlight any experience with containerization technologies (e.g., Docker) and working with agile methodologies, as those are often highly valued by employers in this field. When drafting your resume, emphasize your proficiency in various programming languages, frameworks, and databases, as well as your ability to design, develop, and maintain efficient solutions. Showcasing your adaptability and eagerness to learn new technologies will catch the eye of any hiring manager eager to build a strong and innovative backend team.

Tips to help you write your Backend Developer resume in 2024

   showcase language and framework mastery.

On your resume, specify your level of expertise with programming languages (e.g., Node.js, Java, Python) and frameworks (e.g., Express, Django, Spring). Backend Developers should emphasize their technical skills to prove their competency and ability to create server-side solutions.

   Demonstrate experience with databases

As a Backend Developer, working with databases is crucial. Mention your experience with various database management systems, like SQL, NoSQL, or GraphQL, as well as skills in data modeling, migrations, and optimization, to showcase your ability to manage and manipulate data efficiently.

Skills you can include on your Backend Developer resume

Template 9 of 13: backend developer resume example.

Backend developers work on the hidden side of the development process. While front end developers create the face of the website/app, backend developers manage servers, databases, and security. Basically, they work on the structure of the application. Backend developers use programming languages like Ruby, PHP, and Java.

   Indicate your knowledge of popular frameworks.

This may sound odd because most frameworks are mostly seen as front end developers’ specialties. They are not often associated with backend. However, the software development industry is pretty broad and fast-paced, so you need to be flexible. You might be quickly dragged into a JavaScript project where you might be limited to working with a framework to build the backend structure. Therefore, knowing at least one JS framework can set you apart.

   Mention your knowledge of Version Control Systems.

Version Control Systems are tools that developers use to monitor changes in code. It creates different versions of the code that can be restored when needed. They help the development team work smarter and more efficiently. Knowing Version Control Systems is definitely a plus in your backend development career.

Template 10 of 13: Node.js Developer Resume Example

A Node.js developer is a software engineer that integrates server-side logic with front-end elements in the application. Node.js is a programming environment that helps developers control the interchange of data between servers and users. As a Node.js developer, you would be constantly working with front-end developers, so it’s important to demonstrate some basic understanding of client-side programming principles in your resume.

Tips to help you write your Node.js Developer resume in 2024

   mention your proficiency in javascript on your resume..

As a Node.js developer, you should be highly proficient in JavaScript, which is the only native programming language supported by this programming environment. However, you can also use compile-to-JS languages, such as CoffeeScript or TypeScript.

   Mention your knowledge of frameworks available for Node.js on your resume.

There are numerous frameworks available for Express or StrongLoop. Your potential employer might have a required framework for their project. Hence, it’s a good idea to check their skills requirements first to identify the frameworks that are relevant for them.

Skills you can include on your Node.js Developer resume

Template 11 of 13: node js developer resume example.

Node.JS is an open-source runtime environment that allows developers to execute JavaScript commands on the backend side. A Node.JS developer codes server-side architecture using JavaScript of any of its variants. They handle the interchange of data between users and servers.

Tips to help you write your Node JS Developer resume in 2024

   demonstrate your ability to write clean code..

As a Node.JS developer, you will work with other team members to develop applications. Therefore, it is crucial to write clean code, as it enhances communication with all team members. They must be able to understand what you did in order to continue the development process. Writing clean code is a skill that isn’t often mentioned, but can definitely improve recruiters’ perception of your work.

   Indicate your time management skills.

Node.JS developers often work under tight deadlines and in a fast-paced environment, so it’s vital to have excellent time management skills. Your employer would like to know that you are capable of delivering work on time without sacrificing the quality of your work.

Skills you can include on your Node JS Developer resume

Template 12 of 13: node.js developer resume example.

To land a Node.js developer position, you need to show hiring managers that you have the right blend of technical knowledge (i.e. experience with JavaScript and JavaScript frameworks) and people skills to succeed on the job. Your resume skills section should showcase your proficiency with industry-specific softwares and programming languages. In your work experience section, underscore key accomplishments where you’ve used soft skills such as communication and teamwork.

   Emphasizes hard skills in separate skills section

Because technical abilities are so essential in a Node.js developer role, these skills should go in a dedicated skills section on your resume. In particular, highlight your knowledge of JavaScript and related frameworks such as React and/or Angular. The more tools you have at your disposal, the more versatile and effective you’ll be at your job.

   Strong use of technical action verbs to introduce past achievements

Your accomplishments from past jobs will stand out even more to recruiters when you lead into them with strong action verbs. For a Node.js position, it’s especially helpful to choose verbs that demonstrate your ability to solve problems, collaborate with others (such as “coordinated”, “optimized”, or “created”), and showcase developer skills (e.g. debugged, developed, coded).

Template 13 of 13: AngularJS Developer Resume Example

AngularJS is a front end framework used to create faster and lighter programs. AngularJS developers design and build applications using JavaScript. Since they focus on front end development, they will create everything that users see on the website or application. AngularJS developers will also test and troubleshoot the platform when necessary.

Tips to help you write your AngularJS Developer resume in 2024

   demonstrate your ability to coordinate with team members..

As an AngularJS developer, you will have to work with other team members such as designers and backend developers. You must coordinate with them on the application’s features, functions, and visual aspects. Therefore, you need to have excellent communication and team work skills. This is a great value that you should definitely include in your resume.

   Mention your proficiency with SEO.

This might seem odd because AngularJS developers don’t create the website’s content. However, SEO plays a huge role in the performance of single-page apps by improving their ranking on Google’s search. Knowing SEO is not usually a required skill, but it can help you stand out.

Skills you can include on your AngularJS Developer resume

We spoke with hiring managers and recruiters from top companies like Microsoft, Google, and Amazon to gather their best tips for creating a winning software developer resume. By following their advice and studying the examples they've shared, you'll be able to craft a resume that showcases your skills and experience in the most effective way possible.

   Highlight your technical skills

Employers want to see that you have the specific technical skills needed for the role. Make sure to:

• List programming languages you know, like Java, Python, or C++
• Include frameworks you have experience with, such as .NET, Angular, or React
• Mention tools you've used, like Git, Jenkins, or Docker
• Specify databases you've worked with, such as MySQL, MongoDB, or Oracle

Avoid simply listing skills without context. Instead, show how you've applied them:

• Java, Python, JavaScript
• Developed a Java-based application for managing customer data, resulting in a 20% increase in efficiency
• Created Python scripts to automate data processing tasks, saving the team 10 hours per week

   Show the impact of your work

Don't just list your responsibilities; show the results you achieved. Quantify your impact with specific metrics:

• Developed a new feature that increased user engagement by 30%
• Optimized application performance, reducing load times by 50%
• Contributed to a project that saved the company $100,000 annually

If you don't have exact numbers, estimate the impact of your work:

• Built a tool that significantly reduced the time spent on manual testing
• Implemented a new system that greatly improved the team's collaboration and productivity

   Include relevant projects

Showcase your skills and initiative by including personal projects or contributions to open-source projects. This is especially important if you have limited professional experience.

When listing projects:

• Briefly describe the project and its purpose
• Specify your role and the technologies you used
• Highlight the project's impact or any unique challenges you faced

Personal Project: Movie Recommendation System Developed a Python-based movie recommendation system using collaborative filtering techniques. Utilized the MovieLens dataset and achieved an accuracy of 85% in predicting user preferences. The project showcased skills in data processing, machine learning, and algorithm implementation.

   Tailor your resume to the job

Customize your resume for each job application to show that you're a strong fit for the specific role. Here's how:

• Read the job description carefully and identify the key skills and requirements
• Prioritize the skills and experiences that match the job description
• Use similar language and terminology as the job posting
• Remove or minimize irrelevant information

For example, if a job emphasizes expertise in a specific programming language:

• Proficient in various programming languages, including Java, Python, and C++
• Expert in Java with 5+ years of experience developing large-scale applications
• Led a team of Java developers to create a high-performance trading platform

   Showcase your soft skills

While technical skills are crucial, employers also value soft skills that enable you to work effectively in a team. Highlight your:

• Communication skills: Show how you've collaborated with others or presented complex ideas
• Problem-solving abilities: Describe how you've approached challenges and found innovative solutions
• Leadership experience: Mention any times you've mentored others or taken the lead on a project
• Adaptability: Show how you've learned new technologies or adjusted to changing priorities

For example:

Led a cross-functional team of developers, designers, and product managers to launch a new mobile app. Communicated regularly with stakeholders, adapted to changing requirements, and successfully delivered the project on time and within budget.

   Keep it concise and readable

Hiring managers often review hundreds of resumes for a single position. Make yours stand out by keeping it concise and easy to read:

• Limit your resume to 1-2 pages
• Use clear, simple language and short sentences
• Break up text with bullet points and headings
• Choose a clean, professional font and format
• Proofread carefully for grammar and spelling errors
• Long paragraphs or dense blocks of text
• Unnecessary jargon or technical terms
• Inconsistent formatting or hard-to-read fonts
• Personal information like age, marital status, or photo

Remember, your goal is to make it easy for the hiring manager to quickly grasp your qualifications and fit for the role.

Writing Your Software Developer Resume: Section By Section

  header, 1. put your name on its own line.

Your name should be the most prominent part of your header, so it's best to put it on its own line. Use a slightly larger font size than the rest of your resume to make it stand out.

• John Smith | Software Developer | [email protected] | 123-456-7890 | New York, NY

Instead, format your header like this:

• John Smith Software Developer [email protected] | 123-456-7890 | New York, NY

2. Include your job title if you're established

If you're an experienced software developer with a clear job title that matches the roles you're targeting, consider adding it to your header. This quickly communicates your career focus to hiring managers. However, if you're earlier in your career or are targeting a variety of roles, leave your job title out to keep your options open.

John Smith Senior Full Stack Developer [email protected] | 123-456-7890 | New York, NY

For entry-level candidates, a simpler header works well:

Jane Doe [email protected] | 123-456-7890 | San Francisco, CA

3. Make your location general

Including your location helps employers understand where you're based. However, for privacy reasons, only include your city and state, not your full address.

• 123 Main St, Apt 2B, Austin, TX 78701

Keep it concise:

• Houston, Texas
• Seattle, WA

If you're searching for remote roles, you can clarify that by saying "Location: Raleigh, NC (Remote)" or simply "Remote".

  Summary

As a software developer, your resume summary is an opportunity to provide a brief overview of your skills, experience, and career goals. While a summary is optional, it can be particularly useful if you are changing careers or have a diverse range of experiences that may not be immediately apparent from the rest of your resume. However, avoid using an objective statement, as it is outdated and does not provide value to the hiring manager.

When crafting your summary, focus on highlighting your most relevant qualifications and achievements, tailoring them to the specific software developer position you are applying for. Use metrics and specific examples to demonstrate your impact and value.

To learn how to write an effective resume summary for your Software Developer resume, or figure out if you need one, please read Software Developer Resume Summary Examples , or Software Developer Resume Objective Examples .

1. Highlight your technical skills and programming languages

Showcase your proficiency in the programming languages and technologies that are most relevant to the software developer position you are targeting. For example:

• Experienced software developer skilled in Java, Python, and C++, with a strong background in agile development methodologies
• Full-stack developer proficient in JavaScript, React, Node.js, and MongoDB, with experience building scalable web applications

Avoid generic statements that do not provide specific information about your skills, such as:

• Knowledgeable in various programming languages
• Familiar with multiple technologies

2. Emphasize your problem-solving abilities and achievements

As a software developer, your ability to solve complex problems and deliver results is crucial. Use your summary to highlight your problem-solving skills and notable achievements. For example:

Results-driven software developer with a proven track record of designing and implementing efficient solutions to complex problems. Developed a machine learning algorithm that improved product recommendation accuracy by 30%, resulting in a 15% increase in customer engagement and sales.

Avoid using vague or cliché statements that do not provide concrete examples of your abilities, such as:

• Excellent problem-solver
• Team player with a strong work ethic

3. Tailor your summary to the specific position

Customize your resume summary to the specific software developer position you are applying for. Research the company and the role to identify the key skills, technologies, and experiences they are looking for, and incorporate them into your summary. For example:

• For a mobile app developer position: Experienced iOS developer with a strong background in Swift, Objective-C, and Xcode, passionate about creating intuitive and engaging mobile experiences
• For a DevOps position: DevOps engineer with expertise in AWS, Docker, and Kubernetes, focused on automating processes and improving system reliability and scalability

Avoid using a generic summary that could apply to any software developer position, as it may not capture the hiring manager's attention or demonstrate your fit for the specific role.

  Experience

The work experience section is the most important part of your software developer resume. It's where you show hiring managers what you've accomplished in your career and how you've made an impact. Use this section to highlight your technical skills, problem-solving abilities, and the results you've achieved.

Here are some key tips to keep in mind as you write your work experience section:

1. Highlight your technical skills

As a software developer, your technical skills are your biggest selling point. Make sure to showcase the programming languages, frameworks, and tools you've used in each role. For example:

• Developed and maintained web applications using React, Node.js, and MongoDB
• Built RESTful APIs using Spring Boot and MySQL
• Implemented CI/CD pipelines using Jenkins and AWS

Don't just list your skills, though. Provide concrete examples of how you used them to solve problems and deliver results.

Use our Targeted Resume tool to make sure you're including the right technical skills for the job you want. It analyzes the job description and your resume to identify gaps in your skills.

2. Quantify your impact

Whenever possible, use metrics to quantify the impact of your work. This helps hiring managers understand the scale and significance of your contributions. For example:

• Reduced page load time by 40% by optimizing database queries and implementing caching
• Increased user engagement by 25% by redesigning the UI and improving site navigation
• Managed a team of 5 developers to deliver a $500K project on time and under budget

If you don't have access to specific metrics, you can still use numbers to provide context, like the size of the team you worked on or the number of users impacted.

Focus on your most recent and relevant experience. If you have older or less relevant roles, you can still include them but cut back on the details. Highlight key accomplishments and skills without going into too much depth.

3. Show your career progression

Hiring managers want to see that you've grown and taken on more responsibility over time. If you've been promoted or taken on leadership roles, make sure to highlight that in your work experience section. For example:

Senior Software Engineer, XYZ Company, 2019-Present - Led a team of 3 junior developers to build a new mobile app from scratch - Mentored and trained new hires on best practices for code quality and testing Software Engineer, XYZ Company, 2016-2019 - Collaborated with cross-functional teams to design and implement new features for the company's flagship product - Contributed to open source projects and spoke at local tech meetups

If you don't have a traditional career path, you can still show progression by highlighting increasing levels of responsibility or the impact of your work over time.

Use strong action verbs to describe your contributions, like "developed", "optimized", "architected", and "led". These help paint a picture of what you actually did in each role.

  Education

Your education section shows recruiters that you have the necessary educational background and knowledge for the software developer role. It also gives them an idea of your career trajectory and additional skills you may have gained through your education.

In this section, we'll cover what to include in your education section and tips for making it stand out to potential employers.

1. List your degrees in reverse chronological order

Start with your most recent or highest degree first, and work backwards from there. For each degree, include:

• Name of the institution
• Location of the institution
• Degree obtained
• Field of study
• Graduation year (if within the past 10 years)

Here's an example of how to format your education:

Bachelor of Science in Computer Science University of California, Berkeley Berkeley, CA Graduated: May 2020

2. Include relevant coursework, projects, and achievements

If you are a recent graduate or have limited work experience, you can boost your education section by including:

• Relevant coursework
• Projects you completed
• Academic achievements or awards

Bachelor of Science in Software Engineering San Jose State University San Jose, CA Graduated: June 2022 Relevant Coursework: Data Structures and Algorithms, Web Application Development, Database Systems Senior Project: Developed a mobile app for a local non-profit using React Native

This additional information shows employers the specific skills and experience you gained during your education that are applicable to the software developer role.

3. Consider adding a 'Certifications' section

Industry certifications demonstrate your expertise in specific technologies or methodologies. If you have completed any relevant certifications, you can either list them under your education section or create a separate 'Certifications' section.

Some popular software development certifications include:

• AWS Certified Developer - Associate
• Oracle Certified Professional, Java SE Programmer
• Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate

Certifications: AWS Certified Developer - Associate, Amazon Web Services, 2021 Oracle Certified Professional, Java SE 11 Developer, Oracle, 2020

4. Tailor your education section to your level of experience

The importance and length of your education section will depend on your level of professional experience. Here are some guidelines:

• Recent graduates: Emphasize your education and include more details like relevant coursework, projects, and GPA (if above 3.5).
• Mid-level professionals: Keep your education section concise, focusing on your degrees and any notable achievements. Omit graduation dates if it has been more than 10 years.
• Master of Science in Computer Science, Stanford University
• Bachelor of Science in Software Engineering, California Polytechnic State University

At the senior level, your professional experience and accomplishments hold more weight than your educational background.

Action Verbs For Software Developer Resumes

There is a popular misconception about software developers. People often think that it is a merely technical profession, neglecting the value of soft skills like communication and resilience. A successful developer is able to translate highly complex requirements into actionable plans. 

Now, how can you demonstrate this in your resume? By using effective communication. Action verbs will help you do that by streamlining your work experience and precisely expressing your responsibilities. You can use bullet points to illustrate your experience and start the phrase with a strong action verb. We have curated some of the most relevant action verbs for your developer resume.

• Strengthened
• Troubleshooted
• Architected

For more related action verbs, visit Software Engineering Action Verbs .

For a full list of effective resume action verbs, visit Resume Action Verbs .

Action Verbs for Software Developer Resumes

Skills for software developer resumes.

Software engineering covers a wide spectrum of the development production cycle, so developers must have a holistic set of skills. This includes knowledge of the integrated development environment, programming languages, frameworks, data structure, and troubleshooting. 

You should use the skills section as an opportunity to display your potential. Don’t leave anything behind, but try to be as industry-specific as possible. Take a look below to see some relevant skills in the software development field.

• Software Development
• Agile Methodologies
• Cloud Computing
• Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC)
• Software Project Management
• Amazon Web Services (AWS)
• Enterprise Architecture
• Distributed Systems
• Software Architecture
• Microservices
• Software as a Service (SaaS)
• Web Services
• Integration
• Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA)
• Enterprise Software
• Technical Leadership

How To Write Your Skills Section On a Software Developer Resumes

You can include the above skills in a dedicated Skills section on your resume, or weave them in your experience. Here's how you might create your dedicated skills section:

Skills Word Cloud For Software Developer Resumes

This word cloud highlights the important keywords that appear on Software Developer job descriptions and resumes. The bigger the word, the more frequently it appears on job postings, and the more 'important' it is.

How to use these skills?

Other engineering resumes, c, c++, and c# developer.

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How to write a killer Software Engineering résumé

An in-depth analysis of the résumé that got me interviews at Google, Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft, Apple, and more.

This résumé got me interviews at Google, Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft, and Apple.

I obtained these interviews by sending my résumé to the résumé black hole , also known as applying online.

Applying online is the most common way people go about applying for a job and therefore the least effective way to land an interview due to competition. Yet that is exactly how I obtained all my interviews.

How did I accomplish this?

In this article, I will go through a line-by-line analysis of my résumé for the following purposes:

• explaining the choices that I made in creating my résumé
• why I believe this résumé worked to help me land those interviews, and
• how you can create an even better résumé!

I decided to write this article because I struggled a lot with landing interviews when I first started looking for a job. It would have been extremely helpful for me to have a real-life example résumé to look at.

This article is organized into the following sections:

• The All Too Familiar Way of Not Landing an Interview - a short anecdote of my frustrations when I first started applying for jobs
• Evaluating the Options: Moving Forward - a reflection on different strategies to improve the odds of landing interviews
• Learning How to Write a Killer Résumé By Example - the step-by-step analysis of my résumé with each of the following sections corresponding to my résumé:

The Essentials from a Glance

• Who Are You
• Contact Information
• Personal Projects

The All Too Familiar Way of Not Landing an Interview

Applying online.

You probably know the link that every company provides for online applications. It’s the classic career site that shows you a bunch of job titles which you think you are totally qualified for until you open the job description and read the minimum requirements.

A job description with a bunch of words that you have never heard of, may have heard of, or hoped you had heard of. And it has an innocent-looking “ Apply” button .

Despite the uncertainty you may feel about your qualifications, you apply anyway because you want a job.

So you fill out the application form, press submit — and wait and hope for a positive response.

Your results will be varied:

• Phone Interview ? (yay, a chance at employment!!!)
• Immediate Rejection ? (darn, back to the drawing board)
• No reply  ? (ugh, at least give me the courtesy of having some closure)

Repeat Until Success… Right?

Sadly, this is the typical process that many people go through when looking for a job/internship.

Apply to a couple of companies. Get a couple of rejections or no replies. Apply to a couple more companies. Get a couple more rejections or no replies. Over, and over, and over again.

Why do we do this to ourselves? We spend all this time doing the same repetitive task to obtain the same, disappointing results.

Because this is what everyone does to get an interview, right? Because at least we’re working towards the right direction and have a glimmer of hope, right? How else are you supposed to get an interview?

Evaluating the Options: Moving Forward

“Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success.” - Dale Carnegie, (author of “How to Win Friends and Influence People”)

We can think of approaching the problem of not getting interviews in two ways:

• Putting your application/ résumé under the microscope
• Questioning the process in which you go about obtaining an interview

This article focuses on the former, because no matter what avenue you end up taking to get an interview, essentially every company utilizes your résumé as a basis for evaluation . Therefore, we will examine my résumé under a microscope and focus on learning how to write a remarkable résumé.

Getting an interview via online application is extremely challenging because your résumé has to pass numerous stages before it gets into the hands of the hiring manager.

It has to bypass online keyword filters , stand out to a recruiter who reviews it for about 6 seconds and meet the expectations of the hiring manager who decides whether you are worth interviewing.

Yet, despite all those hurdles, I obtained all my interviews by applying online. How? Trial and error . I’ve applied to hundreds of different software engineering positions since my sophomore year of college.

When I first started applying, I faced a staggering number of rejections, but over time I learned how to adapt. By the time I was a senior, I was extremely successful in landing interviews from almost every company I applied to.

The résumé that landed me all those interviews is the exact one in this article.

It took me four years of iteration and real-life testing to get to this point. From this experience, I have come up with a list of résumé writing principles to help you write an even better software résumé. These are principles that have helped me land my dream job and are principles that can help you land yours.

While it took me four years of college to figure this all out, you don’t have to go through all the leaps and bounds because you can learn all of it right here, right now.

My goal is to be the one-stop hub for all your questions on how to obtain a software engineering interview. That way, you don’t have to waste countless hours cross-referencing Google search results to find the best answer on how to write a software engineering résumé that gets interviews.

Your valuable time could be better spent on writing your killer résumé.

So start here and now with this article. Reap the benefits from my past experiences and let’s begin the step-by-step walkthrough of my résumé!

Learning How to Write a Killer Résumé — By Example

“As to methods there may be a million and then some, but principles are few. The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble.”

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Let’s take another look at this résumé:

One-page résumé

Recruiters do not have all day to read your résumé. On average they view it for less than 6 seconds. Keep it short and concise .

Sections (Header, Education, Employment, Software Projects, Skills)

Place sections in order of importance from top to bottom. The ‘ Personal Projects ’ section is a unique, must-have for people looking for a software engineering position.

Consistent layout + font per section

Make sure each section contains a uniform look. Consistent style is important as it enhances the readability. Readability is essential.

So why does this résumé work? Let’s explore the numbered bullet points.

Who Are You (1)

Target Audience: Anyone writing a résumé

Starting off real easy. Your name. Place your name at the top of your résumé in a large legible font.

No need to be all fancy about it with extravagant colors or fancy fonts. Plain and simple does the trick. You want the recruiter to see this easily from a mile away because you want them to know who you are. A recruiter who has to do minimum work is a happy recruiter. A happy recruiter is one who is more likely to give you an interview.

Recap: Make it ridiculously easy for the recruiter to read and find your name.

Contact Information (2)

Your contact info should be as easy as identifying your name. This is so important. Of all the things in the world, please do not mess this one up because how else on earth will the recruiter contact you?

Recap: Put in the correct contact information or you’ll never be contacted.

Education (3)

Target Audience: Anyone writing a résumé with a degree

If you are attending or attended college, this should be the first section of your résumé, because going to college is a huge accomplishment. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, only “66.7 percent of 2017 high school graduates age 16 to 24 enrolled in colleges or universities”. So be proud of it and include it!

Right off the bat, this tells the recruiter that you are invested in education and learning, which is crucial because technology is continuously changing. Furthermore, this information serves as an indicator of your successes, so be sure to put it down.

Recap: Put down where you got educated.

Be sure to include relevant coursework corresponding to the position that you are applying for. While a course on the History of Italian Gastronomy sounds exceptionally appetizing, it doesn’t have a place in a résumé that is trying to get you a job in computer science.

This will significantly improve the ability of the recruiter and the hiring manager looking at your résumé in deciding whether you are a good fit for the position. And as previously mentioned, a happy recruiter is more likely to give you an interview.

Recap: Only include relevant coursework.

Okay. GPA. Before we talk about this, let’s remind ourselves of the main purpose of a résumé.

The main purpose of a résumé is to highlight your knowledge, skills, and accomplishments succinctly. You want to include things on your résumé that you are proud of, but also things that will impress. You want to paint a picture of yourself in the best light possible so that recruiters and hiring managers want to interview you.

Now back to your GPA. It should be fairly obvious whether or not your GPA is impressive. If your GPA is below a 3.0, don’t put it on your résumé. There’s nothing wrong with excluding your GPA from your résumé if it only harms your chances.

If you have a GPA between 3.0–3.2, this is a judgment call. From personal experience, I have talked to some companies that require a minimum GPA of 3.2, but these were primarily financial or quantitative companies. Most software companies have little regard for your GPA. If you have anything above a 3.2, I would place it on your résumé.

If you have a low GPA, fear not, as this gives you the opportunity to be creative! My overall GPA was a 3.2 due to poor grades from my freshman engineering prerequisites and humanities classes. But once I finished and started taking courses within my major, my in-major GPA (GPA calculated from courses in my major) was a 3.44, which was significantly higher. So that’s what I put down (but make sure to qualify it as a departmental GPA).

There are many ways of going about presenting yourself in the best light possible, even when it may seem like the odds are stacked against you. I only provided one example of accomplishing this, but there are many more ways waiting to be discovered by you. Fully embrace your failures and accomplishments because they make up who are you. Be honest and truthful, and always focus on highlighting the best parts about yourself.

Recap: Your GPA does not define you. The purpose of your résumé is to present yourself in the best light. Never forget that! Be creative when going about this and DON’T LIE.

Employment (4)

Target Audience: Students with software engineering work experience

If you are a college student without any experience, don’t be afraid! This was my senior year résumé when I was applying for a full-time job. I was fortunate enough to have accumulated relevant work experience from summer internships, but this isn’t absolutely necessary to get an interview. If you find that you don’t have much to put in section, jump down to the ‘ Personal Projects ’ section.

While it is great to have past work experience, not all work experience is treated equally when it comes to looking for a job in software engineering. Focus only on including work experience that has relevance to the job that you are applying for. For instance, if you have experience working as a cashier in retail or a waiter in the food industry, don’t include it! Unfortunately, your abilities to handle money or serve food did not provide any indication that you will succeed as a software engineer.

A recruiter’s goal is to match candidates with jobs that fit the candidates’ skill sets. Therefore it is essential only to include past work experience that has some relation to the position that you are currently applying to, on your résumé.

Part of accomplishing this means creating a collection of various résumés, each tailored specifically for the different job that you are interested in. This is analogous to the college application process, where you had to write separate essays for each university that you applied to. Each college has its own values, culture, and vision, making it nearly impossible to write a generic, one-size-fits-all college essay. Therefore, tailor your résumé to the job that you are applying for.

Lastly, a note on dates. Order your experiences in descending order starting with your most recent experiences. For undergraduates, this means being mindful of including experiences that are both recent and relevant. Sadly, no one cares about whatever accomplishments you had in middle school or high school. If the experience is outdated, leave it out.

Recap: Have various versions of your résumé tailored for each job you are applying for. There is no one-size-fits-all résumé.

The hardest part about résumé writing is having descriptions that fully encapsulate your accomplishments from past work experiences in a meaningful and impressive way.

What does it mean for your descriptions to be meaningful and impressive? It means getting the recruiter to think: “This is someone that has the skill sets we are looking for. This is someone that has made a significant impact in their past jobs. This is someone we would like to interview and potentially hire.”

The primary objective of the Employment section is to show the impact and value that you had while working at an established institution. Your goal is to show recruiters that you are a candidate that can get things done and do them well.

To best showcase my accomplishments in my résumé, I adopted the following powerful formula, created by the Former SVP of People Operations at Google, Laszlo Bock:

“Accomplished [X] as measured by [Y] by doing [Z]” — Laszlo Bock

You can see this very clearly in the very first bullet point of this section on my résumé.

Improved device’s battery lifespan by 8% by integrating a fuel gauge sensor and establishing a battery saving state

Let’s break it down:

Accomplished [X]- Improved device’s battery lifespan

Measured by [Y]- by 8%

By Doing [Z]- integrating a fuel gauge sensor and establishing a battery saving state

I leveraged this formula in some shape or form in almost every sentence in my résumé.

To help you along this process, below is a word bank of excellent verbs you can and should use:

Here are some examples of fill-in the blank sentences that I have come up with for you to get started:

• Reduced _____ by _____ by _____.
• Redesigned _____ for _____.
• Implemented _____ for _____ by _____.
• Improved _____ by _____ through _____.
• Utilized _____ to _____ for _____.
• Increased _____ by _____ through _____.
• Integrated _____ by _____ for _____.
• Incorporated _____ for _____ by _____.

Recap: Use the “Accomplished [X] as measured by [Y] by doing [Z]” formula. It’s the most effective and most apparent way of showing recruiters/managers your impact.

Lastly, I end each work experience with a leveraged knowledge bullet point. The utility behind this last bit is it enables the reader to really get a sense of the technology I am familiar with by explicitly stating the technologies that I used for the project.

This also allows me to have a concise, but clean ‘Skills’ section located at the bottom of my résumé. Recruiters can then look at the bottom to immediately obtain a sense of my capabilities by seeing which computer languages I am familiar with. If they are looking to see if I have specific knowledge in a particular tool, framework, or library, then they can find this out by looking at my projects.

Recap: Including technologies that you used in your descriptions will help you bypass online keyword filters when applying online. This will also give recruiters a clearer idea of your experiences and knowledge.

Personal Projects (5)

Target Audience: Students looking for software engineering internships/full-time positions + Unique section for software engineering applicants

Maybe if I say it enough times, you will understand the importance of this section, especially for those that do not have work experience .

Personal projects are integral to piquing recruiters and hiring managers interest as it shows you are passionate about programming.

A personal project can be anything programming related, whether it be a Python script, Java program, web page, mobile application, etc. These projects show that you are genuinely interested in computer science and you have strong desires to work as a software engineer because you are willing to go beyond your schoolwork and create something on your own.

Taking the initiative to build something on your own is extremely impressive. It shows that you are dedicated to expanding your knowledge of computer science and that you are not afraid of putting in the extra work to do so. Ultimately, it is a fantastic way to demonstrate self-initiative and genuine interest in this field.

The other benefit of doing personal projects is that you inevitably gain the skills that apply to work in the real world. Things that you don’t usually do at school, but you will do at work such as using standard frameworks/libraries, understanding full-stack web development, creating mobile applications, setting up a development environment, or programming efficiently with Vim.

Tip: Create a personal website that showcases and documents all of your personal projects. This is a little hack that ‘virtually extends’ your résumé beyond the one-page limit.

To reiterate one last time, personal projects show your passion and dedication towards developing the necessary skills needed for a job that you don’t yet have. This is a must-have on any software engineering resume.

“Build some iPhone apps, web apps, whatever! Honestly it doesn’t matter that much what you’re building as long as you’re building something. You can build a fairly meaty project in one weekend. This means that with about 3–4 weekends of work, you can make your résumé go from so-so to fantastic. Seriously — I’ve seen lots of people do this.” - Gayle McDowell, former Google Engineer and Author of Cracking the Coding Interview

If there is a specific company that you really want to work at, one of the best ways to stand out is doing a personal project that is directly related to the job that you are applying for.

I got my internship at Autodesk by taking a free online interactive computer graphics course on Udacity. The course taught me to use a JavaScript library called three.js , and it just so happened that there was a software engineering internship opening at Autodesk looking for someone with full-stack website and knowledge in three.js (aka ME).

A word of caution on this technique. This strategy is not perfect. This only really works for companies like Autodesk which do not have generalized software engineering internships like Google, Facebook, and Microsoft. When starting off early in your career, it is better to generalize and figure out the different disciplines of computer science. Nonetheless, this is an excellent method worth trying if there is a specific company you want.

Recap: Personal projects are imperative. If you haven’t already, start NOW! You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Target Audience: Anyone looking for a software engineering job

The title explains it all. Keep this section dumb, simple, and clean. List all the relevant skills that you want the recruiter to know you have. The more skills you have listed here that match key technical words in the qualification section of the job description, the better your chances!

This will allow you to bypass the online keyword scanner easily. However, this is not a fool-proof method of circumventing the scanner. Ultimately it is a recruiter who gets their hands on your résumé that decides, but they will also be more inclined to give you an interview if they see you as a good fit for the job!

A thing to note about the skills section is to NOT simply list all the keywords on the job description just for the sake of showing you’re a good fit. It will come back to bite you as you will be questioned on the skills you claim to know.

Part of giving yourself some leeway in this is including an indication of your proficiency level. Since you are probably not practicing every language you’ve ever encountered on a day to day basis, including a proficiency level can help the recruiter know your strongest languages at a moment in time and other languages that you are familiar with.

I’ve opted to use two tiers:

• Proficient - Languages that I am very familiar with, feel very comfortable using, and can interview with right now.
• Familiar - Languages that I have utilized in the past but may not be as knowledgeable in currently, but can pick back up given time.

Other valid options include:

• Intermediate
• Working Knowledge
• Basic Knowledge

Recap: When applying for a specific job online, cross-reference the job description and add essential technical keywords on your résumé to increase your chance of getting an interview.

Key Takeaways

• Make sure your name and contact information is correct and legible
• Be sure to include your education. If your GPA is low, leave it out or be creative!
• Utilize the “Accomplished [X] as measured by [Y] by doing [Z]” formula to effectively show the impact that you had in your past employment
• Do personal projects — especially if you do not have past experience working in tech

Final Thoughts

While this résumé got me interviews at numerous software engineering companies, there is no guarantee that following all the principles and techniques I have explained here will yield the same results for you.

This was my senior year résumé in 2017. It is a showcase of my journey and interest in software engineering. Copying it will do you no good, as technology is constantly evolving and the talent search is an ever-changing process. Instead, use this as a reference.

Use my résumé and this article as a resource to become a better résumé writer and a more effective communicator. Focus on learning how to best convey your skills and achievements to others. This in itself is an invaluable, lifelong skill that you will need wherever you go.

As you write your résumé, please remember — be yourself!

Your résumé is a list of your own accomplishments, achievements, and interests. Your goal is to craft the most polished version of yourself. Lastly, have fun and enjoy the process!

For anyone interested in using this resume template, I obtained it from CareerCup which was founded by Gayle Laakmann McDowell, author of Cracking The Coding Interview .

From personal experience, what’s most important is the content. The resume writing principles discussed above can be applied to any template!

Also, check out my new website, memlayout.com , which helps students learn programming through visualizing their python code line-by-line.

software engineer @tesla. consider donating to https://oeop.mit.edu/. visualize python code line-by-line with https://memlayout.com/

If this article was helpful, share it .

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30 Software Engineer Resume Examples Designed for 2024

• Software Resumes
• Software Engineer Resumes by Experience
• Software Engineer Resumes by Role

Writing Your Software Engineer Resume

If you’re looking to take the next step in your software engineering career, there’s no better time than now, especially with many companies releasing salary information thanks to  pay transparency laws across the states .

You have the skills and experience to land your next software engineer job, but figuring out  how to write a resume  is entirely different.

We’ve analyzed countless developer resumes seeing what works and what doesn’t. That’s why we’ve written 30 software engineer resume samples that have  helped developers get jobs at top tech companies like Google, Uber, and Twilio .

Whether you’re wondering how to use ChatGPT to write a resume or are already  checking your resume  for improvements, you’re in the right place to help you get more interviews in 2024!

Software Engineer Resume Example

or download as PDF

Why this resume works

• Always check the job description and the company’s mission statement to determine what you should include in your resume. If you have experience that doesn’t fit into your software engineer resume, but you still want to include, you can try to add some in your  software engineer cover letter .
• Try to include metrics relating to revenue, increased user counts, or increased efficiency. There are numbers there; you just have to find them!

Software Developer Resume Example

• Because of the amount of niche positions, you need to be careful when titling your resume. Always adjust the title on your resume to match the job to which you’re applying.
• Even if your work experience is different from the description, you can include some of the necessary skills and keywords. However, if your work experience is vastly different from the job description, you might want to consider applying for a different type of job.

Software Engineer Student Resume Example

• As long as you have relevant project experience, you’ll be good to go. Plus, points for a strong career objective that clearly labels why you’re joining a company and your main aim after being hired.

New Grad Software Engineer Resume Example

• A word of caution: resist the urge to feature just anything in your piece. Instead, strive to unearth duties and wins relevant to the target company and its KPIs. Talk about using Jenkins for integration automation, building custom UIs with Django, optimizing databases with MySQL, and more.

Software Engineer Intern Resume Example

• Companies will understand that you’re just starting out in your career, so including technical courses like ‘Computer Organization and Architecture’ in your software engineer intern resume will show them you have a solid understanding of the fundamentals.

Software Engineer New Grad Resume Example

• If you’re a recent grad, employers will understand that you have limited work experience but would like to see some proficiency in the technical aspects of the job. Use the job description to know the company’s requirements and adjust the skills you include in your software engineer resume to align with what the company is looking for.

Entry-Level Software Engineer Resume Example

• Plus, a template lets you easily adjust stylistic elements like color, font type, and layout. Make your resume as unique as you are!
• The first option is to demonstrate your ability to create and maintain new projects that are easily scalable and solve real problems. You can include college projects, personal projects, or even start something new so you have something to add!
• The second option is to show off any internships you’ve gotten. You can treat them just like work experience, but you can include it in your work experience or projects section.

Junior Software Engineer Resume Example

• Your time as a developer in a personal endeavor may have involved several responsibilities and accomplishments that make for a worthy addition to your junior software engineer resume.

Associate Software Engineer Resume Example

• Of course, if you have more than 10 years of experience, use a  resume summary  instead. Objectives and summaries aren’t too different, but summaries have more achievements and experience.
• Personal pronouns like “I,” “me,” and “my” take up space, so cut them out.
• Use active voice and active verbs to make sure your work experience bullet points are as short as possible.

Senior Software Engineer Resume Example

• Highlighting a lengthy career with multiple software engineering roles is key to getting noticed, especially when you pair it with quantifiable data from various sources.
• Always check the job description to get an idea of what the employer wants to see. Try to include six to eight skills in your  resume skills section  to give a wide range of your available skills.
• Focus more on adding technical skills, but you can include a few soft skills to highlight how well-rounded you are.

Experienced Software Engineer Resume Example

• For example, take the case of a Certified Software Development Associate (IEEE) certification included in this resume. It’s credible evidence that proves you have a concrete understanding of software design, testing, maintenance, and quality assurance—all of which are integral to any software engineering role.

Mid-Level Software Engineer Resume Example

• Your mid-level software engineer resume should give prominence to accomplishment metrics that touch on your application tools competencies, process streamlining, project timeline reductions, and ability to utilize resources to meet outcome expectations.

Lead Software Engineer Resume Example

• Your lead software engineer resume will go up a notch once you mention a master’s degree in computer science. It gives more credibility and shows that you’ve professionally learned how to lead other engineers and also keep systems running smoothly.

Java Software Engineer Resume Example

• But don’t forget to quantify your contribution. Try using multiple metrics in one bullet point to be extra flashy and prove that your Java skills are second to none.

Front end Software Engineer Resume Example

• If you don’t have the best technical highlights, add names of the most famous companies you’ve worked for in your front end software engineer resume. They can alone show that you weren’t hired for nothing.

Amazon Software Engineer Resume Example

• Create an unmatchable Amazon software engineer resume by listing your best achievements so far like “Grew Amazon Prime subscriptions by 18%” to show your to-be employer you’ve got what it takes to leverage technology and use it to drive better customer experience metrics.

Software Quality Engineer Resume Example

• We know automation’s a big part of this job, but it doesn’t mean you spam the word in every bullet point. Draw out other important impacts you’ve created on the job such as reducing coding errors and expanding test coverage to be a standout candidate.

Backend Software Engineer Resume Example

• Then, why not let your piece showcase your eye for detail? Take the time to go through it, ensuring every line is polished to perfection. While tools like Grammarly can be handy here, they aren’t foolproof, so be critical of the suggestions. Even better, enlist a friend or family member—a fresh pair of eyes might catch something you missed.

Staff Software Engineer Resume Example

• Did your overhauling MYSQL schema indexation expedite data access? Mention time saved in hours per month or week. Can you recount how many technical guides you built or published or how many users benefited from your software programs? Specify the numbers. Dollar-amount savings should also suffice in your metrics.

Software QA Engineer Resume Example

• Subsequently, choose a template (preferably Elegant) that gives ample spacing in the skills section for you to write down all the things you’re an expert at. Keep things simple by using a good color accent and let loose on all your past work experiences.

Director of Software Engineering Resume Example

• It is paramount that your director of software engineering resume shows your numbers for managing teams, cutting costs, expediting processes, and properly managing and prioritizing resources to exceed targets and goals.

Software Engineering Manager Resume Example

• Adding measurable results to your software engineering manager resume will help an employer evaluate the progress and results you’ve brought to companies you’ve previously worked with. This simple addition of observable statistics can go a long way in setting your resume apart from the crowd.

Google Software Engineer Resume Example

• For instance, adding tools and cloud-based services under the Google Cloud umbrella to your Google software engineer resume shows the company you’re well-versed in multiple development solutions.

Principal Software Engineer Resume Example

• While you may have several hobbies and interests, ensure you include those most relevant to the role you’re applying to. Participating in coding challenges and hackathons shows you’re passionate about software engineering, even outside work hours—something any employer will love to see!

Python Developer Resume Example

• That’s why it can be useful to include a projects section. Of course, you want the majority of your resume to focus on work experience, but if you’ve got some unique experience that might fit the  software engineer job description , consider adding this optional section.
• We’d recommend making your  web developer skills  section about 70 precent technical skills, but you can include soft skills for the rest. 

Software Engineer Front-End Resume Example

Full-Stack Software Engineer Resume Example

• Include multiple programming languages in your  resume skills section  to increase your value and better fit the ATS screening criteria.
• Start by reading the  software engineer job description  and looking for repeated keywords. You can also look at other local software engineer jobs to look for more key phrases to include.

Embedded Software Engineer Resume Example

• This will inform recruiters and hiring managers that, in addition to your technical coding skills, you have applicable knowledge of CPU architectures, operating systems, and more. You can also include soft skills related to communication and collaboration to showcase your ability to work with teams.
• This is the perfect place to briefly convey your achievements, your experience, and what you hope to accomplish at your future company. Always tailor it to each job for which you apply!

Software Integration Engineer Resume Example

• Your layout should have a good “visual voice” that’s as unique as you are, so don’t be afraid to play with colors, font types, and layouts. So long as it’s easy to read, format your resume to match your style!
• For example, did you start working with a team and end up leading a team? That’s an excellent example of scalable growth!
• Highlight versatile skills (like types of tools you’ve used) and scalable achievements to prove that you can improve your future workplace!

Security Engineer Resume Example

• Our special  resume tip : cut the fluff away from any novice jobs to leave more room for more impressive credentials you got later in your career.
• Demonstrate how your programming skills have evolved or how your interpersonal abilities helped advance your team. And be sure to back your claims with data! 
• Having a variety of jobs shows that you’re well-rounded with a host of skills you may not have obtained otherwise.
• Show this off in your work experience bullet points with a mix of transferable skills and unique abilities from other positions.

Related resume guides

• Scrum Master
• Tableau Developer
• Program Manager
• Web Developer

When you apply for an engineering job at a company, the first person looking at your resume is actually not a person. Companies use something called an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to filter out a majority of applicants for a role based on keyword matching.

If you pass this initial scan, your resume will get reviewed by a non-technical recruiter. Then at long last, the technical hiring manager will look at your resume.

So, how do you write a resume that will get you through all these hoops to get that first interview? That’s what this guide is designed to help you do!

We’ve analyzed numerous resumes from software engineers and to come up with valuable  resume tips  to get your foot in the door.

Here’s what we’re going to cover in this guide:

• What to put in the vital skills section of your resume.
• How to properly  format your resume  to appease the ATS filters, including what sections to include or omit.
• How to talk about your work experience and personal projects to convincingly appeal to technical and non-technical audiences.
• How to customize your resume for each job to which you apply (it’s easier than it sounds).

Software engineer skills for resume

The skills section is a vital part of your software engineer resume. This will make or break whether you get through the first phase of the resume review, aka the dreaded ATS scan.

Your  resume’s skills section  shouldn’t be a laundry list of frameworks and programming languages. Especially don’t try to include what you wouldn’t be comfortable coding; just reading about Java is not enough to have it in your skills section.

The worst thing that can happen is that you claim knowledge of a programming language and then can’t answer basic questions about that language in an interview. It’s much better to have true expertise in one programming language than to claim knowledge of 10 different languages.

Good hiring companies know that quality engineers can learn new frameworks as needed. So, it’s a big red flag if you list every programming language under the sun.

There are a few options for organizing your skills section on your resume. First, you can organize them by your proficiency level. You can use categorizations like “Advanced” vs. “Familiar” or “Expert” vs. “Working Knowledge.”

Skills organized by proficiency

Or you can organize them by the type of skill you’re discussing. So you can separate the programming languages you know, the frameworks, the tools, and the databases you’ve used.

Skills organized by skill type

Finally, you can list the programming languages you know and include the frameworks associated with that language you’ve used. You can also list your years of experience with that language. This is useful for recruiters, but it can take up a lot of space on your resume, so make sure your resume format allows for an extended skills section.

Skills organized by years of experience

Software engineer resume format

Threading the needle of making your resume ATS-readable, HR-readable, and technical-hiring-manager-readable is not an easy task. So, try to quantify your achievements without getting too in the weeds (while also not being too broad).

General formatting tips

The most important  resume formatting  tip that you should internalize is making your resume one page long, maximum. Recruiters spend, on average, only  six seconds reviewing your resume . They’re not going to read a several-page resume.

Here are the quick hits for how to properly format your resume:

• Keep it to one page.
• Avoid long paragraphs of text to make it readable.
• Bullet points should be self-contained, complete ideas.
• Keep your tenses consistent. Refer to old roles and projects in the past and refer to your current position in the present.
• Avoid pronouns like “I” or “we.”
• Check for grammar and spelling errors . Don’t let this be the reason you don’t get the job!

It’s tough to fit all of your projects and work accomplishments on a single page, but remember, you’re more than your resume. Recruiters understand this and know if a resume looks good initially, they can ask more questions in the interview.

Your goal with your resume isn’t just to include your best talking points; it’s also to make the life of the person reviewing it as easy as possible. Make sure you don’t have long paragraphs of text so it’s easier to read. Break up your would-be paragraphs into singular ideas that are more appealing to the reader.

Bad bullet point formatting

Designed and built out the backend for a client application that enabled users to build their own recipe books. Used Angular on the front-end and NodeJS on the back-end. Working closely with product managers, scaled this application to 200,000 users and generated annual revenue of $1.4M. (If you’re still reading this, then well done, because it’s far too long.)

Good bullet point formatting

• Designed and built out the back-end for a client application that enabled users to build recipe books.
• Used Angular on the front-end and NodeJS on the back-end. Working closely with product managers, scaled this application to 200,000 users and generated annual revenue of $1.4M.

Your bullet points should be self-contained, so you don’t need periods after each point. Within your bullet points, make sure your verb tenses are consistent (past tense is preferable).

Also, we’d recommend avoiding singular pronouns, so don’t use “I” or “we.” They waste time and look unprofessional, so don’t include them. For example, instead of saying, “I worked on building the back-end for a project,” you should say, “Worked on building the back-end for a project.” There are plenty of ways to avoid saying “I.”

Lastly, please  review all grammar and spelling . Don’t give recruiters or hiring managers an easy excuse for someone to put you into the “no” pile. Too many great software engineers don’t  check their resumes  and leave typos and punctuation errors.

Contact information and title

Your name should be the first thing on your resume, and it should be listed in a bigger font. Directly underneath it, you should include a title. This title should always be the job for which you’re applying. So, if your current title is “software engineer” and you’re applying for a senior engineering role, your title should be “senior software engineer.” After your title, include your contact information, including:

• City and zip code (you don’t need to give your specific address)
• Email address (make sure it sounds professional and includes your name)
• Telephone number
• LinkedIn profile URL
• GitHub profile URL
• Personal website (if you have one)

And although you know already to review your resume for typos,  triple-check your contact section  for anything that’s incorrect. We once had a great engineer misspell his email here, and although he was a great fit for the role to which he was applying, the company couldn’t contact him, so he didn’t get an interview!

This may seem like a lot of information to include, but you can make it compact. Here’s a great example:

What you include in the education section of your resume will vary depending on whether you’re applying for an entry-level software engineering role or a more senior role.

Regardless of your seniority, you should always include the school you attended, the year you graduated, and your major. If you had a minor or a specific concentration, include that.

If you’re applying for anything  other  than an entry-level role, that’s all you should include in your education section. Why? Because real estate is valuable on a resume, and your work experience and projects will convey more about your qualification than your GPA or college courses.

Suppose you’re  applying for a software engineering internship  or  looking for your first full-time role . In that case, your education section will be more expansive to accurately convey your qualifications. Plus, you’ll want to mention relevant courses to the role for which you’re applying. For software engineering roles, this means any classes related to software engineering. Took a databases class? Completed an algorithm design course? You get the idea.

If you want to include your GPA, make sure it’s above a 3.2. Otherwise, leave it out.

Entry-Level Software Engineer Education

Senior Software Engineer Education

Software engineer resume summary

Unless it’s done exceptionally well, we strongly recommend that you don’t include a  resume summary  or objective on your software engineer resume. Why? Because they rarely, if ever, convey meaningful information to the person reviewing your resume. Let’s break down a typical objective statement:

Sample software engineer resume objective

I have 3+ years of experience, and I’m looking to leverage my Django expertise to work on challenging problems as a Senior Software Engineer.

There isn’t anything new in this objective. Their 3+ years of experienceand Django expertise should be demonstrated in their work experience. There’s no customization for the specific job, and it’s far too short.

Remember, recruiters typically only look at your resume for six seconds. Don’t make them waste precious time on anything that doesn’t demonstrate new information about why you’re a great fit for the role.

Anything unique to your situation or circumstance (for example, you’re undergoing a career change) should be discussed when creating a cover letter . You can elaborate on what you’re looking for in your next role without the constraint of space.

Work experience

Your work experience section is, without a doubt, the most important section on your resume. This is where a resume reviewer spends most of their time and attention. It’s here that they’ll decide whether they want to move you onto the first stage of the interview process. So, this is not the place to be humble. Show off the good work you’ve done.

If you’re a junior developer, this section will be shorter (in favor of a longer “Projects” section). If you have two-plus years of work experience, this should take up the majority of the space on your resume.

So how do you talk about your work experience convincingly? The key is to  be specific  and  quantify the impact of your work  whenever possible.

Developers rarely work in complete isolation, especially at larger companies. So you must tease out what you did specifically on each project. If you worked as part of a team to turn a multi-page web app into a single-page app, and you were in charge of re-designing the back-end infrastructure for the new app, talk about that specifically.

Good work experience description

Architected the new back-end in Ruby to change multi-page primary product into a single-page app, resulting in $1.2M in annual incremental revenue.

Bad work experience description

The team changed our primary product from a multi-page app to a single-page app, resulting in $1.2M in annual incremental revenue.

Notice that when talking about your actual work, you want to be specific about your particular role. However, when talking about the project’s impact, you can talk about the overall effect that the team had.

Again, quantify the impact of the projects you worked on whenever possible. Businesses hire engineers to move the company forward, and the best way to demonstrate you can do that is to show you’ve had a measurable impact in your past roles.   Rough estimates of impact are okay if you don’t have exact numbers; just be reasonable and logical in your assessments.

Here are some other ways you can try to quantify your work:

• Reduced downtime by X%
• Improved the speed of the application by X%
• Implemented a product feature that improved customer retention by X%
• Improved customer satisfaction (as measured by NPS) by X%
• Built a feature that improved click-through rate by X%
• Scaled a product that successfully handled X concurrent users
• Automated a process that saved X hours of manual labor each week
• Improved a product feature that increased usage by X%
• Worked on a project that led to a cost savings of $X
• Implemented unit tests that improved test coverage by X%
• Fixed a bug that reduced customer complaints by X%  

The formula for discussing your work experience is “my specific contribution to a project” + “the overall quantitative impact.” This describes the same work experience, just in different ways.

Let’s look at an example of this in action to see how effective it is.

Good: Specific contribution plus quantitative impact

Bad: Vague description and no quantitative impact

Software engineer resume projects

The size of your projects section on your software engineer resume should be directly tied to your seniority level when applying for a developer job. The more junior your role, the more space you should allocate to your projects.

If you have more than two years of experience, you should only list one project of which you’re especially proud. Most of your resume should be composed of what you did in your previous jobs.

Try to talk about your projects in the same way you would talk about your work experience. The goal of your projects is to demonstrate your technical skills in context. Show how you used a language or framework to build something that satiated your curiosity or solved a problem.

Your projects should give more color to your skills section. While it’s great to say you know Ruby, it’s even better to say how you built the back-end of your movie recommendation engine in Ruby. Anyone can list a skill on their resume, but showing how you used that skill demonstrates even stronger mastery of that skill.

If you worked on substantial coding projects during school, you should include them here. When possible, always include the projects you’ve listed on your resume in your Github profile or on your personal website.

Here’s the format of how you should talk about your projects on your resume:

• Describe the problem you were trying to solve and how you solved it at a high level. In the example above, “Built an Android app to allow party-goers to vote on what song should play next.”
• Next, discuss some technical details in either one or two bullet points.

Again, you’re trying to demonstrate two things to a hiring manager with your projects. First, you want to give context to the skills you list on your resume. Next, you want to show that you can identify a problem and then implement a solution to solve that problem.

Interests & hobbies

If you have a bit of extra space and have a hobby or interest that might interest employers, you should include it. Some companies appreciate personality, so this would be the place to highlight that.

Customize your resume for each job

We know, we know; customizing your resume is tedious. But we have some good news! You don’t have to overhaul your resume for each job to which you apply. You will likely have to change one or two bullet points on your resume for each application.

Read the  software engineer job description  for the job to which you’re applying. Do any particular projects you’ve worked on or languages you’ve used come to mind when reading it? Those should absolutely be included in the resume you submit for that role.

Now, let’s say you’re applying for the following role:

Clearly, they want an engineer who has experience developing APIs. So, instead of just one bullet talking about my experience building out APIs, you should allocate two to three bullet points to my work.

When customizing your resume for each job you apply for, be sure to expand on the work experience or projects you’ve worked on that are especially relevant to the position at hand.

How to write an effective software developer resume

Here are the major takeaways you should keep in mind when  writing a professional resume :

• Keep your resume to one page.
• Proofread your resume  multiple times  to avoid any grammar or spelling errors.
• If you’re applying for an entry-level role, mention any relevant college courses. Otherwise, don’t let your education section take up a lot of space.
• Unless you tailor it, you don’t need a summary or objective section on your resume.
• Only include skills for which you’d be comfortable being interviewed.
• Always mention your specific contribution and quantify the overall project’s impact on the business.
• If you’re applying for an entry-level role, talk about any personal coding projects you worked on.

Remember, the goal of this resume is to get your foot in the door. Once you get that first phone interview, your skills and personality will surely shine through.

Applying to new jobs can be daunting, but one of the most complex and most confusing parts is now over. You’ve done the research, and you’re ready to  write your resume ! You can use our free  AI resume builder  to start your resume from scratch or a template, and our  free resume checker  uses AI-powered tips to suggest improvements and resolve errors.

You’ve got the knowledge; now go land your dream job!

5 Rules for Writing a Software Engineer Resume That Will Get You Hired (Plus Example)

Software engineers are in high demand, so there’s no shortage of opportunities for people with the right skills. But just because you know how to design cloud solutions or build server-side web applications doesn’t mean you’ll instantly have scores of interviews lined up the minute you decide to look for a new job. You’re going to need to write a great resume first.

“A great software engineer resume should have a clear narrative about who you are as an employee,” says Peenak Inamdar, Director of Engineering at The Muse. “For example, are you great at execution, are you a self-starter, do you thrive in ambiguously defined roles, or are you a pinch hitter for your skill set?” Beyond simply listing your work history, your resume should capture the full breadth of your experience as it relates to the roles you’re pursuing, thus painting a fuller picture of what you bring to the table. Here’s how to do it.

1. Customize the User (or Reader) Experience

Most candidate applications will pass through an applicant tracking system (ATS) before they reach a pair of human eyes. These programs scan each resume submitted for a job posting in search of relevant keywords to determine whether a candidate’s skills are a match for the job. If your resume is devoid of relevant terms, the ATS will probably reject your application—even if you have the right experience. So for starters, you’ll want to incorporate as many job-specific and industry-specific keywords as possible, notes Muse career coach Steven Davis, owner of Renaissance Solutions Inc. , a coaching and recruiting agency specializing in software engineering, product manager, and project manager opportunities.

Beyond that, “Try to tailor your resume to the specific job posting where possible,” Inamdar says. “Hiring managers will compare the narrative of your resume to their role to determine whether your experience is compatible.” Think: What does the recruiter or hiring manager need to know about your experience in order to understand that you’re qualified?

So as you read through a job description, take note of the skills, responsibilities, languages, and programs mentioned and remember: If you have experience with anything listed, it belongs on your resume.

On the flip side, try to avoid including skills or experiences that don’t apply. “Utilizing words or descriptions that don’t match job requirements” is one of the biggest mistakes software engineers make when drafting their resumes, according to Davis.

Relevant keywords will vary from one specialty, company, or job posting to the next, but here are a few to get you started, depending on your area of expertise:

Front-End Development Keywords

• Back-End Data Display
• Collaborate with Back-End Developers
• Collaborate with Web Designers
• Create Web Pages
• Current Web Trends
• Dynamic Web Page Design
• Framework Templates
• Search Engine Optimization
• Software Workflow
• Styling and Color Design
• User Interface
• UX (User Experience)
• Website Content Display
• Website Navigation Optimization

Back-End Development Keywords

• Application Scaling
• Back-End Framework
• Back-End Programming Language
• Database Administration
• Front-End Web Technologies
• Hosting Environment
• Load Changes
• Security Compliance
• Version Control (e.g. Git)

Web Development Keywords

• Agile Software Development
• Application Code
• Command Lines
• Continuous Integration
• DevOps Practices
• Front-End Systems
• LAMP Development
• Object-Oriented Design
• Responsive Design
• Server-Side Scripting
• Version Control Systems
• Writing Modules

2. Feature Your Technical Know-How

Software engineers rely on specific programs, systems, and languages to perform their jobs, so recruiters will be especially interested in the technical skills section of your resume. That means it’s well worth investing some serious time and effort into creating a detailed technical skills section. “When I’m reviewing a candidate’s resume, I want to see how the technologies they’ve listed align with what we use. Does their technical experience mesh well with where we are as a company?” Inamdar says.

Breaking this portion of your resume down into more specific subsections will make it easier for recruiters and hiring managers to spot the specific skills they’re looking for (check out the example resume below to see this in action), so before you sit down to write your resume, make a list of the specific systems, methodologies, and platforms you’ve worked with, and note your corresponding level of expertise in each (e.g. are you fluent in JavaScript? Familiar with AngularJS? An expert in Python?). Bonus points if you’ve attended a training course or earned a certification!

Need a few examples? Davis has you covered. “Front-end developers should include frameworks such as Angular or React, back-end developers need to highlight their knowledge of the inner workings of web applications and server-side buildouts, and full-stack engineers should mention their use of Node.js or Serverless.” Davis also has a reminder for full-stack engineers: “It’s imperative to include experience with both front-end and back-end development.”

Again, tailoring your resume for each job description is crucial—especially as you’re drafting your technical skills section.

3. Be Specific About Your Accomplishments

“A great software engineer resume will demonstrate quantifiable success in areas like designing and delivering cloud solutions [or] using the latest technologies and development methodologies in DevOps, or [they’ll show their] experience with microservices, Lean, Agile, Serverless, containerization, and cloud platforms,” Davis says. Describing your experience using specific details (like the type of project, the technologies used, or the type of client) and outcomes (like a completed website design, successful application launch, or a % decrease in code churn) will help to bring your resume to life and help recruiters better understand how your experience fits into the opening they’re looking to fill.

“Make it a priority to provide context and highlight not just what your skills are, but when and how you applied them,” Inamdar explains. “If you know Scrum, when did you use it? If you’re an expert in Python, at which job did you use that language?”

So instead of writing a bland bullet point like “responsible for delivering end-to-end solutions using cloud-native platforms,” you could craft something much more compelling, like “leveraged architectural expertise in Kubernetes cloud-native platform to deliver mature end-to-end solutions for 20 unique internal applications teams.”

Notice how the second example includes details about the platform this candidate uses (Kubernetes), who they’re developing solutions for (internal applications teams), and the scope of their responsibilities (20 separate teams). Incorporating key details, technologies, or quantifiable metrics wherever possible will help your resume stand out.

Try using the below formula to craft bullet points that will paint a more detailed picture of your experience.

• Action Verb + Job Duty + Key Details (e.g. technologies used or % increase) = Outcome

4. Choose the Right Layout

“It’s important to choose a resume layout that allows you to create a narrative that’s easy for the reader to follow. They should quickly be able to understand what you’re looking for and what your experience is,” Inamdar advises. So unless you’re making a major career pivot (more on that below), a traditional chronological layout is probably the way to go. Recruiters tend to favor chronological resumes because they’re straightforward and easy to follow.

Similarly, avoid design elements that will make your resume hard to scan—either by a computer or by a person. “Too much formatting makes your resume less searchable,” Inamdar says. For example, some ATSs have issues parsing columns and will read them straight across. Meanwhile, an overly flashy design may make it hard for even a human to quickly pick out the information they want from your resume.

Dividing your resume into clear sections (like education, experience, and technical skills) will also make a recruiter’s job easier. “Keep the formatting as simple as possible and avoid using fonts that are hard to read,” Inamdar says. “The focus should be on your work history and your skills.”

If you’re feeling nervous about getting past the ATS but want to show off your design chops, consider creating an online portfolio that you can link out to from your resume. Check out Alex Motzenbecker or Joe Laquinte’s portfolios for two good examples.

5. Remember the Basic Framework of Resume Design

No matter what your specialties are or where you are in your career, there are a few tried and true resume writing rules you’ll want to keep in mind as you draft your own.

Try to keep it to a single page. Most recruiters prefer resumes that are tailored and to the point. So unless you have decades of experience, a single-page resume should suffice. Streamlining the content of your resume to reflect the job posting you’re applying to and keeping the focus on your most recent experience should help you to keep your word count down.

Call out your key achievements. If you’ve worked on multiple projects throughout your tenure at a particular job, you might want to consider creating a key achievements subsection. This helps you highlight the projects you’re most proud of—and the ones that are most relevant to the position. You’ll see this in action on the sample resume below.

Don’t forget to edit. Your resume is a reflection of your skills and qualifications, so you’ll want to make sure it’s perfect before you click submit. Be sure to proofread every draft of your resume—even if you’re positive it’s error-free. You may also want to enlist a friend, family member, or colleague to give it a read, too!

If You’re New to the Field or Making a Pivot

If you’ve never technically worked as a software engineer, but recently earned a computer science degree or completed a robust training program (like a coding bootcamp ), you can still create a stellar resume. You’ll just need to make a few minor tweaks to the traditional format.

Write a Summary

When executed properly, summaries can serve to bridge the gap between your past experience, recent training, and future goals, helping recruiters to better understand how your skills might translate into the role you’re hoping to land. Here’s how it might all come together:

Creative, technical, design-savvy recent coding program graduate fluent in HTML, JavaScript, and CSS. Excited to blend graphic design experience with hands-on technical training in a junior-level front-end software engineering role.

Be Consistent

In addition to writing a strong resume with a focus on your most transferable skills, you’ll want to be sure you also have an updated LinkedIn profile and corresponding cover letter . “If someone is making a career pivot, I want to see consistency,” Inamdar says. “I’ll always look at their cover letter for additional context.”

Emphasize Your Education

If you don’t have much (or any) direct professional experience to speak of, your education, training, and technical skills will be especially important. So you’ll want to be sure that it stands out. Creating detailed “Education and Training” and “Technical Skills” sections and featuring them prominently toward the top of your resume will help highlight your transferable qualifications.

Play Up Your Projects

Remember that the projects you’ve completed in school totally count. You might want to consider creating a dedicated “Software Engineering Projects” section (below your education and technical skills sections) to detail your experience designing a website, coding with JavaScript, or building a web server while you were in school.

Think Outside the Box About What’s Relevant

“If you’re a career switcher, don’t feel like you need to hide your past work experience—whatever it might be,” Inamdar says. “The skills you’ve already learned are an asset because it means your next employer won’t need to teach you.” So for example, if you’ve worked as an administrative assistant before going to a coding bootcamp, don’t be shy about hiding your relevant responsibilities. “If you’ve done lots of planning or project execution, call it out. Be proud of it. Don’t bury it,” Inamdar advises.

Weigh Your Layout Options

Finally, if you’re making a career pivot, you might want to consider an alternative layout (maybe a combination or functional resume ), as these formats take the focus off of your chronological work experience while giving you the flexibility to feature your most relevant experience most prominently. One caveat, though: Recruiters and hiring managers tend to prefer more traditional chronological layouts, so there are tradeoffs to using an alternative. You can read up on the pros and cons of every option here .

Now for an Example

Whether you’re a front-end, back-end, or full-stack software engineer, you’ll want to be sure that your resume hits the right points.

As you read through the below example, make note of the relevant keywords, detailed technical skills and education sections, quantified experience, and clearly defined sections. You’ll also notice that this candidate has included external links to projects they’ve worked on and to their website. This can be a great way to showcase your creativity and accomplishments without adding length or design elements to your resume.

While your finished product might feature a different layout, focus, or specialty, it should still include the same basic building blocks.

Download an example software engineer resume

Your resume is a reflection of your experience, expertise, and creativity, so investing time and energy into getting it right is sure to pay off. Remember, tailoring your resume to reflect the job description, incorporating relevant keywords, and getting specific about the details of your experience will serve to strengthen your resume and ultimately help you land your next job.

Watch related employer videos:

Software Engineer Resume [2024] - Example + How-to Guide

You’re a software engineer. You use your talents to build the future.

Well, once you get the job.

There’s one thing in your way:

The huge pile of other resumes sitting on the recruiter’s desk.

It’s time to make your talents stand out.

In this guide, we take you through a step-by-step process to creating a software engineer resume that gets results.

• An example of a finished software engineer resume that works
• How to write a software engineer resume that’ll fill up your interview diary
• How to make your software engineer resume stand out [with top tips & tricks]

For some inspiration, here’s a software engineer resume example, created with our very own online resume builder :

Looks good, right?! Now it’s time to create your own.

Besides the software engineer resume example, we've got a bunch more examples for professionals in the computer science field:

• Java Developer Resume
• Web Developer Resume
• Computer Science Resume
• Artificial Intelligence Engineer Resume
• Engineering Resume
• Data Scientist Resume
• Data Analyst Resume
• Data Entry Resume

How to Format a Software Engineer Resume

Now, before you can highlight your talents, you need to format your resume correctly. 

Your resume should be easy to read and not be hard work for the recruiter to skim through. 

The “reverse-chronological” resume format  is the most commonly used format, and we can see why. It positions your top talents at the top of your resume, so the recruiter can immediately see your value proposition.

These software engineering resume formats also get our approval…

• Functional Resume – If you have strong software engineering skills, but a small amount of work experience, this resume format is recommended
• Combination Resume – The final format combines both “Functional” and “Reverse-Chronological” formats. As such, it is ideal for software engineers who have skills AND work experience.

Once you’ve chosen your format, you need to organize your resume layout .

Use a Software Engineer Resume Template

Word is a great application for creating documents.

Creating a resume with text editors is a different story all together!

This is due to formatting issues.

In fact, there’s a chance your entire layout will fall apart as you make alterations. 

Want to skip any formatting issues? Use a software engineer resume template .

What to Include in a Software Engineering Resume

The main sections in a software engineering resume are:

• Work Experience
• Contact Information

Want to go a step further? You can also add these optional sections:

• Awards & Certification

Interests & Hobbies

But wait – what should you write for each of these sections? 

Read on to learn how.

Want to know more about resume sections? View our guide on What to Put on a Resume .

How to Correctly Display your Contact Information

Now, this section doesn’t need any creativity, but it must be factually correct. 

Play close attention to this section – the last thing you want is an impressed recruiter who wants to interview you, but can’t contact you!

The contact information section must include:

• Title – Align this to the job description, which is “Software Engineer”
• Phone Number – Check this multiple times
• Email Address – Use a professional email address ([email protected]), not your childhood email ([email protected])
• (Optional) Location - Applying for a job abroad? Mention your location.
• Lauren Hill - Software Engineer. 101-358-6095. [email protected]
• Lauren Hill - Ninja Software Engineer. 101-358-6095. [email protected]

How to Write a Software Engineer Resume Summary or Objective

Here’s a shocking fact for you –

Recruiters spend less than 6 seconds on each resume .

With hundreds of resumes to get through, it’s no surprise that recruiters simply glance over resumes looking for the most important information. 

As such, you want to make the most important information clear to see.

The best way to do this is via a resume summary or objective , which are snappy paragraphs that go on top of your resume.

Their purpose is to quickly highlight why you are the best candidate for the software engineering job. They can be seen as a “small preview” to the rest of your resume.

But what is the difference between the two sections?

A resume summary is a 2-4 sentence summary of your professional experiences and achievements.

• Experienced software engineer with a strong background in developing award-winning strategies for a diverse clientele. 12+ years of industry experience includes leading large engineering teams to achieve concrete goals on a strict deadline. Strong skills include Database management and MySQL, .NET and Java.

A resume objective is a 2-4 sentence snapshot of what you want to achieve professionally.

• Motivated software engineer looking to pursue a successful career in software development at Company X, where I can help in the delivery of state-of-the-art software solutions. Experience includes coding, troubleshooting, and testing for my own personal projects while at University X. Relevant skills include PHP, Data Structures, Machine Learning, and Debugging.

So, which one is best for your situation, summary or objective?

Generally, we recommend experienced software engineers go with a summary. If you have the skills but lack the industry experience, you should choose a resume objective (graduates, career changers, or those still studying).

How to Make Your Software Engineer Work Experience Stand Out

Recruiters want to know that you can do the job, and do the job well. The easiest way to instil confidence in the recruiter is with your work experience.

Here’s how we recommend you structure your work experience section:

• Position name
• Company Name
• Responsibilities & Achievements

Software Engineer

ElectronicsX

03/2017 - 07/2020

• Built an ecommerce site integrated with multiple payment APIs for a 32% in company revenue
• Developed new infrastructure to easily handle over a million client files 
• Consistently achieved 100% compliance with industry best practices
• Reduced security breaches by 84%

To separate your resume from the competition, you should highlight your top achievements. Doing so will allow the recruiter to see the obvious benefits in hiring you.

Instead of saying:

“In charge of infrastructure”

“Developed new infrastructure to easily handle over a million client files”

Simply put, the first statement doesn’t say much.

This is in direct comparison with the second statement that shows how your work benefited the company greatly. Hard numbers that prove your skills – can’t argue with that!

What if You Don’t Have Work Experience?

Not everyone will have a wealth of work experience.

Maybe you’re a graduate looking for your first engineering job?

The question is how to tackle this part of your resume when you have no experience.  

The answer –

Talk about your internship experience, volunteering work, or any achievements at your place of education. 

You can even create a portfolio of your own work!

There are several ways to build a portfolio (and even get paid for it):

• Pick up some relevant freelance gigs on UpWork
• Start you own software project as a side-hustle

Are you recent engineering graduate? Make sure to check out our student resume guide!

Use Action Words to Make Your Software Engineer Resume POP!

…are all common words that the recruiter sees time and time again.

However, you don’t want your resume to resume the competition, which means you should use power words to make your achievements stand out:

• Conceptualized
• Spearheaded

B.A. in Software Engineering

The University of Chicago

2012 - 2016

• Relevant Courses : Software Engineering Project, Distributed Systems Development, Information Systems Modelling, Specification of Software Systems, Software Evolution, Software Quality, Agile Methods

Now, you may need more information. If so, here are the answers to some of the most frequent questions that we get:

What if I haven’t completed education yet?

• Regardless of whether you’re an engineering graduate or still studying, you should still mention every year of education to date

Should I include my high school education?

• Generally, only include your highest form of education. Therefore, include your high school education if you don’t have a relevant degree in engineering

What do I put first, my education or experience?

• Experiences are the priority, so those go first. If you’re a recent graduate, you will likely need to start with education

Need more information? Check out our guide on how to list education on a resume .

Top 10 Skills for a Software Engineer Resume

Your software engineer resume must do one thing—

Show that you’ll do a better job than the other candidates.

But how can you do this? 

Well, by highlighting the right software engineer skills on a resume.  

This is done by looking at the job description, and then comparing the skills needed with the skills you already have.

Put all relevant skills on your resume. Here are the most commonly used skills for a software engineer resume:

Hard Skills for a Software Engineer:

• Data Structures
• Machine Learning
• Web Development

Soft Skills for a Software Engineer:

• Creative Thinking
• Communication
• Time-Management
• Team Player
• Try to sprinkle your skills throughout the document, not just in the skills section. You can drop some of your skills in the resume summary, education section, and work experience section.

Here’s a more comprehensive list of 101+ must-have skills this year .

What Else Can You Include?

That’s all of the essentials covered.

But ask yourself one question –

Does your resume stand out ?! 

The above sections should be enough to get you onto the shortlist, but adding some extra sections could be the deciding factor between you and another candidate.  

Awards & Certifications

Have you won an award for your engineering work?

Have you completed any courses that improve your skills?

If you have any awards or certifications, be sure to list them in your resume!

Here’s an example:

Awards & Certificates

• “Advance Software Engineering” - Coursera Certificate
• “Critical Thinking Masterclass” - MadeUpUniversity

Even though you will unlikely need to speak an alternative language in your job, the skill is still impressive to any recruiter. As such, feel free to add a language section if you have space.

Rank the languages by proficiency:

• Intermediate

Now, you’ll probably thinking, “why is my love of fishing relevant to the job application?”

Well, listing your hobbies allows the recruiter to get to know who you are.

They can also show that you’ll be a good part of the team, especially if you enjoy social activities. 

Here’s which hobbies & interests you may want to mention.

Include a Cover Letter with Your Resume

Cover letters are just as important as they always have been.

You see, a cover letter instantly makes your application specific and more personal. 

Unlike a generic resume that has been sent to ten other companies, a cover letter shows the recruiter that you want to work for their company.

For a winning cover letter, you need the correct structure. Here’s what we recommend:

You should complete the following sections:

Personal Contact Information

Your full name, profession, email, phone number, location, and website (or Behance / Dribble).

Hiring Manager’s Contact Information

Full name, position, location, email

Opening Paragraph

As the recruiter will likely skim through your application, you need to win their attention within the first few sentences. Use concise language to mention:

• The position you’re applying for
• Your experience summary and best achievement to date

Now it’s onto the main body of the cover letter, where you should delve into the following specifics:

• Why you want to work for this specific company
• What you already know about the company
• How your engineering skills will help you to do the job
• Which similar positions have you held before

Closing Paragraph

To wrap up your cover letter, you should:

• Conclude the main points made in the body paragraph
• Thank the recruiter for the job opportunity
• Finish with a call to action that leaves the conversation open, such as “At your earliest opportunity, I’d love to discuss more about how I can help company X” will work

Formal Salutations

End the letter in a professional manner. Something like, “Kind regards” or “Sincerely.”

For more inspiration, read our step-by-step guide on how to write a cover letter .

Key Takeaways

Congratulations!

If you followed the advice above, you’re well on your way to landing that elusive software engineering role.

Before we go, let’s summarize the main points:

• Format your software engineer resume correctly. Use the reverse-chronological format, and then follow our layout recommendation
• Use a summary or objective at the top of your resume
• Highlight your achievements in your work experience section
• Make sure your portfolio is the best it can be. If you don’t have one, think about getting one
• Include a convincing cover letter to separate you from the competition

Suggested Reading:

• Guide to Green Careers - All You Need to Know
• How to Answer “What Is Your Greatest Strength” [4 Samples]
• Why Should We Hire You - 10+ Best Answers

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How to write an effective developer resume: Advice from a hiring manager

Based on reviewing hundreds of resumes per year and researching a book, here are the seven pieces of advice for engineers on writing a resume that represents you as fairly as possible.

In an ideal world, you wouldn’t need a resume. You’d have a recruiter reach out to you along the lines of: “Your ex-colleague Bob spoke extremely highly of your time working at Stack Overflow. Our company is growing, and we’d love to talk with you. Do you have time to chat with a few members of the team next Wednesday?”

However, in reality, you will, at some point, find yourself applying at a company where Bob is not there to vouch for you, so you cannot skip through the process of being evaluated before the team will talk to you.

I’ve been a hiring manager for numerous companies and typically go through hundreds of resumes per year. I’ve also researched the topic of writing a developer resume that represents you well while writing the book The Tech Resume Inside Out: What a Good Developer Resume Looks Like . For the book, I ended up talking with two dozen recruiters and hiring managers at the likes of Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Transferwise, and other well-known companies.

Based on that experience, here are the seven pieces of advice that I give to engineers on writing a resume that represents you as fairly as possible.

Know what the goal of your resume is

Many engineers assume their resume should just contain highlights of their employment history. They’ve seen other people’s LinkedIn profiles and seen a few resumes. Most of these look like this, and companies must be interested in what you did. Right?

The goal of your resume is to sell you enough to get a recruiter phone call and continue the process. This is a very different goal from telling your entire professional story. Your goal should be to showcase to the company why you’re a good fit for the position they are recruiting for.

This means highlighting parts of your resume that show you being a great match for a specific position. Tuning it to fit the opening might be as simple as changing the order of things or adding specific details that only this position might find interesting. When you have lots of experience, this might mean cutting less relevant parts short and leaving irrelevant things off.

Use an easy-to-scan template

Here’s how a typical hiring manager and recruiter will read your resume:

1. Quick scan. They’ll do a short scan of a few seconds, gathering all key information. Your location, years of experience, languages and technologies, position names, company names, and anything else that stands out.

2. Second read. Assuming this first scan matches what they’re looking for, they’ll re-read your resume, top to bottom, reading the content you wrote. However, if, in the quick scan, it didn’t seem that you have what the position needs, there will be no second read.

You should choose a resume format that helps highlight the key information the recruiter or hiring manager looks for in that first scan. A good resume template follows these principles:

• Single column, allowing for easy top-to-bottom reading.
• Dates, position name, and company name are all separated. Dates are easy to scan, top-to-bottom.
• Your location and languages/technologies are easy to find.

Why bother spending the time finding a good template? The less effort it is for a recruiter to get the key information in the quick scan, the more time they’ll have to look at other parts of your resume. Here’s a resume template you could use—I created this template for the book, and it satisfies all the above requirements. Of course, there are many others to choose from, and you can also design your own.

Structure: relevant things first

The recruiter or hiring manager will read your resume top to bottom. You’ll want the most relevant parts to be at the top and less relevant ones towards the bottom. When you have lots of experience, it’s fine to go beyond just one page: just make sure that everything relevant is still on the first page.

When you’re a new grad or bootcamp grad , hiring managers usually care about experience in this order:

• Real-world experience, if you have any, including internships.
• Contribution to real-world projects: e.g., open-source projects.
• Details about your education.
• Projects that stand out for a reason or another. Things that go beyond “Hello, world."
• Tutoring and leadership positions in student groups.

When you have work experience , the way a recruiter reads your resume changes. Here is what will be most relevant:

• Work experience: current company and title.
• Languages and technologies that you are proficient with.
• Education details: these become less relevant over time. With a few years’ experience, they can still be good indicators. After multiple jobs or decades, consider moving this lower down.
• Extracurricular things like patents, publications, talks, and standout open source contributions.
• Certifications. This one is interesting. Companies hiring for generalists don’t usually care, especially if it’s not an industry-wide recognized certification. Agencies and more “traditional” companies could give it some weight, though.
• Personal projects. The more experience you have, the less important these become. Standout contributions, especially to popular projects, could be an exception. Still, they rarely weigh more than your work experience.
• Interests: these can be a starting point for the conversation on an onsite interview, and they make your resume more personal.

With lots of work experience , you start to stand out from the crowd of applicants. At the same time, you’ll probably have more experience than would fit on a page or two. In this case, a one-page resume is no longer a must-have, but you’ll want to be more concise in your earlier experience: especially when that experience is not as relevant. Here’s the order you could consider structuring your resume:

• A summary section, briefly describing the standout part of your experience and what the company would get with you. Tailor this one for the job. With more experience, recruiters and hiring managers are far more likely to pay attention to this.
• Work experience: cut down on the older ones. Aim to tell a story of your career progression. You might even decide to drop old positions when they are not supporting your story.
• Education: a brief mention, at the end of your resume. You can safely remove all details—such as GPA, extracurricular activities—except for the fact of any degree you might have.

It can feel painful to cut away some of your experience from your resume. But keep in mind your goal: it’s to have that recruiter call. I collaborated with a systems administrator turned developer who had 20 years of experience. Ten years ago, they went back to college to get a computer science degree. Their original resume had all 20 years of experience listed: non-CS degree, ten years working as a systems admin, CS degree, ten years as a developer. The first ten years did not add much professionally to their resume: they ended up removing this, but still keeping their first, non-CS degree there. The new resume was cleaner, and they saw more callbacks with it.

While you don’t need to remove old positions, you should aim to reduce detail mentions significantly, except if they would add something very valuable for your current job application.

Keep regional and cultural differences in mind as you craft your resume. For example, in most of the US, a one-page resume is the norm for developers with less than a few years’ experience. Even more senior people aim to fit everything important on the first page. In most of Europe, resumes of two pages are common, and some hiring managers actually prefer to read longer resumes for senior people. Whatever the length, make sure you communicate the relevant parts first. Use the space wisely, elaborating more on your experiences and results that relate to the position you are applying for.

Languages and technologies: be crisp on what you know

Positions hiring for generalist software engineers will want to see some evidence that you have worked with a few technologies. For these places, it’s a good sign if you’ve mastered multiple technologies. Positions hiring for specific technologies will want to confirm that you did meaningful work with those technologies.

There are a few ways you could make it clear what languages and technologies you are proficient with :

1. Have a separate section for “languages and technologies” on the first page of your resume.

In this section, list out areas you are proficient with. Don’t bother specifying your expertise level: the hiring manager will assume you know these well enough if you listed them. An example of this approach can look like this:

2. Call out languages and technologies that you used as part of your work experience.

An alternative to the previous approach is to mention the tools you used in each position. This gives more context on when you used these technologies or frameworks and what problems you solved using them. You could just list these out separately at the end of each position like this:

However, I recommend “weaving in” the languages and technologies to the description itself. This both reads better, and you can give even more context:

Standing out: results, impact, and numbers

One thing I wish more resumes had is specifics. The majority of CVs I’ve read tend to list responsibilities, what work was assigned, or have a hand-wavy explanation of the work. Here’s an example of a resume snippet that recruiters and hiring managers see all too commonly:

While the person writing these details probably felt they were showcasing the work they were doing—the hiring manager gets little to no context on the specifics of the work. To stand out, be specific. To be specific, follow this approach:

• Use numbers and quantify whatever you can. Numbers can be the number of users, service load numbers, number of customer support tickets you proactively resolved, and many others.
• Use active language that shows what you have done and how you have been proactive. For example, instead of stating “Fixing various bugs that improve the user experience” , you could use active language and more specifics and write “Reduced user reported defects by 50% after I identified and fixed root causes of the four most common user reports.” The first version reads more passive: “fixing” might be seen as “I was told to be fixing”. In the second version, you make it clear what it was that you did and the results you achieved.
• Mention specific languages and technologies where they make sense. This gives more context and makes your resume details more interesting as well.

Tailor your resume to the position

Having a “master” resume and tailoring it for every position you apply for is a great strategy. The tailoring doesn’t have to be drastic. However, if you are applying for a company where the job listing lists the stack as React and Node—and you have experience with these, among other languages—moving these up front could be a small change with a big impact. Similarly, if you’ve done work similar to what the position is asking for, having these bullet points listed first are all good ways to grab the attention of the person reading the resume earlier.

One last thing I need to call out, as developers seeking jobs bring it up: the application tracking systems (ATS), and robots “rejecting” your resume. This is false. Your resume will be read by a human. At tech companies, ATSes do not “reject” resumes , and “robot rejection” does not exist in tech. Be wary of any resource that claims this is true: they are probably using the tactic to create fear, uncertainty, and doubt as an incentive for you to buy their service. I’m saying this both as a hiring manager who has worked with ATSes and as an author who interviewed recruiters at all major tech companies. I asked them about robot rejections; they all confirmed that they have not seen or heard of such a practice.

Things that will help you beyond the resume

Applying for a job does not end with having a good resume. A few things can greatly help your job search: referrals, cover letters, LinkedIn, GitHub, and Stack Overflow.

Employee referrals are the best way to increase your chances of hearing back from a company. If you have a strong referral, much of the above becomes less relevant. How do you get a referral? You ask. Ask around in your network to see who is hiring. Ask on public forums where tech professionals gather like Twitter or LinkedIn—potentially even Blind. You can try and reach out for a cold referral: but if you do, add context on why you think you are a great fit for a job and offer an easy way out for the person to not refer you if they do not feel comfortable doing so.

Cover letters are a coin toss. For larger companies, these places usually either don’t ask for one, or don’t pay much attention to it. At smaller firms and startups, where hiring managers are likely to read resumes and cover letters, it’s a better investment to spend time on this. Keep it short, sweet, and relevant. Don’t repeat your resume: add additional details that make your case stronger as to why you are a good fit for the position you are applying to.

Even if you are not looking for a job today, invest in growing your professional network. The larger your network, the easier you can get referrals from people who know the professional “you." To grow your network, build genuine relationships with others, help people, and make yourself visible. You don’t have to do this on social media: you can start right now at your workplace, within and outside your team.

LinkedIn, GitHub, and Stack Overflow are all sites where having an up-to-date profile will greatly help your job search. Keep your LinkedIn up to date: it’s a good idea to refresh it as you write your resume. For GitHub, consider creating a GitHub README to present yourself and your key projects more effectively. Make sure projects you mention in your resume or those that you pin to your GitHub profile also have READMEs that share what the project is about. On Stack Overflow, tailor your Developer Story to make it easy for recruiters and hiring managers to find you with relevant opportunities.

For more advice, tips from recruiters in tech companies, and real-world “before” and “after” resume examples that worked, you can always grab The Tech Resume Inside Out . The book is complimentary for devs currently out of a job.

Good luck with writing your resume!

The Complete Software Engineer Resume Guide

Looking for a job as a software engineer? That’s exciting! Whether you’re changing careers  or just looking for your next job, this fast-growing industry offers career development opportunities galore. Plus, it can pay quite well .

With great pay and growth potential, the job hunt can be competitive. If you want a shot at a job interview, you need to know how to write a compelling software engineering resume, and you’ll want to create a web developer portfolio .  

Writing your first resume, or revamping your old one, can feel daunting. It doesn’t have to be complicated. We’ll walk you through the resume writing process step-by-step and give you plenty of software engineer resume examples. You won’t feel overwhelmed after reading this! 

In this complete guide, you’ll learn the following:

• Do software engineers even need a resume?

Step 1: Work out your structure

• Step 2: Gather your information

Step 3: Fill in your contact information

Step 4: add your three most relevant work experiences, step 5: list your education, step 6: include your skills.

• Step 7: Share your certifications and awards
• Step 8: List your software engineering projects

Step 9: Write your introductory statement

Step 10: proofread, mistakes to avoid when creating a software engineer resume, where to go for great software engineer resume templates.

Let’s start with the basics; why do you even need a resume? 

1. Do software engineers even need a resume?

Yes, software engineers need a resume. Many developers will tell you they’ve gotten multiple job offers with just a resume. Of course, they might not mention that they also had an active GitHub history, polished portfolio, or connection in the industry. But that’s beside the point.

The number one reason you need a resume to land a software engineering job is that almost every job you apply for will require you to have one. But secondly, your resume is how you’ll showcase your transferable skills . 

Even if you don’t have much experience with software engineering, you still need to create a software engineer resume. A compelling document with all your most relevant experience will showcase how you learned to code and the skills you can transfer to your new role.

You can also optimize your resume for applicant tracking systems (ATS)–but we’ll discuss that later. First, let’s learn how to create a software engineer’s resume that wins.

2. How to write a software engineer resume step-by-step

Okay, so we’re all on the same page now–you need a resume! But how do you write one? Buckle up! This is where we walk you through the resume writing process–one step at a time. 

This section may seem a bit long, but that’s because we’re going to go into every single part of your software engineer resume and make it as compelling as possible. Feel free to start writing your resume in another window while you read through each step. Learning while doing is often the most effective way! 

Resume layout (design) and copy (words) go hand-in-hand. If you don’t budget your words for the space you have, you won’t be able to fit it all on one page. It’s helpful to begin by choosing a resume template or layout. 

There are templates all over the internet for free that you can use! More on that later. If you don’t want to use a template, you can use the outline in Step 2 below to create your layout in a word processor, PDF maker, or graphic design tool. 

Step 2: Gather your information 

Before filling in your resume, open up a blank document or your notes app to gather the information you’ll need for your resume. If you’ve already optimized your LinkedIn for the job search, you might want to pull that up too. 

Here’s what you should include in your software engineer resume, from top to bottom: 

• Contact information
• Introduction paragraph
• Work experience
• Certifications and awards (optional)
• Projects (optional)

Here’s a software engineer resume example with a great layout from BeamJobs . There’s even enough room to include certifications and awards in the left-hand column!

Here’s what you need to include in this section: 

• First and last name 
• Job title, branding statement, or subtitle
• Email address
• Cell phone number
• LinkedIn profile
• Website (optional)
• Social media profiles (optional)
• Physical address (optional)

Your contact information is the simplest part of writing a resume. But it’s being analyzed by recruiters as much as the rest of what you’ve written. Here are some tips for making this section as small and effective as possible. 

Under your name, you can include a subtitle listing your current job title or a one-sentence personal description. If you don’t have a current job title, you can put the job title you’re looking for or a more creatively branded title. For example, you could put “Entry-Level Software Engineer” or “Skilled Full-Stack Developer.” 

Firstly, if you want to come across as professional, make sure your email address isn’t your old AOL email address. I’ll admit it! My email was [email protected] until I got to college. But I would never put that on a resume. Instead, my email is a polished version of my first and last name with no numbers. 

To save space, you don’t need to include your physical address unless you apply for a fully in-person job that favors locals. You don’t need to include your social media profiles unless you’re a thought leader in the industry. You can also omit your website if you don’t have a software engineer portfolio website .

Here’s what your resume contact information section might look like, courtesy of Resume Worded : 

When you think about writing your resume, this is probably what you imagined. This part will be easier if you’ve already optimized your LinkedIn for the job hunt. If you haven’t, budget some time to gather everything you need. 

Before you dive into writing this section, you will need the following: 

• A list of all of your relevant work experience (anything with transferable skills or software engineering)
• Data points from your jobs to demonstrate your achievements
• Information about your bootcamp, professional training program, or college (if you’re new to software development)

Once you have these items, you can start with the basics. Pick your top three-to-five most relevant experiences. Format each job on your list to reflect the structure outlined below.  

Here’s how to structure each of your experiences: 

• Job title – bolded
• Company name and the location where you worked – standard text
• Dates of employment – italicized

Keep your structure consistent throughout your resume. There’s no right or wrong way to choose whether you’ll abbreviate. But if you abbreviate one state you worked in, abbreviate them all. If you spelled out the entire month of your employment, spell out every month. 

Next, list them chronologically, beginning with your most recent experience. Here’s the creative part! It’s time to describe your work experiences. It’s best to list three to five bullet points per experience. 

In your bullet points, include some quantifiable accomplishments that are data-proven and action verbs relating to tech but not jargon. Keep your tone present and active, not passive. 

This is a software engineer resume example, also from Resume Worded: 

If you’re a career changer, your college education might not be relevant to the job you’re applying for now. 

Regardless, you should still include it. If you don’t have much experience, you should include information about your software engineer education here in five bullet points. Cover what you learned, how you got hands-on experience, and the projects you did. 

If you already have software engineering experience, this section isn’t as important for you. You can simply include where you went to school and one bullet or less about relevant coursework. 

Whether you’re new to software development or not, you can elaborate on your undergraduate and graduate degrees in certain circumstances. If you were a double major or had a minor, you can list that too on your software engineer resume. If you had a phenomenal GPA, you could list it. But if your GPA was less than 3.8, you can leave it out. 

Here’s how to format your education: 

• Name of program or degree — bolded
• Institution and location—standard text
• Dates attended — italicized

Each job you apply for will use a specific naming convention in the description like BS, b.s., bachelor’s degree, bootcamp, or boot camp. Try to edit this to match every job description. You may not always fit the education level specified in the listing. That doesn’t matter! You should still apply for it if you think you’d be a good fit. 

Here’s an example of what your software engineering resume might look like if you took CareerFoundry’s Full-Stack Web Development Program :

The skills section might be where you shine! Hiring managers and recruiters are looking for specific development skills and that’s why you should list them in the job description. For each coding job you apply for, you can customize this section to fit the job description. 

It shouldn’t need to be stated but—don’t lie! Run through the job description and pick the skills you’re proficient in. In this section, it’s usually best to only list hard skills . Group your skills by Expert, Advanced, and Familiar. 

Step 7: Share your certifications and awards (optional)

If you have any certifications or awards, include this section! But if you don’t, skip to Step 8. Keep this section of your software engineer resume brief. You only need one line per award; you can simply list each award or certification and the date you received them. 

Certifications can serve as proof to your employer that you’ve achieved a certain skill level. If that skill or certification is in the job description, include it in your resume. Whatever you list, include both the full name and the abbreviation. Obviously, only include certifications you’ve actually earned. 

For example, a software engineer’s resume skill section might look like this: 

Step 8: List your software engineering projects (optional)

If you’re looking to apply for software engineering jobs , you’ve probably worked on a few projects by now. Whether personal projects, open source, internships, freelance, or bootcamps projects, you can use them on your resume. 

Career changers and anyone new to software development should take advantage of this section. If you already have experience in software engineering, you probably don’t need this—simply list your portfolio in your contact information and move on to Step 9. 

Before you fill in this section, you’ll need a list of the projects you’ve worked on. If you have more than three, group your projects by type. You can use whatever categories seem fitting to you but consider ones like business projects, user interface projects , technical projects, mobile development, etc.

Here’s how to format your projects in your software engineer resume: 

• Project Title — bolded
• 2-sentence description—standard text
• Skills—italicized

This is what your projects section might look like: 

You can hyperlink the title of your project to a portfolio piece with more details, the live project, or your GitHub. 

Stop now if your resume can’t fit on one page with more than just the title. But if you still have room, include a description of the problem your project solved, why you created it, and the client you made it for. Then, list the skills or tech stack you used to create the project. 

It might be odd to see the introductory statement as one of the last steps in the software engineer resume-writing process. Even though this goes at the top of your resume, we recommend you write it last. It’s much easier to write it at the end for most people. 

A summary statement is essentially an introductory paragraph. You’ll use these three-to-five lines to inject some personality into your resume. This is the first thing the interviewer will see. 

There are two ways you can approach this. You can either treat it as a summary or an objective . If you already have experience in software engineering, you can summarize your skills, experience, notable accomplishments, and education. If you don’t have experience, you’ll want to opt for an objective. 

With an objective, you’ll share tangible achievements from your bootcamp, professional training, college, or internship. You’ll also want to point out your transferable skills and career goals. 

This is the most challenging part of writing your resume. You’ll have less than 8 seconds to make a good impression on a recruiter or hiring manager. So, think of this paragraph as a hook to get them to keep reading. Here’s how to maximize your summary statement. 

Your summary statement should touch on the following: 

• Your unique strengths, expertise, and transferable skills
• Your personality traits that are relevant to the job 
• Notable achievements 
• The type of position or industry you’re seeking

Wherever possible, mention numbers or statistics to back up your statements. Rewrite your summary for every single job you apply for. It may feel tedious, but if you tailor it to that company and that role specifically, you’re far more likely to get straight to the recruiter screen and land an interview.

They might not notice if you have a spelling mistake on your resume, but typos never look good! Your summary paragraph is the most crucial thing to edit, but it doesn’t hurt to check over the entire thing. You can use AI editing software like Grammarly , or enlist a friend to proofread it. Better yet, ask your career counselor or mentor–if you have one! 

Okay, that might be a lot of information. We’re almost through with this complete guide. But before we let you go, we want to let you in on a few things you shouldn’t do when you’re writing your resume. 

Don’t use the same exact resume for every job you apply for

While it’s tempting to write your resume once and walk away, it’s not that simple. You should create your resume and edit it for each job you apply to. Adjust the objective statement, skills, and experience to reflect keywords in the job description. 

Don’t include any sensitive information on your resume

In the US you don’t need to include your date of birth, social security number, political affiliations, religion, or other personal details. These are dangerous to include, and they’re not relevant to the person who’s going to be reading your resume.

Don’t use fancy graphics

These days, most companies use ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems)  to screen applicants before sending software engineer resumes to a hiring manager or recruiter. Make your resume as text-based as possible: most ATS can’t read graphics well. 

Don’t send in your resume as a word document

Save it as a PDF before you submit it. 

Don’t let your resume exceed one page

If you can’t fit it all, omit the optional sections, trim down your experience descriptions, or reduce the skills you’ve included. 

If you want to use a resume template, ensure they’re ATS-friendly. There are plenty of beautiful templates out there with graphics and charts that won’t help you get an interview. 

There are hundreds of places you can go to get resume templates online. There are free and paid options. Most offer both free and paid versions. We rounded up the best resume template sites for software developers. Our favorites are the ones that tech professionals or coders created. 

Here are our top five favorite resume template sites:

• BeamJobs —made by tech professionals for career changers, diverse tech workers, and experienced developers. 
• Career Cup — founded by Gayle Laakmann McDowell, author of Cracking The Coding Interview
• Resume Worded — LinkedIn and resume optimizer 
• Kick Resume — a generic resume builder
• JobScan — exclusively ATS-friendly resume builder

Writing a software engineer resume is not easy, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. As long as you remember to proofread your work, use a few keywords from the job description, and stay away from graphics, you’ll be golden. 

Whatever you do, tailor your resume to the job you’re applying for and include a unique introductory paragraph. And if you want to use a resume template, ensure it’s ATS-friendly. With these tips and the steps we outlined, you’re sure to write a stellar software engineer resume.

You’ve just finished the complete guide to writing a software engineer resume. Now get started creating yours, and prepare to apply for jobs. Good luck!

As students of CareerFoundry’s Full-Stack Web Development Program reach the end of their studies, they get paired up with a career specialist. Y ou’ll work closely with them to connect the dots between your previous accomplishments with your newfound coding skills.

Together, you’ll create a winning software engineer resume that showcases your talent, and carefully craft your online presence to appeal to tech employers. You’ll also fine-tune your technical interview skills , learning how to confidently market your experience and negotiate salaries.

If you’d like to learn more about the world of coding, check out these articles:

• What Does a Backend Developer Do?
• What on Earth Is CSS? A Beginner’s Guide
• The Ultimate 2024 Guide to Frontend Developer Salaries

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Software Developer resume examples & templates

Strong action verbs

With a great software developer resume, you may get your pick of jobs in this high-growth career in information technology . You must have been thinking ahead when you chose this career, as software developers are highly sought after. Your unicorn-level job doesn’t have to be a dream when you combine your skills with a resume written to impress. Because there are so many software developer jobs out there, you need to think hard about what you want and how to present yourself to reach that goal. 

This software developer resume example and writing guide, along with our resume builder and expert-tested resume templates , will show you how to:

• Target your resume for each niche and job
• Beat the Applicant Tracking Systems that filter out resumes that lack the right keywords
• Use compelling language to convey your accomplishments
• Develop a creative, accessible design and layout

First, let’s look at your options.

What does a software developer do?

Software developers specialize in creating, implementing and maintaining software and databases, but software development is an umbrella for many different skills. In fact, CoderHood list 19 different types of software developers:

• Front-end or client-side
• Backend or server side
• Middle tier
• Data scientist
• Software development engineer in test (SDET)

You may already have a specialty or know what area interests you most. You may have a job doing one type of development and be looking for a new challenge. Whatever your situation is, a great software developer resume is the place to start.

The field of software development is expected to gain 409,500 jobs by 2030, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics . That’s a 22 percent increase — much faster than the average for all occupations.

But because opportunities abound, many people are preparing for careers as software developers. 

According to DataUSA , the number of computer and information sciences and support services graduates in the workforce grew from 2.06 million in 2018 to 2.17 million in 2019, an increase of 5.5%. And yet the supply of software developers is not keeping up with the demand. Just as you have options in the type of work you do, you also have options in how you do it. 

Many software developers choose to work as contractors instead of employees. That means they have the freedom to choose each project they work on, but it also means they are looking for a job each time a project ends. Whatever you choose, you can get ahead of the field if you know how to craft a software developer resume that gets into the hands of recruiters on the lookout for great candidates.

Most larger employers use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to filter resumes according to whether they contain essential keywords. These keywords typically describe critical job qualifications, and they’re input into the ATS for each open job. Study the job description to find out what the employer considers to be the crucial qualifications for this job, and if you meet them, be sure to mention them in your resume. Otherwise, your resume may be rejected without any human review.

How to write a software developer resume

If you do project-based work, you may want to format your resume a little differently than most. All resumes contain components in common, and here are the sections you definitely need to include:

• The resume header
• The resume summary (aka profile or personal statement)
• The employment history section
• The resume skills section
• The education section

Choosing the best resume format for a software developer

When listing your work experience, you have a couple of options. If you’ve followed a more traditional career path holding full-time jobs for various employers, your best option is probably the chronological resume format , where you list your current or last job first and your first job last. But if you’re a contractor who has done multiple projects for a wide range of companies, you should consider the functional resume format, which allows you to list your work experience by project or by specialization. 

Your decision may depend partly on the type of job you are applying for. Your software developer resume is a living document that should be customized to fit each application. You may want to have an employment history section for one application and a project section for another. 

For additional inspiration on how to write your resume, you can check out related IT resume examples such as:

• Systems Analyst resume sample
• Technical Project Manager resume sample
• Computer Science resume sample
• Network Engineer resume sample
• IT Director resume sample
• Software Engineer resume sample
• Film and Video Editor resume sample
• Motion Graphics Artists resume sample
• Network Systems Analyst resume sample
• 3D Animator resume sample
• Web Developer resume sample
• Programmer resume sample
• Data Scientist resume sample
• IT manager resume sample
• Data Analyst resume sample
• IT Project manager resume sample

Resume summary example: code your career success

Also known as a profile or personal statement , the resume summary is your “elevator pitch” for the job you want. Play up your achievements without boasting or exaggerating. The key to a good resume summary is compelling language and vivid detail. You want to give recruiters a sense of your professional personality and what you have accomplished in your career as a software developer.  

Don’t be afraid to blow your own horn a bit. In fact, that is exactly what you should be doing here. Employers want to know what you will bring to the job. Keep that in mind as you write. Think about examples of successes you are most proud of and feature them. You have two to four sentences to sell yourself to recruiters, so don’t be shy, but beware of adopting a tone that sounds arrogant or entitled. In addition to your successes, think about the qualities that make you an excellent software developer and add those to your profile.

The median annual salary for U.S. software developers, quality assurance analysts and testers was $110,140 in May 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics .

Surveys show that recruiters will spend less than 10 seconds looking at your software developer resume, so make sure your summary/profile hits all the highlights.

Experienced Software Developer with expertise in design, installation, testing and maintenance of software systems. Equipped with a diverse and promising skill-set. Proficient in various platforms, languages, and embedded systems. Experienced with cutting-edge development tools and procedures. Able to effectively self-manage during independent projects, as well as collaborate as part of a productive team.

Software developer resume skills example

Software developers need a lot of technical knowledge, but they need other abilities, too. The skills section of a resume is a concise overview of your professional abilities. It’s obvious but true that software developers must have expertise in many technical areas and keep up with advancements in the field. 

Here are broad examples of technical skills, also known as hard skills, that recruiters will be looking for:

• Data structures and algorithms
• Programming, scripting and markup languages
• Source control
• Text editors
• Integrated development environments (IDEs)
• Operating systems
• Networking basics
• Basics of testing
• Cross-platform software
• Encryption and cryptography
• Software development life cycle (SDLC)

Software developers also need soft skills, or the interpersonal skills necessary for most jobs. Don’t neglect these when considering your skills section. Here are some examples of the soft skills recruiters look for:

• Adaptability
• Ability to accept constructive criticism
• Approachability
• Perseverance

These are just a few examples of traits you should consider incorporating into your skills section. The most important skills are the ones that appear in the software developer job listing itself. Those are the skills the ATS program will be using to rank your resume. 

Soft skills are ranked as just as important, or more important, than hard skills by 92 percent of recruiters and hiring managers in LinkedIn’s 2019 Global Talent Trends report. The three most in-demand soft skills were creativity, persuasion and collaboration. 

There are certain occupations in the technology-led STEM fields of science, IT, engineering, data science and maths that require a whole different level of technical skill and industry expertise.

Your first step to developing this resume section is to create a master list of all your skills, attributes, successes and accomplishments . You can go back to this list every time you apply for a new job to cherry-pick the most relevant ones. You can also keep this list and add to it as you learn and achieve more in your career as a software developer.

If the listing of desired skills in a job advertisement looks too daunting, try plugging the ad into a word cloud program such as wordle or wordart.com. This also works if the listing is too vague. The bigger the word in the cloud, the more you should try to organically integrate that idea it into your resume.

• Advanced Analytical Thinking
• Programming
• Software logic
• Software Troubleshooting
• Knowledgeable in User Interface/ User Experience

Employment history resume example: share your story

As noted above, your options here depend on whether you have worked full-time jobs for employers or acted as a contractor for many different projects. Software developers have the option of doing project-based contract work. This allows them the freedom to set their rates, work only on projects they choose and take time off between contracts. If you are a contractor, your resume is constantly in need of updating. Make sure you add new projects promptly, especially if they include new skills or experiences . You can drop earlier work that shows only basic levels of skills as you advance.

Don’t neglect work you did in school or in your free time if it illustrates a different skill than the ones you have exhibited in other job descriptions. This is especially important if you are just entering the job market.

Consider the course of your career when you decide whether to use an employment or project history for your software developer resume. Remember that this choice will define your image in the eyes of an employer. Either way, you should be detailing your growth and increasing skill level. This section is not a listing of your job responsibilities. Instead highlight your accomplishments, problem-solving and the challenges you overcame to successfully complete a project. Use details and data wherever possible. Include the names of any programs you worked in and the results of your projects. Did you get a project done under budget or earlier than expected? Did you add creative features or solve a difficult challenge? Those are examples of achievements to include.  

U.S. News and World Report ranked software developer as the No. 2 job in its list of Top 100 Jobs for 2021. 

You can have a great track record of software development, but if you don’t make it sound amazing, your resume may be overlooked. Demonstrate that you are a go-getter who knows what is needed to get the job done. Here are some words you might use to describe your hard skills:

• Accelerated

Also think about those soft skills and describe them using action verbs like these:

• Conceptualized

Sometimes, the way you say something makes a big difference. These words can turn a good resume into a great resume.

Software Developer at Accrue Partners, New York September 2013 - September 2021

• Collaborated productively with product team to understand requirements and business specifications around portfolio management, analytics and risk.
• Coded software updates and alterations based on detailed design specifications.
• Solved complex problems using the latest in cloud, mobile, and web technologies.
• Developed and presented findings and solutions to audiences including senior executives and stakeholders.

Junior Software Developer at CyberCoders, New York June 2011 - August 2013

• Addressed and fixed complex bugs.
• Implemented and updated application modules under the direction of Senior Software Developers.
• Worked at an independent level, while also serving as an effective and enthusiastic collaborator.
• Performed automated testing tasks and developed complex features routinely.

Computer skills should feature prominently in many resumes, but if you last performed these skills a while ago, do you need to refresh your knowledge? We look at the most popular computer skills and where to revisit your expertise.

Education section example: learning never stops

Software developers need to constantly refresh their skills, so make sure you include post-college studies in your education section. Your career typically requires a bachelor’s degree. If you are a recent graduate, consider adding your GPA if it was impressive. On the other hand, the longer you are out of school, the less important your college degree becomes. Technology is constantly evolving, and your skills need to evolve too. The resume education section is a good place to show off the post-college training you have undertaken to keep yourself up to date. If you have any special certifications in your field, list them here as well.  

Master of Science in Computer Science, The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA August 2010 - August 2012

Bachelor of Computer Science, Dartmouth, Hanover, NH September 2006 - May 2010

Layout and design: create an excellent user experience

Just like a great software program, your CV or resume format should be as straightforward and elegant as possible. The same principles that apply to your software design should apply to your resume design. Your resume (also known as a CV outside the U.S. and Canada) should be clean, linear and easy to read. 

Software development is a creative career, so think about adding one small flourish, but don’t go overboard. Once your resume gets past the ATS program, you have your chance to impress the recruiter. But remember that the number of resumes they see means they are looking for reasons to eliminate yours. Don’t give them that chance.

As a software developer, you likely have an eye for good design. Even so, that doesn't mean you have hours of time to spend on resume page layout. If you want to create a software developer resume quickly and efficiently, consider using a pre-designed resume template. Resume.io has hundreds of resume templates and CV formats to choose from in four main categories: Professional, Modern, Creative and Simple.

Choose the template that works best for you and customize it using the resume builder . There, you can adjust your template's fonts and design elements to create the perfect format for your software developer resume.

• Clearly label the sections of your resume
• Leave an appropriate amount of white space
• Proofread carefully
• Have someone else look it over
• Put your contact information in a prominent spot
• Use graphics or images that the ATS may be unable to scan
• Use artsy fonts that are difficult to read
• Try to cram too much information into each description
• Leave unexplained gaps in employment

Key takeaways for a software developer resume

• Software development is a rapidly growing field with many different paths.
• Mine those keywords from the job description to get your resume past the ATS.
• Make sure your resume is tailored to the skill sets each employer requires.
• Decide which sections work best for your software developer experience.
• Use strong action verbs, data and details to illustrate your abilities and achievements.
• Keep your format and template clean and legible.
• A resume builder can save you time while creating a great resume.

This software developer resume guide was created with your career in mind – we hope it helps you reach your goals! 

Beautiful ready-to-use resume templates

Software Developer Resume Examples and Templates for 2024

• Resume Examples
• Resume Text Examples

How To Write a Software Developer Resume

• Entry-Level
• Senior-Level

Software Developer Text-Only Resume Templates and Examples

John Bergsen (123) 456-7890 [email protected] LinkedIn | Portfolio San Francisco, CA 12345

A Software Developer with entry-level experience specializing in user interface design, application development, data security, and continuous improvement. Adept at identifying opportunities to enhance the user experience and develop new features to improve app functionality.

• HTML, Java, and C++
• Feature Development
• Continuous Improvement
• Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC)
• Application Development

Professional Experience

Junior Software Developer, Doc Stock Inc., San Francisco, CA June 2022 – Present

• Identify opportunities to develop new features and enhance the user interface for web and mobile applications impacting over 100K internal users
• Attend daily standups and Scrum meetings to discuss project roadblocks, status updates, and solutions and consistently achieved all project milestones

Academic Projects

Software Development Projects, University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA September 2021 – June 2022

• Developed an application in Python to enable users to track and manage subscription services, including a feature to compare service costs and analyze monthly and annual costs
• Coordinated with a team of three students to design a mobile application in JavaScript, which enabled users to filter local tourist spots and restaurants during domestic travel

Certifications

• CompTIA A+, 2022

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) Computer Science University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA September 2018 – June 2022

Cameron Malfara (123) 456-7890 [email protected] LinkedIn | Portfolio San Francisco, CA 12345

A Software Developer with seven years of experience specializing in Agile software development, back-end development, Python, and web development. A strong history of developing innovative application features and software solutions to enhance the user experience.

Software Developer, Lore Gaming, San Diego, CA November 2019 – Present

• Develop system architecture to streamline bandwidth and reduce downtime and lag for outside users by up to 20% in coordination with a team of 10+ software developers
• Collaborate with gaming designers to create interactive solutions and drive user engagement, including the integration of a new matchmaking feature to improve the multiplayer experience
• Supported the integration of an Agile-Waterfall hybrid methodology to improve the SDLC, resulting in a 15% reduction in project delivery timelines

Software Developer, Ark Tech Solutions Inc., San Diego, CA June 2016 – November 2019

• Collaborated with a team of application developers and software engineers to design a mobile application in Python for recruiters and jobseekers, which resulted in over 3M downloads to date
• Increased user engagement and satisfaction by 30% by developing new application features to improve access management and app functionality
• Certified Software Development Professional (CSDP), IEEE, 2018
• CompTIA A+, 2016
• Java, Python, and C++
• User Interface Design
• Software Development
• Quality Assurance Testing

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) Software Engineering University of San Diego, San Diego, CA September 2012 – June 2016

Aliya Jackson (123) 456-7890 [email protected] LinkedIn | Portfolio New York, NY 12345

A Lead Software Developer with 10+ years of experience developing innovative software solutions and applications for enterprise customers. A proven track record of building and leading diverse development teams throughout all phases of SDLC. Adept at coordinating with cross-functional stakeholders to execute multi-million-dollar technology projects.

Senior Software Developer, Cadence Technologies, New York, NY October 2017 – Present

• Oversee the design, development, and launch of innovative software applications for enterprise customer accounts valued at $400K-$1.3M, serve as the point of contact for stakeholders, and ensure alignment with business requirements
• Identify opportunities to automate manual testing processes, resulting in a 10% reduction in work hours and a 5% improvement in project delivery times
• Build, manage, and develop a team of 15+ software developers and engineers, oversee recruitment activities, coordinate project priorities, and provide mentorship to drive professional development

Software Developer, Angel Investments, New York, NY June 2013 – October 2017

• Served as the technical project lead to design and implement mission-critical software solutions for a $10M investment firm, including the development of new dashboards to enhance data visualization for financial analysts and investment bankers
• Coordinated quality assurance and business user testing, created training documentation, and identified opportunities to improve the user experience through the implementation of new features
• Certified Software Development Professional (CSDP), IEEE, 2016
• Certified Scrum Master, Scrum Alliance, 2015
• CompTIA A+, 2013
• Python, Java, C++
• Agile Software Development
• Technical Project Management
• Cross-functional Leadership

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) Computer Science Columbia University, New York, NY September 2009 – June 2013

To craft an impactful software developer resume, you’ll want to highlight your strongest technical skills using tangible examples from your professional career. Although you want to list skills on your resume, you also want to show hiring managers how you’ve used various technologies and programming languages to execute specific projects.

Companies are drawn to candidates with a proven track record of creating value for their teams and organizations. If you played an instrumental role in integrating new software architecture and infrastructure, you might want to emphasize the impact this had on the business’s ability to scale. These insights will go a long way in differentiating you from the competition during your job search. Throughout this guide, we’ll help you translate your technical skills and experience into an accomplishment-driven resume .

1. Write a dynamic profile summarizing your software developer qualifications

You’ll need to craft a compelling summary at the top of your resume to grab the hiring manager’s attention. The key to creating a strong professional profile is to create a snapshot of your career that illustrates your most relevant qualifications for the job. For instance, if you’re pursuing a software developer job that is centered around creating new features to enhance app functionality and drive user satisfaction, you should feature this experience directly in the profile.

Senior-Level Profile Example

Entry-level profile example, 2. create a powerful list of your software developer experience.

Your professional experience section should be centered around specific accomplishments that demonstrate your technical expertise as a software developer. Hiring managers value candidates with keen attention to detail, so you’ll want to leverage hard numbers and data to establish a sense of scope for your software development projects. For instance, if you played a role in developing and launching a successful mobile application, you’d want to draw attention to the number of downloads or users.

Senior-Level Professional Experience Example

Entry-level professional experience example.

• Attend daily standups and Scrum meetings to discuss project roadblocks, status updates, and solutions and consistently achieve all project milestones

3. Add your software developer education and certifications

Obtaining additional certifications is essential for advancing your career within the technology industry. Although your work experience will always be the determining factor, pursuing more certifications will help further illustrate your technical knowledge and skill sets. Agile, Scrum, and project management certifications are highly recommended, as these apply to any type of software development position you apply for.

• [Certification Name], [Awarding Organization], [Completion Year]
• [Degree Name]
• [School Name], [City, State Abbreviation] [Dates Enrolled]
• Bachelor of Science (B.S.) Computer Science
• UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO, San Francisco, CA September 2018 – June 2022

4. List your key software developer skills and proficiencies

As a tech professional, you already understand the value of automating common processes to increase efficiency. The hiring process is no different, as most companies rely on Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to scan resumes for specific skill sets and keywords. If your document lacks some key terms, your application may be rejected before it reaches the hiring manager. Incorporating key skills into your resume will significantly increase your odds of landing the interview. Below, you’ll find a list of key terms you may encounter during the job search:

How to Pick the Best Software Developer Resume Template

In most instances, it’s best to use a simple resume template with a straightforward top-down approach. If you select a template with flashy colors and bulky graphics, you risk drawing the hiring manager’s eye away from your qualifications and achievements. A limited use of color is acceptable, but be sure that you aren’t distracting the reader from your content, as your experience will always be the deciding factor in whether or not you receive an interview.

Frequently Asked Questions: Software Developer Resume Examples and Advice

What are common action verbs for software developer resumes -.

It’s easy to find yourself running short on action verbs during the resume-building process, especially as a technical professional. In many instances, there’s only a limited number of verbs you can use to describe your job responsibilities and career achievements. That being said, it’s important to diversify your usage of action verbs to keep your bullet points fresh and compelling. Below, you’ll find a list of action verbs you can use to craft your resume:

How do you align your resume with a job description? -

Qualified software developers have a wide range of job options and career trajectories. With so much of the future hinging on technological tools and advancements, it’s no surprise that software development professionals enjoy a great job outlook. The Bureau of Labor Statistics notes that the job market for these pros is set to increase by 25% from 2021 through 2031, much faster than the average for all other jobs within the nation.

Despite this positive outlook, you’ll still need to align your resume with the job description to secure the most lucrative opportunities. If an organization is looking for a software developer with strong project management knowledge, you’d want to highlight your experience using Agile and Scrum throughout the software development lifecycle. If a company is seeking a developer with a background in application development, you should highlight your experience developing new features and functionalities for users. By tailoring your resume to the job posting, you’ll significantly increase your chances of landing the interview.

What is the best software developer resume format? -

Reverse chronological is the ideal format for software developers, ensuring that your most recent work experience is featured towards the top of your document. Even at the entry-level, you'd want to avoid using a functional resume format that only focuses on skills. If you lack hands-on work experience, you should instead focus on detailing academic projects to showcase your programming skills.

A matching cover letter can be a helpful tool that allows you to illustrate the nuances of your technology experience. More importantly, it enables you to make a case to the hiring manager that you’re the ideal fit for their organization. In the middle paragraphs, take the time to mention something about the company’s reputation or work culture and why you’re drawn to apply for the position. For most information, view our software developer cover letter guide .

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Frank Hackett

Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW)

Frank Hackett is a professional resume writer and career consultant with over eight years of experience. As the lead editor at a boutique career consulting firm, Frank developed an innovative approach to resume writing that empowers job seekers to tell their professional stories. His approach involves creating accomplishment-driven documents that balance keyword optimization with personal branding. Frank is a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) with the Professional Association of Resume Writers and Career Coaches (PAWRCC).

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Software Engineer Resume Examples and Templates

Senior Software Developer Resume Examples and Templates

Senior Software Engineer Resume Examples and Templates

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• 🔥 Software engineering jobs

How to create an effective software engineer resume

What makes a great software engineer resume? Comparing a good resume with a bad resume makes it easier to spot the difference. Read on to create your best developer resume ever!

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, jobs in software engineering and development will grow by 22% in the decade between 2019 and 2029. Globally, according to Evans Data Corporation, the number of developer jobs is expected to increase to 28.7 million in 2024.

Though more software engineer positions will open up in the coming years, more candidates will be vying for your position. And that's especially true for the higher-paying jobs at top startups and multinational companies.

Meaning, don’t phone it in if you want a serious shot at an interview. You need to know how to write a killer software engineering resume to be considered.

Well, you’re in luck!

Below, you’re going to learn exactly how to write a resume for software engineering jobs. What to include on your resume, how to structure it, things to omit, and more - it’s all here. There is no need to hire a resume writing service, as you can do this by choosing a great developer CV template on Google Docs or Microsoft Word or start building your resume using our resume builder.

For this guide, Arc partnered with Christian Eilers, career expert and CPRW (Certified Professional Resume Writer) to lay out exactly how to write a resume for software engineering jobs in detail.

Whether you’re starting from scratch, already have the alpha version of a software engineer resume drafted up, or want to find a software engineer example resume, you’ll find all the best advice and expert tips below to transform it into a stable release candidate .

Read more: What to Include on a Software Developer Resume — and What to Leave Off

So, ready to get going?

Here’s how to write a software engineer resume that’ll land you interviews:

Contact information section

As you might have guessed, the first software engineering resume section is all about your contact details and personal information.

While it is easier than the other resume template sections, many software engineer candidates actually mess this part up. Turns out, there’s way more to consider than what you might have thought.

First, take a look at a bad example SWE resume contact section:

And here’s a good example:

Now, what makes the good example good and the bad example bad?

Hint: it’s not the formatting.

Here are the important details to consider when preparing your contact information section:

Name - First name and last name is fine, but a middle name or initial could help when there are many others with similar names on Google and LinkedIn. Job title or branding statement - An optional subtitle below your name listing your current professional title or short personal description is a common and accepted practice. You could put "Entry Level Software Engineer, User Interfaces" if you want to be specific. With that said, you want to avoid convoluted titles like "Full-Stack Dev Ninja," as this title may not work well with ATS. Email address - Don’t turn IT recruiters off with your old high school handle (e.g., [email protected] ). Use a basic, professional email address with just your first and last name. You can also create an alias or a brand new email address if necessary. Phone number - Give your cell phone number rather than your home phone number, and include your country code. As recruiters may leave a voicemail, make sure you have ample space. Also, re-record your voicemail greeting if it’s unprofessional. Physical address - In most cases, don’t include your home address or mailing address, as it’s usually unnecessary. Add it only if the company you’re applying to requires local candidates for onsite positions. Website - A personal portfolio website is a great supplement to your resume for software engineer jobs. Use it to document your past professional, freelance, and personal projects in detail. LinkedIn profile - Around 72% of recruiters use LinkedIn to make hiring decisions. Before sending your software developer resume, complete your profile and update it with current information. To showcase your software engineer skills, complete LinkedIn skills assessments to earn badges and impress IT recruiters with your expertise. GitHub URL - If you’re active on GitHub, add a link to your profile to show off your projects, repositories, and other development activities. Many hiring managers give you bonus points if you’ve contributed to open-source projects. Other social media profiles - In most cases, leave your other social profiles off, as they’re likely irrelevant (and easily found on Google anyway). However, add these profiles to round out your resume if you are a software engineering thought leader on Reddit or Twitter. Sensitive information - Don’t include your social security number, date of birth, political affiliations, religion, or other super-personal details. It's not safe and could lead to bias, which may result in you being excluded from consideration. Formatting - Feel free to be a bit creative here and consider customization options, but don’t go overboard. Make sure your name stands out (larger font size, bold, etc.), and align as you please. Keep the header the same on both your software engineer cover letter and resume template for consistency. Hyperlinks - Make it as easy as possible for recruiters and CTOs by hyperlinking any URLs in your software engineering resume.

Finally, before we move on to the actual resume content, a warning — make sure to clean up your online presence!

Whether you list your social media profile links or not, an interested hiring manager or head of IT will Google your name to see what comes up. You want it all (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn) to be professional, so thoroughly comb them beforehand for lewd photos, political rants, and other potentially offensive material. Hide them, or better yet, remove them completely!

Hiring managers and IT recruiters spend an average of six seconds scanning through every single resume the first time around, which is really no time at all.

If they notice something they like during that quick glance, your software engineer resume will be reviewed more thoroughly. If not, it’s game over at this particular company, unfortunately.

So, write an irresistible introduction paragraph to capture their attention.

This opening statement is a sales pitch that tells them, "Here's why you should continue reading my resume and keep me in the running as a software engineer job candidate." Let’s start off by looking at two examples of this opening paragraph.

First, here’s a bad software engineer resume example:

And here’s a good resume summary example:

The second resume sample provides enough information, like education, years of experience, and quantifiable measurements of success. With these information in hand, the HR hiring manager or tech recruiter is much more likely to pass your developer cv on to the head of IT for further review.

Let’s dive deeper to understand the characteristics of a compelling opening statement on software engineer resumes:

Concise & complete - A perfect resume summary statement is only about 3-5 sentences long, yet it touches on everything. Important keywords - It’ll allude to, or directly mention, key skills, education, professional experience, certification, and other items meant to keep your candidacy alive. Numbers as proof - Don’t simply write that you have certain technical skills or knowledge of software applications. Give the recruiter hard numbers to back up your claims. For example: “I increased speed and accuracy” is vague and requires clarification, but “I increased speed and accuracy by 12% in 6 months ” shows hiring managers just how capable you are. Tailored - The introductory paragraph should be tailored to each software engineer job you apply for. Start by mentioning the role and company you are applying to. Look at the job posting to find hints about the type of person they want.

There are two main kinds of resume introductions:

Resume summary - When you have previous experience in software development jobs or as an SWE, this is the one you’ll use. As the name suggests, it summarizes your relevant skills, experience, and education while showcasing key accomplishments. All in a way that is tailored to this particular job, of course. Resume objective - Also known as a "career objective," use a resume objective when you have little or no experience in software development or engineering (like if you’re fresh out of university or changing careers). Here, give quantifiable achievements from college or other professional areas that are transferable to software engineering. Then, mention your goals for a career in software engineering to wrap it up.

And, a quick pro tip —

Write your career objective or resume summary paragraph last. Though it's positioned at the top of the page, completing the rest of your software engineering resume first allows you to flesh out the important numbers and critical details. Once you’re done, you can circle back and fill in this opening paragraph, and it’ll be a heck of a lot easier!

Work experience section

Next comes the work experience section, where you’ll compile your previous job history.

As in the last section, let’s look at a good example and a bad example of a software engineering resume job experience section before discussing the best way to go about it.

Here’s a not-so-great professional experience example:

Now take a look at this good example work experience section:

Here’s what makes the second software engineer resume example the better choice:

Order - In your work experience section, the first line should be your job title, as it’s the most relevant information. Below each job title, include the company name, your working location (not their HQ city), and the dates you were employed. Start with the most recent software engineering position and work backward (reverse-chronological order). Active voice - Use active voice rather than passive voice. It’s way more powerful and effective to say “I formed and mentored a team” than to say “the team was formed and mentored by me.” Quantifiable achievements - Just as a checksum verifies the integrity of an associated file, achievement numbers verify how well you carried out past responsibilities. You can say you oversaw the redesign of a website, but you can prove you did a great job if you add something like “... leading to a 35% sales increase.” Power verbs - Things like “worked on,” “responsible for,” and “helped” are weak resume words and phrases. Add some oomph to your writing with powerful, software development-related words (e.g., “tested,” “engineered,” “transitioned”). Formatting - Group work experience achievements into bullet points. Around 3-5 bullet points per entry is ideal. Also, let it breathe - rather than cramming it all in there. Make use of negative space to help each point stand out. A solid text block is hard for recruiters to parse in that initial 6-second scan! Be consistent - You can choose to spell the full month name or abbreviate the state in which you worked. Just be sure to follow that same styling everywhere else in the work experience section and other resume areas.

Please note that we recommend a great mid-level or senior software engineer resume to have the work experience section immediately follow the introductory statement. However, if you’re writing a resume with little or no experience (perhaps for a software development internship or junior software engineer position), move more relevant sections higher, particularly skills and education. Always put the most impactful items highest.

Education section

Depending on where you’re applying, your academic history may play an important role in software engineering. Even if you are a self-taught developer or learned through a coding bootcamp, many job descriptions for software engineer roles still require some university education. While your degree may be completely unrelated to information technology, it’s still important to display your scholastic credentials in the best way possible.

Before we dive into how to write a resume education section, let’s again take a look at some resume examples.

A bad software developer resume example:

And a good SWE resume sample:

Note that there are many ways to organize the education section of your senior or junior software developer resume.

A general rule of thumb: the less professional experience a job seeker has (say on a junior software engineer resume), the more info ought to be included to compensate.

Here are the must-have elements:

Degree - If you've earned a degree, the first line of each entry should be the degree name and your major. Follow the naming convention the job description uses when deciding to choose between “bachelor’s degree,” “BS,” or “B.S.” If you’re working on a degree, write instead “Majoring in Computer Science,” for example. School Details - On the following line, simply write the name of the university and the city and state (or city and country). Dates - Follow the same dating format you used above in the work experience section. Format - In the bad example, the date is a second column within the education entry, which itself is in the resume’s second column. This very likely would make it difficult to parse if scanned into HR’s ATS (applicant tracking system) software. The fewer columns, the better, but a single column is best!

And some optional items to consider:

GPA - Adding your grade point average is often problematic, as anything much less than a perfect GPA will turn them off. Relevant coursework - Include college classes you took that are relevant to the job you’re applying for. And not just specifically connected to software engineering. For example, if you’re applying to become the lead software engineer, adding that course you took on business leadership is a great way to increase your chances! Minor - Listing a minor (or double major) on your resume shows you can balance a heavy workload and are eager to soak up knowledge. Honors - If you graduated with honors or earned any academic awards, show them off. Projects - Similarly, highlight any relevant software engineering projects, academic publications, or research papers.

Finally, while most job descriptions may specifically seek someone with a degree in computer science or software engineering, don’t pass up the chance just because your university history doesn’t match. As one of the more modern employment sectors, they may still consider you - especially if you have enviable software engineering skills and experience.

For those of you applying for software engineer jobs with non-traditional learning pathways in your past, we’ve got you covered! Use the resume education section to list traditional education, and we’ll talk more about where to add the others in just a moment.

Skills section

The software engineering resume skills area should be well thought out. Managers are looking for abilities you have that are relevant to the position, and anything that doesn't just get in the way.

Reread the job description. Find the software engineer skills they’re looking for, and, if applicable, include these in your resume skills list.

Here’s a bad resume skills example:

And this is a better example:

Let’s look at the characteristics of a great SWE resume skills section:

Quantity - Include only relevant skills that will help you land the software engineering position. These will usually be listed in the job description. As a software engineer, there's probably no point listing your proficiency with Microsoft Office, but more relevant software applications should certainly be included. Go “Hard” - Hard skills are those that can be developed through learning, such as technical skills, while soft skills are acquired as life goes by, such as people skills. Go heavier on the hard skills. Grouping - IT managers often prefer you to include skill levels to identify just how proficient you are at each one. Follow our convention above or choose your own, but omit any skills with which you have only a rudimentary understanding. Format - Remember that ATS we mentioned earlier? To make sure hiring software will read your resume correctly, opt for a text-based format (see the good software engineer resume example) over bar charts or fancy graphics.

An important thing to remember - your entire resume shows off your software engineering skills and abilities, not just this skills section. And, other places often show these skills off in a better way, particularly when accompanied with numbers.

You can save crucial resume real estate by thoughtfully cherry-picking, especially for soft skills. For example, rather than (or on top of) adding “communication skills” or “leadership skills” here, imply you are a great communicator or leader using the career summary statement, education section, or work experience bullet points.

If you’re looking to apply Pareto’s principle (the “80/20 rule”) to writing a resume for software engineering jobs, the certification and awards section will surely give you the most bang for your buck.

If you can include this section, the few words you list here may just be the most impactful items found on your resume. Why? Certifications and awards, including online qualifications, automatically prove a certain level of technical skills and knowledge, especially when delivered from an industry-renowned organization.

However, though just a few words long, there’s a right way and a wrong way to list them.

Here’s a bad software engineer resume sample:

First and foremost, the bad example is hard to notice as it’s crammed there into a corner. The good example makes use of white space all around to ensure the contents stand out to hiring managers.

Also, always remember to stay consistent . The bad example uses the full name of one certification as the first entry but the abbreviation for the second. Our recommendation is to write out the full name and include the abbreviation in parentheses to maximize resume keywords.

Finally, if you have several certifications and awards each, consider splitting them up into their own sections. Otherwise, one section combining both is just fine.

Personal projects section

Software developers are a passionate, dedicated, enterprising bunch, and you likely have some (or many) personal projects, open-source contributions, or freelance work to show off. And that’s great! These software side projects are very useful in getting the hiring manager on your side.

Let’s just figure out how to highlight your software projects in the best possible way.

A personal projects section *on* a resume is a good idea for lower-level software engineering positions with little professional experience. If you’re writing an entry-level software development resume or a resume for a software engineering internship position, add a few of your proudest projects. Having these projects shows you’re not just in it for the paycheck, but rather you are wholly passionate about software development and engineering.

But, for mid-level and senior software engineering resumes, link out to an online portfolio of your projects in the resume contact information section instead. As a software engineer with experience, you’re going to need all the room on the resume you can get, which is why the online projects portfolio is better. However, if you find yourself with room to spare, by all means, include them!

Anyway, if you’ve decided to add projects directly onto your resume, here’s what to do:

Grouping - When listing more than a couple of projects, group them into subheadings like “Technical Projects,” “Business Projects,” and “Other Projects.” Title - On the first line, identify the type of project. It could be something like “iOS Mobile Application” or “eCommerce Chatbot.” If you have a website with expanded details on the project, hyperlink the title there. Description - Give a short description of the project, no more than 3 sentences. Perhaps include the problem it solved, why you created it, and the client (if applicable). Skills - To end each entry, identify the skills you used (e.g., API access, JavaScript Interop) or tech stacks required to complete the project (e.g., LAMP, MEAN).

An entry-level software engineer resume should be about a *single page* in length, and an experienced candidate should have a two-page resume at most. If your side projects resume section is causing your document to become too long, opt for linking to an online portfolio of projects, instead.

Other important parts of a resume

Above are some of the most common and important sections to include on a resume for software engineer positions, but other areas may help your chances as well. The important thing is to tailor each resume for one particular software engineer job description, rather than sending one generic resume everywhere.

Here are a few additional sections to consider for a good software engineer resume:

Languages - I don’t mean Java, Go, or Python here, but human languages. Adding languages you’re fluent in, along with your proficiency level in each, could be a great addition — especially if you’re joining an international team! Volunteer work - Volunteering speaks to your character, commitment, and values. Any job seeker with a volunteer work experience section will definitely earn some extra points. Publications - Are you an IT thought leader? Let the recruiter know with a few choice links to articles you've published on software design, containerization, or big data! Memberships & affiliations - Highlight your dedication to computer science, information technology, and software engineering in particular by listing professional organizations where you have an active membership. Hobbies and interests - This may seem irrelevant at first, but, like volunteering experience, they help to portray you as a human rather than just as a candidate. If you have some extra space left over on your resume template, consider adding hobbies and interests you’re proud of. Coding Bootcamps - If you attended or graduated from a coding bootcamp, don’t be shy! Adding this type of non-traditional coding school and education to your resume is more and more common these days. Plus, it looks great to recruiters, especially for software developer resumes with little experience. Courses - If you took courses related to software development but unrelated to a specific college degree (for example, the University of New South Wales’ “Introduction to Systems Engineering” on Coursera ), add these in a section separate from your other education. Do the same for courses you took for other skills you want to show, such as leadership, communication, or business, for instance. Additional activities - Have other life experiences or activities which may benefit your chances of landing that tech interview but nowhere to put them? Create a section called “Additional Activities” on your developer CV template. Here you can put things like conferences you attended (or better yet, spoke at), side projects you have, and other projects and pursuits.

And finally —

A software engineer cover letter .

A cover letter may not exactly be part of a resume, but you definitely ought to include one *with* your resume.

Just be sure to use it wisely.

Tailor your software engineering cover letter to the job description. Don’t repeat your resume on the cover letter, but use it instead to expand upon or add value to your resume. Explain why you’re applying and why you believe you’re the most eligible candidate for the software engineering position. Highlight key skills, experience, qualifications, and other items which support your claim.

“Every job is essentially a problem looking for a solution. So every job posting has within it a problem that the company is trying to solve by hiring a human to do that,” as Lisa Smith, Engineering Manager at Zapier, told Arc . If you can use your resume and cover letter to convey how hiring you helps them solve their problems, you’ll be well on your way to that software engineer interview.

And just before you send off your application, do a quick resume review to ensure everything is in order, from your resume format to your relevant skills section. Reread the software engineer job description to see if you missed anything. If possible, get a friend, family member, or roommate to proofread your documents or resume builder draft. Now, send your perfect resume to the hiring manager or IT recruiter, and keep your fingers crossed for a smooth job search experience.

💻 Create an effective software engineer resume

Want to land interviews for your dream job? Click "Create my resume" now to start crafting your best resume ever with Arc's resume builder!

📚 More Tips on Crafting Your Software Engineering Resume

8 Resume Format Tips for Senior Software Developers

10 Hard and Soft Skills to Put On A Resume

8 Best Sites for Free Resume Templates for Software Developers

What to Include on a Resume — and What to Leave Off

8 Best Resume Builders & CV Makers for Software Developers in 2023

How to List Programming Languages (& Other Technologies) on a Resume

❓ software engineer resume faqs.

Still have some questions about our resume builder or questions about software developer resumes in general? Check the following resume frequently asked questions — and their answers.

Why should I use Arc’s developer resume builder?

At Arc, we help developers get great remote jobs. So looking at developer resumes is something we do all day, every day. We've designed a resume builder to include all the must-have information for recruiters to notice and pick you from a sea of applicants.

What if I don’t have a resume to upload? Can I make one from scratch?

No resume? You can just create a new one using this resume builder . Without a resume, we can't pre-fill the template and you'll need to do some more writing. That said, you'll still get professional tips and will be able to use the optimized resume template.

How long should a resume be?

Have you ever been told that your resume must only be one page long? If you're a recent grad or a junior developer, one page might be sufficient. However, if you're a seasoned developer, you may need up to two pages to cover all the crucial information that makes you a competitive candidate.

With that said, your resume should be concise and as relevant to the job you're applying to as possible. Why? On the one hand, technical recruiters don't usually spend more than 6-8 seconds skimming through any given resume. But just as important: the 1-page or 2-page rule sets up a constraint for you to only include the most relevant experiences and achievements.

When writing your resume, you should always make sure the highlighted skillsets, experiences, and achievements map onto the job description of any given job. This means your resume should look different for every job you're applying to .

As a final reminder, try not to include every project you've contributed to or led simply because they seem meaningful to you. Always think from the hiring manager's point of view. Does the experience help them understand how your skills fit the role? If not, consider leaving it out.

How to add a resume to LinkedIn?

While LinkedIn allows its users to essentially host their resumes — a summary, work experience, skills, education, certifications, and volunteer experience — on its platform, LinkedIn is more about networking and gaining exposure. As your resume should be uniquely tailored to each job you apply to , your LinkedIn profile should only be an overview of your experience, skillsets, and connections.

"Featured Media" Want your resume to show on LinkedIn? Upload it as a "Featured Media." After converting your resume to a PDF file or multiple PNG files, you may add your resume as a "Featured Media" by clicking on "Add Profile section" via your profile. The catch: the resume you upload is likely a generic resume that doesn't specifically cater to the exact jobs you're interested in. Resumes as "Featured Media" may be useful for providing extra information about you to proactive recruiters or for displaying your design abilities, but these resumes are still rather generic.

"Easy Apply" and "Upload Resume" If you're actively looking for new opportunities, we'd recommend tailoring your resume for each job. Once you click on a specific job's "Easy Apply" button, you'll see an option to "Upload Resume." Click this and follow the prompts. Make sure the resume you attach follows the best practices we provide in other sections of this FAQ.

What skills should I put on my resume?

Developers often include a separate "Skills" section on their resume that lists their technical skills in bullet point form. This is a great strategy because hiring managers can quickly scan your resume to see what skills you possess. To showcase your hard skills, you should list some of the skills you possess in the following areas:

• Programming languages
• Operating systems
• Data structures
• Database software
• Web frameworks
• Debugging tools
• Project management tools
• UI and UX design skills

(Make sure you use standardized spelling of technical terms — if in doubt, check!)

With that said, soft skills should be woven into your resume in succinct, story-telling bullet points. As the old saying goes, it's better show than tell when it comes to soft skills. When you're writing about your experiences, these are some of the soft skills you want to keep in mind:

• Critical thinking skills
• Collaboration ability
• Self-driven attitude
• Communication skills
• Conflict resolution skills
• Troubleshooting skills
• User-centric mindset
• Leadership skills

What is the best font for resume?

You've probably browsed enough websites and apps to know that fonts and font sizes can make or break a product and its readability/brand consistency.

The same applies to your resume.

Your resume is the first impression you make on the hiring manager and is part of your self branding. What fonts are best?

• Calibri: It's a sans-serif font that's professional and easy to read. However, it's quite an ordinary font.
• Cambria: It's serif font that's easy to read, especially when the font size is small. However, it can be seen as a little too traditional or old-fashioned.
• Helvetica: It's a minimalistic, iconic, and easy-to-read sans-serif. However, if you're using a Windows computer, you'll have to purchase it.
• Georgia: Like Cambria, it's a serif font that's easy on the eyes. With that said, it's a pretty generic font, so it wouldn't highlight your sensitivity to design.
• Verdana: The sans-serif sister to Georgia, Verdana is great for smaller fonts. Again, the downside of Verdana is that it doesn't add any "wow" factor to your resume.
• Garamond: A classic serif from the 1400s, Garamond is classy and easy to read. It is, however, 600 years old, so some may consider this font too old-school.

Feeling a little too overwhelmed by all the fonts out there? Just decide whether you want to use a serif font or a sans-serif font . Serifs are fonts with little lines at the end of each stroke in a letter while sans-serifs are those without lines at the end of each stroke. Serifs tend to be easier to skim but a little old-fashioned, whereas sans-serifs might be tougher on the eye but modern, simple, and minimalistic.

Besides what fonts you use, you should also make sure your font size is larger than 10pt. The standard font size is 12pt, but for names, job titles, and company names, you can either enlarge the font or bold the words for emphasis.

In addition to fonts, you should pay attention to white space, color schemes, and formats. If you want to show off your design skills, you can add in some unique design elements or even consider making your resume look like an infographic . With that said, if design is not your strong suit, just keep your resume simple and clean.

What are the best action verbs and power words for resumes?

Still using "worked on" or "participated in" to start off your sentences on your resume? It's time to bring more power and action into your resume to show off your assertiveness and proactiveness. Here are some powerful action verbs to help you start each bullet point in your resume:

• Trained/Mentored
• Volunteered
• Decreased/Increased

and some more inspirations from MIT Career Advising & Professional Development .

Some technical "power-words" you can add in to the content of your experience and achievements include:

• Highly available
• Fault-tolerant
• Maintainable
• High-performing
• Asynchronous
• Distributed
• Large-scale

and more from CV Compiler about how other power words can be incorporated into your resume.

Instead of painting yourself as a passive participant, use action verbs to assert the active role you played in the completion of different projects. Incorporate power-words to showcase the impact of your contribution to products you’ve worked on and the company you’ve worked for.

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• Commercial Customer Success Engineer, General/Specialty Contractors
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Software Developer Resume Example & Writing: Complete Guide

As a software developer, your resume is your first impression on potential employers. It acts as a gateway to job opportunities, helping you land the job of your dreams. A well-crafted software developer resume plays a vital role in showcasing your skills, experience, and achievements to hiring managers.

A strong software developer resume includes essential components that highlight your technical expertise, coding skills, and experience in developing software. In this article, we will provide you with a complete guide for crafting a winning software developer resume that will help you stand out from the competition.

We will cover the fundamentals of crafting a strong software developer resume that includes essential components such as your summary statement, work experience, education, skills, and projects. Our guide will also help you understand the dos and don’ts of writing a software developer resume and provide you with real-world examples to enhance your understanding.

By the end of this article, you’ll be able to create a winning software developer resume that will help you secure your next job opportunity in the software development industry. Let’s dive in!

Key Elements of a Software Developer Resume

When crafting your software developer resume, it’s important to include key elements that will catch the attention of hiring managers and showcase your skills and experience. These key elements include:

Contact Information

The first thing that should appear on your resume is your contact information. This includes your name, phone number, email address, and LinkedIn profile URL if applicable. Make sure your contact information is easy to find and accurate so that hiring managers can easily get in touch with you.

Professional Summary/Objective Statement

Your professional summary or objective statement should be a brief, one or two sentence statement that provides a quick overview of your skills, experience, and career goals. This statement should be tailored to the specific job you are applying for and highlight the key skills and accomplishments that make you a strong candidate.

Technical Skills

As a software developer, your technical skills are the heart of your resume. Be sure to include a section that outlines your relevant technical skills, including programming languages, software platforms, database management tools, and other tools relevant to your field.

Work Experience

Your work experience section should include your most recent and relevant work experience, including job title, company name, and employment dates. Be sure to bullet point and include specific accomplishments, responsibilities, and projects related to each position that highlight your software development skills and experience.

Education/Certifications

In addition to your work experience, it’s important to include your education and any relevant certifications in your resume. This can include your degree, the name of the institution where you earned it, and any course work or certifications that demonstrate your skills and knowledge as a software developer.

Projects & Accomplishments

Finally, it’s important to include a section that highlights any projects or accomplishments that demonstrate your skills and experience as a software developer. These can include personal projects, open-source contributions, and significant accomplishments at past positions. Be sure to highlight specific details such as project size, technologies used, and outcomes achieved.

By including these key elements on your software developer resume, you can create a resume that showcases your skills, experience, and accomplishments in a way that will catch the attention of hiring managers and help you land the job you want.

Writing Tips for Software Developer Resumes

When it comes to writing a software developer resume, it’s important to highlight your technical skills and expertise. However, this can be easier said than done. That’s why tailoring your resume to the job description, highlighting your technical skills, and using industry jargon and keywords are essential to a successful job search.

Tailoring Your Resume to the Job Description

One of the most important things you can do when applying for a software developer position is to tailor your resume to the job description. This means taking the time to read through the job posting and understanding what the company is looking for in a candidate.

Once you have a solid understanding of the position’s requirements, customize your resume to match. This will not only show the hiring manager that you have the skills and experience they’re looking for, but also make it easier for them to see how you would fit into their team.

Highlighting Your Technical Skills

As a software developer, your technical skills are of the utmost importance. Therefore, it’s important to highlight them throughout your resume.

To do this effectively, start by listing your technical skills in a dedicated section of your resume. Be specific and detailed about the programming languages, databases, and software programs you have experience with.

Additionally, make sure to incorporate your technical skills throughout your work experience section. Use action verbs to explain your accomplishments and how your technical skills played a role in them.

Using Industry Jargon and Keywords

When it comes to writing a software developer resume, using industry jargon and keywords can make all the difference. This is because these terms are often used by recruiters and hiring managers when searching for candidates.

To make sure you’re using industry jargon and keywords effectively, start by doing research on the company and position you’re applying for. Look at similar job postings and company websites to understand the specific terms and language they use.

Once you have a solid understanding of the industry jargon and keywords to use, be sure to incorporate them throughout your resume. Use them in your technical skills section, work experience bullet points, and in your summary statement.

Tailoring your resume to the job description, highlighting your technical skills, and using industry jargon and keywords are essential to creating a successful software developer resume. By taking the time to do these things, you can increase your chances of getting noticed by recruiters and landing your dream job in the tech industry.

Formatting Tips for Software Developer Resumes

If you are a software developer looking for your dream job, your resume is one of the most important tools you have to showcase your skills and experience. Not only should your resume be well-written, but it needs to be well-organized and easy to read as well. In this section, we will look at some formatting tips to help you create a stand-out software developer resume.

Choosing the Right Resume Format

Before we dive into the tips on organizing and outlining your resume, it is essential to choose the right format. There are three main types of resume formats:

• Chronological
• Combination

Most hiring managers are familiar with the chronological format, which is the most common type. It lists your employment history in reverse chronological order, starting with your most recent position. This format is ideal if you have a steady work history and want to highlight your career progression.

A functional resume format places more emphasis on your skills and achievements, rather than your work experience. This format can be beneficial if you have gaps in your work history or are changing careers.

Lastly, a combination resume format combines the chronological and functional formats. It includes both your skills and work history. This format is suitable for software developers who have a lot of relevant work experience but want to emphasize their skills and achievements.

Organizing Your Resume for Optimal Readability

Once you have decided on the format, it’s essential to organize your resume correctly. Here are some tips:

• Use bullet points and short sentences to make your resume more readable.
• Keep your resume concise and to the point. A one-page resume is usually enough.
• Use clear headings and subheadings to organize your resume.
• Highlight your key skills and achievements at the top of your resume.
• Emphasize your most relevant work experience.
• Customize your resume for each job you apply for.

Utilizing Bullet Points

Bullet points are a fantastic way to make your resume more readable, as they help break up long paragraphs and highlight critical information. Here are some best practices for utilizing bullet points:

• Start each bullet point with an action verb to describe your achievements.
• Use numbers and data to quantify your achievements.
• Keep bullet points short and focused on one accomplishment.
• Use bullet points to emphasize your technical skills.

Formatting your software developer resume correctly can make the difference between landing your dream job or getting lost in a pile of resumes. Use these formatting tips to make sure your resume stands out from the crowd.

Software Developer Resume Example: Entry Level

If you’re just starting in the software development industry, you’ll need a strong entry-level software developer resume to make sure you stand out from the crowd. Here are the necessary components that should be included in your resume:

Start your resume with a header that includes your full name, contact information like email address and phone number, and a link to your LinkedIn profile if you have one.

2. Summary/Objective

Write a brief statement about your career goals and how you plan to contribute to the company. Consider using this opportunity to highlight any relevant projects or experience you have.

3. Education

List your educational achievements in reverse chronological order and include the degree awarded, institution name, graduation date, and relevant honors, such as Dean’s List or Cum Laude.

List all the programming languages, tools, and software you’re proficient in, as well as any relevant certifications or training courses you have completed.

5. Experience

List any internships or entry-level jobs you have held in the software development industry. Use bullet points to highlight your responsibilities, accomplishments, and projects you worked on. If you don’t have any relevant work experience, you can include any relevant academic projects or personal projects you worked on in your spare time.

6. References

Include at least two professional references who can speak to your skills and work ethic.

Example of a Entry-level Software Developer Resume

123 Main Street, City, State | (555) 123-4567 | [email protected]

Motivated and detail-oriented Software Developer with a strong foundation in programming principles and problem-solving skills. Committed to continuously expanding knowledge in software development and delivering high-quality code. Eager to contribute to a dynamic team and gain practical experience in a professional software development environment.

Bachelor of Science in Computer Science | University Name, City, State | Year

• Programming Languages: Java, Python, C++
• Web Development: HTML, CSS, JavaScript
• Database Management: SQL, MySQL
• Version Control: Git
• IDEs: Eclipse, Visual Studio Code

Web-based E-commerce Application | University Course Project

• Developed a fully functional e-commerce website using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
• Implemented user authentication and session management features.
• Integrated a MySQL database for product storage and retrieval.
• Utilized Git for version control and collaborative development.

Inventory Management System | Personal Project

• Created a desktop application using Java Swing for managing inventory.
• Implemented CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) operations for products.
• Utilized SQLite database for data storage and retrieval.
• Implemented error handling and validation to ensure data integrity.

Software Development Intern | Company Name, City, State | Month Year – Month Year

• Assisted in the development and testing of software applications.
• Collaborated with senior developers to troubleshoot and resolve issues.
• Conducted code reviews and assisted in the implementation of enhancements.
• Gained exposure to software development methodologies and best practices.

Additional Skills

• Strong problem-solving and analytical abilities.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills.
• Ability to quickly learn new technologies and programming languages.
• Attention to detail and commitment to delivering high-quality code.

Software Developer Resume Example: Mid-Career

When it comes to crafting a mid-career software developer resume, there are a few key elements that you should include to stand out from the competition.

What to include in a mid-career developer resume

Objective statement: A brief statement outlining your career goals and what types of positions you are looking for.

Summary of qualifications: Highlight your key qualifications, skills and achievements in a concise and compelling manner.

Relevant experience: Include your most recent and relevant work experience, listing your job title, company name, dates of employment and key responsibilities and achievements.

Education and certifications: List your educational qualifications and any relevant certifications that you have obtained.

Technical skills: Detail your proficiency in the programming languages, tools and technologies used in your field of work.

Achievements and awards: Highlight any notable achievements or awards that you have received throughout your career.

Professional affiliations: List any professional organizations or associations that you belong to, along with any significant contributions you have made to the industry.

Example of a mid-career software developer resume

John Doe 123 Main Street Anytown, USA 12345 (123) 456-7890 johndoe.

Highly skilled and dedicated software developer with 5+ years of experience in full-stack development. Proficient in multiple programming languages and frameworks, with a focus on delivering scalable and efficient solutions. Adept at collaborating with cross-functional teams to analyze requirements, design software systems, and implement innovative solutions. Proven track record of delivering high-quality code and meeting project deadlines.

Senior Software Developer | Company Name, City, State | Month Year – Present

• Lead the development and implementation of complex software solutions, working closely with stakeholders to gather requirements and define project scope.
• Utilize Java, Spring Boot, and Angular to develop scalable and responsive web applications, adhering to best practices and design patterns.
• Collaborate with a team of developers to deliver high-quality code and meet project milestones.
• Conduct code reviews and provide technical guidance to junior developers.
• Participate in architectural discussions and propose improvements to enhance system performance and maintainability.

Software Developer | Company Name, City, State | Month Year – Month Year

• Developed and maintained web applications using Python, Django, and JavaScript.
• Implemented RESTful APIs for seamless integration with external systems.
• Designed and optimized database structures using PostgreSQL.
• Collaborated with product managers and designers to deliver user-friendly interfaces and enhance user experience.
• Assisted in troubleshooting and resolving production issues, ensuring minimal disruption to business operations.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) System | Company Name

• Led the development of a comprehensive ERP system, streamlining business processes and improving efficiency.
• Developed modules for inventory management, purchasing, sales, and accounting.
• Integrated third-party APIs for payment processing and shipping functionalities.
• Implemented security measures to protect sensitive data and ensure data privacy.
• Successfully launched the ERP system, resulting in increased productivity and cost savings for the organization.

Mobile Expense Tracking Application | Personal Project

• Designed and developed a mobile application using React Native, enabling users to track and manage their expenses on the go.
• Implemented features such as user authentication, expense categorization, and data synchronization with backend servers.
• Integrated payment gateways for secure in-app transactions.
• Published the application on app stores, receiving positive user reviews and achieving a high download rate.
• Programming Languages: Java, Python, JavaScript, C#
• Web Development: HTML, CSS, React, Angular, Spring Boot, Django
• Database Technologies: MySQL, PostgreSQL, MongoDB
• Version Control: Git, SVN
• Agile Development Methodologies

Certifications

• AWS Certified Developer – Associate
• Excellent teamwork and communication skills.
• Ability to mentor and coach junior developers.
• Detail-oriented and dedicated to delivering high-quality software solutions.
• Continuous learner, staying updated with the latest technologies and industry trends.

Software Developer Resume Example: Senior Level

Guidelines for creating an effective senior-level software developer resume.

When it comes to creating an effective senior-level software developer resume, there are a few key guidelines to keep in mind:

Emphasize Your Experience: As a senior-level developer, your experience is one of your greatest assets. Be sure to highlight your relevant work experience, including any leadership or management roles you have held.

Showcase Your Skills: In addition to highlighting your experience, you should also showcase your technical skills. This might include programming languages, development frameworks, and tools or technologies that you are proficient in.

Use Metrics to Demonstrate Your Impact: Whenever possible, use metrics to demonstrate the impact of your work. For example, you might highlight how you increased application performance or reduced maintenance costs.

Tailor Your Resume to the Job: Finally, be sure to tailor your resume to the job you are applying for. Research the position and the company to get a better understanding of their needs and priorities, and then highlight the skills and experiences that are most relevant.

Example of a Senior-Level Software Developer Resume

John Smith 123 Main Street Anytown, USA 12345 [email protected] 555-555-1234

Senior-level software developer with over 10 years of experience creating innovative solutions in a variety of programming languages and frameworks. Skilled in leading teams and delivering results, with a focus on performance, reliability, and user experience.

Senior Software Developer, XYZ Corporation

• Led a team of 5 developers in the design and implementation of a new ecommerce platform, resulting in a 15% increase in online sales.
• Created new performance monitoring tools that reduced application downtime by 25%.
• Implemented agile development methodologies to improve team efficiency and reduce time-to-market.

Lead Developer, ABC Company

• Designed and developed a new mobile app, resulting in a 4-star rating and over 1 million downloads.
• Worked with cross-functional teams to deliver complex projects on time and within budget.
• Mentored junior developers and provided technical leadership across the organization.
• Programming languages: Java, Python, JavaScript
• Frameworks: Spring MVC, Flask, AngularJS
• Tools and Technologies: AWS, Docker, Jenkins

Bachelor of Science in Computer Science, University of California, Berkeley

This resume showcases John’s extensive experience in senior-level software development, his technical skills, and his leadership abilities. By highlighting specific projects and achievements, he demonstrates the impact of his work and helps recruiters and hiring managers see how he can contribute to their organization.

Common Mistakes to Avoid on a Software Developer Resume

When crafting your software developer resume, there are common mistakes that you should avoid at all costs. These mistakes can hurt your chances of standing out from other applicants and jeopardize your chances of getting an interview. Here are some of the most common mistakes to watch out for:

Overcomplicating your language

While it may be tempting to use technical jargon and complicated words to showcase your knowledge, overcomplicating your language can be a turn-off for employers. It is important to remember that your resume should be easily understood by anyone in the hiring process, regardless of their technical background. Stick to simple language and avoid confusing industry-specific terms.

Including irrelevant information

Your resume should be a focused and concise representation of your qualifications and experience as a software developer. Including irrelevant information, such as unrelated work experience or personal hobbies, can distract from your relevant skills and qualifications. Stay focused and only include information that directly relates to the position you are applying for.

Omitting information that would make you stand out

On the flip side, omitting information that would make you stand out from other candidates is also a mistake to avoid. Do you have experience managing a team of developers? Have you contributed to open source software projects? Did you lead a successful software development project that resulted in increased revenue for a company? Be sure to highlight these achievements on your resume to make yourself stand out as a top candidate.

By avoiding these common mistakes, you can increase your chances of landing an interview and securing your next software developer position. Remember to keep your language simple and clear, stay focused on relevant information, and highlight your unique achievements and qualifications to stand out from the crowd.

Tips for Making Your Software Developer Resume Stand Out

To get noticed by potential employers, it is crucial to create a standout resume. Here are some tips to help make your software developer resume stand out:

Using Metrics and Quantifiable Data

One effective way to demonstrate your skills and experience is by showcasing your achievements through the use of metrics and quantifiable data. For example, include statistics related to how much code you have written, how many bugs you have fixed, or the number of successful projects you have delivered. This will give employers a better sense of your abilities and accomplishments.

Highlighting Your Work on Open-Source Projects

Developers who contribute to open-source projects demonstrate their ability to work collaboratively and contribute to the community. Make sure to include any relevant open-source projects you have worked on in your resume. This not only shows your enthusiasm for coding but also provides potential employers with examples of your contributions to the industry.

Incorporating Visually Appealing Design Elements

Most software developer resumes are not visually appealing, making it difficult for employers to differentiate between candidates. Incorporate visually appealing design elements such as color schemes, graphics, and proper formatting. This will help your resume to stand out and convey your creativity and attention to detail.

Incorporating these three tips into your software developer resume will give you an edge over other candidates and increase your chances of getting your dream job.

How to Tailor Your Resume for a Specific Job Opening

One of the most important steps in crafting your software developer resume is tailoring it for a specific job opening. Doing so can significantly increase your chances of landing an interview and ultimately getting the job. Here are some tips on how to tailor your resume for a specific job opening:

Researching keywords and skills listed in the job description

The first step in tailoring your resume for a specific job opening is to research the keywords and skills listed in the job description. Look for words or phrases that are commonly used in the software developer industry, such as programming languages, software development methodologies, and technical tools.

Make note of these keywords and skills, and be sure to include them in your resume where relevant. This will not only show that you have the necessary skills and experience, but it will also help your resume get past automated screening software that many companies use to filter out resumes.

Using the job description to guide the structure and content of your resume

Another important step in tailoring your resume for a specific job opening is to use the job description to guide the structure and content of your resume.

Look for sections in the job description that correspond to the sections typically found on a resume, such as education, work experience, and skills. Use these sections as a guide for structuring your resume.

In addition, make sure to highlight the skills and experiences that are most relevant to the job you are applying for. For example, if the job description emphasizes experience with a specific programming language, make sure to highlight your experience with that language in your resume.

Tailoring your resume for a specific job opening is a critical step in landing your dream software developer job. By researching keywords and skills listed in the job description and using the job description to guide the structure and content of your resume, you will increase your chances of standing out from the crowd and getting noticed by potential employers.

Frequently Asked Questions About Software Developer Resumes

A well-crafted resume can make or break your job search as a software developer. Below are some frequently asked questions about formatting, content, and length to help guide you as you create your resume.

How long should a software developer resume be?

When it comes to resume length, less is often more. Keep your resume concise and limited to one or two pages. Use bullet points and avoid lengthy paragraphs. Focus on highlighting your most relevant skills, experience, and achievements.

What format should a software developer resume be in?

The most common formats for resumes are chronological, functional, and combination. A chronological format is the most traditional, listing your work experience in reverse chronological order. A functional format emphasizes your skills and achievements, often used when you have gaps in your work history or changing careers. A combination format combines both the chronological and functional formats, highlighting both your experience and skills.

What should be included in a software developer resume?

Your resume should include your contact information, a summary or objective statement, your work experience, education, and skills. For software developers, it’s also important to showcase your technical skills, programming languages, tools, and platforms used.

What are some tips for writing a software developer resume?

Tailor your resume to the job you’re applying for, using keywords from the job posting. Quantify your accomplishments with specific results or metrics. Use clear and concise language, avoiding technical jargon or industry buzzwords. Proofread your resume carefully for spelling and grammatical errors.

Should I include a cover letter with my software developer resume?

Yes, a cover letter is a great opportunity to showcase your interest in the position and explain why you’re a good fit for the role. Use the cover letter to expand on your experience and skills and highlight specific examples that demonstrate your qualifications.

A well-written and well-formatted resume can set you apart as a software developer. Keep it focused, highlight your technical skills, and tailor it to the specific job you’re applying for. Don’t forget to include a strong and personalized cover letter to make a lasting impression.

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14 Software Developer Resume Examples for Your 2024 Job Search

Software developers are excellent problem solvers who create effective, secure applications for for systems of all types. As a software developer, your resume should be as meticulous and forward thinking as the code you produce. In this guide, we'll analyze 6 successful examples of software developer resumes and highlight the most effective techniques to stand out in this increasingly competitive field.

Resume Examples

Resume guidance.

• High Level Resume Tips
• Must-Have Information
• Why Resume Headlines & Titles are Important
• Writing an Exceptional Resume Summary
• How to Impress with Your Work Experience
• Top Skills & Keywords
• Go Above & Beyond with a Cover Letter
• Resume FAQs
• Related Resumes

Common Responsibilities Listed on Software Developer Resumes:

• Design and develop software applications, primarily using object-oriented programming languages and databases.
• Integrate software components and third-party programs.
• Test and debug programs using various testing tools.
• Compile and analyze data and other statistics.
• Create and maintain various technical documents such as design specifications and system test plans.
• Develop and maintain software systems to meet user requirements.
• Stay abreast of new technology and industry changes to maintain expertise in the field.
• Participate in team project work and also work independently as necessary.
• Develop user interfaces, actual databases and application modules in various languages.
• Identify any potential performance and technical issues with the software.
• Troubleshoot and debug software programs associated with deployed applications.
• Assist in software architecture design and integration planning.
• Assist with user training and technical support.

You can use the examples above as a starting point to help you brainstorm tasks, accomplishments for your work experience section.

Software Developer Resume Example:

• Designed, developed and maintained an innovative software application that was used by 10,000 users and achieved a 96% customer satisfaction rate
• Developed user interfaces, integrated third-party software components, and tested the program for performance optimization
• Selected and implemented a new testing tool that improved code quality and decreased the time required to test applications
• Created and updated various technical documents such as design specifications and system test plans, ensuring adherence to industry standards
• Assessed existing software architecture and integrated new components that improved performance by 200%
• Conducted team training sessions on the logic and functional requirements of the software application
• Built and deployed application modules for a new software development process which met user requirements, budget constraints, and strict deadlines
• Developed an automated system to track user data and identified the root cause of performance issues
• Strategically identified potential areas for improvement in software architecture and presented solutions to the executive management team
• Object-oriented programming
• Software development lifecycle
• Web application development
• System Design, Integration & Security
• Source control & Version Control
• Agile & Scrum methodologies
• Database design & management
• TDD & BDD
• JavaScript & jQuery
• Mobile App Development
• UI/UX design
• Cloud & distributed computing
• Unit & integration testing
• Machine learning & AI
• APIs & microservices
• Linux/Unix/Windows administration
• Network & system administration
• Scripting & Automation
• Documentation & reporting
• Software Development
• Data Science

Entry Level Software Developer Resume Example:

• Developed and tested small applications to improve user experience, achieving a 15% growth in customer satisfaction.
• Refactored existing code to increase efficiency and maintainability, resulting in an average of 10% increase in development speed.
• Completed code reviews and assisted with sprints to adhere to agile methodology, leading to successful implementation of new projects.
• Investigated application and security issues and implemented solutions, eliminating technical flaws and potential threats
• Researched, identified and integrated new technologies to optimize development processes by 20%
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to create technical documentation, user manuals, and guidelines
• Troubleshot MySQL and Oracle databases to identify errors and ensure system accuracy, improving overall performance by 10%
• Collected user requirements and designed tailored strategies to meet demands, resulting in a cost reduction of 15%
• Wrote and unit-tested code to debug existing systems, leading to solutions to solve complex problems
• Programming Languages (Java, C++, Python, JavaScript, etc.)
• Version Control (Git, Subversion)
• Object-Oriented Design
• Agile/Scrum Development Methodologies
• Database Design and Management (MySQL, Oracle, etc.)
• Software Testing and Debugging
• Requirements Gathering and Analysis
• Cross-Platform Development
• Security Protocols
• Documentation and Technical Writing
• Data Structures

Experienced Software Developer Resume Example:

• Developed and implemented end-to-end automated software testing scripts that reduced software regression testing time by 45%.
• Collaborated with product managers and software engineers to define and build secure, reliable, and scalable software products under a strict Agile and Scrum methodology.
• Assisted in product go-live events, customer facing activities, and created reports for senior management about the performance and uptime of the software.
• Conducted detailed code reviews to ensure adherence to standards, fix existing bugs, and add new features quickly and productively
• Documented architecture and design that enabled successful maintenance and future scalability of the software
• Implemented new technologies that improved software efficiency and reduced software launch time by 25%
• Identified software bottlenecks and implemented effective problem-solving strategies that improved software performance by 50%
• Worked closely with stakeholders to define external and internal interfaces required to build a high-quality product
• Troubleshot any software issues effectively in a timely manner to minimize business risk and costs
• Object-Oriented Programming
• Client-Side Scripting
• Web Application Development
• Unit & Integration Testing
• Cloud Computing
• Agile Methodology
• Security Protocols & Practices
• Systems Architecture Design
• Database Design
• Containers & Serverless
• Debugging & Troubleshooting
• Software Project Management
• Quality Control Execution
• AI & Machine Learning
• Data Analysis & Visualization
• Devops Practices
• Performance Optimization
• User Experience Design

Junior Software Developer Resume Example:

• Developed software solutions for a financial services organization, resulting in a 25% increase in customer satisfaction
• Authored user interface designs for a customer support app, streamlining the issue resolution process for clients by 30%
• Installed and monitored application performance, quickly resolving critical bugs/defects to prevent website outages
• Assisted in the implementation of new technologies and best practices, increasing project efficiency by 20%
• Wrote extensive documents outlining critical programming requirements and procedures
• Developed test plans and executed unit tests to ensure accuracy and reliability of solutions before deployments
• Created and maintained documentation to ensure accurate integration of applications into the existing system architecture
• Collaborated with developers, engineers, and project managers to define process flows and software solutions
• Utilized version control software to manage code and project assets, improving organization by 30%
• Software Engineering
• Programming Languages (e.g. Java, C#, Python)
• Database Design & Management (e.g. SQL)
• Software Testing & Quality Assurance
• Web & Application Development
• API & Microservices Architecture
• UI/UX Design
• Version Control (e.g. GIT, SVN)
• Agile & Scrum Methodologies
• Security & Authentication
• Network & System Architecture
• Automation & Scripting
• Problem-Solving & Critical Thinking
• Communication & Project Management
• Computer Science
• Mathematics

Senior Software Developer Resume Example:

• Created a robust and extensible web application to support the customer's needs, utilizing a combination of object-oriented development, web applications and debugging tools
• Developed and maintained advanced security and data backup and recovery procedures to preserve vital customer information
• Wrote technical documentation to support software and development best practices, making sure updates were timely and accurate
• Developed, tested, and monitored software applications, optimizing performance through regular tuning solutions
• Implemented new features, software tools, and components, ensuring they met high-quality standards
• Mentored a team of junior software developers, providing technical guidance and support to professionals
• Redesigned and expanded existing software applications, in line with customer's requirements
• Substantially improved software workflow and stability, through successful collaboration with other departments
• Resolved software bugs quickly and efficiently, resulting in improved customer experience and satisfaction
• Object-oriented development
• Web applications & debugging tools
• Security & data backup & recovery procedures
• Technical documentation & best practices
• Software development & monitoring
• Quality assurance & standards
• Mentoring & guidance
• Redesigning & expanding software
• Software workflow & stability
• Troubleshooting & resolving software bugs
• Cloud computing & infrastructure
• Agile & Scrum development
• Automation & DevOps
• Testing & automation tools
• Version control systems & tools
• Web technologies & programming languages
• Network engineering & architectures
• Data architecture & visualization
• Machine learning & artificial intelligence

Software Developer Intern Resume Example:

• Assisted developing team in designing and coding software sub-modules, streamlining workflow and optimizing code performance
• Created web page layouts and web graphics to enhance user experience, decrease page load times, and improve usability
• Utilized database tools such as SQL to develop tools and resources to facilitate software development
• Collaborated with software development team to troubleshoot and debug code, alleviating customer complaints and issues
• Assisted in designing testing automation to increase efficiency of testing processes and promote fast-paced development
• Partnered with product owners, designers, and QA teams to ensure understanding of software requirements and ensure successful delivery of projects
• Implemented software features that improved the customer experience, from performance and usability enhancements to better client support tools
• Developed algorithms and applications, such as web and mobile applications, to improve core business processes
• Participated in software development best practices, such as data abstraction and analysis, to propel development workflows
• Programming Languages (e.g. C#, JavaScript)
• Full-Stack Web Development
• SQL & Database Management
• Testing & Quality Assurance
• Software Analytic & Troubleshooting
• Automation & Algorithm Development
• User Experience Design & Development
• Agile Methodologies & Team Collaboration
• Customer Support & Technical Documentation

Node JS Developer Resume Example:

• Developed and deployed a microservices architecture for a high-traffic e-commerce website, resulting in a 25% increase in page load speed and a 20% increase in overall site performance.
• Collaborated with front-end developers to integrate user-facing elements with server-side logic, resulting in a 15% increase in user engagement and a 10% increase in conversion rates.
• Implemented security measures and data protection protocols, ensuring compliance with industry standards and preventing data breaches.
• Optimized a RESTful API for a healthcare application, reducing response times by 50% and improving overall system performance by 30%.
• Wrote reusable and efficient code, resulting in a 25% reduction in development time and a 15% increase in team productivity.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to troubleshoot and debug applications, resulting in a 20% reduction in production issues and a 10% increase in customer satisfaction.
• Designed and implemented a low-latency, high-availability application for a financial services company, resulting in a 40% increase in transaction processing speed and a 30% reduction in system downtime.
• Utilized various Node.js modules and libraries to optimize applications for maximum speed and scalability, resulting in a 20% increase in system performance and a 15% reduction in operational costs.
• Collaborated with stakeholders to define and implement a technology roadmap, aligning engineering initiatives with company-wide goals and resulting in a 50% increase in team efficiency and project success rate.
• Microservices architecture
• RESTful API development
• JavaScript (ES6+)
• AWS/Google Cloud Platform/Azure
• Agile methodologies
• Test-driven development (TDD)
• Performance optimization
• Security and data protection
• Cross-functional collaboration
• Debugging and troubleshooting
• Communication and teamwork

ServiceNow Developer Resume Example:

• Developed and implemented a custom ServiceNow application for a client, resulting in a 25% increase in efficiency and a 15% reduction in errors.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to troubleshoot and debug ServiceNow applications, resulting in a 30% reduction in downtime and improved user satisfaction scores.
• Created and maintained technical documentation for ServiceNow applications, ensuring compliance with industry standards and best practices.
• Developed and maintained ServiceNow integrations with other systems, resulting in a 20% increase in data accuracy and a 10% reduction in manual data entry.
• Developed and maintained ServiceNow automation processes, resulting in a 30% reduction in manual tasks and improved team productivity.
• Developed and maintained ServiceNow customizations and custom objects, resulting in a 15% increase in system flexibility and improved user satisfaction scores.
• Designed and developed a ServiceNow reporting dashboard, resulting in a 25% increase in data visibility and improved decision-making processes.
• Monitored and optimized ServiceNow performance, resulting in a 20% increase in system speed and improved user satisfaction scores.
• Developed and maintained ServiceNow security policies and procedures, ensuring compliance with industry standards and best practices.
• ServiceNow Application Development
• ServiceNow Integration
• ServiceNow Automation
• ServiceNow Customization
• ServiceNow Reporting and Dashboards
• ServiceNow Performance Optimization
• ServiceNow Security and Compliance
• Cross-functional Collaboration
• Troubleshooting and Debugging
• Technical Documentation
• Industry Standards and Best Practices
• Process Improvement
• Team Productivity
• User Satisfaction
• Data Accuracy and Visibility

Oracle Developer Resume Example:

• Developed and implemented a database performance tuning strategy that reduced query response times by 50%, resulting in a 25% increase in application speed and user satisfaction.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to design and implement a database replication process, ensuring data consistency across multiple systems and reducing data errors by 80%.
• Provided technical guidance and support to junior team members, resulting in a 30% improvement in their technical skills and overall productivity.
• Designed and developed a database backup and recovery process that reduced downtime by 75%, ensuring business continuity and minimizing data loss.
• Developed and implemented a database security strategy that improved data protection and compliance, resulting in a 90% reduction in security incidents and vulnerabilities.
• Collaborated with stakeholders to develop and maintain database change management processes, ensuring smooth and efficient deployment of database changes and minimizing production issues.
• Developed and implemented a database monitoring and alerting system that improved system availability by 95%, reducing downtime and improving system reliability.
• Designed and developed a database disaster recovery plan that minimized data loss and ensured business continuity in case of a disaster, resulting in a 100% recovery rate.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to design and implement a data integration process, ensuring data consistency and accuracy across multiple systems and reducing data errors by 90%.
• Oracle Database Administration
• Performance Tuning
• Database Replication
• Backup and Recovery
• Database Security
• Change Management
• SQL and PL/SQL
• Data Integration
• Disaster Recovery Planning
• Database Monitoring and Alerting
• Oracle Application Express (APEX)
• Oracle Forms and Reports
• Oracle Data Guard
• Oracle Real Application Clusters (RAC)
• Oracle GoldenGate
• Oracle Enterprise Manager (OEM)
• Oracle Cloud Infrastructure
• Oracle Exadata
• Oracle E-Business Suite
• Oracle Fusion Middleware
• Java and JavaScript
• Linux and Unix Administration
• Shell Scripting
• Team Collaboration
• Mentoring and Technical Guidance

WordPress Developer Resume Example:

• Developed and implemented a custom WordPress theme for a client, resulting in a 25% increase in website traffic and a 15% increase in lead generation.
• Created a custom REST API for a WordPress website, allowing for seamless integration with a third-party CRM system and improving data accuracy by 20%.
• Optimized a WordPress website for performance and scalability, resulting in a 30% decrease in page load times and a 10% increase in user engagement.
• Developed and launched a custom WooCommerce plugin for a client, resulting in a 20% increase in online sales and a 15% increase in customer satisfaction.
• Integrated a WordPress website with an eCommerce platform, streamlining the checkout process and reducing cart abandonment rates by 25%.
• Created custom Gutenberg blocks for a WordPress website, improving the user experience and increasing page views by 10%.
• Maintained and updated multiple WordPress websites, ensuring 99.9% uptime and reducing website downtime by 20%.
• Implemented security measures to protect WordPress websites from cyber attacks, resulting in zero security breaches over a two-year period.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to troubleshoot and debug WordPress websites, reducing website errors by 30% and improving website performance by 15%.
• WordPress theme development
• Custom plugin development
• REST API integration
• Website performance optimization
• WooCommerce integration
• Gutenberg block development
• Website maintenance and updates
• WordPress security implementation
• Troubleshooting and debugging
• eCommerce platform integration
• HTML, CSS, and JavaScript proficiency
• PHP and MySQL knowledge
• Responsive web design
• Search engine optimization (SEO)
• User experience (UX) design
• Project management
• Git version control
• Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator)

BI Developer Resume Example:

• Developed and implemented a data quality process that improved data accuracy by 25%, resulting in more reliable business intelligence insights and better decision-making.
• Designed and developed a suite of reports and dashboards that provided real-time visibility into key performance indicators, resulting in a 15% increase in operational efficiency.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to develop and implement a predictive analytics model that improved forecasting accuracy by 20%, resulting in better resource allocation and cost savings.
• Managed the development and implementation of a data warehouse that integrated data from multiple sources, resulting in a 30% reduction in data processing time and improved data accuracy.
• Developed and maintained data visualizations that provided insights into customer behavior, resulting in a 10% increase in customer retention and a 5% increase in revenue.
• Collaborated with stakeholders to develop and implement a data governance process that ensured compliance with data privacy regulations and improved data security.
• Designed and developed a data architecture that supported the integration of new data sources, resulting in a 20% increase in data availability and improved data accuracy.
• Developed and maintained data mining models that identified opportunities for cost savings, resulting in a 10% reduction in operational costs.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to develop and implement a data analytics process that provided insights into customer behavior, resulting in a 15% increase in customer satisfaction.
• Data warehousing
• Data integration
• Data quality management
• Data visualization
• Predictive analytics
• Data mining
• Data architecture
• Data governance
• Data security
• Data privacy compliance
• ETL (Extract, Transform, Load)
• Business intelligence tools (e.g., Power BI, Tableau, QlikView)
• Big data technologies (e.g., Hadoop, Spark)
• Database management systems (e.g., SQL Server, Oracle, MySQL)
• Programming languages (e.g., Python, R, Java)
• Machine learning algorithms
• Statistical analysis
• Problem-solving
• Communication skills

Sharepoint Developer Resume Example:

• Designed and implemented a custom SharePoint solution for a client, resulting in a 25% increase in team productivity and a 15% reduction in project delivery time.
• Developed and maintained SharePoint governance policies and procedures, ensuring compliance with industry regulations and improving overall system security by 20%.
• Integrated SharePoint with other systems, such as databases and web services, resulting in a 30% reduction in data entry errors and a 10% increase in data accuracy.
• Developed and maintained custom SharePoint applications, including web parts and custom workflows, resulting in a 20% increase in team efficiency and a 15% reduction in manual processes.
• Configured and customized SharePoint features, such as search and user profiles, resulting in a 25% increase in user adoption and a 10% reduction in user errors.
• Designed and developed custom SharePoint solutions using HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and other web technologies, resulting in a 15% increase in system functionality and a 10% improvement in user experience.
• Managed and maintained SharePoint sites, including site collections, lists, libraries, and content types, resulting in a 20% increase in system reliability and a 10% reduction in system downtime.
• Developed and implemented SharePoint training materials and documentation, resulting in a 30% increase in user adoption and a 20% reduction in user errors.
• Researched and evaluated new SharePoint technologies and features, resulting in a 15% improvement in system functionality and a 10% reduction in system maintenance costs.
• SharePoint development and customization
• SharePoint site administration and management
• SharePoint governance and compliance
• SharePoint integration with other systems
• Custom SharePoint application development
• Web part and workflow development
• HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and other web technologies
• SharePoint search and user profile configuration
• SharePoint training and documentation
• Research and evaluation of new SharePoint technologies
• System reliability and performance optimization
• Data accuracy and error reduction
• User adoption and user experience improvement
• Project management and delivery
• Team collaboration and productivity enhancement

Fresher Software Developer Resume Example:

• Developed a user-friendly mobile application using Java and Kotlin, resulting in a 15% increase in user engagement within the first three months of launch.
• Collaborated with a team of five developers to implement agile methodologies, reducing project delivery time by 20% and increasing team productivity by 25%.
• Documented software applications and processes using Confluence, resulting in a 10% improvement in team communication and knowledge sharing.
• Integrated software components using RESTful APIs, resulting in a 20% improvement in application performance and functionality.
• Created and maintained databases using SQL, resulting in a 15% reduction in data errors and a 10% increase in data accuracy.
• Developed automated tests using Selenium and JUnit, resulting in a 25% reduction in manual testing time and an increase in testing coverage by 30%.
• Wrote code in Python and C++ to develop a scalable microservices architecture, improving system reliability by 30% and supporting a 20% increase in customer base.
• Participated in code reviews and software design meetings, resulting in a 15% improvement in code quality and a 10% reduction in bug-related delays.
• Debugged and troubleshot software applications using Visual Studio and Eclipse, resulting in a 20% reduction in production issues and an increase in customer satisfaction by 15%.
• RESTful APIs
• Code reviews
• Visual Studio
• Troubleshooting
• Software design
• Team collaboration
• Communication
• Time management

Magento Developer Resume Example:

• Magento 2.x expertise
• Custom Magento theme development
• Extension development and integration
• Database management and optimization
• Front-end web technologies (HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, jQuery)
• Checkout process streamlining
• Security best practices and vulnerability management
• Data migration and SKU management
• API integration (CRM, ERP, third-party services)
• Version control systems (Git, SVN)
• Code review and quality assurance
• Technical support and problem-solving
• Agile and Scrum methodologies
• Multi-lingual and multi-currency implementation
• SEO best practices for e-commerce
• Knowledge of server technologies (Apache, Nginx, PHP, MySQL)
• Understanding of e-commerce business processes
• Excellent communication and teamwork skills

High Level Resume Tips for Software Developers:

Emphasize your technical skills: As a software developer, your technical skills are essential to your job. Be sure to highlight your expertise in relevant programming languages, frameworks, and tools. Showcase your project experience: Highlight the projects you have worked on, the technologies you have used, and the results you have achieved. Be specific and quantify your accomplishments wherever possible. Demonstrate your problem-solving abilities: Software development is all about solving problems. Showcase your ability to analyze problems, develop creative solutions, and implement effective fixes.

Must-Have Information for a Software Developer Resume:

Here are the essential sections that should exist in a software developer resume:

• Contact Information
• Resume Headline
• Resume Summary or Objective
• Work Experience & Achievements
• Skills & Competencies

Additionally, if you're eager to make an impression and gain an edge over other software developer candidates, you may want to consider adding in these sections:

• Certifications/Training

Let's start with resume headlines.

Why Resume Headlines & Titles are Important for Software Developers:

Software developer resume headline examples:, strong headlines.

Experienced Software Developer with 4 Years of Professional Development Experience

Passionate Software Developer Leveraging 4 Years of Expertise for Contribute to Innovative Products

The good headlines provide more comprehensive information and ideas about the Software Developer's skills and professional experience. They more clearly communicate the developer's skills and specific experience, as well as their attitude, interest and passion for their work.

Weak Headlines

Professional Software Developer - 4 Years of Experience

4 Years With Development Experience - Software Developer

For a Software Developer, bad resume headlines are exactly what is shown above; generic, lacking specific detail, and failing to give a sense of the individual's capabilities, experience in software development.

Writing an Exceptional Software Developer Resume Summary:

A resume summary is a key part of a software developer's resume, providing a brief overview of your skills, experiences, and accomplishments in developing software. It's an opportunity to highlight the most relevant information of your career and demonstrate how your experiences and skills align with the role you are applying for.

To write an exceptional resume summary for a Software Developer, the following tips can be useful:

• Tailor your summary to the specific job you are applying for by highlighting the most relevant skills and technologies.
• Mention your quantifiable achievements, such as the successful launch of a software product or the completion of a complex software project.
• Use keywords related to the position, software development, and relevant technologies to optimize your resume for both people and applicant tracking systems (ATS).
• Keep the summary concise and to-the-point, ideally under 4 sentences.
• Avoid generic statements and cliches, and try not to repeat any information already included in other sections of your resume.

Software Developer Resume Summary Examples:

Strong summaries.

• Innovative Software Developer with 4 years of experience in developing software applications and web-based solutions. Proven success in designing and implementing software solutions that meet customer requirements.
• Results-driven Software Developer with 4 years of experience in developing high-quality software solutions. Skilled in using a variety of software development tools and technologies to develop solutions for customers.

Why these are strong:

• These summaries demonstrate the Software Developer's experience in developing software applications and web-based solutions, and in designing and implementing software solutions. They also demonstrate the Software Developer's ability to use a variety of software development tools and technologies to develop solutions for customers.

Weak Summaries

• Experienced Software Developer with 4 years of experience in developing software applications. Experience in designing and implementing software solutions.
• Experienced Software Developer with 4 years of experience. Skilled in developing software applications and implementing software solutions.

Why these are weak: • These summaries are too generic and lack specifics. They do not demonstrate the Software Developer's ability to develop high-quality software solutions or to use a variety of software development tools and technologies to develop solutions for customers. They also do not demonstrate the Software Developer's experience in designing and implementing software solutions.

Resume Objective Examples for Software Developers:

Strong objectives.

Dynamic and dedicated software developer with 1+ years of experience in developing and maintaining software solutions, seeking the opportunity to work on challenging projects and further develop technical abilities in my role as a software developer.

Passionate entry-level software developer looking to leverage expertise in web development, software design, and debugging to drive growth and customer satisfaction at your esteemed organization.

• The great objectives are concise and clearly explain the individual's experience, goals, and professional aspirations. They also focus on the skills and abilities the individual can bring to the organization, showing their enthusiasm and commitment.

Weak Objectives

Recent software developer graduate seeking a job as a software developer.

Experienced software developer interested in contributing 1+ years of experience to a mature and collaborative development environment.

Why these are weak:

• The poor objectives are too generic, lack direction and detail, and don't explain what the individual can bring to the table. They also don't provide a clear explanation of the individual's goals or aspirations.

Write a More Targeted Resume with AI

Speed up your resume creation process with the resume builder . generate tailored resume summaries in seconds., how to impress with your software developer work experience:, best practices for your work experience section:.

• Highlight accomplishments rather than listing duties. Show how you improved processes, designed or created something, or saved money.
• Include links or attachments to relevant work you’ve done, such as code repositories and links to published apps or websites.
• Focus on relevant technologies, applications, and concepts, including programming languages, development frameworks, databases, and cloud platforms.
• Include key metrics on projects and explain how they contributed to the success of the project.
• Explain more than just the basics of job responsibilities – dive into details of the work and describe technical solutions to problems.
• Demonstrate passion for technology with phrases that explain the “why” behind the work.
• Showcase expertise in professional development methodologies such as Agile and Scrum.
• Provide evidence of staying current with advances in technology, as well as professional development activities.
• Explain the size and scope of your involvement in projects.
• Explain solutions to difficult problems or how you identified and overcame technical issues.
• Explain how you identified particular problems that the organization faces, and how you fixed them.
• Specify the size of the development team you worked with, and roles that you assumed within it.

Example Work Experiences for Software Developers:

Strong experiences.

Developed and maintained a custom CRM system that increased sales productivity by 25% and reduced manual data entry by 50%.

Collaborated with cross-functional teams to deliver high-quality software solutions on time and within budget, resulting in a 20% increase in customer satisfaction.

Implemented agile methodologies to improve project delivery and increase team collaboration, resulting in a 20% reduction in project time to market.

Developed and implemented a cloud-based platform that improved scalability, reduced costs, and increased customer satisfaction by 30%.

Led a team of 5 developers to deliver a mobile application that was recognized as the "Best Mobile App of the Year" by industry experts and generated over 1 million downloads in the first year.

Contributed to the development of multiple software products, resulting in a 25% increase in revenue and a 20% improvement in customer retention.

• These examples are strong because they focus on specific achievements and the impact the individual had. They include metrics such as sales productivity, customer satisfaction, project delivery time, and revenue, which demonstrate the success of the individual's work. These examples highlight the individual's ability to develop software solutions, lead a team, and work with cross-functional teams to deliver results.

Weak Experiences

Contributed to the development of a web application

Worked on fixing various bugs and issues

Collaborated with the team on project tasks

Developed software solutions for clients

Wrote code using various programming languages

Conducted unit testing and bug fixing

• Both of these examples are weak because they lack specific details about the developer's achievements and the impact they had on the projects. They also do not mention any specific technologies or tools used, nor do they provide any metrics or results. A good work experience should be specific and detailed, providing a clear picture of what the developer did, how they did it, and what the outcome was.

Top Skills & Keywords for Software Developer Resumes:

Top hard & soft skills for software developers, hard skills.

• Proficiency in programming languages (e.g. Java, Python, C++)
• Object-Oriented Design (OOD)
• Database Design and Management
• Software Development Methodologies (e.g. Agile, Waterfall)
• Version Control (e.g. Git, SVN)
• API/Web Services
• User Interface Design
• HTML/CSS/JavaScript
• Source Code Refactoring
• Unit Testing
• Problem Solving/Troubleshooting

Soft Skills

• Problem-Solving
• Analytical Thinking
• Attention to Detail
• Adaptability/Flexibility
• Collaboration/Teamwork
• Self-Motivation
• Time-Management

Go Above & Beyond with a Software Developer Cover Letter

Software developer cover letter example: (based on resume).

Software developers are in high demand in today's job market, and a cover letter can help you stand out from other applicants. It's an opportunity to demonstrate your communication skills, highlight your relevant experience, and show your enthusiasm for the position.

Your cover letter allows you to explain how your skills and experience align with the requirements of the job. You can use the job description as a guide to showcase your technical expertise and knowledge of programming languages, software development methodologies, and software engineering principles.

In addition, you can use your cover letter to demonstrate your problem-solving skills and ability to work in a team environment. You can also use it to explain why you're passionate about software development and how you can add value to the organization.

Here are some tips for writing a compelling cover letter for a software developer position:

• Use the same header as your resume: This will help the hiring manager identify your application as a complete package.
• Align the content of your cover letter with the requirements of the job: Use the job description as a guide to highlight your relevant skills and experience.
• Use keywords from the job posting: Incorporate relevant keywords from the job posting to help your application get past applicant tracking systems (ATS).
• Keep your cover letter concise and focused: Aim for one page and avoid repeating information from your resume.
• Proofread carefully: Errors in your cover letter can undermine your credibility, so make sure to proofread carefully before submitting your application.

Resume FAQs for Software Developers:

How long should i make my software developer resume.

For Software Developers, a resume should be no more than 1-2 pages long. Focusing on the past 10-15 years of experience is generally optimal for highlighting the most pertinent information about a professional’s qualifications and capabilities. It is important to be concise and focus on quality over quantity, ensuring the most quality content rather than stretching the length. When deciding what to include, consider selecting the most relevant and prominent experiences, skills, and accomplishments.

What is the best way to format a Software Developer resume?

Software Developers should craft a resume that clearly demonstrates their technical skills and qualifications. Begin the resume with a strong summary, highlighting your most relevant qualifications. Make sure to use keywords and standard engineer language found in job postings. Highlight your technical proficiency with a detailed list of projects and technologies you have experience in and use headers to separate sections for clarity.

Which Software Developer skills are most important to highlight in a resume?

Software Developers should include hard skills on their resume such as programming languages, software development platforms, coding frameworks, databases, web technologies and other programming related experience. Examples of programming languages they should include are JavaScript, Java, C#, Python, HTML, CSS and PHP. They should include experience with software development platforms such as Microsoft Visual Studio, Eclipse, NET and Java Server Pages. Examples of coding frameworks to include are React, Angular, Bootstrap and Vue. They should also include experience with databases such as Oracle, MySQL, PostgreSQL and MS Access. Lastly, knowledge of web technologies such as AJAX, JSON and XML should be included.

How should you write a resume if you have no experience as a Software Developer?

First and foremost, you should focus on highlighting the relevant knowledge and abilities you possess that can be applied to the software development field. This may include emphasizing your experience with coding, scripting, debugging software, etc. Additionally, make sure to showcase relevant coursework or certifications, or even relevant volunteer or freelance positions if those are applicable. Showcase your ability to learn quickly, your problem-solving capability, and your analytical skills. Lastly, include any awards, prizes, or accolades that could be related to software development.

Compare Your Software Developer Resume to a Job Description:

• Identify opportunities to further tailor your resume to the Software Developer job
• Improve your keyword usage to align your experience and skills with the position
• Uncover and address potential gaps in your resume that may be important to the hiring manager

Related Resumes for Software Developers:

Entry level software developer resume example, experienced software developer resume example, junior software developer resume example, senior software developer resume example, software developer intern resume example, software developer resume example, node js developer resume example, oracle developer resume example, servicenow developer resume example, wordpress developer resume example, bi developer resume example, sharepoint developer resume example, fresher software developer resume example, more resume guidance:.

• • Successfully converted whole project from python 2 to 3.8.0
• • Scripted unique test plans, test scripts and processes to remove previously known redundancy by 40% and ensured predictable outcomes
• • Developed a desktop application to automate database testing process, improved efficiency by 65%
• • Automated process to create usage graphs, saving $500,000 / year & increasing accuracy
• • Moved the automation solution into a commercial software ($60k/year)
• • Designed and developed reusable software components which used in 3 different project with reducing development effort by 50%
• • Re-engineered critical modules within a sprint to rely on a centralized library to optimize performance by 68%
• • Rated with the best annual performance rating for all the years during my stint; given to top ~5% employees
• • Helped to increase the accuracy of the reporting systems by 4%
• • Delivered configuration management tools to track server settings for performance testing which saved 25% of initial machine setup
• • Developed monitor reports that are using in-memory cache, updating the data shown to the user every 1 second
• • Optimized customer resources and reduce turnaround time by 20%
• • Performed root cause analysis for more than 10 issues to identify bugs and rolled out fixes to production within 24 hours
• • Fueled additional revenue stream through responsive customer support, generating $18k in new license sales within first three weeks of new release
• • Improved user interfaces by updating menus to be more intuitive, increasing sales by 5%
• • Reduced the time by 75% to process 70,000 to 1, 00,000 instruments from 16+ seconds to less than 4 seconds by redesigning the algorithm
• • Wrote optimized scripts for ​data-heavy & processing heavy task automation
• • Spearheaded the revamp of tech stack which resulted in 40% decrease in server costs

18 Software Engineer Resume Examples & Guide for 2024

Your software engineer resume must highlight your technical competencies. Include the programming languages and development tools you're proficient in. Emphasize your problem-solving abilities and your experience with system architecture. Demonstrating completed projects can showcase your practical application of these skills.

All resume examples in this guide

Software Engineer Intern

Software Engineer New Grad

Entry Level Software Engineer

Junior Software Engineer

Mid-Level Software Engineer

Senior Software Engineer

Associate Software Engineer

Director Of Software Engineering

Embedded Software Engineer

Principal Software Engineer

Software Development Engineer

Software Development Manager

Software Engineering Manager

Software Specialist

Software Support Engineer

Software Team Lead

Staff Software Engineer

Resume guide.

Resume Example

Resume Format

Resume Experience Section

Hard & Soft Skills

Certification & Education

Resume Summary/Objective

Software Engineer Cover Letter

Key Takeaways

By Experience

As a software engineer, you are like a swiss army knife, able to adapt and meet expectations with whatever task that’s thrown at you. Whether you’re engineering modern applications with JavaScript or designing and implementing PHP web applications, your software engineering success hinges on your ability to innovate and achieve your client’s expectations.

In that same way, you want to create a software engineer resume which achieves your goal: to land your dream job. At Enhancv, our job is to create resumes which allow you to get your foot in the door and to gain a highly sought after interview.

In this article, we will provide you with:

• How to detail your unique software engineer experiences over a wide variety of disciplines, such as mastery of programming languages, web development, and software development methodologies;
• How to summarize your career achievements in delivering scalable and robust software solutions;
• How to highlight your certifications from recognized bootcamps or specialized courses in AWS and Azure.

Before you go on, there are other resume examples with guides that can be relevant for you:

• Front-end developer resume
• Back-end engineer resume
• Full-Stack developer resume
• Python developer resume
• Node.js developer resume
• PhP developer resume
• Net developer resume

Software engineer resume example

Elegant resume template.

What does this resume example do well?

• Focusing attention on their programming skills: First, the author of this resume highlights their knowledge of programming languages. But they also list the operating systems they are comfortable working with, while also highlighting it throughout their resume. In fact, in their achievement section, they even mentioned that they created a unique Chabad which reduced customer costs by 240%.
• Showcasing their achievements through real-world numbers: Right as soon as your eyes glance over to the right side of the page, one phrase immediately sticks out, “Spearheaded a $12M software project.” The author of this resume chose to highlight their achievements through quantifiable, real-world examples. They shared that they increased efficiency by 30%, and successfully coordinated a yearlong project. These points prove to a potential hiring manager they are competent and able to handle a position.
• Highlighting their strengths: In addition, the author of this resume has a large section focused on their strengths. In this section, you can see the author mentions they were gold medalists for excellence in academics for five years.

How to format a software engineer's resume

As a software engineer, you should approach your resume like you would a line of code. When you format your code, you’re not just doing it for aesthetic reasons, but you’re doing it to enhance readability and make the codebase easier to maintain. In that same way, a properly formatted resume can enhance the readability of your resume for a potential hiring manager. In fact, by just making small tweaks to your resume, you can present yourself in a much more appealing way and potentially position yourself to get that much sought-after interview.

Below, you’ll find some helpful tips to keep in mind when you’re formatting your resume :

Is your resume good enough?

Drop your resume here or choose a file . PDF & DOCX only. Max 2MB file size.

The top sections on a software engineer resume:

What hiring managers want to see on a software engineer resume, how to write your software engineer resume experience.

Your resume experience section will be the first thing that a recruiter looks for when they scan your resume. They’ll scrutinize the contributions that you made in your previous role, checking to see what impact you made. That’s why you should bolster your experience and skills with real, quantifiable examples from your career.

Below, you’ll find a list of two experience sections. One of them will be the correct way to fill out an experience section, while the other will be a resume section that falls below expectations. Use both examples as a guideline to create your own:

• • Helped to implement Agile methodologies within a cross-functional team of software engineers.
• • Conducted regular code reviews and mentored junior developers.
• • Actively participated in the evaluation and selection of new technologies and tools to improve development processes.
• • Designed and developed a scalable microservices architecture using Node.js and Docker.

What’s the issue with this resume experience section?

There’s not a single quantifiable example here. What exactly did implementing Agile methodologies do in your previous job? There’s nothing here to show the impact that the applicant made. Also, some of the weak verbs should be changed to active, engaging verbs. The verb ‘helped’ is a weak verb, which could be shifted to ‘collaborated’ or just simply ‘implemented’.

• • Led a cross-functional team of five engineers in the successful implementation of Agile methodologies, resulting in a 20% increase in project efficiency and on-time deliveries.
• • Conducted regular code reviews and mentored junior developers, resulting in a 30% improvement in code quality and adherence to coding standards.
• • Designed and developed a scalable microservices architecture using Node.js and Docker, reducing response times by 40% and ensuring high availability for a customer-facing application serving over 1 million users.

What does this do right?

There are quantifiable examples scattered throughout this resume experience section, and this helps to show the impact that the applicant has made in their previous roles. Not only that, but the applicant uses unique keywords of specific programming languages and open-source server platforms which would help their resume make it through a scan by applicant tracking systems (ATS).

Start every one of your bullet points with a power verb to make them super impactful. Examples of power words include collaborated, developed, advocated, facilitated, and transformed.

How to quantify impact on your resume

It’s important to quantify the impact you’ve made in previous roles because you can add credibility to the claims that you make. Chances are, as a software engineer, you’ve spent a great deal of time creating and developing software, fixing bugs, and creating programs and applications that can benefit people. But you likely have spent very little time reflecting on the impact that you’ve made.

Potential hiring managers don’t want to see a bland list of the things that you’ve done. They want to see real-world examples of the difference you’ve made. In order to do this, use the PAR (Problem-Action-Result) method to refine your contributions. List a specific problem and then share the actions you took to achieve a specific result.

Below, you’ll find a list of the top quantifiable achievements to include on your resume:

• Scalability: “Designed and implemented a scalable microservices architecture, enabling the application to handle 3x more concurrent users.”
• Bug Reduction: “Achieved a 15% decrease in post-release bug reports by implementing comprehensive testing suites.”
• Increased Application Performance: “Improved application response time by 30% through code optimization.”
• Efficiency Improvements: “Automated deployment processes, reducing deployment times from 4 hours to 30 minutes.”
• User Growth: “Contributed to a feature that increased user engagement, resulting in a 25% growth in monthly active users.”
• Customer Satisfaction: “Resolved customer issues with a 24-hour turnaround time, leading to a 20% increase in customer retention.”

How to list your hard skills and soft skills on your resume

In the IT field, you’ll likely find it easier to go into detail about the hard (technical skills) that you possess. You have a technical education which has allowed you to develop your coding and programming languages to become proficient in them. No doubt when someone asks what you do for a living, you might list off several technical skills you have and explain how that fits into your role in a company.

These technical skills may form the core of your experience, but you also possess soft (also known as people) skills. Whenever you collaborate with an interdisciplinary team filled with marketing experts, managers, and research and development professionals, you have to use communication skills to explain the decisions and actions you’ve taken.

Below, you’ll find two lists. The first one lists all the hard skills a software engineer should include on their resume. The second will include all the soft skills to include.

Best hard skills for your software developer resume

Best soft skills for your software engineer resume, 5 examples of skills to include on your resume:.

• Collaboration: “Provided leadership to an interdisciplinary team as the subject matter expert on hosting issues, staff and customer logins, and upgrades to servers.”
• Problem-solving skills: “Created ecommerce sites integrated with PayPal, Authorize.net, and other payment APIs. Navigated issues related to a complex ecommerce site.”
• Leadership: “Led a team of 5 programmers to structure several internal systems, including custom REST APIs through Python.”
• Attention to detail: “ Refined the application’s features to root out and fix bugs, which optimized overall performance, efficiency, and reliability.”
• Adaptability: “Modified and designed HTML, JavaScript, and CSS web pages in order to optimize the performance for quicker loading.

How to list your certifications and education on your resume

In the IT field, possessing the right education and certifications can make all the difference in finding the right job. In fact, if you possess the right educational background and certifications, you may be able to win job offers over more experienced software engineers.

Here’s what you need to include when listing your education on your resume:

Listing certifications on your resume:

Best certifications for your software engineer resume, how to write your software developer resume summary or objective.

There is a big difference between a resume summary on a resume objective. A resume objective, also known as an objective statement, is a short, position-focused statement that describes the value that you could add to the position you’re applying for. A resume objective tends to be used more for those who are new to the field, or those without as much experience.

You can use bullet points in your resume objective to help break up a large paragraph of text. It also helps to draw the eye to each of the individual unique skills you possess.

In contrast, a professional summary goes into a little more detail than a resume objective does. Resume summaries go into more depth about how each unique set of skills you possess will aid the company. Using real-world, quantifiable examples, a resume summary should effectively build your case on why your experience shows you’ll be the best candidate to fill the position. Resume summaries can be used by those who have more experience under their belt.

Let’s first examine a couple of resume objectives for software engineers, and see what they do bad and well.

One major issue with his resume objective is that it lacks specific details about the technical skills that the applicant possesses. Don’t be afraid to explain individual skills that you highlight later on in your resume.

What does this example do right?

It’s a lot more specific, going into more detail about the skills and abilities that the applicant possesses. Not only does it mention programming languages, but it also mentions their unique background in database management and cloud technologies.

Now, let’s move on to resume summaries and focus on how to do them well and what to avoid.

This resume summary doesn’t have the same impact as the one you will read below. It misses the unique programming languages that the applicant possesses, as well as not possessing powerful words. For what could be a great resume summary, it falls lifeless and flat.

Conversely, not only does it showcase all the unique programming languages and skills the applicant possesses, but it also shows that the applicant is looking for a new challenge. This shows someone who is driven to create an impact and to innovate.

Cover letter matching your software engineer resume

Cover letters are important because they allow a hiring manager to learn a little more about you than what your resume can offer. In your cover letter, be sure to go into more depth about the skills and experience you possess, while also showing how you are interested in the position you’re applying for.

Below, you can find a list of tips to help you craft your cover letter:

• Cover letter header: Make sure to include all the contact information that you provided in your resume and make sure that they match.
• Address the letter to a hiring manager: Do your best to find the specific person who is hiring for the position. If you tailor your cover letter to a specific hiring manager, it’ll show that you took the time to find out their name and put it on the cover letter.
• Write a salutation and introduction: Begin your cover letter with a salutation like “Dear ___” and then write an introductory paragraph. Your introductory paragraph should give a first taste of who you are. It should also include a bit of information about why you are interested in working at the company you’re applying for.
• Describe technical and soft skills: Next, include some specific skills that you possess. Make sure to quantify and provide real-world examples of the skills.
• Call to action: Finish off your cover letter with a call to action, a specific statement that provokes a response. This can include asking them to contact you through email or your phone number provided.

Check our software engineer cover letter here .

Software Engineer resume examples

Explore additional software engineer resume samples and guides and see what works for your level of experience or role.

You're likely to gain more software development knowledge during your initial months on the job than throughout four years as a computer science major.

Both technical and non-technical recruiters appreciate real project experience, as it demonstrates your ability to thrive in a production environment, collaborate with a team, and adhere to guidelines.

If your work history is sparse, focus on presenting your experience through software projects. Side applications, contributions to open-source code, and even relevant Fiverr gigs can give you a competitive advantage over candidates with less experience.

Your GitHub profile can be a wildcard in the hiring process. Some recruiters may scrutinize it to make their decision, while others might disregard it completely.

Prepare for the possibility that someone will review your GitHub page. What will they find? Unnecessary comments? An empty profile? Regardless of whether the code was written three or five years ago, your work will be evaluated based on today's standards.

Include your GitHub link on your resume only if you believe it adds value. Otherwise, it could work against you.

Mid-level software engineers are indeed the "workhorses" of the programming world. They deliver significant impact through routine code, optimize their workflows precisely, and exhibit excellent coding habits.

Highlight the following qualities in the context of your software projects to present yourself in the best light:

• Ability to deliver substantial amounts of work with minimal or no supervision;
• Active collaboration with team members and team leads;
• Deep understanding of platforms and tools relevant to the target company's tech stack.

Beyond operating independently at a highly-skilled level, senior software engineers are also capable of leading teams and serving as mentors.

When applying for senior positions, concentrate on your team's achievements and collaboration, rather than your personal accomplishments. Tech companies seek senior software engineers who can effectively guide less-experienced staff.

Examine the size of your target company's software department and emphasize experience with teams of comparable sizes. Showcase your successes as a leader and prove your ability to consistently solve company problems.

Structure parts of your experience using a challenge-solution-business outcome framework to attract the attention of your dream company.

Key takeaways

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• How to Make a Resume

Creating a standout resume might seem daunting, but it’s your key to landing that dream job. Your resume is more than just a list of jobs; it’s your personal marketing tool that highlights your skills, experiences, and achievements in a way that attracts potential employers. Nowadays it’s everyone’s concern how to make a resume that is ATS friendly and reflects your skills and knowledge.

In this article, we’ll walk you through the essential steps to build a resume that gets noticed by hiring managers and recruiters. We’ll cover resume templates , effective resume formats , and tips for writing powerful resume bullet points. Building your resume is crucial for different job applications, how to highlight your professional experience and the best ways to list your education and certifications.

Table of Content

What is a Resume

Why a resume is important.

Before, moving on to how to write a resume even if you’re a fresher and have no experience, let us understand what is resume and why it is important.

A resume is a concise document that summarizes your skills , experiences , and achievements to showcase your qualifications for a job. Understanding resume writing how to is essential for creating a compelling resume that stands out. When learning how a resume is written, it’s important to focus on formatting, clarity, and relevance. Effective resume writing involves choosing the right structure, highlighting your most significant accomplishments , and tailoring the content to the job you’re applying for. By mastering how to write a resume, you can create a powerful tool that captures the attention of potential employers and helps you advance in your career.

If you want paychecks, you’ve to sell yourself first and a resume is that one tool or document that lists out your features and USPs that will help you to sell yourself in the job market. Within one or two pages, a resume convinces recruiters if they want to call you for a job interview or not. (That much power your resume holds)

So, if you want to bag your first interview or want to interview at your dream company or for a dream job role , it’s very important for you to write a strong and power-packed resume with correct keywords and relevant skills that will persuade recruiters to hit “I want to interview you” button. 

How to Make a Resume (Full Guide)

Choose your desired resume format.

• Reverse chronological resume format
• Functional or Skilled Focused resume format
• Hybrid Format
• Dos and Don’ts of Resume Layout 
• What resume format is best for ATS

Most people have two options when it comes to getting an interview call – A++ top-tier level resume or an “I know someone here” referral. No matter which group you belong to, it’s important to up your resume game and understands the strategies that are used to land an interview from your dream company within a week, if not days. Before you dive into the resume-building process, you have to decide on the right resume format that will take you up the ladder. If you’ve already decided to write your resume on a text editor like MS Word, it’s highly recommended you should keep your HANDS OFF from them. 

Formatting your resume on a basic text editor will not waste your time but also your effort. We recommend that you should use a resume builder tool like GeeksforGeeks Online Resume Builde r – Free. Our resume builder is fast, simple, and free to use. Moving onto resume formats that you can use to format your resume. 

There are three types of resume formats: reverse chronological, functional or skills-based, and hybrid. You should choose the format that suits the type of job you are applying for and your level of experience.

Types of Resume Formats

1) Reverse chronological Resume Format – This highlights your career advancement and emphasizes the relevant job experience. It’s an absolute fan favorite of recruiters. However, it doesn’t show your skills much so if you’re someone with highly relevant job experience, you can opt for this resume format.

Reverse chronological Resume Format

2) Functional/skills-based Resume Format – Are you a fresher with no job experience? Opt for a functional or skill-based resume format if you have skills to brag about but no relevant work experience. 

Functional/skills-based Resume Format

3) Hybrid Resume Format – Now, this resume format is preferred by most recruiters and loved by job seekers with diverse skillsets and job experience. It combines the best elements of both reverse chronological and functional resume format and provides space for the right keyword. 

If you’re wondering which resume format is best for ATS, go for the reverse chronological resume format. When it comes to resume layout, you need to mind these tips while formatting your resumes:

• Page Count: Keep your resume to one page. Max 2 if you’ve 7+ of experience and it’s relevant to your job role. Recruiters get 1000+ resumes every day and it gets tough to go through resumes with more than 2 pages. 
• Heading Tag: If you’re choosing an H1 tag or an H2 tag to write your headlines in your resume, then ensure that all headlines have the same tag.
• White space: Keep enough white space in your resume. Negative space is needed to make your resume look professional.
• PDF or Word: Download your resume as a PDF document as it can be read by most ATS. If the job description mentions that you need to send the doc file as a .doc, then send your resume like that as old ATS can’t read PDF files.

 Add your contact information

The most important and overlooked section of your resume is the contact information section which is right under your name. Even if you write everything correctly but haven’t provided your contact details, HRs can’t reach out to you even if they want to contact you. Ensure that everything on your contact information is up to date and triple-check the details if needed. 

Things that you should include are: 

• First Name / Last Name – Mention the name that is provided on your social security card or if you’re in India, it should match the name that’s provided on your PAN card or Aadhaar card.
• Phone Number – Only provide the phone number that is reachable.
• Email Address – Don’t provide an unprotected email address. Your email address should be like this: “[email protected]”. Avoid providing email addresses like [email protected], [email protected]
• Location – Your residential address should be the same as the one where you stay or relocated.
• Social Media URLs – If you’re a software developer, mention your Github profile. If you’re a designer, then Behance profile and if you’re a writer, provide your personal blog that showcases your abilities. Don’t forget to include your LinkedIn account as most recruiters go through LinkedIn to see your online presence. 

Write a Resume Headline that Can Stand You Out From the Crowd

A resume headline is a short, one-line statement that conveys who you are as a candidate. It is important to write a headline that grabs the recruiter’s attention and encourages them to read your qualifications in more depth. Your resume headline is often the first thing recruiters read so impress them within seconds by writing a short and concise headline. Keep it relevant to your job skills and make sure that you put the right keywords that are relevant to the job posting .

Some resume headlines examples for you to check out:

• Goal-Oriented Senior Accountant with 6+ Years of Accounting Experience in XYZ Company.
• Successful Manager of Dozens of Online Marketing Campaigns
• Award-Winning Video Editor Skilled in Web Design and Video Editing
• Detail-Oriented History Student with Curatorial Experience

Include a professional summary

The first impression is your last impression. This phrase stands true to date. An effective resume introduction can make or break you no matter what type of job you’re applying for. Your summary or objective can give the opportunity to impress the recruiter so carefully write your resume summary/objective. Don’t know where to write a resume summary or objective? We got you covered.

A resume summary is a 2-3 sentence summary of your working experience. Unless you’re a recent college grad or changing careers, you should use a resume summary in almost any scenario.

On the other hand, a resume objective implies the goal of your resume. It conveys why you want to work in that particular field and the motivation behind it. When writing a resume summary, include an objective of 2-3 lines. If you’re changing your career or have no significant work experience, make sure to write a resume objective.

Add your work experience

• If you’re a fresher, keep the education section at the top, and if you’re an experienced person or did work in FAANG companies or big coming, then put work experience at the top.
• If you’re a backend intern, make sure you’re writing the designation as a software engineering intern. 
• Make sure you’re covering up your tasks in 2-3 points.

Now we’re down to the most important part of the resume – work experience . If an add sells a product with just a few words, your resume does the same with you by selling you on the basis of your past work experience and achievements. Learning to write this section is a bit tough but once you master writing the perfect work experience section, 80% work is done here and after this you will know how to write and resume. So, let’s see how to list your work experience: Your work experience should be written in reverse chronological order as ATS can scan reverse chronological resume format easily.

It should be something like this:

Job title | Company Name | Date of employment 

Accomplishments & Achievements

• Job title: Keep it on top of your resume so that recruiters can easily see what position you’re applying for.
• Company name: Mention the company you are working in or working for.
• Date of employment: Mention the timeframe of your employment in all the companies you worked for. Ensure that format is like this – dd/mm/yyyy. It is important to mention as ATS parses it only then.
• Accomplishments and achievements: This is where you mention your core achievements that will in turn bag you – your dream job. List your achievements or responsibilities according to your job role.
• If you’re a fresher, keep the education section at the top and if you’re an intern or worked in FAANG companies or big companies, then make sure to put the work experience section at the top.
• If you’re a backend intern, instead of writing your job title as “Backend Intern”, write it as a “Software Engineering Intern”. You should always write the job title mentioned in the job description.
• Don’t write 10-15 points covering your job responsibilities. Recruiters don’t have the time to go through all of the responsibilities. Keep it to 2-3 points max.
• Mention achievements in terms of how exactly you helped the company grow, reach quarterly quotas, and so on. Numbers play a big role when it comes to convincing your future employers what exactly you achieved.

Mention your Soft and Hard Skills

Now that you mastered writing your work experience section, it’s time to dive into your skills section. There’re 2 types of skills:

• Soft Skills: These are your personal skills like social skills, communication skills, personal traits, career attributes, leadership, critical thinking, and management.
• Hard/Technical Skills: Hard Skills are measurable skills that you can measure like how proficient you’re in that particular skill. The use of technical skills frequently requires specialized tools and the technologies needed to use them.

A good resume should cover both. However, it’s highly advisable that you should mention those skills in which you’re fluent and not just at a beginner level. To know more about how to list your key technical skills, read our article 7 Key Technical Skills to List on Your Resume in 2022 .

Once you list your hard skills with your experience level, double-check your skills section and remove any skill you feel you’re not confident in and don’t LIE even if your life depends on it. Lying about skills can get you in serious trouble later on and can get you blacklisted too.

Include your education

The next section is all about your educational background, achievements, and projects. We’ll keep it short and concise for you. List your educational background in this way:

• Program Name. E.g.: “MBA in Marketing”
• University Name. E.g.: “Mumbai University”
• Years Attended. E.g.: “06/2019-05/2021”
• (Optional) CGPA. E.g.: “CGPA: 8”
• (Optional) Academic achievements. If you have written any interesting papers or excelled in any courses, do describe them.

Let’s move on to some tips that will help you perfect your educational background, achievement, and project section:

• Only keep the last 2 educational qualifications or examinations you’ve given.
• Only add those projects which are relevant to your job opening – projects which have more number of features.
• Projects to list- API-based projects, Portfolio-based projects, and Full-stack projects.
• Add as many numbers as you can while listing achievements – add your highest ranking in CP or the highest number of problems you solved on GeeksforGeeks or XYZ. 
• Don’t add intra-college achievements as it put forth a negative impression on recruiters.
• Don’t add “President of the xxx club” if you’re applying for tech roles. 

Mention Other Sections (Optional)

All the sections we’ve covered are must-haves but there are a few more sections that are optional and don’t hold much significance. These are like booster sections that can give you an extra wow effect.

The following sections can be added to your resume:

• Languages – If you’re multilingual and can be handy with different languages, do mention that in your resume. However, avoid mentioning language that you’re not proficient in as it can get you in trouble later on if you’re not able to help your colleagues when they require your help with the said language.
• Hobbies and Interests – Have extra space in your resume? Add up your hobbies and interests. It shows how you’re as an individual.
• Volunteering Experiences – Some studies show that volunteering has a greater impact on hiring. It shows that you’re an empathetic person by nature and can be loyal to the company. 
• Courses, Certifications, and Awards – Do you have any certifications or awards that can show you off and is relevant to the job position you applied for? Note them down in the resume as it shows your expertise in the said field.

Customize Your Resume According to the Job Posting

We’re almost at the end of the article. It’s time to format your resume in such a way that ATS can scan your resume smoothly. To understand the term ATS better , you should know ATS stands for Applicant Tracking System . It is software used to manage the entire application process for employers. This system compiles, scans, and ranks all of the applications.

According to a survey done, 98% of Fortune companies are using ATS to scan their resumes. ATS segments resume into various sections: Work Experience , Education, Skills , etc. Next, it looks for precise keywords and qualifications to see if you fit the job description. So it’s important to tailor your resume as per the job description and for how to resume writing. Resumes that don’t comply with the basic requirements are automatically discarded. A job candidate’s resume is ranked based on its relevance (the best resume appears at the top of the recruiter’s pipeline).

Proofread Your Resume With Correct Formatting

Now that you’re done with your resume writing task, it’s time to do the most important task – Proofread your resume. Here’s the checklist we’ve for you:

• Resume fonts – Stick to Ubuntu, Roboto, Overpass, or traditional fonts like Helvetica, Garamond, or Georgia. Your font should be 10-11 and don’t ever go with Comic Sans (only if you want to look like a joker)
• Check tenses – Describe the current work you are doing in the present tense, and use the past tense to describe jobs from the past.
• Resume action words – Use resume action words like “Chaired”, “Controlled”, “Executed”

Also Read: Free Online Resume Builder By GeeksforGeeks – Create Your Resume Now! 10 steps to write an Effective Resume Resume Building – Resources and Tips

In conclusion, learning how to write a resume resume is a crucial step in advancing your career and landing your desired job. Start by selecting a clean and professional format , then focus on highlighting your key skills, experiences, and accomplishments. Tailor each section to the job you’re applying for, ensuring that your qualifications align with the employer’s needs. Building your resume is very beneficial for you so remember to use clear and concise language, and proofread your resume to eliminate any errors. By following these steps, you can create a resume that effectively showcases your strengths and sets you apart from other candidates, increasing your chances of success in the job market.

How to Build a Resume – FAQs

How can i write resume.

You can write your resume by following the methods given above or you can also use any resume templates that will help you a lot.

How to Resume Writing?

Resume writing can be done by some of the points given below: Choose the Right Format Start with a Strong Header Craft a Compelling Summary or Objective Detail Your Work Experience

How can I write a simple resume?

To write a simple resume, use a clean format with clear headings. Include your contact information, a brief summary, your work experience, education, and relevant skills. Keep it concise and focused on your most important qualifications.

How to write a resume for a job?

To write a resume for a job, tailor it to the specific position by highlighting relevant experience and skills. Start with your contact details, followed by a strong summary, detailed work history, education, and a skills section. Use action verbs and quantify your achievements where possible.

What are the 7 basic steps to writing a resume?

Here are the basic steps: Choose the Right Format Start with a Strong Header Write a Compelling Summary Detail Your Work Experience Highlight Your Skills Include Your Education Proofread and Edit

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