About a year ago we have started posting articles about resume writing tips for different industries and positions. We have already written about how to develop a professional resume for general managers, sales associates, real estate agents and for the bunch of other positions. Up to this time to our own shame we haven't written anything about how to create a powerful resume for one of the most popular positions today - a programmer. Millions of people are choosing this career path as they see how they can become successful by using their programmer skills and attention to details. So we decided we have no right to ignore this theme and as a result, you can find great tips on how to develop a programmer's resume below.
What HRs Are Looking For in a Resume of a Programmer?
It all boils down to what hiring authorities are looking on a resume. Most definitely they will not be looking primarily at your routine responsibilities which can be pretty boring if you are a programmer. Obviously, it is very difficult (or even impossible) to say what all HRs are going to look for because every HR is an individual with his/her own unique characteristics. Nevertheless, they all are united under one goal - to hire a professional programmer so there are many things they have in common when reviewing a resume. The first things that almost every single hiring managers would want to see on a resume are your skills. They should be visible right away. Some HRs won't take time to read how you used those skills to accomplish certain tasks, but all of them will have a look at the list of things you can do in programming.
Don't list your educational credentials at the beginning of a resume. There are some hiring managers who think education is very important (and it is true) but most of them prefer looking at your accomplishments and skills first. So it may be a good idea to place the education section at the end of your resume. It is way better to focus on your achievements from the very start. Those can be things you have built or initiated; in other words, something you did as a programmer that had a lasting impact on the company. It is not always possible but way more effective your achievements will look if backed up by numbers. If you saved your past employer some money that is something worth mentioning. Of course, it is easier to quantify achievements if you are in sales, but for programmers, it is also possible. One just needs to spend a little bit more time on working it out.
Don't forget about including a brief introduction in the form of a summary. That's where you could list your core competencies to backed up later by employment history, achievements, education and training. But when you list all of that make sure you don't use generic buzzwords. This is a section which will either encourage a hiring manager to continue reading your resume or become a turnoff. Also, keep in mind that using acronyms throughout the summary section might not be the best choice as some of the acronyms HRs might not know, while some of them can have different meanings.
