It does not matter how much subject knowledge you have, until you do not get a chance to show case it. It will be hidden somewhere within you. If you cannot market yourself well then you will always be lost in the crowd. So why am I talking about all these things. Imagine you are searching for a job and you have all the credentials required, however you are not getting shortlisted even. So what to do? Where is the problem? Are you marketing yourself well? Let’s discuss all these points in details.
In this post I am going to concentrate on resume building techniques. What to keep and what not to keep in the resumes. And also importantly, ordering of the different sections.
It is important to note that these sections and information vary based on whether you are fresher or if an experienced professional then how many years of experience you have and what different areas you have worked on. However sequence of sections will be same. Hence based on your credentials, you are advised to add/remove the respective section.
One more thing I want to point out that for each company you are applying for, modify your resume so that it should highlight those major skills which are more sought in the job description shared. Your resume should not be made once and shared to every company. It’s correct your credentials or skill set won’t change but based on the requirement you should highlight the major one. Also highlight does not mean to bold those keywords, I mean talk about more on those terms in your resume.
So enough talking, let’s start understanding what are the important sections to be there in resume and what should be the ordering.
- Header.
- Brief Technical Summary on your past work and skills. (Max. 10 lines)
- Skill Set.
- Professional Experience. (if any)
- Publications. (if any)
- Technical Contributions on Public Forums like GitHub, Stack overflow, Quora etc. (must, in today’s competitive world)
- Certifications and Courses including Projects details.
- Achievements
- Extra-curricular Activities
- Declaration
Header
Header Section will contain the basic and important communication details like your name, Contact No, Email Id. Also mention the URL of your site if you have any. Include public forum URLs like GitHub, stack overflow, Quora. Importantly if your public profile in those site does not exist yet, I would suggest to create and put your project work not the confidential information there. Because in current competitive world, having a public profile creates a lot of impact.
You can take the format from the below image:
Brief Technical Summary
This is the place where you brief about your past work and technical skills. Also mention your area of interest. Major domains of different technologies you have worked on, which role you have worked, majority of time, for example individual contributor, Lead etc. Mention if you have any specific Achievements like you are awarded for solving a critical problem in your company or you contributed in some savings. Think about if you have contributed in setting up certain process within in the team which was missing and it increased the productivity.
Importantly look for the job description for which you are applying, and think if you have contributed in a similar fashion in your current or previous company, then highlight those matching skills and areas, it will make you stand out among other applicants.
I understand for fresher, you don’t have any previous experience so don’t worry, just go through the job description and try to relate the job description and your past project works during your graduation or if you have finished some technical courses and undergone some projects. And see how effectively you can write one or two liner about your similar contribution which is required in the new job you are applying for.
Below is the sample of how you it should look like in your resume.
Skill Set
There is nothing much to explain here, just mention all your skills like programming, Architectural, Management etc. based on your domain. Important is don’t fake the skills. Whatever you mention you should have enough understanding of that.
Sample:
Professional Experience
Professional experience section is all about what projects you have worked on during your professional career. This is the most sought section by the recruiters. So mention all the major projects and what is your specific contribution to those projects. Also don’t forget to mention what you have learnt during that project it could be technology, could be team managing skills, could be stakeholder management or it could also be behavioral skills. However most important is what project is all about, what is the value addition of the project for the organization and what is your contribution.
Note: if you are fresher’s and do not have any professional experience then you can mention your graduation project work or if you have done some project as a freelancer. But don’t forget to mention your contribution and what have you learnt from that project.
Sample:
Publications (if any)
Mention all your publications here as this would so your research ability which is very much appreciated and needed in today’s competitive world. This is the one thing which will make you stand out from the crowd. So if you have any do not forget to mention them here.
Sample:
Contribution on Public Forums (GitHub, Stack overflow, Quora, LinkedIn)
As we know, world is moving towards digitalization. So it is very important to make your presence over internet. Hence having a digital profile is very much needed. Digital profile I mean putting your work online in digital platforms like GitHub, owning a website and write about yourself and your work.
So if you have not make your presence in the internet so don’t wait and make it now. Now recruiters check your internet presence also.
If you contribute in public question and answer sites like Stack overflow, Quora etc. then you can mention the stats like how many questions you have answered and their views.
It is also good to mention if you have contributed in some of the open source technologies. In that case don’t forget to put your part of the work in GitHub and mention it here.
Also if you have done some side projects based on your interest, then also put that work in GitHub and explain it in this section briefly.
Certifications and Courses
Mention all you certification including the issuing organization. Also during certification course if you have done some project work then describe that also.
Academic Qualifications
If you have really good percentage in your academics then you can mention it here. Otherwise if percentage are not attracting then it is better to skip this section. For some recruiters percentage does not matter, however while recruiting the fresher’s sometime this gives a negative impression.
Achievements
Write down all your major achievements. If you have got any award in your office or in social activities, you should mention it here.
It shows how social you are. Because recruiters also look for your networking abilities. Because in corporate networking is very important. It helps you in bringing new projects, it helps you in getting a solution of the problem.
Extra-curricular Activities
List down your side interest like trekking, cooking, gardening, surfing through internet, and roaming out with friends, sports etc.
Declaration
Finally a one liner declaration mentioning whatever you have mention are correct. And after thanking for reading you can end it. It is a right way to end your resume.
you can download the resume format from here.
Feel free to contact us for more details and discussions.
Data Science Duniya 