How to Write a Resume for a Electrical Engineering Job

You have completed your education as an electrical engineer and perhaps worked successfully in the field already. Now your search for an electrical engineering job will stand a much greater chance of success if you take care at the beginning to write a great resume. Your resume should present you to an employer just like a well-prepared building schematic communicates exactly how a building works.

Instructions

1. Include details of your positive impact in past electrical engineering positions, with attention to supervisory responsibilities, capacity-building and teamwork, projects that you participated in that resulted in improved results and presentations or other interaction with clients, peer groups and intra-company groups.

2. Write your resume at the level that another electrical engineer, including a prospective colleague or supervisor, would understand. Don't dumb it down, since ultimately it will be reviewed by individuals at your level and you will do yourself far more harm by watering it down for HR personnel than by making it too technical.

3. Begin your resume with a clean presentation of your name and contact information, including address, email, home phone and cell numbers.

4. Communicate the precise electrical engineering job you are seeking in a top-of-the-resume "Objective" section that uses language that conforms with the specific words used to advertise that job.

5. List the most recent and most relevant positions you have held under the heading of "Employment History" with years served, employer, highest job title attained and a brief statement of the responsibilities and work performed.

6. Include all relevant degrees, specializations, course study and distinctions, with highest-level work first, under the heading of "Education."

7. Present your academic electrical engineering dissertation or thesis or any other relevant publications under a "Publications" section, with a full description of the thrust of your work in up to 2 sentences.

8. Write a personable but professional single-page cover letter that highlights something from your resume that you wish to emphasize and answers any questions that you anticipate might keep you from getting an interview if left unanswered.

9. Highlight applicable hardware, software, language and technical proficiencies and certifications under the heading "Technical Proficiencies," with a statement of important product applications where appropriate.

Tips & Warnings

• In the main body of your resume, establish a section order that highlights your strengths rather than burying them. If you are just finishing your academic career, you shouldn't lead with your job history. If you have achieved special distinctions in any academic, corporate or other setting, get them as near the top of your resume as possible.