Writing a Technical Engineer CV - A Simple Rule of Thumb

Writing your own Technical Engineer CV or ResumeCV, needs to be understandable by the reader, which
requires a different approach from the way thatmeans it should be free from the jargon and
many engineers go about preparing their jobs CV.acronyms which are rife in many technical or
Technical careers, although having many similarities toengineering jobs.
commercial careers, demand a different way ofWriting an effective CV for technical or professional
thinking and a better way of presenting yourengineering jobs can be quite difficult, because the
technical skills and experience.emphasis needs to demonstrate specific capabilities
There is a simple rule of thumb that you can follow,and the delivery of added-value to the prospective
which means that the underlying skills, accountabilitiesemployer's business. All of which need to be
and authority of your job have to be equated to thedeveloped appropriately within your CV, so that the
job role you want, so that there is a clear fit uponreader will understand factors such as your people
which you base your job application.and communication skills because the role may
But many technical people value their technical skillsinvolve customer liaison for example. Be as specific as
far more than their people skills and so are guilty ofyou can with numbers and timescales and include the
ignoring factors which could make them annumbers of employees you managed, where
outstanding candidate.appropriate.
When only the 'hard' skills are presented on theirBalance some short 'competency' statements which
Technical Engineer CV, and any 'soft' skills left out ordemonstrate the more intangible qualities of
not given sufficient emphasis, an opportunity to be'communication' and 'strategic thinking' which will be
seen as a great candidate is missed.helpful for an eventual interview, and can be
I understand the precision of thought and thetranslated into an information point on your technical
analytical approach required of an engineer, but youengineer CV.
should consider that to be 'taken as read' and notTo help the reader even further with their
expect your work to speak for itself. The key issueunderstanding, try to say to whom and what position
is that it is important to remember that although youyou reported, and identify their position in the
may be an engineer, you are also a person who mustorganization. This helps to put a level on where you
interact with other people in the workplace.fit in and shows your respective status within your
It also needs saying that a good Technical Engineerorganization.