Software Engineer CV checker
The stack you work in and the scale you have worked at. A reader wants to know within seconds whether you have met the kind of problem the job has.
What recruiters search
For this role: the languages and frameworks named in the posting, years against a specific stack, cloud platforms.
The parsed text
What a parser pulled out of your file, so a broken layout is visible rather than invisible.
Specific rewrites
The weak lines replaced with ones you can use, not a note telling you to be more impactful.
One payment
First check free with no account. After that a single payment, never a subscription.
The resume gets read twice by two readers who want different things: a recruiter skimming for stack terms, and an engineer reading for evidence you have built something hard. Most resumes are written for neither.
What a software engineer CV has to establish first
The stack you work in and the scale you have worked at. A reader wants to know within seconds whether you have met the kind of problem the job has.
A reader decides whether to keep going within a few seconds, and that decision is made on the top third of page one. Everything after it is evidence for a judgement that has already started.
The terms recruiters search for
Recruiters find candidates by searching the database, so a term the posting uses and your document does not makes you absent from the results rather than rejected. For this role the searches tend to be:
- the languages and frameworks named in the posting
- years against a specific stack
- cloud platforms
- degree or bootcamp
- system design or scale words
Cross off anything untrue, then make sure what remains appears in a real sentence about real work rather than in a keyword block. The method, and where its limit is.
Three mistakes software engineer CVs make
1. A stack list standing in for experience
Thirty technologies tells a recruiter nothing and invites an interviewer to ask about your weakest one. List what you would be happy to be questioned on.
2. Projects that read like tutorials
Built a chat app with React and Socket.io describes following a guide. Who used it, what broke, what you decided is what changes it.
3. No numbers anywhere
Requests per day, team size, build time cut, users served. None need to be large. They tell a reader what kind of problem you have actually met.
One line, rewritten
| What people write | What a reader can use |
|---|---|
| Worked on the backend of the company's main product | Rewrote the order service to handle about 40k requests a day, cutting p95 latency from 800ms to 180ms |
The left column describes a job that existed. The right describes a person who did something. You do not need impressive numbers, only actual ones.
What differs outside North America
Degree classification matters more in the UK than the US, and a 2:1 is worth stating. Visa and right-to-work status is often screened on the form before anybody reads the document, so make sure it is accurate there. In Australia and the Gulf, naming your notice period is normal and saves a round of email.
The general conventions apply too: two pages is normal for a UK or Australian CV, no photo in the UK, Ireland or Australia, and leave off age, marital status and nationality. The full comparison.
Before you send it
Select all the text in your CV, copy it, and paste it into any plain text editor. That is close to what the screening software receives. If your name and number are missing, or your job titles have merged into your dates, you have found something worth fixing before anything else.
Questions people ask
- What should a software engineer CV lead with?
- The stack you work in and the scale you have worked at. A reader wants to know within seconds whether you have met the kind of problem the job has.
- Which keywords matter for a software engineer?
- Recruiters tend to search the languages and frameworks named in the posting, years against a specific stack, cloud platforms. Use the posting's own wording for anything that is true of you, in a sentence about real work rather than a keyword list.
- How is a software engineer CV different from a resume?
- Degree classification matters more in the UK than the US, and a 2:1 is worth stating. Visa and right-to-work status is often screened on the form before anybody reads the document, so make sure it is accurate there. In Australia and the Gulf, naming your notice period is normal and saves a round of email.
- How long should it be?
- Two pages is standard in the UK, Ireland and Australia with a few years of experience. One strong page is right early on, and padding to reach two is worse than a full one.
- Is the first check really free?
- Yes, with no account and no card. After that it is one payment for unlimited checks rather than a monthly subscription.
See what your software engineer CV really says
The parsed text, the score, the recruiter's read and the rewrites. First one free.
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