Have you finished your studies in information technology and want to give your life a new direction? Then it is the time to think about making a resume to start your professional journey.
Read this article to learn how to make and format an IT resume when you don’t have any experience and land an interview.
In this article, we’ll talk about:
- IT sector overview
- Vacancies
- Crafting and formatting an IT resume with no experience
- Structure (How to format an IT resume)
- Your academic background
- Languages
- Skills and expertise
- Certifications, trainings, and courses
- Volunteering and other information
- What not to put on your resume
- IT sector overview
The area of IT or information technology is a segment that is growing exponentially across the globe and it is already being considered the most lucrative job market in the US.
The recent wave of layoffs by big tech companies is worrisome and people looking for jobs in the IT sector are concerned. However, this was the result of poor planning and wrong human resource forecasting based on the data trends of the pandemic era. According to estimates of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, around 35% and 25% new jobs will be created for cybersecurity analysts and software developers respectively in the US while outpacing the 5% average growth rate.
There are a lot of new jobs created in the IT sector but there is a shortage of skilled and experienced professionals. The reasons for this can be several, such as lack of certifications, inexperience, profile and even a poorly constructed resume. While we can’t do much about the other factors, we can surely help you answer how to format an IT resume with no experience.
The professionals who are looking for a replacement in the market in this area needs, after identifying and acquiring the skills they want, to review their resume and format it in the right way. This will increase the interest of recruiters.
When describing participation in a project, for example, it is necessary to detail what your role was in achieving the goals, the challenges for completion and how your skills and strengths specifically contributed to the result.
It is also essential that as a professional you have a consistent well-structured resume on every platform.
Fun fact: Recruiters these days do perform an online search after shortlisting a resume to gather some additional information. This is why the information needs to be the same and up-to-date wherever the resume appears.
- Vacancies
OK! We have learned that IT sector is still hiring. But how to format an IT resume is still unanswered.
To begin, you have to make sure that you are selecting the right job opportunities.
It’s not enough just to learn how to make and format an IT resume and then sending it to companies that are looking for a different profile.
Resume is the first step and it should be tailored to the job you’re applying for. But before that, you need to find the vacancies that excite you. This way you can customize your resume based on the guidelines we have shared below.
- Crafting and formatting an IT resume with no experience
For those who don’t know, your resume is a document that contains:
Your personal data;
Information about the trainings you have completed; and
Your professional experiences.
But for those of you who don’t have experience, don’t be discouraged!
That’s because we’re going to explain all the points you need to be able to make a good resume.
So, are you ready to apply for your first job?
- Structure (How to format an IT resume?)
We have listed some aspects to consider when crafting and formatting an IT resume. If you don’t want to make one for yourself, you can always hire a professional company. But if you want to do it yourself, then: your resume should be well structured and follow these headings/titles:
a. Personal data
In this field, you need to put your:
- Name;
- Date of birth;
- Address;
- Mobile number; and
b.Purpose
You must mention your professional objective, according to your qualifications.
For example:
If you have training in the IT area, you can say that you are looking for an entry level position that allows you to learn more and enhance your skills while contributing to the growth of the company.
- Your academic background
If your resume is attractive, you can come out ahead of other candidates. For this, it should be no more than one paragraph, so be objective and accurately describe your academic background, main skills and professional experiences (if any). You can also mention international experiences, fluency in languages or mastery of specific tools, if relevant to a particular vacancy.
So, in this section you must describe:
- Your last level of education;
- The name of the school you attended;
- Name of the course you took; and
- The start and end dates.
However, if you haven’t finished the course yet, put the expected end date.
- Languages
Considering the workforce diversity and inclusion goals of many companies, it is vital that you mention if you can speak or understand any other language.
Describe which languages you can speak as well as the fluency, for example:
- English (Native);
- French (Basic);
- German (Intermediate);
- Others.
This is an aspect highly valued by companies so you should definitely invest in a language course.
- Skills and expertise
If you don’t already have professional experience in IT, dedicate a part of your resume to talking about your skills. Highlight tools and systems you master, skills with technical languages, programming and other relevant knowledge in your area of expertise.
In this part, you should mention the tools you have knowledge of, for example:
- Python;
- Microsoft 365;
- Java;
- End-to-end project lifecycle management; and
- Machine Learning.
- Certifications, Trainings, and Courses
Be sure to inform your certifications and courses. This item makes up your professional profile and can be of great interest to companies. It is worth remembering that you should always include the institutions where you took each course and the year of completion.
If you have taken any courses, you should certainly put them on your resume. This will make you an ideal candidate since you have no prior experience.
For example:
- Short courses;
- Professional training;
- Online courses.
- Volunteering and other information
Use this space to describe, for example:
- Availability to travel;
- Availability to change residence;
- Own vehicle;
- International experiences;
- Volunteer work, such as:
-
- Community work;
-
- Animal support & rescue.
- What not to put on your resume
In the same way that we talked about what you should include, let’s describe what you shouldn’t put on your resume:
- Your social security number or any confidential information;
- No putting the names of your family members:
- Country;
- Children;
- Marital status
- Salary expectations;
- Date and signature;
Don’t go overboard while being creative. Don’t forget that artistic resumes are vital but if you overdo it, you may end up not getting notices.
For instance, resumes with too many illustrations, very intense colored backgrounds, and lack of coordination and harmony can make your IT resume lose value.
So sometimes it’s best to keep your resume as formal as possible.
- Avoid Typos and Grammatical Errors
Mistakes of this type will always be frowned upon, at any time or situation in your professional career. But if the mistake is on your resume, it could end up costing you that long-awaited professional opportunity.
- Avoid making a long resume
Avoid making a resume longer than two pages, especially if you are at the beginning of your professional life. Recruiters, having many resumes to evaluate daily, may end up not getting to the end of them all. Therefore, be concise and highlight only the information that is really necessary and try to get a professional resume service to land your dream job.
