My Electrical Engineering Resume- how does it look?

[david90]

Can somebody read over my resume and tell me whether or not it needs improvements?

I've been sending it out but aren't getting my call for interview.

My resume is here
http://www.csupomona.edu/~hqvu/forreviews.doc

Appreciate the help!

David.

 

[Cyrus]

Your objective is too vague. It should reflect what you want to do at the company you are sending it to.

Why is your GPA missing in your resume?

No refrences?

 

[berkeman]

I agree. You should be more specific in the objective, and as Cyrus says, tune each one to the company (and the advertised position opening) when you send it. Also, add more specific details to what you did in your work experience. For each bullet, add in specifically what the hardware and software was that you worked on -- catch the resume reviewer's eye with some specifics that may match or come close to what they are looking for.

Oh, and in your objectivec, "with a company that look for" should be changed to "with a company that looks for" or fixed up in some other way.

 

[Moonbear]

For each bullet, add in specifically what the hardware and software was that you worked on -- catch the resume reviewer's eye with some specifics that may match or come close to what they are looking for.

Actually, you also have to keep in mind that in large companies, they rarely read through every resume anymore. Instead, they scan them in and do searches for keywords. The more specific your descriptions of your work experiences, especially since you don't have many to list yet, the better chance you'll hit the right keyword for your resume to get seen by a real person.

Right now, your resume could be that of almost any about-to-graduate student. You need to enhance the information you provide to highlight your unique qualifications. I can probably offer more suggestions (though, may need to bug you with more questions to fill in gaps), but don't have the time to do so right now (need to run off for a meeting starting in a few minutes).

 

[david90]

Actually, you also have to keep in mind that in large companies, they rarely read through every resume anymore. Instead, they scan them in and do searches for keywords. The more specific your descriptions of your work experiences, especially since you don't have many to list yet, the better chance you'll hit the right keyword for your resume to get seen by a real person.

Right now, your resume could be that of almost any about-to-graduate student. You need to enhance the information you provide to highlight your unique qualifications. I can probably offer more suggestions (though, may need to bug you with more questions to fill in gaps), but don't have the time to do so right now (need to run off for a meeting starting in a few minutes).

What questions do you have for me? I really need help with my resume.

I feel that I perform above average compare newly graduates but my sucky resume is not getting me the interview. Even though I'm a newly graduate, I know more than the people at my previous job who are in their 30's.

 

[Moonbear]

Okay, let's start with your qualifications list:

Technically competent engineer with work experience in software development and electrical system design.

The word "competent" sounds mediocre. One would hope all applicants are at least competent.

• Held a high responsibility engineering position where leadership and engineering skills are required.

If it was high responsibility, describe the responsibilities. What sort of leadership decisions were you making?

• Designed, prototyped and tested microcontroller based projects.

This isn't so much a skill for the summary as it is a specific task to include in your experience.

• Friendly team player with a “Get it done” attitude.

Being good on a team is important, but you don't provide any evidence of working on a team or what your role is when you work in teams.

Professional Experience:

Nortek Automation, Huntington Beach, California
Engineer, August 2006-April 2007

• Developed well organized software for automation machines.

Tell us a bit about what the software was designed to do (as much as you're allowed to share without violating any confidentiality agreements anyway). What type of automation machines? What was your role on the project? Did you work with others to do this, or independently? Did you start from the beginning in implementing something entirely new, or were you improving upon existing software?

• Designed the electrical system in automation machines.

Again, were you working independently, or as part of a team? What challenges did this project present? Were you starting on an entirely new machine, or improving upon an existing design? When you were done, did it work? Did it improve the efficiency of some operation? Were there less breakdowns? I.E., what measurable outcome was there that you did the job well?

• Assisted clients with hardware and software troubleshooting over the phone and in the field.

What type of clients did you work with? Were you dealing with technically knowledgeable people, field engineers, business owners? What types of troubleshooting problems were you dealing with? What sort of problem solving skills were needed for this job? Did you have to come up with novel solutions to novel problems, or were you sitting in a call center with a flow chart asking, "Did you try...?"

Cal Poly Pomona College of Agriculture, Pomona, California
Webmaster, January 2004- January 2006

• Maintained Cal Poly University Pomona’s College of Agriculture website to ensure proper operation and update information.

Who were you working with here? Were these faculty pages, or Ag-extension service pages? What was "proper" operation? Were you dealing with the public, doing customer service, etc?

As a new graduate, you should also list your most relevant coursework along with grades (unless they were all mediocre grades, in which case leave out the grades) and any awards received. I'd also move your degree information to the top, and leave out the start date (I don't know if it's common to take 5 years to complete the program you were in, but it looks odd...people just need the graduation date).

And, as others have suggested already, change the job title to specifically match the job for which you are applying, and also match the objective to that as well. If resumes have too vague of objectives, it looks like you're just sending out a generic resume to anyone and everyone rather than that you're really interested in the specific company to which you're applying.

 

[BobG]

I'd say a general objective is okay for something that's getting posted on Monster.com or some other job website. You're tossing a line in the water and hoping to get lucky, but I wouldn't count on it.

Even so, yours is too vacuous, even for a general objective. At least say something like you're looking to build upon your previous experience in digital design or something similar.

You need to find the real job openings yourself, research the company a little bit, and tailor your general resume to match the specifics of the job you're seeking.

You should also make it a point to stay in contact with (or get back in contact with) some of your classmates that graduated at the same time as you, or before you, just to see where they landed jobs and if they know of openings. Having a friend already working at a company makes it a little easier to do the research and make sure your resume matches exactly what they're looking for.



Your biggest problem with your resume is that your bullets about your job experience say nothing. You need to include some specifics about what you did and the impact it had. Including the main challenge encountered by the project is nice if you can squeeze it in (unless the main challenge was too trivial to mention).

"As a key member of a team that designed a robotic arm that could feed pills to a cat, I solved the problem of clawed cables by developing a remote receiver/microcontroller located directly in the 'fingers' of the robotic arm."

Or, if you had a position of responsibility in the team,

"My management of the remote receiver/microcontroller team resulted in our robotic medical dispensor for cats being completed ahead of schedule with a cost 17% less than initial projections."

Or, if you had a position of responsibility for a team tasked to deliver a system to the military,

"My management of the project to dispense micro-explosives to combat cats via a robotic arm resulted in the project being completed less than 6 months late and less than 20% over budget."

Wait - scratch the last. I'm just being cynical. In the last case, you emphasize the things that went right, such as the percentage of cats that were successfully detonated at the desired time via remote control.

Of course, the challenge is to pack as much information on the project, the challenge of the project, and the good things you did and the impact they had, into two lines per bullet, max. People won't read a paragraph about your accomplishments. The resume is just to get their attention - and to make them curious about the details of the items you listed in the bullets.

 

[Moonbear]

Or, if you had a position of responsibility for a team tasked to deliver a system to the military,

"My management of the project to dispense micro-explosives to combat cats via a robotic arm resulted in the project being completed less than 6 months late and less than 20% over budget."

Wait - scratch the last. I'm just being cynical. In the last case, you emphasize the things that went right, such as the percentage of cats that were successfully detonated at the desired time via remote control.

Good thing I wasn't drinking anything when I read that!

 

[david90]

So pretty much the main problem with my resume is that it is not specific enough.

I'll revise and repost my resume.

 

[david90]

Here is my revised resume.
http://www.csupomona.edu/~hqvu/resume3_30_07.doc

This version should be 200% more detailed than the last one. I have a resume writing book and it tells me to drop names and numbers and I did just that!

I can use some help on writing clear, concise statements and grammar because English is my 2nd language.

Thank you,

David.

 

[Cyrus]

Maybe you want to take off your cell phone name and address from your Resume, or I might call you.

 

[david90]

Opps. Thanks!

 

[berkeman]

Here is my revised resume.
http://www.csupomona.edu/~hqvu/resume3_30_07.doc

This version should be 200% more detailed than the last one. I have a resume writing book and it tells me to drop names and numbers and I did just that!

I can use some help on writing clear, concise statements and grammar because English is my 2nd language.

Thank you,

David.

Much better, David. I can still tell that English is your 2nd language, but just barely. And your detail-oriented approach is starting to show through.

A couple comments on this version:

-- "Seeking an Electronic Test Engineer position with a company that looks for candidates who are superb problem solvers, have good interpersonal skills and work ethics." -- change to "strong work ethics" at the end.

-- "Designed, prototyped and tested microcontroller based projects." -- tell me what schematic and PCB design tools you used, and what compiler you used for the code.

-- "Have work experience in software development and electrical system design." Electricians do electrical system design. Electrical engineers design electronic systems. Tell me what tools you've used for coding up software systems, and what tools you've used for designing and prototyping electronic systems.

-- "Held a high responsibility engineering position where leadership and engineering skills are required." -- wordsmith to -- "Held a high responsibility position in an engineering position where leadership and engineering skills are required."

-- "Proficient with the use of digital multi-meter, oscilloscope and signal generator to test digital and analog circuit." List more advanced devices. You'd better know how to use a DVM, and I don't want to read about that on your resume. List oscilloscopes you've used (hopefully a few digital 'scopes), and specific sig gens or other instruments you've used. If you've used a logic analyzer or impedance analyzer or spectrum analyzer in your studies, list those also. But be prepared to answer questions about them if you list them.

-- "Designed the electrical system in Biosite’s $250,000 Automated Chip Packaging System. Improved upon existing machine design by 50% in terms of functionality." I don't know what an electrical system is -- maybe use terminology more like "the core electronics" instead of "the electrical system".

-- "Assisted engineer from companies "should be "Assisted engineers from companies "

-- "Guided and helped electrical technicians" should be "Guided and helped electronics technicians "

-- "Independently maintained Cal Poly University Pomona’s College of Agriculture website to ensure updated information for thousands of students." (give the website pointer)

-- "Electrical Circuit, Digital and Analog Electronics" change to "Electronics Circuit, Digital and Analog Electronics"

 

[david90]

Thank you for the tips.