Making a Good CS Resume

Terence Parr & Chris Brooks

USF

Resume Goal

Have a simple one-page summary people can discuss

Gets you an interview only so don’t dump everything you know/have

done on there. That is what the interview is for

What to include

EducationRelated work experienceInteresting course projectsOpen source projectsPublications, presentationsUnusual experience

What not to include

unrelated jobs; don’t list your babysitting jobs

some of your entry level positions if resume > 1 page

No personal stuff; no one cares if you skydive and can burp the national anthem

Length

One page! (Or, short as possible)The more impressive your experience,

the shorter it can be The president can have a one-line resume

Skills

No laundry lists!Don’t just list technology. Any idiot can

cut/paste that list from a job siteIncorporate your skills into your project

descriptions

Writing style

“Punchy” sentences starting with action verbs: Developed 8000 line mail server in Java that

stored email in mysql db. Saved company $2.3M in 2006 by creating email

tech support robotBe terseBe specificWhat was your role?

Anybody can be a “valued member of a team”

Objectives

…are meaningless; don’t waste the space

Everyone knows you want a jobUnless you are a very high level and

want a very specific job such as CEO of a small manufacturing firm in the midwest

Cover letters

Important in some casesShows you can write (or not)Tailor to each company

Tailor resume

You can package yourself in different ways

Present yourself appropriately for the company you are applying to

Emphasize your AI course work if you are applying to an image recognition company, for example

Don’t lie

Don’t exaggerateYou’ll get busted, then firedI’ve seen uninvolved people claim to be

the project leader!Fundamentally, you should be about

truth anyway

Appearancesparse as possible

don’t use gaudy borders, fonts etc..

Details matter

Speling ;)EnglishDon’t use these email addresses:

hotstud@gmail.com ilikechocolate@yahoo.com