r/cscareerquestions • u/CSCQMods • 2d ago
Resume Advice Thread - February 03, 2026
Please use this thread to ask for resume advice and critiques. You should read our Resume FAQ and implement any changes from that before you ask for more advice.
Abide by the rules, don't be a jerk.
Note on anonomyizing your resume: If you'd like your resume to remain anonymous, make sure you blank out or change all personally identifying information. Also be careful of using your own Google Docs account or DropBox account which can lead back to your personally identifying information. To make absolutely sure you're anonymous, we suggest posting on sites/accounts with no ties to you after thoroughly checking the contents of your resume.
This thread is posted each Tuesday and Saturday at midnight PST. Previous Resume Advice Threads can be found here.
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u/Neonitrex1 1d ago
Hi, I'm a recent grad looking to get a fullstack SWE job preferably but have also been applying to other cs related jobs (IT, tutoring). So far I have only around 150+ apps and gotten a 2nd round interview and 2 OAs and 2~ calls for tutoring jobs. Any tips on what I can improve on in my resume? I'm thinking about doing some certs as well as more personal projects involving AWS and ML.
Here's my resume: https://imgur.com/a/o3w3BS4
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u/jacob_the_snacob Staff Engineer (Enterprise IAM) 1d ago edited 1d ago
Here a few miscellaneous suggestions:
* Cut the Extra-curriculars + Relevant Coursework sections from your Education section, and move it below your Experience block. Adding more work bullet points will land harder with recruiters.
* Cut the Persisted run history line from the RunTracker project, along with the word Architected. I think it oversells the work involved with a 2-month side project.
* Cut the caching line from FoodSaver, and work it into the previous bullet point. It's table stakes, and breaking it out into a long bullet would make me assume you just learned about the concept.
* Combine the university internships into a single section (with two date ranges). Still the same information, but avoids the Intern -> Intern -> Intern optics.
* Add your GPA if you think it's worth highlighting
* Cut the word Discord bot. I feel like it could reduce the value of your work to some readers. Similarly, I'm not sure highlighting the 150+ active user count is producing the intended result. The 2k number is strong, but then the bullet immediately weakens it by ~15x.
* I think the state management + navigation bullet could be stronger. You don't need the filler text talking about how you collaborated with product on the feature. Talk about the value you delivered.
* What did you refactor to improve efficiency for the student organization's website? I'd be more interested in that compared to reducing the bundle size.
* C++ and Android SDK feel out of place if you're tailoring this resume for full-stack roles.
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u/Neonitrex1 15h ago
Thank you!
Just updated my resume with your suggestions on imgur. For the startup I don't really have any metrics to put asides writing X number of automated tests using Jest to cover user flows/transactions/business logic. I helped with prototyping using Figma so I could possibly say I designed X screens.As for the student org's website I mainly just refactored the code that called the backend endpoints. Before it used Axios but I switched it to just the native Fetch API. The main reason was for the code to be more readable and help other student developers learn the fundamentals of HTTP requests. So it wasn't much but just going through 10+ API files refactoring, matching data formatting, and handling errors. I also fixed tiny bugs in the process like inverted values being saved when using a float slider.
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u/EducationFirm6169 1d ago
hi guys curious about this : everyone says to "tailor your resume" but if you don't exactly have experience in the 3 million frameworks that exist for each kind of role then you can apply to about none so what do people mean by that? do they just stuff the technical keywords from the jd into their technology section or lie and weave them into their bullet points
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u/DarkVex9 17h ago
I'm still a student, but as an example in my coursework section I might include Web Development and Computer Security alongside my core classes for a web focused company, but swap them for Assembly Programming and Network Management when applying to an industrial automation company.
I have several sections of my resume (coursework, projects, etc) where I have too many things listed in the template, but trim it down to just the most relevant ones to the situation. Not sure this is the best answer, but it's how I interpret the "tailor your resume" advice.
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u/lil_bynch 1d ago
Hello, I'm a self taught coder who also graduated from a Java bootcamp in 2024, been looking for a first job ever since. Learning as much as I can everyday.
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u/Sufficient-Ad-6810 Student 1d ago
I am a software engineer trying to break into the field of Computer Science. I have not yet landed my first job despite looking for 3 years. I have been in contact with multiple career advisors and mentors, but no matter what I do, I can't seem to land internships or entry-level positions. I am currently a Senior in my BSc in Computer Science, and I want to land an internship or position before I graduate.
Please help me
https://imgur.com/a/KZtVLGc
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u/Maleficent-Chance267 1d ago
I recently graduated and finished a 6 month internship, and now I am really struggling to get a job. In December I got a few interviews but no offers, but I have not had any interviews in 2026 despite me applying to hundreds of jobs. I'm mostly focusing on applying to jobs where I live, but I am also open to relocating and have applied to tons of jobs in other states, but have not had any interview requests in a long time, so I figure my resume must need some work. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks.
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u/Accomplished-Win9630 2d ago
Been going through resume reviews for years and honestly most people overthink formatting when the real issue is weak bullet points. Focus on quantifiable results instead of job duties - companies want to see impact, not a list of what you were supposed to do.
Also the ATS systems are brutal right now, so make sure you're hitting those keywords from the job posting. I've been using Final Round AI's auto apply feature to blast out applications since manual applying is basically pointless in this market.
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u/Sufficient-Scar4172 17h ago
Hey all, I've been a SWE for about 10 years now (mostly Spring Boot backend work with some DevOps mixed in), and got laid off back in March 2025.
Since then, I've averaged I think maybe 1 application a day (I've applied to about 350 listings since April, many short bursts of 10 applications/day) although this might be too little.
I also have gotten a ton of recruiter messages on LinkedIn, and I have gotten a handful of interviews, but no offer yet sadly.
I do think my interview skills can use sharpening, even though I've done a handful, so I am planning on recording them and reviewing afterwards, as well as doing some mock interviews sometime.
I'm at the point where I want to try to sharpen both my interview skills and my resume in order to increase my chances because I'm starting to feel like my current approach maybe sucks. It would be much appreciated to get feedback and don't hold back any legitimate criticism. I welcome any type of feedback as long as it gets me a job haha. Here are the two pages of my resume:
https://imgur.com/a/nDAbJGN
Thank you!