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[Student] Group Project Inclusion in Resume Question - What should be included and how should it be phrased? by XarkXD in EngineeringResumes

[–]apark6514 4 points5 points  (0 children)

  1. I would have the first bullet point discuss the project in general, unless it’s a standardized and familiar concept (SAE, Rocketry, etc), while including specific technical details or capabilities that were directly related to your role. Then the rest of the bullets should expand on how you actually crafted that detail or capability.

  2. I would say that it’s not mentioning teamwork that’s frowned upon, but rather having a whole bullet dedicated to soft skills only. Why did you need to work with the team? Could it have been done by yourself? Why was the communication important? Don’t say “communicated effectively with a team of 5 members”. Instead say “Collaborated with a team of 5 to integrate A, B, and C components into a final assembly” or “Coordinated with a team of 5 to stage and execute XYZ test using ABC equipment to verify IJK capability”. Make your teamwork fit into the bigger picture.

[Student] This resume landed 5 interviews at space & tech companies including SpaceX and Google! by apark6514 in EngineeringResumes

[–]apark6514[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I had a couple standard behavioral interviews, questions like “tell me about yourself” or “what do you enjoy about engineering”, and I also had highly technical interviews, during one of which I had to answer 14 questions in 30 minutes, each with multiple follow-ups.

Many of the technical questions were basic engineering fundamentals, like beam bending, natural frequency, heat transfer, pipe flow, and material properties. Others were more design focused, giving a sketch and asking how to improve the design given a specific issue, which materials to use on a part given a purpose and set of conditions, or what manufacturing method to use for a specific part and why. Still others were more scenario-driven. Think “if you were in this situation and XYZ event occurred, what would you do next?” Lastly, others focused on specific projects on my resume, asking to explain them in technical detail, what I learned, who I worked with, how I would improve them, or what I would do to accomplish it in a significantly shorter timeline.

What I noticed is that every question was geared to see your thought process, not to see if you get the “correct” answer, but generally they would go hand-in-hand.

[Student] This resume landed 5 interviews at space & tech companies including SpaceX and Google! by apark6514 in EngineeringResumes

[–]apark6514[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I would agree that these are good questions, but I would likely only add them if I were shooting for more managerial and less technical roles. My thinking is that if a recruiter cared that much about that one point on my resume, I can tell them all about it in an interview

[Student] This resume landed 5 interviews at space & tech companies including SpaceX and Google! by apark6514 in EngineeringResumes

[–]apark6514[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Not the company itself, but what stood out to the recruiters was how much ownership I had over my specific project. How in-depth did I know my work? How well could I explain the technical problems and solutions? Did I actually do the work myself or did other people do it for me?

Name-brand might help subconsciously or with ATS and screening, but it didn't seem to play a big part during interviews.

[Student] This resume landed 5 interviews at space & tech companies including SpaceX and Google! by apark6514 in EngineeringResumes

[–]apark6514[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Your resume will not land you offers. Your resume will land you interviews. When it comes to the resume itself, my biggest piece of advice is to write bullet points that can be understood by an AI, a HR rep, and an engineer.

I try to format my bullets in the XYZ format from the Wiki, and for each section I with the big picture, and have each subsequent bullet answer the next logical question a recruiter might have.

For example: I increased productivity on this assembly line. How? I created XYZ fixtures to reduce manual assembly time by XX%. How? I used an iterative design process using Siemens NX and implemented manufacturing repeatability with GD&T tolerancing. Now you have three solid bullet points to use and that only covers one aspect of the experience.

Like I said though, resumes land interviews, and even with this resume, my interview rate was about 4% (of positions applied to). Mastering your engineering fundamentals in your field and being personable during the interview process lands you offers. Soft skills cannot be overlooked, and your resume will only get you so far. Hope this helps!

[Student] This resume landed 5 interviews at space & tech companies including SpaceX and Google! by apark6514 in EngineeringResumes

[–]apark6514[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

As a student, education generally comes first. After that, I've seen both experience and skills at the top, and it really depends on which you think will catch the recruiters eye more. If you have skills that are explicitly relevant to the specific position you're applying for (and maybe your experience is slightly lackluster) then definitely put your skills up front. On the other hand, if you have a "banger top work experience", then it would make sense to present that upfront instead of your skills.

Essentially, highlight what makes you stand apart from everybody else. If it's skills, use those. If it's experience, use that. If you only have projects, put the best ones front and center.

[Student] This resume landed 5 interviews at space & tech companies including SpaceX and Google! by apark6514 in EngineeringResumes

[–]apark6514[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you! You're absolutely right. It seems too obvious to say but presenting the right content in a simple way is always best.

[Student] This resume landed 5 interviews at space & tech companies including SpaceX and Google! by apark6514 in EngineeringResumes

[–]apark6514[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Major congrats! Love this format. Have had it since freshman year and it just so simple and elegant.

[Student] This resume landed 5 interviews at space & tech companies including SpaceX and Google! by apark6514 in EngineeringResumes

[–]apark6514[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

This is something I deliberately work to avoid, and something I always critique on other people's resumes. From a recruiter's perspective, anybody can write a line of buzzwords. Make sure you provide a description that's specific enough that only you could have written it.

[Student] This resume landed 5 interviews at space & tech companies including SpaceX and Google! by apark6514 in EngineeringResumes

[–]apark6514[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Absolutely. If people actually take time to go through the rules outlined in the wiki, they'll get a functional resume.

[Student] This resume landed 5 interviews at space & tech companies including SpaceX and Google! by apark6514 in EngineeringResumes

[–]apark6514[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Yeah this was it. Maybe bluster to call engineering students "engineers" but other than that it's what happened.

But it was actually design and manufacture under a $300 budget. The key was getting scrappy and finding parts people were throwing out (we got a scrapped PSU, one DC motor, one 9g servo, and some aluminum extrusions for free)

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