What senior developers DO and DO NOT want to see in your resume

Senior developers often review resumes instead of HR, so the page argues that applicants need to impress someone who understands the work. The advice centers on readability, relevance, and tailoring each application to the job rather than sending the same resume everywhere.

Reading notes

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• Senior developers usually interview candidates and review resumes because they can judge trade-specific details better than HR.
• Resumes with mass applications, unexplained acronyms, bar or pie graphs, or tiny unreadable fonts tend to be rejected quickly.
• The resumes that stand out are the ones that look written by humans rather than bots.
• Writing in a natural way is presented as the easiest way to avoid sounding generic.
• A master document should list projects, role, participation, technology used, and what was actually done.
• Newer applicants can include side projects if they do not have much work history yet.
• Job applications should be shortlisted carefully instead of mass applied to.
• Applicants should ask whether they want the job, why they want it, what relevant experience they have, and where the gaps are.
• The first three answers can inform the cover letter.
• The gap question can go in a professional development section.
• A hobbies section is presented as less useful than a professional development section when space is limited.
• The resume should include only the most relevant points from the master document.
• The job description is not a trap test requiring every technology to be covered.
• Employers are looking for relevance and concise information, not a wall of text.