How to Write a Resume for Tech Jobs: ATS Optimization & Skills Showcase

Your resume has to get past a robot before a human ever sees it. That's the reality of tech hiring - Applicant Tracking Systems filter out resumes that don't match what the algorithm is looking for, and most applicants never make it through.

But here's what a lot of advice gets wrong: optimizing for ATS doesn't mean stuffing keywords into every corner of your resume. It means being specific, using the right terminology, and structuring your experience so both machines and humans can understand what you've done.

Your Skills Section Does Most of the Heavy Lifting

In tech, this is where ATS does the bulk of its keyword matching. Organize your skills by category - languages, frameworks, databases, cloud/DevOps, methodologies - and list them using the exact names from the job description.

If the posting says "TypeScript," don't write "JS/TS." If they want "PostgreSQL," don't just say "SQL databases." ATS systems are literal. They match strings, not concepts. Give them what they're looking for.

That said, only list things you can actually talk about in an interview. One pattern I notice from users of our resume tool: people list every technology they've ever touched, then freeze when asked about half of them. Better to have a focused, honest skills section than an impressive-looking one that falls apart under questioning.

Experience Bullets Need Numbers and Context

Tech hiring managers see hundreds of resumes that say "improved system performance" or "built features for the platform." These tell them nothing. What they want is specificity.

A solid bullet point looks like: "Redesigned the notification service using a message queue architecture, reducing delivery latency from 1.2 seconds to under 200ms and handling 3x the previous throughput." That tells someone exactly what you did, how you did it, and what changed as a result.

You don't need every bullet to have a number, but aim for at least half. Revenue impact, performance improvements, time saved, users served - any of these work. The point is to move from "I did stuff" to "here's what changed because of me."

Projects Can Be as Valuable as Job Experience

Especially if you're early in your career or switching into tech, your side projects and open source contributions matter. But they need to be presented well.

For each project, include the name, tech stack, a link (if you have one), and 2-3 bullet points describing what it does, what technical challenge you solved, and what the outcome was. Even for personal projects, you can frame outcomes - "serves 500 monthly active users" or "processes 10,000+ records in under 2 seconds" gives the project weight.

Quality over quantity here. Two deployed, well-documented projects beat ten abandoned repos every time. If a recruiter clicks your GitHub link, the first thing they see should look polished.

Format for Machines First, Humans Second

Use a single-column layout. Stick with standard section headings - "Work Experience," "Skills," "Education," "Projects." Avoid putting important information in headers, footers, or text boxes - a lot of ATS systems skip those entirely.

Standard fonts. No graphics or charts showing your "skill level" with progress bars. Those star ratings for programming languages? They're subjective, unverifiable, and take up space that could go to something useful. Kill them.

Save as PDF unless the posting specifically asks for .docx. Most modern ATS handles PDF fine, and it preserves your formatting across devices.

Tailor for Each Role - Yes, Really

A backend engineer resume should look different from a full-stack resume, even for the same person. Read the job description carefully, identify the must-have technologies and responsibilities, and adjust your skills ordering and bullet point emphasis accordingly.

This doesn't mean rewriting from scratch every time. It means having a master resume and tweaking the emphasis - moving relevant skills to the top, adjusting which projects you highlight, and making sure your summary reflects what this specific role needs.

The difference between "Python, JavaScript, Go" and "Go, Python, JavaScript" at the top of your skills section might seem trivial, but if the role is primarily Go, leading with it shows you read the posting and understand what matters.

The Stuff That Quietly Sinks Tech Resumes

Leading with outdated technologies when you have current skills to show. Being vague when specifics exist. Using passive language like "was responsible for" instead of "built" or "designed." Listing every technology from the last decade instead of curating for relevance.

And one that catches a lot of people: inconsistency between your resume and your online profiles. If your resume says you spent two years at a company but your LinkedIn says eighteen months, that's a red flag. Audit everything before you submit.

Your tech resume should read like good code - clean, specific, well-structured, and free of unnecessary complexity. Build yours with our resume tool and focus on what actually gets you past the screen.