Everyone’s CV is different and people may offer you advice based on their experience. However, everyone’s circumstance is different. Instead, you need to focus on ensuring your own CV is accurate, relevant and exhibits what you have to offer the company.

Our general advice will help you get started, or further improve your CV and develop your career in engineering.

Balance

Balance is always important when building an engineering CV. Focusing on your practical skills along with any technical skills shows diversity. Combine this with your personal skills and you’re on your way to building a well-balanced CV.

Regardless of which industry, structurally a CV should always be tailored towards the employer. We advise keeping a master copy aside and tailoring each CV before sending it out to the company.

Structure your CV

Ease of navigation is crucial. Avoid having a badly written CV with the right structuring and cut down any chunks of text that could put off potential recruiters. Ensure your CV is easy to read and choose a font such as Arial or Calibri. Not only does this make your CV more modern, it also allows you more space to show why you’re the perfect fit.

Start with a personal statement that summarises your achievements, experience and differentiating skills. This should parallel each job you’re applying for and must always aim to engage the recruiter immediately, encouraging them to read on.

Focus on the chronological format of your CV based on what your strengths are. If you’ve developed any transferable skills throughout your career or extracurricular activities, then make sure you convey this in your CV.

It’s best to always take the occasional keyword from the job description and apply it to your CV. However, always make sure it reads naturally and focuses on why you’re the best candidate for the position.

Skills

Draw upon your work experience, education and interests to demonstrate any transferable skills that will be useful in the role. For example, exams and dissertations require thorough research, excellent written communication and proofreading skills. Playing sport requires focus and often a team based mentality.

These are all transferable skills that you can apply to your engineering career. Alongside this, consider times where you’ve been able to demonstrate your problem solving skills and provide examples of working well under pressure. These are highly sought after attributes in engineering that make you stand out.

Organise this into sections and use headings to help draw attention to relevant skills. Try to use bullet points here – these help break up any lengthy paragraphs.

Evidence

Providing evidence of your knowledge and skills is important because it gives credibility as opposed to making empty claims. For example, rather than just stating you have experience in engineering, include previous projects and any associated engineering institutes. Include your technical skills and any engineering and design software that you may have used, for example AutoCAD or Autodesk Architectural.

Although, don’t fall into the trap of listing everything you’ve ever worked on. Instead, keep it concise and focus on the experience that’s most relevant to the position.

Communication

Engineering, along with most industries, depends on accuracy and attention to detail. Therefore, you should make sure your CV represents your communication skills effectively. If written communication isn’t your strongest asset then refresh on basic punctuation and grammar before drafting up your CV.

You can also ask a friend or family member to proofread your CV before sending it out. Remember that an accurate and professional CV will always reflect positively on you. It needs to be a professional representation of who you are.

Avoid including any private information such as your marital status, salary expectations and religious views. This takes up valuable space and is irrelevant information.

While social links can be useful to include, such as LinkedIn, remember to check your Facebook and Twitter account to avoid recruiters seeing anything that warranted as unprofessional. Novelty email addresses can also be harmful to your career so check yours isn’t potentially discriminating or reflects poorly of you. It’s best to have an address that includes your first name and surname, where possible.

Conclusion

The purpose of your CV is to exhibit what you have to offer. It shows why you’re the perfect fit for the job, prompting a potential employer to bring you in for an interview. In order to achieve this you must demonstrate that you have the specific skills, experience and personal attributes for your target roles.

Engineering employers want to see examples of strong technical skills, relevant project experience and unique personalities. Always remember to cater your engineering CV to demonstrate your commitment to the individual role. It should convince a potential employer that you have what it takes to succeed in their distinctive workplace and meet the recruiter’s needs.

Ready to start your career in engineering? Search through thousands of roles on Engineering Jobs.

The post How to write a CV: A guide for engineers appeared first on Career Advice.

Interviews can be a nerve-wracking experience. However, with a little practice, you’ll soon realise there’s nothing to fear. Reading our advice will help guide you through the interview process, so when the time comes, you’ll be ready to ace that engineering interview.

Make a good first impression

An interviewer will make an assessment in the first few seconds of meeting you, so make it count! It’s crucial to make a great first impression. An integral part of this is dress to impress. Before your interview, you should prepare a professional looking outfit and make sure you’re suitably groomed.

When being introduced to your interviewer, smile and shake their hand. Never turn up late as not only does it look unprofessional, you run the risk of looking flustered.

Research the company

It’s essential to do your research prior to the interview. Demonstrating your knowledge of the company paint you in a positive light and will immediately impress your employer. Google the company, review their website and explore their social media profiles. Find out what makes them tick.

You may want to mention something you read about their company culture or their aspirations for the future. Not only will this prove to the employer that you’re serious about joining the company, it also helps to build a more informed opinion. Not to mention that it may get you thinking about questions you might want to ask.

Practice your answers

Your interview is an opportunity to demonstrate why you’re the best candidate for the job. Questions in an engineering interview will vary depending on which specialist category you’re applying for, e.g. electrical, mechanical, civil or any other type of engineer. Why not take time to practice answering interview questions you’ll likely be asked in your interview. This will then give you the chance to prepare and practice answers. It will ease any pre interview nerves and allow you to answer with confidence as opposed to struggling for a response.

Try to find the right balance that will showcase your technical knowledge, your engineering skills and your ability to communicate with team members and clients. Just be wary of making it relevant to what is being asked.

Engineering can be extraordinarily complex and require serious attention to detail. Any missteps can be costly and the same can be said about your interview. Listen carefully to the interviewer so you don’t slip up on any questions and focus on the answers that you’ve prepared beforehand.

Check your body language

Your body language can say a lot about you. So, make sure you’re aware of how you’re presenting yourself. For example, if you were discussing your greatest achievements and giving examples of when you solved various problems, using your hands can help animate your stories and ease the flow of communication.

Although, be careful you don’t come across as too overzealous. Fidgeting and fiddling with items in the interview can be distracting so try to be mindful of your behaviour. Remember you want to appear confident and professional! Avoid slouching in your chair, try to smile and maintain eye contact with your interviewer too.

Ask questions

An interview isn’t just a chance for the employer to see if you’re right for the role. It’s also a good opportunity for you to consider whether the role is right for you. You should always prepare a few questions before the interview and make sure you write these down.

Never underestimate what these questions could say about you as a candidate so choose wisely. Asking intelligent questions shows you’re interested and serious about the job. For example, asking what they’ll expect of you in your role shows you’re keen to contribute to the success of the company.

On the other hand, asking when you can expect to get a pay rise will simply put the interviewer off.

Take notes

Making notes is important in any job role. More so in engineering career where everything is about detail. This should start from the second you walk into your interview. You might find yourself wanting to recap or ask a question relating back to what you discussed with your interviewer. Take a pen and notepad with you as it demonstrates your initiative and eagerness to learn about the role.

Final thought

Your interview should always be seen as an opportunity to showcase your professionalism and suitability towards the role. Prior to the interview, you should always prepare beforehand by choosing the right attire, researching the company and practising your answers. This will then show employers that you have what it takes to succeed in their distinctive workplace and meet the company’s requirements.

Ready to start your career in engineering? Search through thousands of roles on Engineering Jobs.

The post Job interview tips for engineers appeared first on Career Advice.