Most standard rules for formatting resumes do not apply to those in the IT industry. This is even more pertinent to consultants, as the temporary nature of your work means you’ve had more employers and many individual projects under your belt. So what should an IT consultant’s resume look like? What should be included and highlighted? Consider the following tips:
Tailor your resume to the job
This is a general resume rule that does apply to consultants. In fact, it’s essential. If consultants who have been in the business for 5+ years list every project they’ve ever completed, their resume could go on for days. Consider titling your ”work experience” section as “significant” or “relevant experience.” This way, you can detail the projects that are most relevant to the position for which you’re applying. We recommend highlighting your last 2-3 years. Definitely include experience that goes beyond this time frame if it is relevant, but avoid including projects you completed over 10 years ago.
Highlight your hard skills
Because IT consultants work on a contract-to-contract basis, employers will be less concerned about whether you will be the perfect fit for their company in the long run, and more interested in the technical skills you possess when reviewing your resume. Therefore, buzzwords are particularly important for IT consultants. Include your technical summary towards the top of the page. If organized in a succinct, readable manner, it allows even non-technical hiring managers to pick up on key words. When detailing your relevant experience, make sure to include what technologies that each individual project entailed. Note: consultants applying for positions like ‘project manager’ may require highlighting more soft skills than those who are applying for, say developer positions.
Be concise
Detail your contribution to the projects in which you were involved with 1-3 actively descriptive points. Don’t focus on what your team did, but what you yourself contributed. Due to the temporary nature of consulting jobs, it is likely that you worked on more than one project in a given year; make sure to include months and years of employment. We recommend keeping the length of your resume to 2-3 pages, and definitely no more than 5.
An IT consultant’s resume doesn’t strictly follow the standard rules for resume formatting. But these basic principles— be relevant, highlight your skills, and be concise—can get you one step closer to showcasing your skills in an interview.
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