Sample
Sample Candidate
Software Engineer · Bangalore, India
Phone · Email · Profile link
Professional summary
Software engineer with 3 years of experience building web services in Java and Spring Boot. Comfortable owning a feature from design to release, writing tests and fixing production issues calmly.
Experience
Software Engineer · Employer · 2022 to now
- Built and maintained 6 REST APIs used by the payments team, with unit test coverage above 80%.
- Cut page load time of the order history screen from 4.1s to 1.6s by adding caching and fixing slow SQL queries.
- Reviewed pull requests for a team of 5 and wrote the onboarding guide for new joiners.
- Handled on-call for 2 services and closed 30+ production tickets within the agreed time.
Skills
Java · Spring Boot · REST APIs · SQL · Git · Unit testing · Microservices · Docker
Education
Degree, college, year
Writing the summary
The summary in the sample names the role, the years of experience, the main skills and one strength, in 2 or 3 lines. Swap in your own: for this job, name Java and Spring Boot only if you have used them.
Writing experience bullet points
Each line in the sample is an action, the task and a result, such as “Built and maintained 6 REST APIs used by the payments team, with unit test coverage above 80%”. Use your own numbers, and lead with the lines closest to the job post.
Skills and keywords for a software engineer resume
These skills often appear in job posts for this role. List the ones you can prove, using the same words as the job description so an ATS (applicant tracking system, the software many employers use to store, search and filter resumes) can match them.
What recruiters check first
IT recruiters scan for your tech stack, the size of what you built and proof that it worked. A project line with a clear result beats a long list of tools.
- Tech stack named in each project
- Results with numbers (speed, users, uptime)
- Links to code or live work
If you are a fresher
Freshers should lead with projects, internships and coding practice. Link a GitHub profile and name the stack used in each project.
Prepare for the interview
Common questions for this role. Answer tips are on the Software Engineer interview questions page.
- Walk me through a project you are proud of.
- How do you find the cause of a production bug?
- Explain the difference between a process and a thread.
Local hiring notes by city
How employers in each city hire for this role:
Frequently asked questions
What should a software engineer resume include?
A short summary, experience with measured results, a skills section that uses the words from the job post, then education and certifications. Recruiters in this field look for Java, Spring Boot and REST APIs.
Which skills should I list?
Only the ones you can show proof for. For this role that often means SQL, Git, Unit testing and Microservices.
How do I get past the applicant tracking system?
Use one column, standard headings such as Experience and Skills, and the exact skill names from the job description. Keep key details out of images, tables and icons.
Can freshers apply?
Freshers should lead with projects, internships and coding practice. Link a GitHub profile and name the stack used in each project.