How To Write A Civil Engineering Resume (With Example)

Updated 26 January 2023

Civil engineers are professionals who are responsible for building and maintaining public infrastructure. It is important for these professionals to have a resume that highlights their valuable engineering skills and qualifications. If you are pursuing a career as a civil engineer, learning how to write an effective resume may be useful for you. In this article, we discuss what a civil engineering resume is and provide a list of steps that you can take to create your own.

What Is A Civil Engineering Resume?

A civil engineering resume is a document that professionals can use to show their skills and qualifications in engineering. Throughout your resume, you may provide details on your work experience in civil engineering and any education and certifications you may have. Typically, your resume is one part of your application, along with a civil engineering cover letter, letters of recommendation and a portfolio that provides examples of your previous civil engineering projects.

What To Include On A Resume For Civil Engineering?

Here is what to include on your resume when applying for a civil engineering position:

Contact information: Include one to two contact methods that hiring managers may use to further pursue you as a candidate.
Career objective: Provide a career objective that summarises your skills, experience and professional goals in civil engineering.
Work experience: List your previous work experience in civil engineering, including the name of the organisation that employed you and your engineering duties.
Education: Provide information about your engineering education, like the name of the college you attended and the type of degree you have.
Certifications: If you have certifications that relate to civil engineering, include the title of the certification along with the name of the certifying institution.
Skills: Create a list of the skills that allow you to perform your engineering duties successfully, like leadership, mathematics and problem-solving.

How To Create A Resume For A Civil Engineering Role?

Here are the steps that you can follow to create a civil engineering resume that highlights your experience, education and skills:

1. Decide on your format

Before writing your resume, first decide on the format that best suits your qualifications. A common resume format is the chronological outline, which begins with your career objective and work experience, followed by details about your education and skills. This format is best for individuals who have extensive experience in civil engineering since it emphasises your work experience.

You might choose to use a functional resume format, which places your career objective and skills first, then follows with your work experience and education. This resume may work best for professionals who have less experience in civil engineering since it highlights your skills and goals.

2. Include a header

Include a resume header in the top left corner of your document that provides hiring managers with your contact information. In your header, place your full name, phone number, email address and location. This allows hiring managers to have an easy way to reach you if they want to set up an interview.

3. Create a career objective

Write a career objective that provides a brief insight into your background. In one to two sentences, describe your civil engineering experience, skills and goals. Here are some examples of civil engineering career objectives:

Driven civil engineer with five years of experience in construction development, seeking to use my math and leadership skills to lead a team of engineers to create public and residential infrastructure.
Detail-oriented civil engineer with ten years of experience in creating public infrastructure, looking to expand my skill set and provide engineering expertise to a large-scale construction company.

4. Provide your work experience

Create a work experience section that lists your previous positions. You may include previous jobs, internships, apprenticeships or volunteer work that relates to civil engineering. Include the name of the organisation that you worked for, the duration of your employment in each role and a description of your engineering tasks. Try to include achievements from previous roles in your work experience section. For example, you might include information about a successful civil engineering project that you took part in, or positive recognition that you received from management.

5. Describe your educational background

Many employers require civil engineers to have a bachelor's or master's degree, so be sure to provide your educational background. Include the name of the educational institution that you graduated from, the type of engineering degree you earned and the year you graduated, if it was recently. You might also include details about coursework that you completed while in school that applies to civil engineering, along with extracurricular activities that you took part in, like academic societies or clubs.

6. List certifications you have earned

List civil engineering certifications that you earned. Providing your certifications may set you a part from other professionals in your field and help employers recognise you as a qualified candidate for the position. Include the name of the civil engineering certification and the date you earned it.

7. List your skills

Include a bulleted list of civil engineering skills. Be sure to include hard skills, like civil engineering software and project management, and soft skills, like communication, teamwork and creativity. Here are some other skills that you might include:

Critical thinking
Analytical
Design
Organisation
Close attention to detail

8. Include relevant keywords

Place civil engineering keywords throughout your resume that may help get the attention of hiring managers. Try including common engineering techniques or regulations to show that you are familiar with standard engineering practices. Here are some keywords that you can include:

Construction management
Public infrastructure
Plumbing and shimming
Safety procedures
Hazard assessments

9. Proofread

Proofreading is the practice of reading through a document several times to find spelling errors, grammar problems or formatting mistakes. It is essential to proofread your resume before sending your application to find any issues. Turning in an error-free resume further highlights your organisation skills, which is a vital skill for civil engineers to possess. Consider having a friend, colleague or mentor proofread your resume to find mistakes.

Civil Engineering Resume Template

Here is a template of a resume for a civil engineering position:

[Full name]
[Phone number]
[Email address]
[Location]

Career objective

[Brief summary of your civil engineering experience, skills and goals]

Work experience

[Job title]
[Company name] [Start date-end date]

[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]

[Job title]
[Company name] [Start date-end date]

[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]

[Job title]
[Company name] [Start date-end date]

[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]
[Description of engineering duty]

Education

[Type of degree] in [major]
[Institution's name] [Graduation year]

[Description of coursework of extracurricular activity]
[Description of coursework of extracurricular activity]
[Description of coursework of extracurricular activity]

[Type of degree] in [major]
[Institution's name] [Graduation year]

[Description of coursework of extracurricular activity]
[Description of coursework of extracurricular activity]
[Description of coursework of extracurricular activity]

Certifications

[Name of certification] earned from [name of certifying institution] on [date]

Skills

[Civil engineering skill]
[Civil engineering skill]
[Civil engineering skill]
[Civil engineering skill]
[Civil engineering skill]

Civil Engineering Resume Example

Here is an example of a resume to help you review the proper formatting and content:

Samiya Dhar
555-555-5555
samiya.dhar@email.com
New Dehli

Career objective

Driven civil engineering professional with six years of experience in public construction, looking to use math skills and project management to lead a team of engineering professionals in creating sustainable infrastructure.

Work experience

Civil engineer
Pine Engineers, June 2019-present

Consult with clients to understand their civil engineering needs
Follow safety regulations and perform risk assessment on each worksite
Operate engineering equipment, including trenchers and loaders
Lead a team of engineering professionals to conceptualise design ideas
Contribute to government infrastructure building project that was rated 5/5 by engineering board

Civil engineer
Green Construction Company, July 2016-June 2019

Designed steel beam elevations to ensure employee safety
Wrote inventory reports to identify the materials needed to complete projects
Coordinated with management to determine budget needs
Applied for digging and zoning permits before starting projects
Kept clients updated on project's progress, issues and key deliverables

Engineering apprentice
South Engineering, August 2015-June 2016

Assisted head engineer in creating and printing project blueprints
Kept stakeholders informed of project's progress
Brainstormed engineering ideas for public infrastructure
Took part in engineering conference for civil projects

Education

Master's degree in civil engineering
West College, 2016

Treasurer of West College Civil Engineering Association

Bachelor's degree in civil engineering
Smith College, 2014

Member of Smith College Society for Future Engineers

Certifications

Professional Engineers Certification earned from the Institution of Engineers (India) in May 2015

Skills

Mathematics
Project management
Problem-solving
Critical thinking
Close attention to detail

Please note that none of the companies, institutions or organisations mentioned in this article are associated with Indeed.

How To Write A Civil Engineering Resume (With Example)

What Is A Civil Engineering Resume?

What To Include On A Resume For Civil Engineering?

How To Create A Resume For A Civil Engineering Role?

1. Decide on your format

2. Include a header

3. Create a career objective

4. Provide your work experience

5. Describe your educational background

6. List certifications you have earned

7. List your skills

8. Include relevant keywords

9. Proofread

Civil Engineering Resume Template

Civil Engineering Resume Example

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