Civil Engineer Resume Sample—20+ Examples and Writing Tips

What’s wrong with most civil engineer resumes? They give a lot of details, but no specs. They don’t cite any metrics or give specifics about what you’ve done right.

The good news? It’s not hard to write a great resume for civil engineering jobs. You just have to find the right details in your past. Then put them in a format that makes it easy on the hiring manager. Do it right, and you’ll be solving massive puzzles and making throngs of lives better, fast.

This guide will show you:

• A civil engineer resume sample better than most.
• How to make the perfect civil engineer job description for resumes.
• How to write a civil engineering resume worthy of Bechtel or ACS Group.
• Why you can’t just list civil engineering skills (and what to do instead).

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In the wrong place? See our other guides:

• Electrical Engineering Resume Sample
• Engineering Internship Resume Sample
• Engineering Resume Sample
• Entry-Level Engineering Resume Sample
• Entry Level Mechanical Engineer Resume Sample
• Industrial Engineer Resume Sample
• Manufacturing Engineer Resume Sample
• Mechanical Engineer Resume Sample
• Quality Engineer Resume Sample
• Site Engineer Resume Sample

Haven't found what you're looking for? Check all our Resume Examples for Any Job.

Civil Engineer Resume Sample You Can Copy and Use

Now here’s how to write a civil engineer resume they’ll love:

1. Start With the Best Civil Engineer Resume Format

Civil engineers design, construct, and refurbish our infrastructure, including roads, pipelines, bridges, airports, dams, and canals. They are routinely responsible for completing multi-million dollar or even billion-dollar construction projects that support the lives of millions. That’s why a civil engineering resume is so important.

And it all starts with proper formatting. A sloppy civil engineer resume will terrify the hiring team. Use these tips to stay clean and clear:

Civil Engineer Resume Format

• Break ground with the reverse-chronological resume format.
• Pick resume fonts like Arial or Georgia in 10–12pt.
• Use 1-inch margins with plenty of dead space.
• Write a one-page resume unless you’ve got pages of civil engineering projects.
• Divide it into proper resume sections: Header, Summary, Experience, Education, Skills, and “Additional.”

Expert Hint: Save your civil engineering resume as a PDF file provided the job offer doesn’t say no. Resume PDFs look the same across multiple platforms.

2. Tempt Them with a Civil Engineer Resume Objective or Summary

Imagine that the busy hiring manager skims your resume. Not interested, he quits the window and moves on to the other 100 resumes. What happened?

You didn’t grab him fast enough. So, write a civil engineering resume summary that catches him.

Use:

1. One adjective (detail-oriented, efficient, creative)
2. Job title (Civil Engineer)
3. Years of experience (2+, 4+)
4. How you’ll help (raise quality and cut lead times)
5. Nicest few achievements (completed 5 $2 million projects)

These civil engineer resume examples show how:

Civil Engineer Resume Summary—Example

Efficient Civil Engineer and PE with 3+ years of experience and a passion for problem solving. Seeking to use strong design and project management skills to raise quality and cut lead times at Jandow & Bronson. At PFKK, completed 5 $2 million projects, exceeding quality metrics by 15%. 

Hard-working, creative, adept Civil Engineer with high-level skills in project management, problem solving, communication, AutoCad, and STAAD. Solid team player, very detail-oriented. Will make an excellent member of your company. Good ad requirements gathering and can be trusted with high-dollar projects.

The first of those civil engineer resume samples is Thomas-Telford-level. It shows off your Herculean skills.

Civil Engineer Resume Objective—Example

Not enough experience in your civil engineering resume? Don’t fret. Mention accomplishments from freelance work or civil engineering internships.

Detail-oriented civil engineer, skilled in municipal design and forensic investigations. Consulted on design of school for disabled children in Namibia that was featured in Philanthropy Roundtable. Performed forensic investigations on 3 buildings. As intern at Trammler Bros. Construction, used AutoCAD Civil 3D to create 15 structural designs.

So you didn’t build the Palm Islands. Still, that civil engineer resume example proves your worth.

Expert Hint: Write the objective of your resume for civil engineer jobs last. You’ll have an easier time because all your material will be lined up and ready.

3. Write the Best Civil Engineer Job Description

You’ve done so much. How do you show it all in a civil engineer resume? Here’s the trick, you don’t have to.

Just list the few things guaranteed to prove you could’ve built the Brooklyn Bridge. Here’s how to write a civil engineer job description for a resume:

1. Take your specs from the online posting.
2. Note the civil engineering skills and responsibilities in it.
3. Brainstorm when you’ve used those skills to great effect.
4. List those in your civil engineering resume, with metrics.

This way you’ll make sure your resume has all the necessary keywords.

These civil engineering resume examples show how:

Civil Engineer Job Description for Resume [Sample]

Job ad wants these civil engineer skills: (1) project management (2) structural design (3) vendor management.

Civil Engineer

PFKK

2016–2019

• Used project management best practices to complete 5 projects with budgets over $2 million each.
• Exceeded all quality metrics for structural design and construction by 15%+.
• Delivered most jobs 3 days ahead of schedule.
• Cut supply costs 12% through strict vendor management. Delivered all jobs 10% under budget.

• Used project management best practices to complete multiple construction jobs.
• Developed structural designs based on project requirements.
• Worked to complete jobs on schedule.
• Worked directly with vendors to deliver projects within budgets.

One of those civil engineer resume examples should be condemned. The other could teach Albert Frink a thing or two. Writing an entry-level resume for civil engineering jobs? Read on.

Entry-Level Civil Engineering Resume Job Description [Sample]

Job ad wants these civil engineer skills: (1) municipal design (2) forensic investigation (3) AutoCAD Civil 3D.

Civil Engineer Experience

Various

2015–2016

• Consulted on municipal design of school for disabled children in Namibia.
• Performed forensic investigations of 3 damaged commercial office buildings.
• Designed local sports field and 3 buildings with seating for 1,000.

Civil Engineering Internship

Trammler Bros. Construction

2015–2015

• Created 15 structural designs with AutoCAD Civil 3D.
• Performed requirements-gathering for $3 million commercial construction job.

• Worked on design of school construction project.
• Performed several forensic investigations.
• Designed local sports field.
• Responsible for structural designs.
• Performed requirements-gathering on a construction project.

The first of those civil engineer resume examples nails it. Just list your best and brightest wins from freelance work, volunteer work, and your civil engineering internship. But don’t forget to add those metrics! They make all the difference.

Are you writing a civil engineering intern resume or student resume? List educational achievements.

Civil Engineer Resume Skills

Don’t overload your civil engineering resume with skills. The job ad lists all the hard and soft skills to put on your resume.

Civil Engineering Skills

Soft Skills	Hard Skills
Problem Solving	Project Management
Critical Thinking	Math
Organization	Physics
Creative Thinking	AudoCAD
Collaboration	Autodesk Revit
Detail Oriented	STADD Pro
Communication	Structural Design
Interpersonal Skills	ETABS
Time Management	Water Resources Engineering
Leadership	Geotechnical Engineering

Expert Hint: The best places to find civil engineering jobs? Indeed, Google, and EngineerJobs.com. Post your resume on those sites for a recruiter boost. 

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4. Turn Boring Education to a Reason to Hire You

You know a civil engineering resume depends on education. But even your resume education section must prove skills. These civil engineer resume examples show how:

Civil Engineer Education—Example

Education 

BS Civil Engineering, California State University

2011–2015

• Maintained 4.0 average in structural design coursework.
• Senior project in ETABS was written up in ASCE News.

PMP Certification

• PMP, California State University

That shows structural design skills, ETABS skills, and PMP proficiency.

Expert Hint: Is your civil engineering experience paltry? Your education and internship can take up ¾ of your resume. Just make sure to pack it with achievement.

5. Build Up Your Civil Engineer Resume With Bonus Sections

Is that it? Nope.

Your civil engineering resume can’t just show your work history, skills, and education. You’ve got to show you get stuff done. So add some “other” resume sections:

• Additional Activities
• Conferences
• Awards & Honors
• Volunteer Experience
• Publications
• Foreign Languages
• Continuing Education
• Certifications
• Freelance Work

These two civil engineering resume examples show code from violation:

Civil Engineer Resume—Extra Sections

Conferences

2018 ASCE Convention, spoke on panel about project management

2017 ASCE Convention

Publications

2018 Article on STAAD featured in ASCE Magazine

2017 Spoke about AutoCAD on The Civil Engineering Podcast

Additional Activities

• Member, ASCE
• Head of local sea kayaking group, raised membership 60%

Additional

• Sea kayaking
• Dedicated family man

The applicant who wrote the first of those civil engineer resume samples could have built the Panama Canal.

Expert Hint: Writing a cover letter to add to your civil engineering resume will boost your chances of getting hired. If you don’t, about half the hiring teams out there will skip your application.

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Key Points

For a civil engineering resume that gets jobs:

• Use the civil engineer resume template up top. It’s respectable and has all the building blocks for getting interviewed.
• Put civil engineer accomplishments in your objective, work experience, education, and “bonus” sections to prove your Smeaton-level skills.
• List the right civil engineer skills. They’re in the civil engineering job description in the online posting.
• Include a civil engineer cover letter. In it, show how you fit the job by proving that you understand the job.

Got questions on how to write a great resume for civil engineer jobs? Not sure how to show civil engineer on a resume? Leave a comment. We’ll be happy to reply!

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