Civil Engineer CV Example & Writing Guide

A civil engineer’s CV is the key to positioning yourself as the professional for whatever job you’ve got your eye on. After all, civil engineering is a career that requires a creative approach to problem-solving. 

You’d be surprised to find that writing a CV is no different. Your CV should ooze confidence, and tell the hiring manager why you’re the answer to their civil engineering prayers. It’s not always easy to communicate that on paper, though. 

The best way to approach this with your civil engineering CV? Build a sturdy foundation by following just a few top tips. You’ll see just how easy it is to make sure each and every section of your CV is up to code.

Writing the perfect CV is just another puzzle for you to solve. But we know that you’re no stranger to logical and creative thinking. Once you’ve got your head around effective CV writing, nothing is standing between you and impressing the hiring manager. We’ll help you to get there with some top CV writing tips.

CV guide for a civil engineering CV 

Fortunately,  at Resume.io we’ve mastered the art and science behind writing a top CV. While you focus on the analytical side of things, we can lead the way on helping you get a job interview. 

We have hundreds of guides and CV examples for numerous professions. All you’ve got to do is add your personal touch with our easy-to-use CV builder

This CV guide and corresponding civil engineering CV example will cover the following:

• How to write a civil engineering CV
• Choosing the right CV format for a civil engineer
• How to add your contact information
• Using summaries
• Adding your civil engineer experience
• Listing education and relevant experience
• Picking the right resume design/layout
• What the civil engineer market looks like and what salary you can expect

How to write a civil engineering CV

The very first step in writing your civil engineering CV is understanding what sections to include. Your CV should contain the following elements:

• CV header
• CV summary (aka profile or personal statement)
• Employment history section
• CV skills section
• Education section

Just like any successful project, planning is key. Use the same mentality you adopt when you are making sure a new civil engineering design complies with the original brief. As you work through our following CV writing tips, keep in mind what this particular company is looking for when filling this particular role. 

From there, you can structure your CV in a way that will tick all of the hiring manager’s boxes.  Take a look at the following suggestions and add them into your workflow as you plan your CV. 

By treating the creation of your CV like a step-by-step process, you can avoid overwhelm and head into the writing phase with a clear action plan. 

• Adapt each version of your CV in line with the job that you’re applying to. Nobody wants to get the copy and paste treatment.
• Research the company that you are applying to and consider how your experience lines up with what they might value in a candidate.
• Identify keywords in the job description. Not only will this help you to prioritise your most important achievements and experience, but you’ll want to include those words to satisfy the ATS.
• Highlight any particularly interesting work experience, such as a position abroad, that could set you apart from other candidates.
• Use a professional CV template so that your CV’s presentation shines as much as the content itself.

We’re sure that with these tips you’ll create a civil engineering CV that simultaneously hits the professional mark and lets your personality shine through. 

Choosing the right  CV format for a civil engineer 

The best CV format for most job seekers is the reverse chronological format. In short, it’s a format that prioritises your employment history and prioritises readability. You can still choose to explore other options, though, if you’re new to the field or simply want to stand out. 

One alternative is the functional CV — that’s a skills-based CV — format. This format would help you shine a light on important skills and competencies, as opposed to your employment history. It also usually boasts a larger skills section. This could, therefore, be the ideal choice if you’re new to the field or applying for a role that requires a specialist skill set

Don’t forget to consider the design of your CV, too. There are plenty of CV templates to get you started that are available on our CV builder. 

A simple layout should let the hiring manager know that you mean business. However, consider the company where you are applying for a role and the sort of CV template that they’re most likely to respond to. We trust your expertise in your field on this one! 

Include your contact information 

As a civil engineer, you know how important it is to make information as clear and understandable as possible for your collaborators. The header of your CV is no different. 

So the inclusion of legible contact information at the top of your CV is vital. Make sure that you tick all of the boxes when it come to your contact details with the following points:

• Full name & title. Include your first and last name. The title you use should match the job role you’re going after.
• Professional email address. Use a clean format like [email protected]. Don’t use that quirky and casual email address you set up in high school. You know the one we’re talking about.
• Phone number. List a number that it’s easy to contact you on.
• Location. List your city. No need to include your postcode or street address. If applicable, you can add “Willing to relocate”.
• LinkedIn. Add a link to your LinkedIn profile. Just don’t forget to make sure that it’s looking up to date and polished.

Don’t include:

• Date of birth: This isn’t necessary to include. You don’t want to risk the potential of age discrimination, after all.
• Personal details: Your marital status, social security number, passport number, or any other personal details don’t need to be included here.

Make use of a summary

Your CV summary is an opportunity to show how you can use those essential critical thinking and analytical skills. That’s because writing a CV summary is essentially transforming data into concise content that will hook a hiring manager’s attention. 

A strong CV summary consists of three to four sentences that revolve around the job description’s requests to hit the mark. What are the main keywords, characteristics, and personality traits that the hiring manager is looking for in this role? Tapping into this question is a great place to start when considering the information that you should include in your CV summary. 

In fact, we often suggest writing your CV summary last so that you can get a clear overview of the most important content you’ve written for each job role as you tweak your CV. In a nutshell, the summary of your civil engineering CV is like the topline of a project proposal. 

Your CV summary is a section that the reader — in this case, the hiring manager — should be able to skim and understand at a glance what the rest of the document is all about. So, make sure that you create a clear characterisation of your professional profile when writing your summary.

This is also a great spot on your CV to include any achievements that make you stand out, such as qualifications or awards you have gathered throughout your career. It might seem like a lot to remember, but once you get started you’ll see that it’s actually not so hard. 

Outline your civil engineer work experience: a sturdy foundation 

Your employment history section should follow the reverse chronological format. Your most recent role or work experience should always come first. This way, hiring managers will then be able to quickly skim over your most recent experience. 

Remember that for each previous role you should include the following information:

• Your job title
• The name of the company you worked for
• Your dates of employment
• The location of the position

Don’t go overboard with how you detail your responsibilities under each heading. In fact, prioritising your notable achievements is a great rule of thumb. You could also list some responsibilities that line up with what would be asked of you in the new job.

When it comes to how to list this information, dynamic bullet points should do the trick. How can you make them feel dynamic? You can include action-oriented verbs that draw attention to the key skills you used to carry out your tasks or accomplish impressive achievements. Some useful examples for civil engineers could include language such as “assessed”, “solved”, “monitored”, or “led”. 

Remember that the hiring manager will be on the lookout for what you can deliver as a new addition to their company. So keep a clear focus on the outcomes of projects you have previously worked on. For instance, did your management double the construction team’s productivity? Reduce the time from project conception to delivery by 10%?

We’re not saying you always have to crunch numbers and try to quantify exactly what impact you had every time. However, don’t let the magnitude of your contribution go unnoticed. 

• Were you responsible for a team that delivered ahead of schedule?
• Did you identify areas in which you could help your team or client save money and come in under budget?
• Did you introduce measures that improved your client satisfaction scores?

The bullet points underneath the subheading corresponding to each of your previous job roles are the best space to share these accomplishments.

Include the relevant skills that make you a great civil engineer 

As a job that often requires managing high-risk activities, your skills list is a chance to give yourself a pat on the back for how much goes into being successful as a civil engineer. What those skills look like though, will naturally depend on a few different factors. 

How long you’ve been working in the profession and in what capacity will affect the types of skills to include here. This is your opportunity to zoom in on your expertise by creating a skills list that includes both hard skills and soft skills. 

In a nutshell, your hard skills will be the technical skills needed to be a successful civil engineer in your given sector. Your soft skills, meanwhile, will be things like your ability to lead a team, time management, and your ability to switch between the bigger picture and the minutiae of execution on big contracts. 

Consider the language that you use to write out your most important skills. What does the job listing ask for? Make sure that you are using the same key words that are asked for there. Consider some of the following categories when you are deciding what to include in your skills section:

• Proficiency in software
• Experience relevant to a specific industry
• Relevant trainings, qualifications, or professional accreditation
• Methodology or schools of thought that you are familiar with
• Management skills

Remember to prioritise the skills you list in this section according to the importance of each skill in the job listing, not by how proud you are of it.

Detail your education & relevant civil engineer certifications

There are a few different ways to break into the civil engineering field, including working towards this role by climbing the career ladder. However, the education section is dedicated particularly to your formal qualifications and certifications. If you don’t have a university degree or equivalent, you can list your secondary school education. 

Similarly to your employment history, your education section should be listed in reverse chronological order. Include a subheading to represent each of your formal qualifications. The subheading should include the name of the qualification, the institution you studied at, your dates of attendance,  and its location. 

Consider some of the following types of relevant trainings that you may choose to include on the education section of a civil engineering CV in the UK:

• BSc or MSc in civil engineering or a similar field of study.
• Level 6 NVQ in civil engineering or a related field
• Research you have carried out in civil engineering
• College qualifications such as A levels or BTECs in maths, geology, geography, or physics.
• An apprenticeship in an engineering-related field

Any of the above bullet points will also work just as well if you have a qualification that focuses on specific areas of civil engineering such as transport, environmental, or maritime and coastal engineering. While this is a comprehensive list, don’t be tempted to exaggerate the qualifications you possess if you feel like you’re lacking.

To double-check you’ve got it spot on, take a look at the CV sample content below.

Pick the right layout and design for a civil engineering CV 

You may be extremely experienced and boast impressive civil engineering skills. But remember that the first thing a hiring manager will see is your CV layout and design. Want to come across as a trustworthy candidate? Your CV layout can communicate all of that and more.

Having said that, visual communication doesn’t come naturally to everyone. It can be difficult to condense big projects into the small space of a CV! Consider how you can make it easy for the hiring manager to navigate your CV’s layout at a glance. Clear spacing between sections and a maximum of one or two legible fonts will help you to get there. 

Not sure how to achieve that look? We’ve gone to the trouble of giving you some options to choose from. Consider checking out our professionally designed, free CV templates to make sure your graphic design skills aren’t preventing you from getting that civil engineering interview.

Civil engineering text-only resume example

Civil engineering job market and outlook 

As a civil engineer you have a highly skilled job. Thanks to increasing job demand in the industry, current trends predict that you will have the world at your feet, ready for you to help build from the ground up.

What type of salary you can expect in civil engineering 

Labour market information places the annual salary of civil engineers between £24,000 – £80,000 a year in the UK. That means that there’s plenty of room for growth professionally and financially. Like most professions, it goes without saying that the more experience you have, the higher your salary is likely to be. 

Key takeaways for a civil engineering CV

1. Ooze confidence in every way possible from the action verbs you use to the layout you decide on.
2. Civil engineers bear a great deal of responsibility in their line of work. Highlight your relevant qualifications so the hiring manager feels like they’re in safe hands.
3. Zoom in on niche or challenging work experience that is relevant to the job opportunity to give yourself an advantage over other applicants.
4. Prioritise concision and organisation in both your language and formatting. Clear communication is vital for a civil engineer — so make sure you nail it on your CV, too!
5. Give the companies you want to apply to the same attention you’d give a civil engineering project. Research them thoroughly and adapt your CV accordingly.