Here’s a sample resume we recently produced for a Civil Engineer in Hong Kong.
In this article, you’ll learn:
- About the Civil Engineer Role
- What Hiring Manager Look For In Civil Engineer Resumes
- Civil Engineer Job Opportunities
- Job Hunting Tips from our Resident Headhunter
Civil Engineer CV [Full Sample]
Here’s a full Civil Engineer resume sample, which we wrote for a client recently.
CHRIS LOH
PROFESSIONAL CIVIL ENGINEER
Email: c.loh@email.com | Mobile:+852 XXXX XXXX | Nationality: Chinese
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- Professional Civil Engineer with solid experience in conceptualising strategic plans for infrastructure construction projects worth $100+ mil in Hong Kong and China
- Excellent ability in developing cost-efficient solutions within the construction landscape, while delivering excellent safety and quality standards to meet business objectives
- Solid foundation in design processes throughout life cycle of infrastructure construction
- Excellent interpersonal skills with experience in communicating at all organisational levels with different educational backgrounds. Capable of building high performing teams with personnel from varied cultures
- Proactive team leader and strategic planner with ability to work within high pressure environments to meet deadlines while surpassing expectations
[This section gives a good helicopter view of the candidate. Quantifying the current role where possible also helps to give scale to the current responsibilities.]
KEY SKILLS
Infrastructure Construction | Safety and Quality Standards | Project Management | Employee Management | Resource Allocation | Operational Change | Design Engineering Management | Supplier Management
[Ensure the keywords here mirror those used in the job ad. The first round of vetting is often done by a software scanner. This section helps to pad the CV with key engineering-related phrases necessary to get past those scanners.]
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
PROJECT ENGINEER
Jul 2009 – Present
A&C ENGINEERING INC., Hong Kong
- Lead team of 400 staff in one of Hong Kong’s leading construction conglomerate dealing in civil engineering & industrial construction projects. Manage annual revenues of USD $100mil USD. [The opening line captures all the reader needs to know about the role as it mentions the size of the team, annual budget, and type of firm the candidate is working for.]
- Direct engineering and construction projects and oversee full project lifecycle from studying customer needs, project scoping, tender submission, contract negotiation, project delivery, P&L management, regulatory fillings and final commissioning [These are the common phrases used by engineers.Make sure to throw in some jargons.]
- Facilitate active communication with Project Leads, Engineers, and Construction Managers; discuss and resolve engineering issues and ensure construction as per design standards and client expectations [This line demonstrates the candidate’s communication and coordination skills.]
Significant Highlights
- Successfully led ISO 9001:2008 certification for firm over 10-month period.
Selected Projects
[For complex or multiple projects, it is best to present them like the ones below. Mention the type of project you worked on, who your client is, what was your role, and the responsibilities you had.]
Secured Housing Complex
Client: Chevron, Hong Kong
Role: Project Engineer
Client: Chevron, Hong Kong
Role: Project Engineer
- Led construction of USD $10 mil secured housing project consisting of 40 houses over 52-week period
- Managed full spectrum of housing complex construction, including development of road networks, power supply, water supply, sewage treatment plant, water treatment plant, and townhouses
2 MW Natural Gas Turbine Power Plant
Client: China Tianchen Engineering Corporation, China
Role: Project Engineer
Client: China Tianchen Engineering Corporation, China
Role: Project Engineer
- In charge of all civil and mechanical works for newly built natural gas power plant in China
- Oversaw USD $10 mil project with 200 staff over 24 months. Successfully delivered project on time and within budget
RESUMEWRITER | ASIA
CIVIL FIELD ENGINEER
Apr 2004 – Jun 2009
MCCONNELL DOWELL, Hong Kong
- Liaised and communicated with clients and subcontractors to understand project requirements, timelines and constraints [Simple, clear overview of the job you previously done. Notice also how the remaining bullet points are shorter. No need to go into deep detail about previous workscopes.]
- Conducted close and methodical inspection of ongoing installation of reinforcing steel works, openings, waterproofing and formworks before government inspection
- Coordinated between mechanical and electrical teams on opening of various services
SITE SUPERVISOR
Feb 2004 – Dec 2008
MOTT MACDONALD Hong Kong PTE LTD, Hong Kong
EDUCATIONAL & PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
- Bachelor of Engineering (Hons), University of Hong Kong| 2002
COURSES & CERTIFICATIONS
- Registered Clerk-of-Works, Building and Construction Authority of Hong Kong
- Accredited Resident Technical Officer, Institution of Engineers, Hong Kong
- Certificate in Building Construction Safety Supervisor Course, Ministry of Manpower, Hong Kong
- Construction Safety Management Training Course, Land Transport Authority Hong Kong
[This section enables you to list down related courses you’ve taken and/or certifications you’ve received that would strengthen your profile as a professional civil engineer.]
MISC. INFORMATION
- Technical Skills: AutoCAD 2016, Autodesk Building Suite 2016, Autodesk Infrastructural suite 2016, Autodesk Robot Structural Analysis 2014, Chief Architect, Staad Pro / CSC Tedds / Tekla Structural Designer
- Languages: : Fluent in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin
- Availability: 2 months’ notice
[If you are fluent in multiple languages, include that. If you’ve taken formal certification courses like the APT, you can odd that in as well. While on engineer isn’t as ‘frontline’ or client facing, fluency in multiple languages is always a nice plus in today’s world.]
References available upon request
[There’s no need to list your references; if HR is interested in you they will ask you for them.]
RESUMEWRITER | ASIA
About the Civil Engineer Role
The oldest of all engineering fields, civil engineering started when man first learned to put roofs in their houses.
Today, the civil engineers represent human progress and modern civilization. They are responsible for the design, construction and maintenance of structures that propel economy – houses, buildings, roads, bridges, railways, dams, and underground projects such as subways, tunnels, waterworks, sewage and drainage. In all these examples of built structures, several disciplines of civil engineering are applied – structural, geotechnical, environmental, construction, water resources, transportation and materials engineering.
While no employer expects an applicant with extensive work experience in all major civil engineering projects, you should be able to drive the message you can handle diverse assignments in the future. Your resume should strongly reflect this to convince the potential employer of your capabilities and potentials.
What Hiring Managers Look For in Civil Engineer Resumes
- Strong and Solid Foundation in Civil Engineering: Safety will be foremost in the minds of employers when it comes to built structures. A candidate who is knowledgeable and capable in civil engineering principles will be one of the most important qualities the employer will look for in the applicant. Citing examples of past successful projects will help you drive the message you have got what it takes to get the job.
- Conceptual Skills: Another important aspect of a civil engineer’s work employers look for is style or building concept, which includes the functionality, economic and aesthetic angles of his work. Describing one’s completed projects particularly in these areas will indicate to a great extent your conceptual skills.
- Leadership Skills: Prospective employers will try to gauge your ability to be able to execute projects according to specifications, including quality and time requirements. Since successful execution of projects will involve the use of human resources, the hiring company will try to check your people skills. Describe examples of your leadership and coordinating skills in past projects you led or influenced.
- Capacity for Hard Work: Projects sometimes extend beyond normal working hours and engineers and workers are expected to beat important deadlines or meet milestone targets. In this case, personnel have to render extra time for work to make this happen. Citing instances of walking the extra mile in the name of project completion will be a plus in your application
- Do not forget to list in your resume the licenses and certificates for the technical skills you acquired relevant to your field. Include board license from the government and certifications for safety, environmental engineering, surveying, CAD, piping, welding, etc.
- Listing the civil engineering projects and describing the structures you worked with will give the hiring company a good feel for your capability.
Civil Engineer Job Opportunities
- Join LinkedIn groups or follow companies you wish to work for to keep abreast with new job openings.
- Alternatively, you can reach out to these headhunters in Hong Kong to learn about any vacancies they may be trying to fill out.
Job Hunting Tips from our Resident Headhunter
- Create a winning cover letter and send it along your resume. The cover letter will serve as an introduction about yourself and is a great venue to answer the question “Why should we hire you?”
- Be active on social media, particularly on LinkedIn. Make sure to create a strong online profile that represents you and you professional experiences. Here’s our comprehensive guide on writing a great LinkedIn profile.
Before You Go…
Be sure to download this resume sample, which uses our tested-and-proven resume writing techniques, as a guide for your own CV. Best part is, this sample is available for free 🙂
And before you start sending out applications, send us your resume for a free CV feedback analysis from our team. We’ll review your CV in detail, share personalised feedback on its strengths and weaknesses, and show you how you can improve it.