The 5 Key Qualities Hiring Managers Seek in Entry-Level Tech Interview Candidates

If you are approaching different entry-level tech positions, you are probably trying to figure out a way to leave an impact on your hiring manager through your resume and interview. While giving your first interview, it is challenging to gauge what your hiring manager wants from you. And if you are applying for your dream position or in your dream enterprise you don’t want to miss this golden one-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Seeing how many students struggle to get past their first interviews, we decide to come up with 5 of the most demanding attributes hiring managers seek while selecting an appropriate candidate.

Your Resume: Your most important asset.

Your resume (CV) is part of your application that hiring managers will pay the most attention to, over things including your cover letter, portfolio, and GitHub profile. The format and writing style of your resume is equally as crucial as its content. Poorly written or error-filled resumes can be a deal-breaker. Your CV serves as both a description of your professional background and a demonstration of your foundational technical knowledge. It also gives you a chance to highlight your oral and written communication abilities.

Even if it has nothing to do with technology specifically, you should list any additional job experience on your resume. Work experience is viewed by hiring employers as a sign of soft abilities like verbal communication and problem-solving skills. Therefore, even though it might not appear like your part-time job at a restaurant is particularly relevant to a developer role, it demonstrates that you have management and conflict resolution skills.

Soft skills: Will help you throughout the process

Your technical expertise and perfect résumé may earn you a spot in the candidate list, but your “soft skills will get you the job.” Hiring managers want to make sure that you can convey your method and ideas to any audience during behavioral interviews and even technical exams. You should be able to communicate your strategy for solving an issue and work well in a collaborative environment.  

Practicing is a great way to improve your communication skills. For more help read our interview prep questions for various job positions and gain an insight on how hiring managers measure your skill level.

Don’t try to be Jack of all: You are not expected to know it all

Feeling like a pretender when determining whether you have what it takes to apply for a job can be highly stressful. However, consider this: “Entry-level candidates aren’t expected to know everything and have a flawless technical skill set on day one by hiring managers.”

Within a few weeks of beginning a new role, a senior-level employee might be productively working on projects and contributing meaningfully. According to one of our hiring managers, entry-level employees typically receive a lengthier ramp-up period since they need more onboarding, training, and growth. So now, you can take a breath of relief that you know you don’t need to be perfect to succeed in an entry-level position. However, when a company takes a chance on a fresh recruit, they are also investing in your personal growth. One of our experts says:

“They expect you to have an engaging demeanor and prove that you’re prepared to learn. That goes a long way.”You can attend our exclusive webinar on Tips and tricks to ace your first interview where our guests from different industries will be sharing some key insights on how you can prepare for your first interview.

Degrees and certificates: They will give you that upper edge

Any certification that shows you’ve completed something and mastered it is good to have on your resume. For instance, a bachelor’s degree in any field of study (not just those related to STEM), professional certificates, or honors.

A bachelor’s degree, like your work history, can indicate to a hiring manager that you have collaboration experience and presentation abilities. There are other ways to demonstrate your qualifications if you don’t have a college degree, such as by putting projects in your portfolio or emphasising work experience that is comparable to what you would receive from a bachelor’s program. It won’t do any harm to include any professional certificates you’ve obtained on your resume.

Demonstrate your commitment to a career switch

According to our mentors, hiring managers in a survey looked for “proof of your commitment to switching careers” when evaluating individuals who are shifting careers. Highlighting projects you’ve finished, internships you’ve done, or hackathons you’ve attended could be one approach to do this.

Anything that shows your commitment to working in the technology industry is worthwhile to record; it doesn’t necessarily need to be a degree. Building a website for a friend, assisting a local charity with their database, or making contributions to Docs are a few examples. What matters most, according to our mentors, is how you document and discuss your initiative, enthusiasm, and curiosity.

If you are looking for some project ideas to add to your resume, you can check our practice projects. You can find from beginner-level projects to some advanced projects with clear guidelines and expected output.

That’s all. Now it’s your turn to make a killer resume and start approaching your dream job. Good Luck with your career from the team of “The London School of AI”.