What skills should a Commercial Diver put on a resume?

O*NET rates Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Operations Monitoring, Speaking, and Quality Control Analysis among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Commercial Diver list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Diving logbook software, Diving table software, Dynamic positioning DP software, Remote operated vehicle ROV dive log software, and Web browser software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Commercial Diver work?

O*NET records 24 titles for this occupation, including Diver, Diver Tender, Tender, and Hard Hat Diver. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Commercial Diver need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 72% reported their level of education as "Post-Secondary Certificate, awarded for training completed after high school". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Commercial Diver role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Commercial Diver resume example

A resume for a Commercial Diver needs to show the work itself: work below surface of water, using surface-supplied air or scuba equipment to inspect, repair, remove, or install equipment and structures. Day to day that means work like this: take appropriate safety precautions, such as monitoring dive lengths and depths and registering with authorities before diving expeditions begin; check and maintain diving equipment, such as helmets, masks, air tanks, harnesses, or gauges. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

Diver
Diver Tender
Tender
Hard Hat Diver
Non Destructive Testing Under Water Welder
NDT U/W Welder
Salvage Diver
U/W Assistant
Aquarium Diver
Area Commercial Diver
Certified Diver
Deep Sea Diver
Dive Tender
Divemaster
Marine Diver
Navy Diver
Non Destructive Testing Underwater Welder
Plongeur

O*NET records 24 titles for this occupation in total.

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Take appropriate safety precautions, such as monitoring dive lengths and depths and registering with authorities before diving expeditions begin.
Check and maintain diving equipment, such as helmets, masks, air tanks, harnesses, or gauges.
Communicate with workers on the surface while underwater, using signal lines or telephones.
Descend into water with the aid of diver helpers, using scuba gear or diving suits.
Obtain information about diving tasks and environmental conditions.
Supervise or train other divers, including hobby divers.
Inspect the condition of underwater steel or wood structures.
Inspect and test docks, ships, buoyage systems, plant intakes or outflows, or underwater pipelines, cables, or sewers, using closed circuit television, still photography, and testing equipment.
Repair ships, bridge foundations, or other structures below the water line, using caulk, bolts, and hand tools.
Recover objects by placing rigging around sunken objects, hooking rigging to crane lines, and operating winches, derricks, or cranes to raise objects.
Operate underwater video, sonar, recording, or related equipment to investigate underwater structures or marine life.
Take test samples or photographs to assess the condition of vessels or structures.

23 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Take appropriate safety precautions, such as monitoring dive lengths and depths and registering with authorities before diving expeditions begin, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Check and maintain diving equipment, such as helmets, masks, air tanks, harnesses, or gauges, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Communicate with workers on the surface while underwater, using signal lines or telephones, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Descend into water with the aid of diver helpers, using scuba gear or diving suits, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

Diving logbook software
Diving table software
Dynamic positioning DP software
Remote operated vehicle ROV dive log software
Web browser software

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Adjustable crescent wrenches
Air tanks
Bailout bottles
Barometers
Box end wrenches
Buoyancy control devices
Carbon dioxide CO2 monitors
Chain hoists
Closed circuit system helmets
Closed circuit televisions
Closed diving bells
Code alpha flags

Skills an ATS reads for

Worth naming only if they are genuinely yours. Keyword overlap is one input to a resume's score, not a verdict.

supervise employees

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Critical Thinking
02Active Listening
03Operations Monitoring
04Speaking
05Quality Control Analysis
06Operation and Control
07Time Management
08Complex Problem Solving
09Coordination
10Equipment Maintenance

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

Mechanical
Building and Construction
Physics
Customer and Personal Service
Mathematics
Public Safety and Security
Education and Training

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

72%Post-Secondary Certificate, awarded for training completed after high school
12%Associate's Degree
8%High School Diploma, or the equivalent

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Medium Preparation Needed”. Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.

Common questions

What does a Commercial Diver do?: Work below surface of water, using surface-supplied air or scuba equipment to inspect, repair, remove, or install equipment and structures. Day to day that includes work like take appropriate safety precautions, such as monitoring dive lengths and depths and registering with authorities before diving expeditions begin and Check and maintain diving equipment, such as helmets, masks, air tanks, harnesses, or gauges.
What skills should a Commercial Diver put on a resume?: O*NET rates Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Operations Monitoring, Speaking, and Quality Control Analysis among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Commercial Diver list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Diving logbook software, Diving table software, Dynamic positioning DP software, Remote operated vehicle ROV dive log software, and Web browser software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Commercial Diver work?: O*NET records 24 titles for this occupation, including Diver, Diver Tender, Tender, and Hard Hat Diver. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Commercial Diver need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 72% reported their level of education as "Post-Secondary Certificate, awarded for training completed after high school". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Commercial Diver role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.