What skills should a Computer Hardware Engineer put on a resume?

O*NET rates Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Complex Problem Solving, and Speaking 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 Computer Hardware Engineer list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Apache Subversion SVN, Application-specific integrated circuit ASIC logic synthesis software, ASSET JTAG ScanWorks, Autodesk AutoCAD, and Automatic test program generation ATPG. 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 Computer Hardware Engineer work?

O*NET records 27 titles for this occupation, including Design Engineer, Engineer, Hardware Engineer, and Systems Integration Engineer. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Computer Hardware Engineer need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 48% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Computer Hardware Engineer 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.

Computer Hardware Engineer resume example

A resume for a Computer Hardware Engineer needs to show the work itself: research, design, develop, or test computer or computer-related equipment for commercial, industrial, military, or scientific use. Day to day that means work like this: update knowledge and skills to keep up with rapid advancements in computer technology; design and develop computer hardware and support peripherals, including central processing units (CPUs), support logic, microprocessors, custom integrated circuits, and printers and disk drives. 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.

Design Engineer
Engineer
Hardware Engineer
Systems Integration Engineer
Field Service Engineer
Hardware Design Engineer
Physical Design Engineer
Project Engineer
Staff Engineer
ASIC Design Engineer
ASIC Design Verification Engineer
Computer Designer
Computer Engineer
Computer Hardware Designer
Computer Hardware Developer
Computer Installation Engineer
Computer Tester
Computer Vision Engineer

O*NET records 27 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.

Update knowledge and skills to keep up with rapid advancements in computer technology.
Design and develop computer hardware and support peripherals, including central processing units (CPUs), support logic, microprocessors, custom integrated circuits, and printers and disk drives.
Confer with engineering staff and consult specifications to evaluate interface between hardware and software and operational and performance requirements of overall system.
Build, test, and modify product prototypes, using working models or theoretical models constructed with computer simulation.
Write detailed functional specifications that document the hardware development process and support hardware introduction.
Test and verify hardware and support peripherals to ensure that they meet specifications and requirements, by recording and analyzing test data.
Direct technicians, engineering designers or other technical support personnel as needed.
Provide technical support to designers, marketing and sales departments, suppliers, engineers and other team members throughout the product development and implementation process.
Select hardware and material, assuring compliance with specifications and product requirements.
Store, retrieve, and manipulate data for analysis of system capabilities and requirements.
Analyze user needs and recommend appropriate hardware.
Evaluate factors such as reporting formats required, cost constraints, and need for security restrictions to determine hardware configuration.

18 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.

Update knowledge and skills to keep up with rapid advancements in computer technology, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Design and develop computer hardware and support peripherals, including central processing units (CPUs), support logic, microprocessors, custom integrated circuits, and printers and disk drives, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Confer with engineering staff and consult specifications to evaluate interface between hardware and software and operational and performance requirements of overall system, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Build, test, and modify product prototypes, using working models or theoretical models constructed with computer simulation, 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.

Apache Subversion SVN
Application-specific integrated circuit ASIC logic synthesis software
ASSET JTAG ScanWorks
Autodesk AutoCAD
Automatic test program generation ATPG
Block diagram software
Boundary scan description language BSDL
Boundary scan insertion software
Built-in self-test BIST debugging software
C
C++
Cadence Allegro PCB Designer
Cadence Concept
Cadence Dracula

116 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

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

Alternating current AC power analyzers
Alternating current AC power sources
Bit error rate testers BERT
Circuit memory testers
Circuit testers
Color plotters
Communications analyzers
Communications signal analyzers
Computer scanners
Desktop computers
Digital analysis systems DAS
Direct current DC power supplies

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.

C
C++
Hardware description language HDL

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
02Reading Comprehension
03Active Listening
04Complex Problem Solving
05Speaking
06Writing
07Active Learning
08Judgment and Decision Making
09Operations Analysis
10Systems Analysis

Knowledge areas

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

Computers and Electronics
Engineering and Technology
Design
Mathematics
English Language
Physics
Telecommunications

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.

48%Bachelor's Degree
34%Master's Degree
7%Some College Courses

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Considerable Preparation Needed”. Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Common questions

What does a Computer Hardware Engineer do?: Research, design, develop, or test computer or computer-related equipment for commercial, industrial, military, or scientific use. Day to day that includes work like update knowledge and skills to keep up with rapid advancements in computer technology and Design and develop computer hardware and support peripherals, including central processing units (CPUs), support logic, microprocessors, custom integrated circuits, and printers and disk drives.
What skills should a Computer Hardware Engineer put on a resume?: O*NET rates Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Complex Problem Solving, and Speaking 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 Computer Hardware Engineer list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Apache Subversion SVN, Application-specific integrated circuit ASIC logic synthesis software, ASSET JTAG ScanWorks, Autodesk AutoCAD, and Automatic test program generation ATPG. 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 Computer Hardware Engineer work?: O*NET records 27 titles for this occupation, including Design Engineer, Engineer, Hardware Engineer, and Systems Integration Engineer. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Computer Hardware Engineer need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 48% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Computer Hardware Engineer 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.