Too much info on a CV is bad?

Question

I am a CS student right now and I am thinking of writing my CV. Over the years I have experimented with a lot of programming languages that I don't know very well at this moment. When writing a CV is it worth mentioning all this little things or I should keep just the ones that I'm good at? Or maybe just the ones that are relevant a specific job? For example: if I'm applying for a java job is worth mentioning that I know a few things about haskell? or to mention embedded development contests I attended?

I am rather new in the "art" of writing a CV and any advice is appreciated :D

Answer 1

Yes, too much information is a bad thing. You'll want to limit it to things that are relevant. This can mean two things:

For your generic CV, the kind that you display on websites and send to companies without specific positions available, make sure to focus on what you're good at, and want to work with. Put the best ones at the top; anyone skimming your CV will likely read only the first two or three items.

When responding to a specific job-opening, create a custom CV that highlights the skills that make you a good fit for that job. Again focus on things you're good at or did a lot with, over things you've done little with.

In general, leave off things that you don't know much about. This is not relevant to companies anyway; the difference between someone who once spent a few hours doing Haskell and someone who never did Haskell is meaningless. If the job is about Haskell then you're both unqualified in terms of experience, and if it's not about Haskell then it's irrelevant either way.

If you feel that your experimentation with different languages is an asset, then mention it as one of your positive points, but not under experience.

"Enjoys learning new languages" gives you a bit of personality, while "Did two weeks of Haskell" does not. If you are the kind of person who tries out new things, that can be valuable in companies, but it's the trait and not the result that matter.

Answer 2

Typically as a student or new graduate, you would want to include only the languages you were taught in a class, or that you have used in projects. For example, if you took 2 java courses, and used java in a project in a software engineering course, you would include that, while if all you did with Haskell is write some trivial hello world type programs, you'd be better off leaving it off your resume.

In addition, you want to tailor your resume or CV to the job for which you're applying. For example, if you're applying for a entry level programming position where you would be using Haskell, you would want to downplay, but not necessarily omit, your java skills, and focus on what you've done in Haskell.

Answer 3

I'm assuming you are talking about a "Skills" or similar section of your resume. I would not limit the list based on the specifics of a job, because the set of tools you will use in your job is not static and those other languages may be valuable.

When I am reading a resume and see something listed in "Skills", I expect you to be able to be productive with that tool or language on day 1 of your job. I am more than willing to let developers learn new languages on the job, but if you are going to list it, I expect you to already know it.