Crafting a Stellar Machining Resume: 8 Simple Steps to Success

At hireCNC we review resumes from CNC machinists every day. In terms of how they are structured, they come in all shapes and sizes. Some are good. Many are terrible. But most fall somewhere in the middle. Want to make yours stand out? Here are 8 simple tips to building a great resume that Machine Shops will thank you for!

For each company you have worked for, consider including the following 8 pieces of information. Point #7 is our favorite!

1. What industry? Aerospace? Medical? General manufacturing? Etc. etc.
2. What kind of production? Is it a job shop? High production? How many setups per day were you responsible for?
3. Specific tolerances. Give the employer an idea of the tolerances you are comfortable working from.
4. Materials. What materials have you machined?
5. Programming methods. If you’re a programmer, how was the programming done? Cad/Cam? At the control?
6. Machine Types. 3-axis mills? Swiss? Mill-Turn? EDM? Etc..
7. Machine list + Duration + Role. So simple yet so few do this. Be specific and list out the machines, what you did on those machines, and for how long you were responsible for those machines.
8. Anything else you want to share. Did you train new hires? Did you help with the purchasing of tooling? Did you sweep the floors? ScrumMaster?

Example below...

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ABC Machining, Houston TX (March 2018 - Present)
CNC Machinist / Programmer

• Job shop primarily serving nuclear, medical, and general manufacturing industries
• High-mix low volume production environment. 4-6 setups per day.
• Kept tolerance level of all material on standard (+/-.0003) thousands of an inch.
• Steel, H13 hardened steel, aluminum, plastics, & more
• Programming: majority done with Mastercam. Some done at the control.
• Mill-Turn (expert), 5 axis Mills (expert), 3 Axis Mills (expert)
• Machines:
  • Mazak Nexus 350-II MY with “Matrix Nexus 2” control | 2.5 years | Programming & Setup
  • Mazak Integrex e-670H with SmoothX control | 5 years | Programming & Setup
  • Haas VF-3 with Haas control | 1 year | Programming & Setup
  • Makino D500 with Makino Pro 5 CNC Control | 2 years | Setup only
• Certified ScrumMaster
• Support and train new CNC Operator hires

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Do that for each shop you've worked for and you'll be providing the employers the exact info they desire!

BONUS TIP.

1. Include pictures (if you can). It’s not always possible because of confidentiality, but if you can include any pictures of parts you have machined, that is always a nice touch. Put these pictures at the bottom of the resume, or send in a separate attachment.