Department toolkit

The Software Engineering Student Toolkit

Everything to set up before you apply — in the order engineering teams actually check it.

Why this order, for software engineering

In software engineering, hiring teams open your code before they open your resume. A working repository with real commits, a clear README, and a project that actually runs tells them more in two minutes than a page of bullet points ever could — it's evidence, not a claim.

That's why this path starts with your GitHub presence and a place to show finished projects, then moves to the resume and applicant-tracking basics that get you past the first screen, and only after that to the profile and account setup that round out the picture.

  1. 1Set up GitHub so your code speaks for youReviewers on this ladder open your repositories before your resume — commit history, README clarity, and working code carry more weight than any bullet point.
  2. 2A simple personal site you can stand behindA one-page site that links your best repositories and briefly explains what each one solves turns a list of code into a story a fast-skimming reviewer can follow.
  3. 3A one-page resume structure that worksKeep the resume built around project outcomes and the stack you used — engineering resumes get skimmed for languages and frameworks, not job-title prose.
  4. 4How applicant tracking systems actually read your resumeTech postings load resumes with exact tool and language names; matching that vocabulary precisely, not a synonym, is what gets an engineering resume past the first automated pass.
  5. 5Set up LinkedIn like a professionalA software engineer's headline should name the stack or specialty — frontend, backend, mobile — since recruiters here search by technology, not by job title alone.
  6. 6Set up Claude as your second AI assistantDaily fluency with an AI coding assistant is assumed on this ladder; the habit that actually helps in interviews is explaining what the tool changed and why, not just that you used one.
  7. 7Go straight to the source: company career pagesMany engineering teams post openings directly on their own site before anywhere else — checking career pages catches roles that never reach a general job board.

Before you apply — the checklist

  • GitHub profile pinned with your 2-3 strongest, actively-committed repositories
  • Each pinned repo has a clear README explaining what it does and how to run it
  • One-page personal site linking your best projects, live
  • Resume saved as PDF, named FirstLast_Resume, built around project outcomes
  • Resume checked against ats-basics keyword guidance for your target stack
  • LinkedIn headline names your specialty (frontend, backend, mobile, full-stack)
  • Know where you stand: your free Knock Number
Print the checklist (PDF)

All toolkit guides

The Software Engineering Student Toolkit · Knock