Tailoring for Firm Type
Different firms value different things. A resume that impresses a 12-person design studio may not land at a 500-person corporate firm, and vice versa. Your resume should shift emphasis depending on who is reading it.
| Firm Type | What to Emphasize | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Boutique / Design-Focused | Design philosophy, studio projects, competitions, hand skills, conceptual thinking | Studio Gang, MASS Design Group, SO-IL |
| Large Corporate | Revit proficiency, construction documents, project management, team scale, technical skills | Gensler, HOK, Perkins&Will |
| Landscape Architecture | Ecology, GIS/spatial analysis, planting knowledge, site engineering, sustainability frameworks | OLIN, James Corner Field Operations, SCAPE |
| Public Sector / Urban Design | Community engagement, policy awareness, presentation skills, GIS, planning frameworks | City planning departments, WRT, Sasaki |
How to Tailor Without Rewriting Everything
You do not need a completely different resume for every application. Focus your tailoring on three areas:
- Skills order. Rearrange your technical skills list so the most relevant tools appear first. If the posting emphasizes Revit, Revit should be the first word in your skills section.
- Top bullet points. Your first 2-3 bullet points under Experience or Projects should speak directly to the role. Move your most relevant experience to the top.
- Language mirroring. Read the job posting carefully and adopt its vocabulary. If the posting says "construction documents," write "construction documents" rather than "CD sets." If it says "planting design," use that exact phrase.
PRO TIP: Keep a "master resume" that contains every experience, project, and skill you have ever accumulated. For each application, duplicate the master and pare it down to the most relevant content for that specific firm and role. This is faster and more thorough than building from scratch each time.
COMMON MISTAKE: Sending the same generic resume to boutique studios and large corporate firms. A 12-person design firm cares about your design voice and conceptual work. A 500-person firm cares about your Revit proficiency and ability to work within large teams. Speak to what each firm actually values.