Under your leadership, teams of engineers, designers, technical writers, and testers work seamlessly to meet a common goal. You’ve got engineering skills to boot, and you top them off with a knack for conveying complex concepts to a non-technical audience.
Your skill set is highly sought after, so you might have recruiters chasing after you soon enough. However, in order to make that happen, you still need to craft a resume that accurately describes the impact of your work.
Start with checking out our mechanical project engineer resume examples and tips to write my cover letter. You’re just a few steps away from leveling up your career.
What Matters Most: Your Engineering Skills & Project Management Experience
You have a rare blend of skills—you’re a tech-savvy engineer with years of experience under your belt, but you’re also an excellent communicator with a proven track record of seeing challenging projects to completion.
When working on your resume, try to highlight both sides of the coin, but keep things very specific. Throw out generic terms like “hard worker” and instead discuss your in-depth knowledge of engineering.
Mention software you’re proficient in, such as CAD/CAE applications and project management tools. Use industry-specific terminology if it aligns with the company’s sector. For instance, if you’re applying to a company that makes marine systems, add your knowledge of shipboard operations or waterproofing.
During the interview, you may be asked to elaborate on how you used a particular skill to achieve tangible results, so cherry-pick your abilities to include the ones tied to your accomplishments.
9 best mechanical project engineer skills
- FEA Analysis
- AutoCAD
- Resource Management
- SolidWorks
- Contract Negotiation
- Regulatory Compliance
- Mechanical Design
- Matlab
- Microsoft Project
Sample mechanical project engineer work experience bullet points
You’ve mastered your particular engineering niche, but you also have a deep understanding of several others. In other words, you’ll have a lot to talk about in this part of your resume.
Pick out your greatest accomplishments and back them up with data. Your role is driven by various KPIs, from budget to resource management and deadlines, so including quantifiable metrics will make your achievements stand out more.
Talk about the engineering projects you had the chance to oversee, what they entailed and the improvements they brought.
Here’s how you can use this section to your advantage:
- Orchestrated a cross-functional team of engineers, designers, and other specialists to deliver a $1M mechanical engineering project 2 weeks ahead of schedule
- Led a team of 18 engineers to design and develop a new valve system, contributing to a 14% growth in company market share year-over-year
- Spearheaded a project that incorporated lean manufacturing principles, reducing waste by 22%
- Reduced design time across a team of 7 engineers by 39% by utilizing SolidWorks and Microsoft Project
Top 5 Tips for Your Mechanical Project Engineer Resume
- Show off your people skills
- Your role combines a mastery of mechanical engineering with a whole lot of communication. Show that you’re an excellent manager and colleague by talking about the teams you’ve led. In addition, emphasize communicating with key stakeholders and cross-departmental experts.
- Include your certifications
- At this stage of your career, many employers might expect you to have your Professional Engineer (PE) license. Other certifications are helpful too, such as the PMP or the CEM, as well as certs related to CAD software.
- Discuss your financial wins
- Managing projects means juggling deadlines and budgets, so it’s a solid measure of your success that looks great on a resume. Back up your work experience bullet points with data on things like budget size, deadlines you were able to beat, and cutting costs by introducing things like design improvements.
- Detail your industry-specific knowledge
- Make sure to tailor your resume to match the job description. For instance, if you’re applying to an aerospace engineering company, highlight that you’re familiar with the field by including relevant projects. This could mean things like working on aircraft systems or components as well as simulation models related to aerospace.
- Talk about your toolkit
- Recruiters will expect you to hit the ground running with engineering software, so make sure to list every tool you’re proficient in. This includes staples like AutoCAD, but also things like Matlab, Pro/ENGINEER, or Catia. Don’t forget industry-specific programs like PSpice.
Use your work experience and cover letter to show the projects you’ve led and how you drove them to completion. Discuss specific achievements, such as designing a new HVAC system. You can also mention methodologies like Lean Six Sigma.
You’re an engineering whiz with project management skills, so that shouldn’t be an issue. Focus on your transferable skills, like knowledge of 3D modeling software, thermodynamics, or managing people.
You can if you feel like there’s some overlap when it comes to the skills needed for the job. For example, if you used to work as a shift leader at a warehouse, you have proven leadership experience, and that warrants a mention.
