In the networking field, employers prioritize technical proficiency. Make sure to highlight any familiarity with Cisco networking equipment, routers and switches, IP addressing, network troubleshooting, and WAN technologies on your resume.

Another strong point to mention is experience or knowledge in security practices related to networking. As a CCNA network engineer, understanding how to mitigate network vulnerabilities and dealing with security threats could make you more appealing to potential employers.

If you're trying to break into the network engineering field, earning your CCNA indicates you have a solid foundation in networking concepts. However, real-world skills are equally important. Therefore, emphasize any hands-on experience or lab work you have done during your education or training.

Include specific experiences where you implemented, managed, or troubleshooted network systems. Having experience with popular networking tools and technologies, can give you an edge over other candidates.

You should show how your skills fit the job of a network engineer certified in CCNA. This means you list the work you've done that proves you can do this job well. Use strong, clear examples that are easy to understand. Keep your resume focused on the job you want.

• Show the systems you've worked with, like Cisco networks, and how you used them to help your last job.
• For a job where you need to lead, talk about the teams you have managed or times you helped make big decisions.
• If you're coming from a different career, share work you've done that uses the same skills. For example, if you've managed network security elsewhere, that's important to talk about.

When you apply for a network engineer role, the verbs you choose for your resume can help you stand out. You should choose words that show your direct impact and skills. Here's how to pick strong verbs:

First, think about the actions you have taken in your past jobs. What did you do that had a clear, positive effect? Use verbs that tell this story. Next, remember that as a network engineer, you often set up, fix, or improve systems. Choose verbs that reflect these tasks.

• To demonstrate your ability to build and maintain networks, use implemented, configured, deployed, upgraded, and maintained.
• When showcasing problem-solving skills, include verbs such as resolved, troubleshooted, diagnosed, repaired, and restored.
• To show your expertise in optimizing system performance, use optimized, enhanced, streamlined, monitored, and analyzed.
• If you have led projects or teams, highlight this with verbs like led, coordinated, managed, directed, and oversaw.
• For those who have contributed to team knowledge, verbs such as instructed, mentored, guided, educated, and trained can be very effective.

Want inspiration for other action verbs you can use? Check out synonyms to commonly used action verbs like Advised, Analyze, Executed, Supervise, Cleaned.

As a network engineer with a CCNA certification, you need to show you have the right technical skills. List them in a dedicated section on your resume. This helps automated systems, like Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS), find your resume. These systems look for specific keywords related to the job.

Here are some skills you should consider adding, if they match your experience:

• Network configuration
• Troubleshooting
• Cisco IOS
• Routing protocols
• Switching
• Network security
• WLAN
• VPN
• IP addressing
• VoIP

Don't feel like you must list every skill. Only include those that match the job you want. If you are good at network security, focus on that. If you worked a lot with VoIP, highlight it. Put your skills in the section where you list your professional experience or in a separate skills section. Remember, the goal is to make it easy for both people and computers to see you have the skills they are looking for.

When you're applying for a network engineer role, it's important to show any leadership experience you have. This tells hiring managers that you are ready to take on responsibility and can manage tasks effectively. Look back at your career and think about times when you had to lead a project or a team.

Here are some ways you could show your growth into leadership roles:

• Managed a team of junior network technicians to successfully deploy a secure wireless LAN for a client, increasing network stability by 30%.
• Promoted from network support technician to network engineer within two years, due to strong problem-solving skills and excellent client feedback.

Even if you're not sure you've held a formal leadership role, consider any project where you took the lead. Did you guide a team through a network upgrade? Did you mentor new staff? These are the experiences you want to share. Make sure you use clear, simple language to describe these examples:

• Lead a cross-departmental team to develop a new network security protocol, which reduced vulnerability to cyber attacks.
• Initiated and oversaw a training program for new hires, resulting in a more skilled and efficient technical support team.

As a network engineer certified in CCNA, showing the impact of your work through numbers can make your resume stand out. Metrics can provide a clear picture of your achievements and the value you add. Think about how your actions have led to improvements and try to quantify these changes.

Here are some ideas to help you think about the numbers that might apply to your work:

• Percentage increase in network uptime due to your maintenance or upgrades, e.g., 'Increased network uptime from 95% to 99% over six months.'
• Amount of time saved through your network optimizations, such as 'Cut down network deployment time by 30% through automated scripts.'
• Number of network devices you've successfully managed or configured, e.g., 'Managed a network of over 150 devices across 5 locations.'
• Reduction in network incidents or customer support issues after your interventions, like 'Reduced critical incidents by 40% year-over-year.'
• Cost savings achieved by implementing new technologies or processes, such as 'Saved the company $20,000 annually by migrating to a new WAN provider.'
• Number of projects led or completed on time and within budget, for example, 'Completed 10+ major network upgrade projects on time.'
• Improvement in data transfer rates or latency, such as 'Improved data transfer speeds by 25% through network reconfiguration.'
• Training sessions or workshops conducted to improve team skills, e.g., 'Conducted 12 training sessions for IT staff on network security protocols.'

Remember to review your work history and identify where you made a measurable difference. If you are unsure about exact numbers, make a good estimate based on the information you have. Use these metrics to show how your skills and efforts have had a positive, tangible impact on the networks you've worked with.

When applying to small companies or startups, like Ubiquiti Networks or Meraki, highlight your ability to wear many hats. Emphasize your hands-on experience with various technologies and your adaptability. You might say, "Managed end-to-end network deployment, including configuration, troubleshooting, and security implementation."

Also, showcase your passion for innovative solutions. Small companies value creativity. Include phrases like, "Developed custom network solutions to meet unique client needs." This makes you stand out as someone who can bring fresh ideas to a smaller team.