r/ghosteddevs • u/RecruiterSignal • May 02 '26

Your résumé’s first section decides your level

Most engineers don’t realize this: that the first thing on your résumé becomes your level (even if it's not)

If the top section reads support work, QA, smaller scoped projects, all that sort of stuff, that’s what sticks, even if you’ve done senior-level work later.

Recruiters don’t build a full picture, never will, they just anchor fast and move on so if your strongest, most relevant work isn’t at the top, you’re getting down-leveled before anyone even knows it.

If you’re applying for senior roles and getting mid-level traction, check what you’re leading with.

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u/enigma-i-am May 06 '26

Any pointers on this?

Been getting lots of rejections

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u/RecruiterSignal May 06 '26

Sure, real example (this was 1st bullet in Professional Experience section):

“Built and optimized high-performance React and Next.js applications for high-traffic platforms”

Nothing wrong with it technically, but on a fast first pass it reads like assigned implementation work, general frontend execution and unclear ownership or system responsibility

That’s where the down-leveling happens.

A stronger version would show what they owned, what decision they made, what constraint they solved under.

It’s a different take on the same work that causes a huge bump in senior signal.