Highlighting your value in the IT job market involves understanding your strengths and weaknesses, researching the company and position, and aligning your skills with the job requirements. Emphasizing relevant experience, accolades from previous employers, and demonstrating your ability to contribute positively to a team are essential during interviews.
Yellow Tail Tech supports individuals transitioning into IT by providing in-demand skills and career assistance, helping them secure high-paying jobs in the industry.
These are foundational tech job application tips for anyone learning how to apply for IT jobs or how to apply for tech jobs competitively.
People aim to work in the IT industry for a lot of enticing reasons, from the pay and growth to the relative flexibility of the roles.
Building an impactful career in tech becomes the primary motivation for most to acquire additional in-demand skills to strengthen their credentials, such as earning significant IT certifications. For many career switchers researching how to apply for IT jobs in the USA, certifications often feel like the first major step.
However, while upskilling based on IT trends provides you with a solid foundation, Jubee Vilceus, Yellow Tail Tech’s co-founder, stresses that “certifications don’t automatically equate to high income”. In a short video about How Skills Impact Your Salary in IT, he shares that in 2020 alone, he had spoken to 500 to 600 people asking how much money they will have made by year’s end. The highest earners were not necessarily those who were certificate earners.
As such, Jubee emphasizes that a “high salary is only the byproduct of value”, which refers, of course, to the value you can bring to the company that pays your salary. This insight is especially important when thinking about tech job application tips beyond simply listing skills or credentials.
With all of that now clarified, we’ve gathered useful insights from our team and alumni that you can learn from regarding how you can best highlight your value when applying for your next, high-paying IT job. These tips also apply directly to those learning the ins and outs of how to apply for IT jobs.
Knowing your Strengths and Weaknesses
Rob Coble, our career success coach, quotes Socrates in establishing his point: “A life without self-examination is not worth living.”
It is important that you do a self-assessment of what your current strengths and weaknesses are, from your hard skills to your soft skills. List them out on paper and maybe even rank them.
Why? Because understanding your current career capabilities will help you better strategize about how to generally market yourself when pursuing career opportunities. This step is a core part of any worthwhile list of tech job application tips, especially for candidates unsure how to apply for IT jobs with limited experience.
Doing Research About the Company
Rob also mentions that you should allot a considerable amount of time researching the company you’re scouting and the specific position you’re applying for. You have to confidently “know the company and understand their mission statement”. When learning how to apply for IT jobs in the USA, this level of preparation helps you stand out in a competitive job market.
Aligning Your Skills and Experience to the Position
After first evaluating your strengths and weaknesses, followed by researching your target company, the next important step is matching how your current experience and skillsets align with the specific position you’re applying for.
An easy and tactical way to do this is by looking at the job post. How do your skills match the job description? How does your experience match the qualifications? More importantly, how can you make them seem like you’re not just a good match, but one of the best fits? This is a critical step when thinking through how to apply for IT jobs strategically rather than broadly.
Rob says that “taking this approach gives you the proper tools to sell yourself. Understanding yourself and the company also lets you know if it will be a compatible workplace.”
For Gregory, one of our Lnx For Jobs alumni, these first three steps should be primarily applied and highlighted on your resume. Your resume is the first thing that recruiters look for before you can even get the chance to land an interview.
If you need help drafting a good resume for an IT job, you may use this link as a reference. This is especially helpful for those early in their journey, learning how to apply for tech jobs for the first time. You may also wish to explore our IT learning hub or our blog.
“Then, when (you go) on the interview, make sure that you speak about these credentials and highlight what you know and how you will be a good fit for the company.”
A Recruiter’s Point of View
To help you prepare and practice highlighting your professional value more, we’ve also taken the point of view of our Human Resources and Procurement Officer, Aileen Rances.
Aileen shares that aside from identifying the skillset an applicant has that would best fit the role,
“…another concrete way to identify how they can be a valuable team member of the company is knowing the recognition and awards they received from their previous employers. Their being recognized for their contributions and efforts speaks volumes of how well they performed and did excellent in their role.”
“Additionally, during the interview, it is also good to ask applicants about scenarios they can highlight that they believe they championed through a STAR approach. You ask them what is the Situation, what are the Tasks, the actual Actions taken, and what are the Results. You will know if the applicants are honest with their answers if they can clearly give details to what you were asking them.”
More Tips from our Alumni and Team
“I think being coachable is one of the best values added on top of already acquired experience. This single trait can open opportunities for a candidate in totally unrelated fields, like someone trying to get into IT but coming from a totally different background and experience.”
Khurram Murtaza, Lnx For Jobs Alumnus
“(Aside from) highlighting relevant work experience, if any, conversance with current and upcoming solutions/technology should be a great advantage.”
Adeyemi Osinowo, Lnx For Jobs Alumnus
“Above everything discussed, show passion, confidence, and humility in equal parts.”
Rob Coble, Career Success Coach
For final thoughts, to quote Jubee in building impactful careers in tech, “you have to be able to not only level up in terms of skills but when you get to an interview, you have to be able to articulate how you’re going to improve, support, and enhance the team that you’re going to be involved with.” This mindset ties together many of the most effective tech job application tips discussed above.
At Yellow Tail Tech, we help people with little to no IT background get their first high-paying IT job realistically. We equip students with in-demand IT skillsets, help them with apprenticeships, and offer career assistance in landing the actual job.
This guidance is designed for anyone asking how to apply for IT jobs or how to apply for IT jobs in the USA with confidence. Want to see some of our other success stories? Check out our student transformation stories here.
Book a 10-minute intro call with our Enrollment Advisor, if you’re serious about smoothly breaking into the IT industry!
Frequently Asked Questions
- Why is highlighting value important in IT job applications?
Highlighting your value helps recruiters see you as more than just a list of skills. It shows how you can solve problems, support the team, and add measurable results — making you a stronger candidate for high-paying IT roles. This is one of the most important job application tips for IT professionals. - What are practical ways to show my value during an IT job interview?
You can use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to answer questions with concrete examples, discuss awards or recognitions you’ve received, and emphasize both your technical expertise and soft skills. - What qualities do recruiters look for beyond technical skills?
Recruiters often value traits like being coachable, showing passion and humility, adaptability to new technology, and strong communication skills. These make you more effective in team environments.
