Home Musical Instrument Maker Resume template
Musical Instrument Maker resume template
A clean starting structure with example content grounded in what musical instrument makers actually do day to day, not generic filler. Download and replace the bracketed placeholders with your own details.
Which resume format should you use?
Reverse chronological
You have a steady work history. This is the format almost every recruiter and ATS expects by default.
Functional
You're changing fields or have gaps in your employment. Leads with skills rather than a job-by-job timeline.
Combination
You're early career or have worked consistently but for only a few employers. Blends a skills summary with a shorter chronological history.
This template uses the reverse chronological format: the one most musical instrument makers should default to, since most Australian recruiters and ATS software expect it.
Professional summary
Musical Instrument Maker with a focus on hand-built and repaired guitars and orchestral strings, comfortable across wood, metal and synthetic components. Skilled in selecting and seasoning tonewoods, shaping components to fine tolerances, and setting up instruments for reliable playability. Works cleanly in a small workshop or production setting, balancing traditional craft methods with CNC and CAD where it improves repeatability.
Key skills
- Craft and handmade production
- Hand and power tool work
- Fabrication and finishing
- Engineering design and analysis
- Fusion 360
- AutoCAD
- CNC router operation
- Electronic tuner use
- Moisture meter use
- Attention to detail
- Problem solving
- Client relationships and advisory
- Written communication
Experience: example bullet points
- Seasoned and selected tonewoods for a run of acoustic guitars, using a moisture meter and controlled drying to keep stock stable before construction.
- Shaped and joined instrument components by hand and with power tools, holding neck angles and fret slots within the tolerances needed for accurate intonation.
- Assembled and finished woodwind instruments, testing each with an electronic tuner and play-checking key action before the instrument left the bench.
- Repaired and restored damaged instruments, including crack repairs, re-gluing seams and replacing worn tuning pegs, returning them to regular performance use.
- Worked with clients to understand repair needs, explaining options and turnaround times in plain language so they could make informed decisions.
Education
Certificate III in Musical Instrument Making and Repair or a related trade qualification, often combined with workshop experience or an apprenticeship after Year 12.
Keywords an ATS is likely to scan for
Applicant tracking systems match your resume against terms in the job ad before a person ever sees it. Only include the ones that actually apply to your experience, but if a term below matches something you've done, use the same wording the job ad uses.
- luthier
- musical instrument repair
- tonewood
- fretting
- intonation
- setup
- action
- woodwind repair
- brass repair
- CNC routing
- CAD
- workshop safety
- WHS
- hand tools
- power tools
- client consultation
- apprenticeship
- Certificate III in Musical Instrument Making and Repair
- acoustic guitar
- violin setup
Getting past ATS screening
- Match the specific skills, certifications and terms used in the job ad, not just your own wording for the same thing.
- Keep formatting simple: no tables, text boxes, columns, headers/footers or graphics. Parsers frequently drop content placed in these.
- Submit as .docx or PDF unless the job ad specifies otherwise.
- Use standard section headings (Experience, Education, Skills) rather than creative alternatives.
- List your core skills and technical competencies in their own section so a keyword scan can find them instantly.
This is a starting point, not a guarantee of interviews. Tailor every bullet point to your own real experience and the specific job ad.