CV Format for Lagos Tech Jobs: A Remote-First Template

If you are applying to fintechs, startups or product teams, the right CV format for Lagos tech jobs looks very different from the one many of us were taught. No date of birth, no state of origin, no O'Level grades, no list of three referees. Instead, a short, skills-first document that a hiring manager in Lagos, London or Toronto can scan quickly.

This guide gives you a section-by-section structure, a copyable template, bullet examples, and a clear note on when the older format still makes sense.

Why the traditional Nigerian CV doesn't fit tech roles

The classic Nigerian CV grew up around banks, oil and gas, and government. Those employers often asked for personal data, school certificates and referees, so CVs included them by default.

Tech hiring in Lagos tends to work differently. Many teams are remote or hybrid, hire across borders, and use applicant tracking systems (ATS) to store and search applications. Recruiters reviewing these roles usually want to know three things fast:

• What can you build, fix or run?
• What tools and languages do you actually use?
• What changed because of your work?

Every line spent on your marital status or secondary school is a line not spent answering those questions. For a wider comparison across employer types, see Nigerian CV format by employer.

The CV format for Lagos tech jobs, section by section

Aim for one page if you have under five years' experience, two pages if you have more. Use a single column, standard fonts, and plain section headings so the text parses cleanly when uploaded.

1. Header

Keep it to one or two lines:

• Full name
• Job title you are targeting (e.g. Backend Engineer)
• City and country, plus work preference (e.g. Lagos, Nigeria · Open to remote)
• Phone with country code (+234...)
• Professional email
• LinkedIn, GitHub, portfolio or Behance link

Leave out date of birth, gender, marital status, religion, state of origin, LGA, home address and photo. None of these show your ability to do the job, and international employers often prefer not to receive them.

2. Summary (2-3 lines)

State your role, years of experience, core stack or domain, and the kind of problem you are good at. Skip "hardworking, result-oriented team player".

Backend engineer with 4 years' experience building payment APIs in Node.js and Go. Focused on reliability, clean API design and reducing failed transactions. Comfortable working async across time zones.

3. Skills

Group skills so they are easy to scan. Only list tools you could discuss confidently in an interview.

• Languages: JavaScript, TypeScript, Go, SQL
• Frameworks: Node.js (Express, NestJS), React
• Data and infra: PostgreSQL, Redis, Docker, AWS (EC2, S3, Lambda)
• Practices: REST API design, CI/CD, automated testing, code review

For product, design or data roles, swap in the relevant tools (Figma, Jira, Mixpanel, Python, dbt, Looker and so on).

4. Experience

Reverse chronological order. For each role: job title, company, location (or Remote), dates (month and year), then 3-6 bullets. Add one line describing the company if it is not well known, e.g. Series A fintech serving SMEs in Nigeria and Ghana.

5. Projects

Essential if you are early-career, self-taught or switching into tech. Include the project name, a one-line description, the stack, your role, and a link.

6. Education and certifications

One line per qualification: degree, institution, year. Add class of degree if it helps you. Relevant certifications (e.g. a cloud certification you have actually passed) go here or in their own short section.

NYSC is optional. Some Lagos employers still ask about it, so a single line such as NYSC: Completed 2022 is enough if you want to show it.

What to remove (and what to do instead)

Old block	Why it goes	What to do instead
Personal data (DOB, gender, marital status, religion, state of origin)	Not job-relevant; some international employers avoid collecting it	Name, city, contact, links only
Career objective	Focuses on what you want, not what you offer	2-3 line summary
O'Level / WAEC results	Rarely relevant once you have a degree or work history	Highest qualification only
Primary and secondary school	Takes space without adding evidence	Remove
Hobbies (reading, travelling)	Generic	Remove, or list relevant activity (open source, tech community volunteering)
Three named referees	Uses space; shares others' details early	Provide when asked
Long duty lists	Says what you were meant to do, not what you did	Achievement bullets

On referees specifically, you don't even need a "References available on request" line in most tech applications; employers assume it. If you want the full reasoning, read references on a CV in Nigeria.

Copyable template

ADA OKAFOR
Product Designer · Lagos, Nigeria · Open to remote
+234 800 000 0000 · ada.okafor@email.com · linkedin.com/in/adaokafor · adaokafor.design

SUMMARY
Product designer with 3 years' experience designing mobile banking and
savings apps. Strong in user research, interaction design and design systems.

SKILLS
Design: Figma, FigJam, prototyping, design systems
Research: usability testing, user interviews, survey design
Collaboration: Jira, Notion, working with engineers in sprints

EXPERIENCE
Product Designer | [Company], Lagos (Hybrid) | Mar 2023 - Present
- Redesigned onboarding flow after 12 usability sessions; reduced steps from 9 to 5
- Built a shared component library in Figma used by 3 product squads
- Ran fortnightly design reviews with engineering to cut handoff rework

UI/UX Designer | [Company], Remote | Jan 2022 - Feb 2023
- ...

PROJECTS
Savings Goal Tracker | Case study: adaokafor.design/savings
- Personal project: research, wireframes and prototype tested with 8 users

EDUCATION
BSc Computer Science, University of Lagos, 2021

CERTIFICATIONS
[Only courses you have completed]

The numbers above are placeholders. Use your real figures, or describe the outcome qualitatively if you don't have reliable data.

Writing bullets that show impact

A simple pattern: action + what you worked on + result or scope.

Weak: Responsible for backend development.

Better: Built and maintained 14 REST endpoints for merchant payouts in Node.js and PostgreSQL.

Stronger (if true): Added retry logic and idempotency keys to payout API, reducing duplicate payout tickets raised by support.

If you can't measure the result, show scope instead: number of users, services, teammates, markets or releases. Never invent a percentage to make a bullet look sharper. Interviewers in tech often ask how you got a number, and a made-up figure is hard to defend. Our guide on how to tailor a CV without lying covers where the line sits.

Matching the job ad

Read the ad and note the tools, responsibilities and outcomes it mentions. Where they genuinely match your experience, use the same wording (e.g. "CI/CD" rather than only "deployment pipelines"). An ATS mainly stores, sorts and searches applications; recruiters may filter by keywords or knockout questions, so clear, accurate terms help a human find you. It does not mean stuffing in skills you lack.

If you want a second opinion, the ATS CV checker compares your CV with a job ad and highlights missing terms. Its score is QuickApplyPilot's own estimate of match, not the score any employer's system would give you.

When the traditional format still makes sense

The modern format suits startups, fintechs, global remote companies and most product teams. Adjust when:

• The ad asks for specific details. Some Nigerian employers, including certain banks, government agencies and graduate trainee schemes, request O'Level results, NYSC status or referees. Follow the instructions in the ad or portal.
• An application form collects it separately. Many portals ask for date of birth or referees in form fields. Fill those in; keep your CV clean.
• You're applying to a traditional company's IT department. Read the ad's tone. If it is formal and lists certificates, a slightly fuller education section may be wise.

How this differs by country

If you apply beyond Lagos, the same core format travels well, with small tweaks:

• Nigeria: Modern format for tech; traditional details only when the employer asks.
• UK: Two pages is the norm for experienced candidates; no photo or date of birth. Referees are usually requested later.
• US: Usually called a resume; one page is common for early-career applicants. Photos and personal details are generally left off. Use US spelling.
• Canada: Resume terminology, no photo or personal details, and emphasis on measurable results. Volunteering and Canadian-context experience can carry weight.
• Australia: CVs can run slightly longer. Referees are sometimes listed, but "available on request" is also common.

For jobs advertised as remote, check the location tag (e.g. "US only" or "EMEA") before applying, and confirm your time-zone availability in your header or summary.

Final checklist

• Header has name, target title, city, contact and links, and no personal data
• Summary is 2-3 specific lines
• Skills grouped and all genuinely yours
• Each role has achievement bullets, not duty lists
• Projects section with live links (if early-career or switching)
• Education is one line per qualification; no O'Level or secondary school unless requested
• No referee block
• Single column, standard headings, saved as PDF or DOCX as the ad requests
• Wording matches the job ad where it honestly reflects your experience
• Every number can be explained in an interview

A clean, honest CV won't guarantee an interview, but it gives the person reading it the best possible chance to see what you can do.

Further reading: CV Keywords for Remote Customer Service: Zendesk, CSAT, SLAs