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Tile Setter Resume Example

Tile work fails at the substrate and the waterproofing, so that is what a contractor reads for. Show the formats you have set, the membranes you have installed, and whether you can lay out a room so the cuts land where nobody looks.

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Elena Vasquez-Moore
Tile Setter
Austin, TX elena.vasquez.moore@example.com +1 555 018 2299 linkedin.com/in/elena-vasquez-moore

Summary

Tile installer with 10 years across custom residential and hospitality work. Sets large-format porcelain to 48 in, installs bonded waterproofing membranes to manufacturer detail and has had no warranty claim in 6 years.

Experience

Lead Tile SetterBarton Creek Stone & Tile Jun 2019 – Present
  • Set large-format porcelain and natural stone across 60+ bathrooms and 9 hotel amenity spaces
  • Install sheet and liquid-applied waterproofing with flood testing before setting, zero leak callbacks since 2020
  • Produce dry-lay layouts that cut waste to roughly 6% on patterned and mosaic installs
Tile InstallerColorado River Surfaces Sep 2015 – May 2019
  • Installed ceramic, porcelain and glass tile on residential floors, showers and backsplashes
  • Prepared substrates including self-levelling underlayment, backer board and crack-isolation membrane

Skills

Large-Format PorcelainWaterproofing MembranesNatural Stone SettingSubstrate PreparationSelf-Levelling UnderlaymentWet Saw & Rail CuttingLayout & Dry LayGrout & Movement JointsMosaic & Pattern WorkCrack Isolation

Education

Tile Finishing Trade CourseworkAustin Community College 2014 – 2015

Certifications

  • CTEF Certified Tile Installer (CTI)
  • ACT Membranes & Shower Receptors
  • OSHA 10-Hour Construction
  • Respirable Crystalline Silica Awareness (OSHA 1926.1153)
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Here is how to write your own, and what actually gets you the call in this trade.

What a foreman looks at first

The first pass answers two practical questions: can you legally do this work, and are you free to start. A foreman with a job beginning next week reads for the licence, the current tickets and the availability, and everything else on the page waits behind those.

Licences, tickets and safety training

Tile setting is generally unlicensed at the individual level, with contractor licensing varying by state. The recognised credential is the Ceramic Tile Education Foundation Certified Tile Installer, with the Advanced Certifications for Tile Installers covering membranes, shower receptors and large-format work. OSHA 10-Hour Construction and silica awareness for wet and dry cutting are commonly required on commercial sites.

How you actually get hired for this

Tile employers read for failures that have not happened yet, which means waterproofing and substrate. A contractor asks what membranes you install, whether you flood test a shower before setting, and how you handle movement joints. Large-format porcelain and natural stone are asked about separately because they need different handling and flatter substrates. Portfolios matter here more than in most trades, so bring photographs of layout and cuts.

What you built, at what scale, safely

Describe the work in the units the trade uses: square footage, linear feet, tonnage, service calls per day, machines run, crew size. Add safety record and callback rate if you have them, because on a job site those are worth as much as speed. If you have run a crew or trained apprentices, say so plainly — that is the difference between a hand and a lead.

Mistakes that cost tile setter candidates interviews

  • Not naming waterproofing systems, which is the single biggest source of tile failure
  • Omitting tile size and material, so large-format capability is invisible
  • Claiming volume without any mention of layout or waste, which foremen do not believe

The top of the page: licence, tickets and what you can run

A foreman reading this has a job starting Monday. Put your licence class, your certifications with their dates, and the equipment you can operate at the very top — above the work history — because that is the information that decides whether you get the call. Save the paragraph-style summary for one or two lines at most.

Moving up in this trade

Helper to setter to lead setter, then foreman or a small setting business. Specialising in stone, mosaic or waterproofing detail work opens up high-end residential and hospitality contracts.

Before you send it

Check every certification date is current and every licence number is right, since these are verified and an expired ticket ends an application. Keep the file simple: one column, no graphics, no tables. Our free ATS checker will confirm it parses, which matters because large contractors and staffing agencies screen automatically.

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FAQ

Tile Setter Resume Questions

What should a tile setter resume include?

Licence class, current tickets with their dates, and the equipment you can operate — all of it above the work history — then jobs described in the units the trade uses, your safety record, and any crew or apprentice responsibility. One page, one column, no graphics.

What certifications do I need on a tile setter resume?

Which tickets are required depends on the trade, the jurisdiction and the site, and the posting sets it out. Whatever you hold matters more than anything else on the page, so list every one with its issue and expiry date — these are verified, and an expired certification ends an application regardless of the work history behind it.

How is hiring for tile setter roles different?

Hiring in the trades is fast and often informal — a call, a short conversation, sometimes a day on site to see how you work. Referral and reputation count for more than in most fields, so how you leave one job affects the next one.

What do hiring managers look at first on a tile setter resume?

Your licence class, your current tickets, and when you can start. A foreman with a job beginning next week reads for whether you are legally able to do the work and free to do it, and the rest of the page waits behind those two answers.

Where does a tile setter career usually go next?

The usual route runs from apprentice to journey level to lead hand or foreman, and from there into supervision, estimating or running your own work. Crew leadership and apprentice training are the lines that show you are ready for that step.

How long should this resume be?

One page. Employers in this field read quickly and often on a phone, and a second page rarely gets opened. Cut old short-term roles before you cut certifications or equipment experience.

Can I use this example as a template?

Use the structure and the way each achievement is phrased, but write your own content. The names and employers here are fictional, and a resume describing work you did not do will not survive an interview.

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