Your GitHub is your CV: 6 steps to a profile that gets you hired
By Privatus Cosmas
2026-10-24
https://depriver.tech/blog/github-that-gets-you-hired/

Recruiters and senior developers scan your GitHub in about 30 seconds. Fix your profile, write a README, pin real projects, document them, commit like a pro and avoid the mistakes that get you rejected.

When you apply for a job, an internship or even FPT, someone will open your GitHub. A recruiter or senior developer usually gives it about **30 seconds**. In that time they want to see who you are, what you build, that it actually works, and that you're still active. Make those 30 seconds easy for them. *Kazi yako ionekane.*

## Step 1: Fix your profile

Use a real photo, your real name and a one-line bio ("Web developer · Laravel & React · building tools for small shops"), plus your location and one link: a portfolio or LinkedIn. `user8823471` with no photo and no bio looks like an abandoned account.

## Step 2: Write a profile README

Create a repository with **exactly the same name as your username** and add a `README.md`. GitHub shows it at the top of your profile. Keep it short: who you are, what you're building, your stack and how to reach you.

## Step 3: Pin your best six projects

Six real projects beat fifty half-finished folders. Pin things that solve real problems for real people, even small ones: a POS for a shop, a logbook app, a school results portal. Hide forks and tutorial clones you never changed. And please, not another to-do app. *Ubora kuliko wingi.*

## Step 4: A README for every project

Every pinned project needs a README that explains it in 30 seconds:

1. **What it does**, in one sentence a non-developer understands
2. **A screenshot or GIF** showing it working
3. **A live demo link**: deploy it, even on a free tier
4. **The tech stack**, and why you chose it
5. **How to run it**, with install steps that actually work
6. **What you learnt**: the hard part, and how you solved it

Test it: can a friend run your project from the README alone?

## Step 5: Commit like a pro

`update`, `final`, `final final` and `asdf` tell nobody anything. Write small commits with clear messages: *Add stock alert on low items*, *Fix VAT rounding on receipts*. Consistent beats perfect. And never use scripts that fake green squares. Seniors can tell. *Kidogo kidogo kila siku.*

## Step 6: Avoid what gets you rejected

- **Passwords and API keys in code.** Use a `.env` file and add it to `.gitignore`. If you've leaked a key, revoke it on the service and make a new one right away. Deleting the commit isn't enough.
- **Copied projects presented as your own.** Credit tutorials, then change and extend them.
- **Fifty empty repos.** Archive or delete them.
- **No README at all.** A project nobody understands is invisible.
- **Client or office code without permission.** Code from work or FPT isn't yours to publish.

**Drop your GitHub link in the comments**, and I'll check some of them. Niambie kwenye comments.

Slide captions
1. Your GitHub is your CV. Make it hire you. Kazi yako ionekane.
2. They look for 30 seconds: who you are, what you build, that it works, that you're active. Rahisisha kazi yao.
3. Step 01 · Look like a real developer: photo, real name, one-line bio, location, one link. Jitambulishe vizuri.
4. Step 02 · Say hello on your profile with a profile README. Fupi na wazi.
5. Step 03 · Pin projects, not tutorials. Ubora kuliko wingi.
6. Step 04 · A README for every project: explain it in 30 seconds. Eleza kazi yako.
7. Step 05 · Small commits, clear messages. Consistent beats perfect. Kidogo kidogo kila siku.
8. Step 06 · Don't get rejected for secrets in code, copied projects, empty repos or no README. Usalama kwanza.
9. Your turn: drop your GitHub in the comments.