From aspiring students to tech titans: The early resumes of Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, before they changed the World

The early resumes of tech titans Steve Jobs and Bill Gates have recently re-emerged on social media, offering a unique window into the beginnings of two individuals who went on to to revolutionize the technology industry. These documents, crafted when the future innovators were just 18 years old, shed light on their early interests and skills before they became household names.

Steve Jobs' 1973 resume reveals his budding fascination with electronics and technology, long before he co-founded Apple. At the time, Jobs was a student at Reed College in Oregon and highlighted his proficiency in areas such as computers, calculators, and design. Notably, when asked about phone access, Jobs wrote "None," and while he confirmed having a driver’s license, he described his transportation prospects as "possible, but not probable."

On the other hand, Bill Gates' 1971 resume reflects his early expertise in programming languages, including FORTRAN, COBOL, and BASIC, along with his familiarity with computers like the PDP-10, PDP-8, and CDC-6400. Gates, who listed his salary at the time as $3,500, also mentioned his collaboration with Paul G. Allen, his childhood friend who would later co-found Microsoft with him. The resume notes their joint project designing a "system for traffic engineers to study traffic flow."

These vintage resumes were shared on X (formerly Twitter) by Jon Erlichman, a TV host at BNN Bloomberg and Bloomberg Markets, with the caption, "Steve Jobs and Bill Gates’ resumes at age 18."

The post quickly gained traction, sparking discussions among users who shared their thoughts and reactions. One commenter noted, "This is history. It’s fantastic!" while another found the documents "fascinating." Observing the differences between the two resumes, a user remarked, "That’s funny… Jobs’ resume is hand-written and sloppy, and Gates’ resume is all organized and type-written." Another user summed up the significance of the documents by calling them "probably the 2 most impactful resumes of this generation."

Steve Jobs would go on to co-found Apple in his parents’ garage in 1976, later driving its resurgence with iconic products like the iMac, iPod, iPhone, and iPad before his death on October 5, 2011. Bill Gates co-founded Microsoft with Paul Allen in 1975, leading it to become the world’s largest software company. Gates is also widely recognized for his philanthropic endeavors.