CV Advice

How to write a successful CV

Whether a potential employer asks to see your curriculum vitae or resume they are looking for one thing - a document that proves why you are the ideal candidate to invest their time and money in. Essentially it's a sales brochure, highlighting the interesting unique selling points that make you stand out from all the other applicants.

Your CV is your first chance to grab a prospective employer's attention, providing details that highlight your suitability for the role. Recruiters take just a few seconds to decide whether or not to keep a CV, so you need to make it stand out from the rest. Below are some tips to help:

• Keep it concise - recruiters are often faced with copious amounts of CVs so if yours is too lengthy it's likely to be rejected, so keep it precise.
• Readjust your CV for each individual role you apply for. Research the company and use the job advert to determine what the company want in an employee. Link your skills and experience to the requirements of the role
• Don't leave gaps in your history which allow the recruiter to guess what you were doing. Instead of allowing them to make their own assumptions, give them the details. Even in time out of employment you can develop soft skills such as communication, teamwork or project management. You should update your CV regularly, regardless of whether you are actively jobseeking, to avoid having to recollect distant points in your career
• Ensure you spell check your CV - a CV with basic spelling and grammatical mistakes does not impress the recruiter and could make them discard your CV on that basis. You should ask someone you know to read through your CV and give you their opinion
• Tell the truth - it's one thing to accentuate the positives on your CV but telling a blatant lie is a bad idea. You are highly likely to be caught out and your application declined. Many companies check the facts, such as qualifications
• The purpose of your CV is not to get you the job but to get you an interview. Always remember you are not writing your CV for yourself, you are writing it for your reader. Keep it short, to the point and interesting

 

Creating the CV

On average a recruiter will spend just 8 seconds processing a CV, so it's important to get it right. If you follow a basic structure, you can present the information in a clear, concise and persuasive way. There is no universally accepted format but your CV should cover the following sections:

Personal details - include your name, address, phone numbers and email address so any interested employers can contact you easily. You might also wish to include details about your nationality, age and driving licence status, but these are not essential

Personal statement - one paragraph that immediately captures the attention of your reader and entices them to find out more about you. Be careful not to cram too much in, instead take your main skills and relate it to the job you are applying for to show employers why you meet their needs

Work experience - list the most recent experience first, continuing in reverse chronological order. Describe your work experience in short sentences using straighforward, positive language and highlight your key achievements using bulletpoints wherever possible. This will allow the person scanning your CV to quickly match up your experience with their job description

Education - list brief details of your academic and professional qualifications along with grades attained. Applicants looking for their first job since leaving education should include this information above their work experience

Skills - include specific skills such as IT packages or languages and state whether you are at a basic, intermediate or advanced level. Skills such as communication and project management are harder to substantiate and should be backed up with examples. Provide enough information to entice your potential employer to call you in so you can explain face-to-face the exact details of the tasks you have undertaken and the skills you have acquired

References - it is not necessary to note the details of your referees on your CV but you should state that details of referees are available on request. If this is your first job, it is a good idea to nominate tutors or mentors. Don't forget to ask your referees first for their permission to cite them. You will obviously need to choose referees that you are confident will give positive remarks and you should also make sure they would be easily contactable by potential employers

Hobbies - including these is optional, but keep them short if you do. If your skills haven't already persuaded the recruiters to offer you an interview, the fact you enjoy a round of golf won't change their mind. The idea is to give the interviewer a more rounded picture and perhaps something more personal to discuss with you

 

How to explain gaps in your CV - there are many reasons why your CV may have gaps and recruiters dont look down on candidates because of these. They may be suspisious however when these gaps are not clarified, so make sure they are explained in a positive manner

• Extended holidays - communication and organisational skills are always important, so say how your break helped you develop these areas. Any languages you picked up can be a major bonus
• Family issues - there's no need to go into detail on personal reasons for taking time away from work. A three or four word description is enough
• Nothing in the market - it happens so dont hide it. Try suggesting how you used your time constructively 

Presentation - keep your CV clean and tidy with no frills or fancy attachments. All the information should be clearly presented so anyone reading your CV knows where to find the information they are looking for. If you are printing and posting your CV, stick to good quality white paper

 

Things to watch out for - there are plenty of simple mistakes that are often overlooked that will turn your readers off before they have gone much further than your name and address

• Resist the urge to jazz up your CV with images and colour
• Steer clear of long paragraphs
• Careful use of a bold type can be effective, but don't overdo it
• Underlining should be reserved for website links only
• Use typefaces like 'Times New Roman' or 'Arial' as they are easier to read
• Avoid using fonts smaller than 11pt, so that employers wont have to strain their eyes to read it
• Don't use text speak or abbreviations unless they are universally known
• Check for spelling or typographical errors as employers will use these to weed out weaker candidates