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CV Advice

Be aware that your CV is a sales tool, the equivalent of a brochure...it has to sell you!

The sole purpose of your CV is to gain an interview either with a potential employer or a recruitment consultancy and it must create a positive impression about you in the mind of the interviewer before you meet.

Some advertisements have significant response levels - in some cases as many as 200-300 applications - so you should understand that the initial review of your CV will not last any longer than 2-3 minutes. It is vital that it makes a positive impression. It needs to be easy to read, in a professional, punctual and factual style, highlighting key achievements. The covering letter should be short (no more than one page) and tailored to the description of the position and the candidate specification.

CV Presentation - The Do's and Don'ts!!

Do:

  • Use plain white paper and black, standard font - Times New Roman or Arial
  • Keep the length to 2-3 pages long
  • A covering letter can support your CV, however, this should be concise and if you are sending your details to a recruitment consultancy then this is generally not required.
  • Keep lots of white space around the edges of the text making it clear and readable, the more that it stands out, the more readable it is.
  • The text blocks themselves should be no more than 5-6 lines long
  • Use a consistent structure and layout
  • Use bullet points where possible
  • Make sure all events are dated especially qualifications and employment (this should include months and years)
  • Make sure there are no gaps in the dates - if there are, give an explanation e.g. World Travel, Sabbatical

Don't:

  • Make your CV double-sided
  • Use gimmicks or bind your CV
  • Enclose photographs
  • List irrelevant personal details, such as names or ages of children
  • Enclose photocopies of references or school certificates
  • Make sweeping statements about how wonderful you are - good with people etc
  • Use business anagrams or company specific jargon
  • Use colour text, diagrams, pictures or graphics

CV Content

The best way to present your CV is in 4 sections: Personal Details, Qualifications / Education, Employment History and Skills / Interests. They should be laid out as follows:

Personal Details

  • Full name.
  • Full address.
  • Telephone numbers (day/evening/mobile - as appropriate).
  • E-mail address.
  • If relevant, state whether you are eligible to work (Visa type) or need a work permit.

Qualifications / Education

If you are educated to degree level, or above, it is only really necessary to briefly list earlier academic qualifications with appropriate grades.

A Degree or Masters should have the name of the establishment from which it was gained and the level/grade obtained. You can still include the name of establishments at which earlier qualifications were gained.

This section should only include professional qualifications. Some employers often look for any work related training - especially if it has led to a particular qualification, however, it is advisable to include this in the Skills & Interests part of the CV so as to keep the front page as clear and concise as possible.

Employment History

It is standard practice to present your employment history in reverse chronological order and this section should include dates, responsibilities and achievements.

Your future employer is looking to see what you have done most recently and hence evidence that you can add value to them, their team and the organization as a whole.

  • Allow the most room on your CV for your most recent / current job.
  • It is considered commercial to insert a brief description of the company and the area of its business that you are working for. This should be no more than a couple of lines.
  • All dates should include the month and the year of joining and leaving any employer. If you are currently employed then your current position should be 'to date' or 'to present'.
  • State your Job title.
  • Do not leave out any period of employment or unemployment for whatever reason. It is important to make sure that all periods of time are covered as any 'gaps' in your CV will promote intrigue and are not looked upon positively.
  • Do not give reasons for leaving any of the jobs on your CV - it is far better to explain your moves in person at interview.
  • Do not overstate your experience or accomplishments - you will be found out at interview or with following referencing.
  • Salary information should not be mentioned on the CV and if you do want to mention this then it is advisable to do so in an initial email.
  • Do not to use technical/professional or company specific jargon.

Interests / Skills

When mentioning interests then you must be honest and genuine. If people do ask you about them at interview then you must be able to elaborate on them in detail. If you have any interests that might, in any way, be controversial then leave them off the CV.

  • In any event this section should be no longer than 1-2 lines.
  • Always include any language capability and state your proficiency.
  • Include any computer skills and proficiencies
  • Include any extra curricular studies or courses that you have attained

Checking your CV

You should now have proofread and spell checked your CV. If you can ask a friend to read it through for you then that is advisable. Make sure that they give you honest feedback on whether your CV is concise, accurate and correctly describes your level of responsibility and achievements. Don't exaggerate, but also don't undersell yourself.

Finally...does this CV sell you in the best way that you think possible to potential employers!?!