How To Write A Good CV
Author: Corinne Hutchinson at TipTopJob in
CV Writing
A well-presented CV is vital in your search for a new job. It will not get you
the job, but a good CV makes the difference between getting an interview and
your application being thrown in the bin. With your CV being one of many,
recruiters will only read it for a short space of time, so it is extremely
important that it is structured clearly, with your best selling points presented
in a logical manner and the most relevant information readily identifiable.
Everybody writes and presents their CV as they like, there is no right or wrong
way. However, with these words of advice we will help you produce a clear and
concise CV that will increase your chances of being invited for an interview.
Content
To begin, prepare a list of your key competencies and skills that your employer
will be looking for. Be analytical about yourself and identify your main selling
points that differentiate yourself from competitors. The most common content to
be included includes:
Personal Details:
Name, address, phone number and email.
Education and Qualifications:
The full title of your degree and university and any significant exam results,
Secondary School and A/AS level subjects and grades. Concentrate on GCSE and
beyond.
Work Experience:
List the companies that you have worked for, the dates that you worked at them
and a brief description of your role. It is important that they are relevant and
detailed in short, bullet-pointed statements. Make clear what your individual
contribution was using positive language and include your responsibilities and
achievements. Back everything up with quantifiable facts, such as size of
budgets and results achieved, to make your skills tangible. Put your most recent
work experience first.
Achievements:
Think carefully about which examples you include in this section, as employers
may deduce a lot from your choice about your motivations and what you regard as
important. Employers are only interested in your most recent achievements.
Extra-Curricular Activities:
This section on hobbies and interests should be kept short and include
information, such as, membership of and positions of responsibility in sports
teams, drama societies etc. Any information should have a purpose, showing
skills relevant to the role you are applying for and saying something of
interest about yourself.
General Skills:
Driving licence details, courses attended, foreign languages and IT (include
level of proficiency).
References:
Unless requested, references need not be given at the initial application stage
and a simple "references available on request" should suffice. Employers will
ask for references if and when they need them.
Good CV's are logical, clear, concise and simple with sentences including short,
to the point key words and statements. It is best to leave out words, such as,
'and' and 'I' as much as you can and make each sentence as meaningful as
possible. An effective CV needs to focus the readers' attention on the criteria
that they are looking for, highlighting important information that can be
accessed and interpreted easily. Try to match yourself with the criteria they
are looking for.
You may also be asked to justify and elaborate certain statements that you have
made in your CV if you are invited to an interview, so you should be honest and
accurate all the way through. Be careful not to over-exaggerate, however, always
remain positive! Accurate spelling, punctuation and grammar are vital, as well
as the overall layout and format of the CV. You can check out some
templates to
follow in our Career Centre.
Structure & Presentation
First impressions are very important! Each section needs to be headed clearly so
that it is well presented, orderly and pleasing to look at, to avoid any
discouragement to read on. Your skills, experience and achievements must flow in
a logical manner detailing all key points. Any dates should be included where
applicable and placed in reverse chronological order within each section.
Two pages is the standard length of a good CV, however, although you want to
avoid adding irrelevant material that will bore the reader you do not want to
miss out including valuable information or cramping all your data into a shorter
CV. So, try to include at the beginning the most important skills and abilities
where the reader will look first and include your name and page numbers in the
header or footer of each page to avoid any confusion.
Once a layout and structure is decided on, you should stick to it using
consistent headings and sub-headings as well as a standard font size and type.
In general, Times New Roman or Arial and size 9/10 is the norm but the use of
bold or different size fonts can highlight important information and point the
reader to the relevant areas! All text should be fully justified so the
paragraphs look neat and tidy and there should be a balance between text and
space. Bullet points are useful to break up text, black lines can be used to
emphasise headings and sometimes text can be split into two columns to look more
professional, for example, in personal details.
But remember, there is no one standard layout or format for CV's and those of
professionals will be very different to those of graduates. Individual tastes of
both the recruiter and applicant mean no absolute design will be right and you
must also remember that CV's for different job applications must vary to be
tailored to their requirements. The design of your CV does not however get you
an interview no matter how attractive it is; you must bear in mind that the
content you put in and your selling points are paramount.
Finally
A good idea is to print off your final copy and look at it, getting a second
opinion on its content and presentation. To see what looks best you should
experiment with different formats as it may take several different drafts to get
to the final selected one. Check that your personal details are all correct,
your spelling, punctuation and grammar are accurate, the presentation is
pleasing to the eye, you have identified your main selling points and you have
avoided any repetitions.
Once you have updated your CV,
upload it
here into your account. To find out why it is important to update your CV on
TipTopJob,
read this article here.
About the Author: Corinne Hutchinson works at TipTopJob.com and is a professional marketer and career advisor working in the online recruitment industry. She has written articles and advised jobseekers on searching and applying for jobs since 2005.
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