Employers spend less than 10 seconds reviewing a CV at any one time, so make yours stand out for the right reasons.
You don’t have much time to impress with your CV – research shows that employers scan, rather than read.
Employers want to see your main skills and experience pop out to them that are relevant for the position that they are recruiting for, they don’t need to see complicated graphs and fancy bar charts, model-like photo’s or how many children or siblings you have.
You should have a good basic CV which you then rearrange or rewrite to TARGET your CV to meet the needs of each job!
Remember many of your skills are transferrable and always research the company. Read the Advert closely. Identify the important knowledge, skills and abilities required. List the essential skills/criteria the job requires. Use the employer’s website to identify the company’s purpose, mission, and values.
Don’t leave gaps in your employment history as this can make employer suspicious, instead be honest lists your gaps and try to add a positive spin. If you were retraining to enable career progression, state this? Did you complete voluntary work?
Always check your CV for errors, potential employers will look out for mistakes. If there is a high volume of applications errors on a CV could see you eliminated right away.
Always be truthful when writing you CV, potential employers will check references and will clarify experiences, skills and qualifications.
Include figures were possible, don’t just say you improved sales figures include the specifics.
Ensure that you are listing your experience in Chronological order with the most recent first.
Bullet point your duties and skills, keep it succinct but detailed, they don’t want to read sentences upon sentences.
Key areas to ensure your CV stands out:
- Qualifications: List both academic and non-academic qualifications in chronological order, giving grades. Do not include irrelevant information
- Employment History: Beginning with your most recent job, include your responsibilities, duration of employment and reasons for leaving. Do not omit any period of employment for whatever reason, as this may prove awkward at interview.
- Your skills: Research suggests that employers now place more importance on a candidate’s skill set and what has been acquired through on the job experience.
- Check: Before submitting your CV/ Resume, make sure you check it thoroughly, not just for spelling mistakes, but also to make sure that it is a clear representation of you, that it is relevant and that it will encourage the employer to contact you to find out more. Ask a friend to check it, too. Someone who works in the industry for which you are applying would be particularly beneficial.
CV Template – A standard CV should contain the following:
FIRST NAME & SURNAME
ADDRESS/LOCATION
TELEPHONE NUMBER
E-MAIL ADDRESS
KEY SKILLS
- Bullet point key skills acquired – keep it to a maximum of 10 and make it relevant to the job your applying for based on your experience
CAREER HISTORY
(Chronological Order – Begin With Most Recent)
Company Name
Date From – Date To
Job Title / Position Held
- List duties and responsibilities – detailed and succinct
- Include any projects you have been involved with.
PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
- Bullet point any professional qualifications gained in chronological order
EDUCATION
University/College/School Name and Town
- Bullet point Qualifications/Subjects and Grades
LANGUAGES
- Bullet point any additional languages spoken and the level of fluency
SYSTEMS EXPERIENCE
- List Systems and Software Used e.g.
- Microsoft Word & Excel
- Sage
- SAP