How to write the perfect CV
Whether a potential employer calls you into an interview or not can all depend on the quality and presentation of your CV. Please never lose sight of the fact that there will always be other applicants and your C.V. is a document that influences the decision maker to look on your Candidacy in a favourable light. In today's competitive marketplace the need to market and sell yourself effectively is increasingly important.
In a normal selection process you have two crucial opportunities to create the right impression to your prospective employers, namely your CV and the interview, and more often than not, you will not get to the interview stage unless your C.V. has positioned your qualities appropriately.
Why do you need a CV?
Your CV is the first thing on which an employer can judge you. It is your own personal advertisement. It gives you less than two minutes to create the right impression on a potential employer and secure you an interview.
· Where do you start?
Start by assembling the facts and listing the information you need to include in your CV. Don't expect to write the perfect CV at the first attempt. Once you have decided what to include, you can then concentrate on the layout.
· What details should your CV include?
Name, date of birth, nationality, contact email and postal addresses, telephone numbers for home, mobile and office. Our advice is to keep this as concise as possible.
Education: Details of secondary school and higher education including: dates, which school, number of O levels/GCSEs, A Level subjects and grades, degree course, university/college, degree classification and similar details for any further and higher educational courses. This is often best left to the final page of your C.V. unless the role is very academically focussed.
Professional qualifications are well worth headlining.
· Experience should be presented in reverse chronological order, i.e. your current, or most recent job first. If the first page does not excite the reader, they are unlikely to read on, and what will excite them normally because of its relevance is your last role, and the achievements within your time in this role. Short paragraphs and bullet points are easy on the eye and make the information quick to access.
Give brief details of the companies you have worked for i.e. type of business and turnover. It is not necessary to state reasons for leaving each position.
Specify the dates at each company (year and month), include details of the job content and the scope of the position.
Think of your job in terms of tasks performed, the level of responsibility you had and most importantly your achievements within this role. You must make sure the detail is accurate and then you must make it quantitative wherever possible, and tailored to the language that the reader will understand.
A potential employer wants to know what you can already do and how those skills and experience can be used in the challenges they may have for you. The best way they can understand this is for you to document in your C.V. how well you have done this in your previous roles.
Detail all systems you have used previously and currently, including spreadsheets, word processing, accounting and graphics packages.
No unexplained gaps - if you have travelled or been out of work, say so. Someone's guess may not be positive! Be concise.
Find the balance between writing too much or too little. Keeping information factual will help. We recommend you should limit your C.V. to 2 pages.
Your CV must be word processed unless a handwritten application is specifically requested.
Definitely do not incur the additional costs of plastic bindings and fancy folders; these do nothing to enhance your application and in many cases do the reverse. Simple and straightforward presentation on quality paper is your best bet.
It may take several drafts to finally come up with a format that you are happy with. Ask a friend or colleague to review your final draft and ask the question:
“Would I call this person to interview, ahead of the other applicants?”
If they have taken this advice the answer will be ….”yes, I would love to meet them”. Mission accomplished, please progress to the next stage!