1. Your guide to:
Writing a tip top CV
Your CV should be a living, breathing, growing document. By that, we don’t mean it
should leave the confines of your desktop, spring into life, and make your morning
cuppa (that would be weird - good, but weird). It should grow and evolve as you do.
And even if you don’t have any new roles or skills to add to it, you’ll more than likely
need to adapt it to specific jobs, sectors and companies.
Employers don’t have time to read between the lines, so the more you do to show how
great you are for the job you’re trying to bag, the more chance you’ll have of getting it.
Remember, the reader will be asking themselves two very basic questions:
1. Can you do the job? 2. Will you suit their company?
Make sure the answer to both of these questions is ‘yes’ by:
• Moulding your CV to match what they’re looking for
• Making it clear where your skills meet their needs
• Pointing out the value you could bring to their organisation
In this guide, we’ll share our tried and tested tips for writing the perfect CV and effectively
showcasing your skills and suitability to the professional world.
Mind your language Proofread
• Keep copy short and sweet • Use the past tense to describe your • We can’t stress enough the
career (‘Led a team of…’) but the importance of checking your CV for
• Avoid lengthy sentences and use
present tense for your transferable spelling and grammar errors, as a
bullet-points
skills and competencies (‘Offers mistake could cost you the job
• Don’t refer to yourself as ‘I’ or by experience in…’)
• A fresh pair of eyes can be super
name
sharp when it comes to spotting the
• Make sentences more direct with errors you may have missed, so ask
such phrases as ‘Major achievements someone to double-check it for you
include’
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2. Layout
• Keep it clean and uncluttered, with • For a guide on font size, use 10- • Never reduce font size to fit more in.
plenty of white space and wide 12 point for your body text, and a If you need another page, use one -
margins maximum of 16 point for headings or cut it down
• Use the same font throughout, • Refrain from using capitals for • Print on one side of the paper only
and make sure it’s a common one entire words and always embolden
• Number the pages if there are two or
such as Times New Roman, Arial or headings
more
Courier
Structure
Personal information • Provide a job title, start and finish awarding body and year) but not
• Include your name, address, dates, company name, and a brief ‘bought’ memberships
telephone number and e-mail description of what they do
• Include skills such as languages,
address - and if you have a • List relevant responsibilities, technology, or vocational training
website that will add value to your achievements, duties and skills;
application, add that too describing the scope of your job, References and client endorsements
• There’s every chance your CV could rather than giving a job description • You could include the names and
get split up, so include your contact contact details of your referees on
• If you’ve had a lot of jobs or a long
details on every page your CV, or simply have them on
career, you might want to summarise
hand for when they’re requested.
under such headings as ‘Previous
Personal statement Either way, make sure you know
employers’ or ‘Earlier career’
who is willing to represent you
• Your personal statement is your big
• Explain any significant career gaps.
chance to sell yourself. Think of it as • Include client endorsements
Even if you’re not working, you may
a sales pitch - you have one chance and recommendations in the
have picked up some incredibly
to grab the reader’s attention with achievements section of your CV,
valuable skills from other pursuits
how great you are for example: ‘Given a special
award by X for contribution to X’
• Write a focused summary of what Qualifications, education, training and
you have to offer, keeping it simple development
and snappy. Sum up your personal Future proofing
• These usually come near the end of
and professional attributes, taking • Keep your CV up to date, even when
the CV, but if some qualifications are
into account the job spec you’re no longer looking — it’ll save
essential for the job and make you
you bags of time when you are, and
more marketable, include them after
Work experience prevent you from forgetting important
your profile
dates, details, projects or successes
• Start with your current or most recent
• List professional and academic
position and work backwards
qualifications, degrees and executive Follow our top tips to get the sort of CV
• Treat a promotion like a separate position programmes (giving the subject, that’s sure to wow potential employers.
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