Top tips when writing your CV
Your CV can be your one shot at finding that dream job, the tips below might just help your CV stand out from the crowd.
Layout & font
Below is a good structure which most hiring managers would be familiar:
Name & contact info
Profile statement
Skills section
Work experience
Education
Hobbies/other activities (optional)
Keep the font of your CV clean and basic. Often CVs which use fonts which are more difficult to read can get overlooked by hiring managers. Simplicity is the key.
Tailor your CV for each application
Treat every job application as unique, never just copy and paste a generic CV with the same old text. Do some research about the hiring organisation, read the role’s job description carefully, note all of the experience and skills that it mentions. Make sure you highlight your own experience and abilities that match those listed requirements where possible.
Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.
When listing work experience utilise bullet points
Utilising Bullet points to outline your key responsibilities and achievements, this will make it far easier for hiring managers to read your CV and pick out vital information that they’re looking for. Focus on achievements rather than responsibilities.
Metrics can help highlight your achievements
When outlining achievements at work, using numbers and quantifiable metrics will make these points stand out to hiring managers. If you’ve achieved something great in the past let’s make sure that gets noticed!
Be sure to mention any voluntary work you may have done previously
Hiring managers love to see what sort of life you have outside of your usual 9-5 and there’s nothing better than outlining volunteering which you’ve done and any skills you may have picked up as a result.
Ensure your contact details are up-to-date
Don’t miss out on your dream job because you forgot to update your recently changed mobile number or if you typed your email address incorrectly. Also keep your contact info area minimal, don’t waste CV space by adding unnecessary information.
Details to include in this section are:
Full name & professional title (e.g. Steven Williams | Partnerships Manager)
Contact phone number - Just provide one number and make it a number you use regularly like a mobile phone.
Email address - A tip here is to ensure you’re using a professional looking email address like sarahsmith@email rather than something you may have set up when you were younger and might not be appropriate e.g. ilovebiscuits@email
Optional details you might use:
LinkedIn profile - This can give employers a fuller picture of yourself and your work history - Just make sure that it’s kept as up-to-date as your CV is.
Personal portfolio or website - Again this is another option to showcase yourself and your previous work so could be beneficial to include. Ensure that content on your site is appropriate and tidy up any loose ends, don’t get caught out like they do on ‘The Apprentice’.
List your highest level of education first
Present your completed education in reverse chronological order with your more recently completed qualifications first. This provides the recruiter with a sense of your specialities.
Keep your CV to 2 pages
Typically CVs should be kept to a maximum of 2 pages. Using some of the previous tips should help you maximise the right content for your CV.
A useful tip which should be applied to your CV is to ensure you decrease the page margins on your CV document as by default, the margins which are set could be wasting valuable space which you could be utilising. This is your chance to shine so ensure you use every inch of those two pages!
Proof read your CV before sending
As mentioned on previous pointers, tailoring your CV is the way to go which will mean that it’s vital that before submitting any job application you ensure that any spelling and grammatical errors are picked up and amended. Small details which aren’t picked up can have a big impact on whether you get selected for an interview. Sometimes getting someone else to read it to double check your spelling and grammar can a good idea, get a fresh perspective on it in case there’s something you missed.
Now that your CV has been spruced up be sure to check out the job vacancies we have on our awesome jobs board.
