What should your CV include?
Although formatting is important to make your CV look presentable, ‘dressing up’ your CV with fancy formatting will not make it strong, the content is key. The first page should include personal/contact details, education & qualifications, personal profile and most recent position held.
The second page should be a continuation of your career history, hobbies/interests and reference information or ‘references available on request’ if you do not wish to disclose this.
PERSONAL DETAILS
Put this at the top of your CV, your name should be in ‘bold’ but the rest of your personal information should be in smaller font and not in ‘bold’. Remember you are working with a limited amount of space so do not waste this on your address and telephone number, as long as the font is easy enough to be read by the employer then that is fine.
Personal details should include:
*You do not need to include your date of birth, age, marital status, religion, ethnicity, sexuality or family circumstances.
PERSONAL PROFILE
Think about how you would sell yourself to an employer on the phone and use this as the basis of your profile. Use everyday language that you are comfortable with rather than obscure words and flowery prose. Time is critical for employers so they want the facts in a clean, easy to read format so don’t waffle.
Avoid giving too much away - your profile should be an introduction leaving the reader wanting to know more. Bullet point profiles are generally speaking the most reader friendly format (and simplest to prepare). They enable you to highlight your key skills and attributes and the employer will quickly ascertain if you look suitable for the vacancy they are recruiting for.
Focus on your achievements and key strengths and mention things that a CV can’t, i.e. that you are well presented and articulate.
EDUCATION/QUALIFICATIONS
CAREER HISTORY
List day to day key duties and responsibilities, use bullet points rather than long narrative. List key achievements, promotions obtained (giving timescales), any staff management (state size of team) and training experience. Give details of computer packages used and competency.
Make sure your CV is well written. Spelling and grammatical errors are unacceptable, they alert that you are not as detail orientated as you claim to be to the potential employer. A good solid CV helps employers visualise what you can do for them!
HOBBIES/INTERESTS
Do not include hobbies/interests that are unrelated to the job such as going to the pub/nightclubs with friends, this could suggest that you may be late into work or even worse you will be calling in sick due to a late night!
Team sports are good to mention as it shows you are a team player and have a competitive side whilst interacting with others. Be sure to highlight any community/volunteer work that a potential employer might view as an asset.
What are employers looking for?
A concise and readable document confirming your experience, achievements and abilities that will enable a potential employer to decide whether you should be shortlisted for an interview or not.
Your CV should be typed and printed on white or cream paper. Avoid using gimmicks such as photographs, presentation folders or brightly coloured paper. As we said earlier, ‘dressing up a CV’ is not going to get you very far - employers are looking for content and facts.
You only get one chance to make an impression, make it count!
