Once you’ve completed your training with us, you might decide that a new job is just what’s needed. If that’s the case you’re going to need an updated CV – that’s a Curriculum Vitae, otherwise known as a resume. So, how do you make your CV stand out from the crowd? Well, there are a few rules you should follow regarding the content, layout and style of your CV and, over the next couple of weeks, we’ll show you how to prepare a CV that’s as good as a professionally written one.
This week we’ll look at general tips on CV writing, next week we’ll cover the information that should be included in your CV, in detail. The week after, we’ll show you how to write a covering letter to go with your newly updated CV and, in the final week, we’ll discuss how you can use it to its full potential.
General Tips for CV Writing
These are some general tips that apply to CV writing. Actually, many of them apply to any kind of business writing you are attempting, so be sure to read through them and keep them in mind when you start to write.
Tip One – Type your CV. This is important because it shows you know how to use a computer to put your CV together and it ensures that it is clear and legible – often hand-writing can be difficult for people to read.
Tip Two – Be brief. Don’t waffle on for pages and pages – a CV should be short and to the point. It should be no longer than two A4 sides and, if you can, getting it all onto one A4 side is preferable.
Tip Three – Proofread your CV for mistakes. This is often best done a couple of days after you’ve written it. The brain has a curious habit of seeing what you think should be there and a couple of days away from the CV will enable you to view it with fresh eyes. It is vitally important that your spelling, punctuation and grammar are correct. It will not create a good impression if you send a CV with errors – the potential employer will think you either can’t be bothered getting it right or, worse still, you don’t have the knowledge to understand that there are errors.
Tip Four – Be positive about your achievements. Say how you have helped your employers do better in the past and what you think are your best qualities and skills. Remember, a CV is like a sales letter – it’s designed to hook the potential employer and get them to ask you in for interview, so you have to sell yourself.
Tip Five – Be relevant. By this we mean only include information you feel is relevant to the job you are applying for. Don’t, for example, detail every job you’ve had since starting work – summer jobs, part-time jobs and so on – unless the experience is relevant to the job you are applying for. The last three positions you‘ve held are usually sufficient. We’ll go into more detail on this next week.
Tip Six – Use appropriate language. This is essential if you want to impress and will show you’ve understood what the company you are applying to is all about. For example, if you are applying to a firm of solicitors they’ll expect you to use formal business-like language. However, if you are applying to a young, fresh advertising company it might be more appropriate to use less formal language. You can use the wording in the job advertisement to decide what level of language you should use in your CV.
Tip Seven – Keep it plain. Don’t use fancy fonts, different colours, bold or underlining, keep the font to size 12 and use plain, high quality paper. Anything else can make your CV very difficult to read and doesn’t look very professional. The only exception to this would be if you are applying for a creative position and unusual CVs are encouraged.
Tip Eight – Use bullet points. If you can, and it’s appropriate, use bullet points to highlight areas on your CV. They make it easy to read, keep it short and punchy and draw the readers’ attention to the important points.
Tip Nine – Target your CV. Don’t think that one size fits all where CVs are concerned – it doesn’t. You need to tailor your CV to every position you are applying for so that it highlights the qualities and skills they require.
Tip 10 – Be honest. A CV is not a legal document and you cannot be held liable for anything you say in it. However, if you falsely claim to have a certificate in computer programming, you are going to look foolish when you are asked to produce it or you are hired and have no idea what to do when asked to use your programming skills. However, if there are some minor details that you’d prefer the employer not to know, for example that you had to retake an exam several times before passing, you are not doing anything wrong by leaving it out.
So, now you have some points to keep in mind when you start to write your CV. Next week we’ll cover what information you should include in your CV.
