CV masterclass
Written by Sandrine La Croix
The Cover Letter guide can be accessed here....
I have seen many candidates under or even over sell themselves, making their chances of reaching interview very low. This guide will let you know exactly how to sell yourself and after all, this is all a cv is, a shop window.
1. Keep information clear and concise. The interviewer will potentially be looking through hundreds of documents.
2. Let your achievements speak for themselves, don't bog them down with irrelevant information.
3. Put something of yourself in there. The interviewer will like reading a small amount about you, so things like your interests and aspirations are useful here.
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4. Tailor your cv to the job you are going to be doing. If you are looking for a role in construction but have been working in retail for the last two years, put your construction experience at the top of your cv.
5. Try to cover any gaps in your experience.
6. If your cv has a number of patchy jobs spanning no more than 6 months, let them know why. Maybe the company went bankrupt or you moved house.
7. Put your most recent experience first.
8. Make sure that you only use relevant graphics, if you need to use them at all. Pretty clip art pictures may look nice but they will do you no favours.
9. Try and use a sensible email address. Make it similar to your name and not one you use with your friends.
10. Don't make the document too long. A couple of pages should suffice. The interview will not care about how much you loved a role 10 years ago.
11. The font must be legible and the right size, so that it can be read but doesnt inhibit the amount of information you can include.
12. Remember some recruiters may call a referee for a private chat prior to interview. I know, I know. Make sure that you put 'references on request'.
13. Put a catchy title on your cv if you are using a website to advertise your services, this will catch people's eyes.
14. Ask a friend to look over the document to look for mistakes or areas that need to be improved.