Writing your first CV
The most important tool of the trade for any serious job hunter is a good CV.
A CV, or Curriculum Vitae, is a short document setting out your skills, qualifications and work experience. You use it to market yourself when applying for jobs.
Employers use CVs to help them decide which applicants to interview. A good CV isn’t enough on its own to get you the job, but it should get you on the interview shortlist.
The main thing when writing your CV is to organize the information into clear sections, and put these into a logical order. Here is just one way to order your information.
1. Personal details - your name, address, telephone numbers and email address.
2. Personal statement – one or two sentences summarizing your main skills and personal qualities.
3. Skills and achievements - focus on ones that are relevant to the job
4. Education and qualifications - the names of secondary schools, colleges or training providers you’ve attended, the town or city they are in and the dates when you started and finished your education there. Start with the most recent school or college and work back. For each place list the subjects or courses you took, the type of qualification, for example English Intermediate 2 and the grade you got.
5. Work experience - list your most recent work experience first, and work back. Include work experience placements and any part-time or voluntary work you’ve done. Give the dates, the employer’s name and location, your job title and a bit of information about the job, briefly describing the duties and the skills you developed.
6. Interests - keep this section fairly short, mention any interests that establish skills relevant to the job. Leave this section out if you’re short on space or your interests aren’t relevant.
7. Referees – the names and contact details of at least two people (not relatives), the employer can contact for information about your character and suitability for a job. Always ask the person for their permission to name them as a referee before you add them to your CV. Include their job title or say how you know each other, for example are they a neighbour, your football coach or a family friend.
Always send a ‘covering letter’ with your CV.
Read the article on ‘Covering letters for your CV’ for more information.
CV Checklist
A good CV should be:
- short - one or two A4 pages
- word-processed – this looks good and makes it easy to update
- attractive - well laid-out on good quality white or cream paper
- easy to read – no fancy fonts, try breaking up text using headings and bullet points
- clean – a crumpled or stained CV Will go straight into the bin
- accurate - no spelling or typing mistakes
- truthful – this is real life, not ‘The Apprentice’
- tailored - to the job you’re applying for, one size does not fit all
- focused – only include relevant information
- positive - about you, your skills, personal qualities and experience
- complete - no unexplained gaps in your education or experience
- checked – before you post or email it.
Other useful points to remember
· Be prepared to work at it to get it right.
· Don’t put ‘CV’ or ‘Curriculum Vitae’ at the top of your CV.
· You don’t need to give your date of birth.
· Save an electronic master copy of your CV (on your hard drive, on disk or on a ‘memory stick’).
· Use Word or another word-processing package to adapt your CV for different jobs, and try different styles or formats.
· Don’t go overboard on the formatting. Keep it simple.
· Update your CV whenever you learn, experience or achieve anything new.
· Take a copy of your CV with you to the interview.
· Attach a copy of the job advert to the CV, then you’ll be able to read them over before the interview.
· Always send a covering letter, or covering email, with your CV.
· Attach your CV to the email separately - don't send it in the body of the message.
· Don’t use an embarrassing email address, use one that has your name in it!
|