The Ultimate CV

The significant growth in online job hunting has increased the focus ever more heavily onto having a CV that stands out from the crowd, with many employers and recruitment companies now searching CV databases for potential candidates. A great CV highlighting relevant skills and experience will considerably boost your chances of getting an interview. A poor one will guarantee failure. Instantly. To be most effective it must provide a summary of your qualifications, skills and experience.

12 steps to the ultimate CV

On average, an employer will spend just eight seconds reviewing a CV, so it’s important to get it right. Remember that your CV is only the first step in a job application, a way of getting your foot in the door. Save the real detail for your interview. If you follow a basic structure, you can present the information in a clear, concise and persuasive way:

1. There is no standard CV design but there are a few tried and tested rules! A CV should be no more than two A4 pages. Never try to cram everything in tiny type to make it fit the two pages, use 10 or 12 pt type and ensure enough white space is left to make it easy to read! Use bullet points to ensure that information can be found quickly. If you are printing and posting your CV, stick to good quality white paper.
2. Start with your personal details, name, address, telephone number and e-mail.
3. Then include a short profile. This should summarise your most relevant experience and strengths, as well as the type of role and company you are looking to work for.
4. Whatever your level of qualification and/or work experience SRG recommend using the chronological format where all details are presented in reverse date order, most recent first.
5. Follow your profile with employment history, if applicable, then education and qualifications. Remember your current situation is the most relevant to the job you are seeking now.
6. Describe your work experience using straightforward, positive language. Highlight your key achievements, don’t just list the tasks/duties you were responsible for.
7. Do not leave any gaps between jobs. A company’s screening process may reject applicants with time not accounted for. If you do have gaps, you need to explain them.
8. List brief details of your qualifications along with grades. Also include a list of specific skills such as IT packages or languages and what level of knowledge you have of them.
9. Listing hobbies/interests is an optional extra but keep the list to just one line
10. State that references are available on request, however you do not need to include them.
11. Check your CV for spelling and grammatical mistakes. When you are happy with the content, proof read it twice and, if possible, get someone else to check it too. And remember that SRG’s team of consultants can help you with your CV too!
12. And finally, revise your CV whenever you gain new skills or qualifications or change jobs. Also you may wish to emphasise certain skills in your CV to suit individual job applications.

Remember, your CV is designed to communicate who you are, become familiar with it and how you describe yourself at interview will then flow naturally from your CV.