CV Advice

Include your name, address, contact telephone number and email address. If you have a quirky email address, we would recommend that you set up a more professional account.

• This has the potential to be a very powerful section. Make it count by hitting home your compatibility with the role you are applying for. Ideally, you should personalise this section when applying for different jobs.
• In no more than three to four sentences, sell yourself by saying who you are, what you bring to the table and what your career ambitions are. You need to be persuasive and clearly demonstrate what you can bring to an organisation.
• Use the job titles they use in the advert to describe yourself. It’s about labelling yourself on your CV in a way that shows your compatibility for the new role you are applying for.
• Revisit the job description and find out exactly what the potential employer is looking for and make sure you only include information that will be relevant to them. You must tailor this statement to your audience for it to be effective. You should highlight any professional qualifications and how many years’ experience you have in the relevant field.

• Ideally, you should start with a brief introduction that builds context around each of your previous roles and then use bullet points to detail your responsibilities so that recruiters can navigate this information easily. 3-5 bullet points per job is best.
• Remember to be selective. Older roles only require a brief summary and you don’t need to include every job you’ve ever done.
• Use positive, active verbs describing previous roles and make it achievement orientated. Don’t use passive phrases such as ‘I had to …’ instead use ‘achieved’, ‘created’ and ‘delivered’
• Don’t forget to explain any gaps. Employers will want to hear why you were out of work and if something doesn’t add up on your CV you might not be invited to an interview.
• List the most recent experience first, as it brings to the forefront the most recent and, often relevant work. All work experience counts whether paid, voluntary or shadowing. Describe your work experience in short sentences using straightforward, positive language, concentrating on your achievements, not your responsibilities.
• As well as describing the job, point out any general qualities that arose from the work such as the ability to manage staff or work to tight deadlines.

• Don’t get creative with this section, there is nothing wrong with omitting grades and focussing on the positives. However, if you excelled, keep it in and be sure to list any relevant modules. For instance, your degree might not be directly relevant to the job but you may have taken some modules that might be. These should be highlighted.
• List brief details of qualifications in reverse chronological order – degree, A levels, GCSE’s. Applicants looking for their first job since school, college or university can include their education before work experience.

This is a great place to boast about your skills. You should include your IT skills, whether this is related to specific software such as Microsoft Office and Photoshop, or if you can use different operating systems. Other things you can include are creative skills and languages. Don’t allow your hobbies and interests to bleed into your skills.

Including details of your interests away from the workplace is optional. By adding details of specific hobbies, you are giving an employer a more rounded picture of your personal qualities, but don’t overdo it. Do not use a long list of hobbies to cover up a lack of work experience. Potential employers will see straight through this.

Don’t give the names and personal contact details of referees on your CV. You should simply state “References are available upon request.”

• Ensuring your CV is well presented and easy to follow is as important as including all the relevant information. Remember, most employers see hundreds of CVs and your CV may get less than a minute of their time.
•  Most people follow a historical CV format as this is familiar to employers and is easy to write with employment history placed in reverse chronological order. However, if your career history is fragmented due to career breaks or a period of unemployment, you may consider a skills-based CV that highlights your abilities and aptitudes. It gives you the chance to describe what you can do rather than detailing a list of jobs.
• Employers also welcome concise CVs so try and stick to a maximum of 2 – 3 pages unless otherwise specified. Don’t be afraid of white space as this helps the reader navigate through key sections and easily focus on key points.
• Select a clear, legible, standard font and avoid anything smaller than size 11. Many recruitment consultancies and large employers use recruitment software to manage applications so it’s recommended that you avoid columns, boxes and graphics as these may not be compatible with your readers programmes.
• Be impeccable with your spelling and grammar – don’t let yourself down with careless mistakes that can be easily rectified by running a quick spelling and grammar check.
• Read your CV through at least twice and ask someone else to read it through as well to double check.
• Avoid dividing sections across multiple pages and think about converting a Word document to a PDF to avoid any unwanted format alterations.

1. Your CV should ideally be two to three pages long.
2. Keep paragraphs short and punchy.
3. Tailor your CV to the role you are applying for.
4. Make a clear connection between what you have to offer and what the potential employer wants to see.
5. Use numbers to quantify your achievements and short narratives to show those qualities in action.
6. Use positive, straightforward language – avoid dull language: ‘responsible for’ and ‘duties included’ are passion killers in a CV.
7. Be selective about what you include and don’t undervalue experience from more humble roles or voluntary work.