Is Your CV Letting You Down?

By Clare Westwood


Curriculum Vitae Checklist

On average CV's get around fifteen seconds of consideration. If you want your CV to stand out some careful consideration is therefore required.

On first impression your CV needs to look original and not as though it is based on a template. It needs to be inviting people to read it and contain clear sections and clear white spaces. The design itself needs to look more sophisticated than just a simple type up. You should provide a quick qualifications summary so that it is easier to read. The CV should not be too long but it also shouldn't be too short.

The appearance of the CV is very important as it needs to look professional as it is a reflection of you, the candidate. Take care to ensure that you use a font that is business like, you will need to include bullet points and bolding and underlining wherever relevant. Always make sure you check the finer details before sending the CV, it can be easy to miss some thing's such as bad spelling or grammar. If your CV runs over onto more than one page always make sure the pages are numbered.

Make sure each section of your CV is clearly labelled and that the sections are placed in the best order to highlight your best points. Check that the work history is put in reversed order with your most recent job being the first to be read.

Sometimes people like to include a career goal at the end of their CV, this can be a good idea but it can also work against you if you are applying for lots of different jobs. If your goal does not match up with the role you have applied for it may work against you.

Your career achievements should be as detailed as possible and include important facts and figures if you can. Any big achievements will look more impressive if they are backed up by evidence.

Your CV needs to reflect what the interviewer is looking for, tailoring your CV for the job you are looking for is essential. You can always include additional information if you feel it is necessary.




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