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| Lack of focus: lists of disjointed information,
not following any particular order, with each section
apparently unconnected from each other. This can
result in the most important information being lost
at the bottom of the page. As a result, the information
has no overall plan, showing poor decisions have
been taken in terms of prioritising information.
This suggests to the reader that you do not think
clearly.
Suggestion: the information about you
that is most relevant to the job should come first.
Work out what is the most important requirement
for this job. Technical skills? Education? Key
professional qualities or skills? Whatever it
is, it demands prominence. Psychologist Max Eggert,
in his book The Perfect CV, suggests that
order of information will also change according
to the stage a person has reached in their career.
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| What's in a CV? |
The five most typical sections
covered by a CV are:
- key skills
- career history
- education and training
- introduction or profile
- personal interests
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| For example, a career starter may only have education and
interests to work with, so will want to promote these aspects
of their profile, whereas an older manager may actually want
to play down their education if it could be seen as not relevant
to the current day job requirements.
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| Length: too short, and it runs the risk
of being too general; too long, and the reader will
give up wading through pages of detail that is irrelevant
to the job required.
Suggestion: you normally need about two
pages plus a one-page covering letter. Use short
sentences, which show facts and results.
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| The chronological CV |
- best used to show your
progression up the ladder in the same
industry sector
- lists jobs in chronological order, starting
with the most recent
- highlights your progression through
your career (eg moving from assistant
manager to manager)
- focuses on job titles and dates
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| Common design pitfalls
Fancy fonts: you may have found a special font that
gives the look you want, but consider whether it is a font
that recipients are likely to have installed.
Suggestion: the golden rule is to keep it simple and
easy to read. Use standard universal typefaces (eg Tahoma
- because this is the only totally universal font that also
reads on Mac systems and because it looks quite reasonable
- Times New Roman, Arial, Helvetica) and sizes (a 10-12 point
font size is typical).
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| Graphic gimmicks: can create the impression
that you feel design is more important than content;
that what you have to say is not as important to
you as how you say it.
Suggestion: design must not overwhelm
content, so avoid shading, lines, boxes and use
graphics or artwork sparingly.
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| The functional CV |
- best used when you want to achieve sectors
- plays down actual roles you've had
- focuses instead on the skills and achievements
you have made
- actual details of dates and names
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| Common content pitfall
No corroboration: you state what you did, or what
your job title was, and give no evidence to show your level
of responsibility; or you give a long description of what
you did, but with no result.
Suggestion: apply the FAB factor -
- feature: what did you do?
- analysis: what was the scope? For example, how
large was your team or budget or sales territory?
- benefit: so what? What was the benefit to the company?
Suggestion: for each of the jobs that you are describing:
- avoid negatives: do not show the problems you encountered,
but how you turned the problems around
- illustrate your involvement: roles, levels, structures,
visions, plans, implementations, initiatives, very briefly
described
- offer your results and achievements, which can go beyond
targets and figures, for example: you gave a not-for-profit
organisation a national profile, you reduced staff turnover
- target your reader: consider the role and the industry
you are applying for, especially if you are applying for
a job in a different field or industry; what does the likely
reader need from the successful candidate, and how will
you fulfil that need?
...and never forget spellchecker – have someone else read it
before you send it. |
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| Top five pointers for CV writing: |
- quantify results
- cut the comedy – be funny in person, not on paper
- be selective with your interests – your hobbies
are give-aways about you for better or worse
- less is more – the more you write, the more ammunition
you give the interviewer
- sell your skills, not just your job title – what
you did, and what it says about you
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| The above information represents the view of the adviser(s) only,
and is not necessarily endorsed by schillerstudent.co.uk. Before making
any decision on your own individual case, you should seek independent
advice. |
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