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Cv writing advice
CV Writing Advice
Not only is your CV the first thing an employer sees from you, it is what the employer will use to decide whether you move on to the next stage of the employment process. Make your first impression count.
Tailoring Your CV to the Job
An effective CV succinctly describes your education and experience that specifically relates to the job you are applying for. Your CV is a written snapshot that should clearly support your career goals and be tailored to the particular position for which you are applying.
Have a specific job in mind when you are creating your CV. Analyse job descriptions for the skills and abilities that employers are seeking. Read through descriptions, highlight the required skills, attributes, and qualifications, and address three or four main areas in your CV.
Assessing Your Skills and Accomplishments
Take some time to think about your accomplishments and create a list: things that you did well, enjoyed doing, and were proud of. Include education/training, volunteer opportunities, jobs, projects, school assignments, travel, and group/team activities. Describe in detail what you did, why you did it, who you did it with, what equipment you used, and what happened. Quantify your results if possible, and use commonly understood terminology. Identify the personal strengths and skills that you use to achieve your accomplishments. Don't be humble; this is your chance to promote your skills and abilities.
Writing Your CV
When you are composing your CV, write descriptive phrases, use action verbs and write short phrases that describe what you did and illustrate each skill. Be concise and specific. Arrange the descriptive phrases in order of relevance to the position for which you are applying. Remember, your ability to write correctly will influence your ability to get a job!
CV Guidelines
Limit to one printed page. A two-page CV is only acceptable when you have a lot of experience to emphasise, and even then it may be too much for an employer to browse.
Maintain a consistent writing style.
Don't use "I" or "my."
You may use complete or fragmented sentences as long as the meaning is clear and style is consistent.
Use present tense verbs when referring to current activities. Use past tense verbs when referring to past activities.
Use numbers, where appropriate, to quantify the scope of involvement. When expressing numbers, write out all numbers between one and nine, but use numerals for all numbers 10 and above. If you begin a sentence with a number, always write it out.
Don't include personal information such as marital status.
Include a brief explanation of an organisation in your description if its name is obscure.
Use action words, verbs, adverbs, and adjectives in your descriptions.
Be concise and clear in your descriptions.
Make sure that you have no typing, spelling, or grammar errors. Check for periods at the end of all full sentences, be consistent with your punctuation, avoid using exclamation points, and capitalise all proper nouns.
Do not use abbreviations or acronyms unless you define them.
Be consistent. For example, if your headings are in bold type, all headings should be in bold. Each entry should follow a uniform format.
Spell check. But remember that spell check doesn't catch everything (i.e. affect and effect are different words and mean different things). Have someone else proofread your CV and check out our
CV Proofreading Checklist for some specific tips.
Don't use words that you are not familiar with, and use a dictionary as you write.
Use jargon and terms specific to the industry in your CV.
Don't overcrowd your CV.
Choose a font that is easy to read, no larger than 14 point and no smaller than 10 point.
In most cases, a cover letter should be attached to your CV.
Print final copies of your CV on quality paper. Use the same colour and type of paper for CV, cover letter, and envelope.
Double check everything. Especially dates of employment, your address and phone number, and the information of the potential employer.
Keep your contact information current. Reprint your CV if you move or get a new phone number or email address.
CV Proofreading Checklist
A well-written CV can be the difference between you getting an interview for a job and your CV ending up in the shredder. Your CV is the first thing that an employer sees from you, so most employers will form an impression of you based upon this single piece of paper.
Spelling mistakes, grammatical errors, typos, and incorrect information in your CV are inexcusable. The fastest way to get your CV thrown in the trash before the employer has finished reading it is to write a CV filled with mistakes; employers will not hire you if they think you will produce the same poor quality work for them that you produced in your CV.
The best way to ensure that your CV will get read by an employer and you will be considered for a position is to write a clean, clear, and concise CV. Your CV reflects the effort and care you will take in your job, so it is important that your CV be perfect.
Print a copy of the CV Proofreading Checklist and mark it up to help you gauge your progress.
Spelling Mistakes
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Don't use words with which you aren't familiar.
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Use a dictionary as you write.
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Perform a spell check on your finished CV.
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Carefully read every word in your CV. If you write "from" instead of "form," your spell check will be unable to detect your mistake.
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Have a friend proofread your CV for you.
Punctuation Mistakes
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Check for periods at the end of all full sentences.
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Be consistent in your use of punctuation.
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Always put periods and commas within quotation marks. (i.e., Won awards including the "John H. Malcom Memorial Service Award.")
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Avoid using exclamation points.
Grammatical Mistakes
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Do not switch tenses within your CV. The duties you currently perform should be in present tense (i.e., write reports), but ones you may have performed at past jobs should be in past tense (i.e., wrote reports).
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Capitalise all proper nouns.
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When expressing numbers, write out all numbers between one and nine (i.e., one, five, seven), but use numerals for all numbers 10 and above (i.e., 10, 25, 108).
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If you begin a sentence with a numeral, spell out that numeral (i.e., Eleven service awards won while employed.).
Choose Your Words Carefully
Be on the lookout for the following easily confused words: accept (to receive), except (to exclude), all right (correct), alright (this is not a word), affect (to bring about change), effect (result), personal (private), personnel (staff members), role (a character assigned or a function), roll (to revolve).
Use action words (i.e., wrote reports, increased revenues, directed staff).
Other Potential Mistakes
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Check dates of all prior employment.
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Check your address and phone number - are they still current and correct?
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Check the number of returns separating your categories: are they consistent?
Design Is Important
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Don't overcrowd your CV; allow for plenty of white space.
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Keep your CV to one page whenever possible.
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Keep the number of fonts you use to a minimum -- two at the most.
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Use a font that is easy to read. Times Roman works well.
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Do not overuse capitalisation, italics, underlines, or other emphasising features.
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Make sure your name, address, and a phone number appear on your CV and all correspondence, preferably at the top of the page.
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Print your CV on white or cream paper using a good-quality printer. Second- and third-generation photocopies are a no-no.
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Print on one side of the paper only.
What To Omit
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Omit salary history.
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Omit sex, race, marital status, or other similar personal information
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