Want to land that job you’ve always dreamed of? Use these tips to create a perfect CV that will reflect your unique skills, education, and relevant experience.
When you’re applying for your dream job, your resume can be the most useful tool that can help you get an interview with the hiring manager. But, how can you be sure that your CV will be added to the interview pile rather than ignored and thrown straight in the trash? Short answer: You create an excellent CV.
Putting together a successful CV that captures the attention of hiring managers is easy once you know how to do it. It all comes down to taking all your skills, experience, and education and tailoring them to the job you’re applying for.
Writing a good CV can be one of the toughest challenges of job hunting. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Read these tips for creating a perfect CV that gets stuck in the “Yes” pile and secures you an interview.
Structure your CV strategically
First things first, a good resume starts with a good structure.
Here, content hierarchy is critical in making hiring managers keep in mind those most important details that set you apart from other candidates for the same role. Moreover, a good structure keeps the reader engaged, ensuring that your CV gets more than a few seconds of screening from the hiring manager.
But, what is the right structure for the perfect CV? Here’s our recommended format:
- Personal details: name, address, contact details;
- Introduction: highlight what you can offer to a prospective employer;
- Skills overview: use bullet points to list your unique skills and experience that are relevant to the role;
- Highlight work history: include work history that underlines your relevant experience for the position;
- List training and education: add relevant education for the role;
- Add a personal touch: mention your interests/ hobbies or any other details about your personality outside of work.
Any other structure works as long as it highlights your experience, education, certifications, achievements, and special skills.
Make it no longer than two pages
A good rule of thumb to create a great CV is to keep its length at two pages or less. In other words, make sure to be clear and concise.
Did you know that the average time spent screening a CV is about 5-7 seconds? Not only that one tiny mistake can quickly make your resume end up in the bin, but a long CV will also never get read by the hiring manager. Recruiters don’t have too much time to read five pages about every candidate. So, you need to make sure that you use words right to say as much as possible in less than two pages.