CV Help - A CV Centre Guide

As the UK’s leading CV consultancy we are confident that The CV Centre offers the best solution to help you prepare a professional CV. However, we also understand that, since we do of course charge for our services, some people have no choice but to tackle their CV on their own.  Knowing that CV writing is a specialist skill, the aim of this article is to give a helping hand to those who have to take on this task for themselves.

What makes a good CV?

There are a number of different schools of thought regarding what makes a good CV.  However, with the knowledge that a CV is going to be compared to perhaps hundreds of others received in response to a job advert, and bearing in mind that recruiters may spend as little as 30 seconds deciding which CV should be progressed to the next stage in the recruitment process, there are some important rules to which all CV writers should adhere.

The ideal length

Probably most off-putting to recruiters is the CV that lands on their desk with a thud due to the sheer number of pages it consists of!  A CV should make recruiters want to read it but if it is more than two pages long, there is a danger that they will lose interest and potentially skip over crucial information in the CV.  One-page CVs are perfectly acceptable for those with little experience so avoid the temptation to try padding out a CV with irrelevant and unnecessary detail.

Include value-adding information

When deciding what to include in the CV, consider carefully whether or not the recruiter really needs to know this information.  Are they really interested in how many days and months you have worked for a company or will just including years suffice?  Is it relevant to include all your GCSE grades even though you have completed a Masters degree?  A good CV writer knows the difference between what recruiters need to see on a CV and what is simply window dressing.

Reverse chronological order

Writing your CV with the most recent job roles or qualifications listed first helps to ensure that the most relevant information is what catches the recruiter’s eye first.  Your past history is of course still important but can perhaps be summarised so that there is more emphasis on the up-to-date details.

Personal details

It is important to keep it simple when including personal as opposed to professional or academic information.  A date of birth is no longer necessary due to anti-discrimination legislation and it is usually irrelevant whether you are married, single or divorced.  Hobbies should be listed to give an insight into your life beyond the workplace but these can be elaborated on at interview rather than in the CV.

Key skills

Generally, a CV does not need to include a Key Skills section; these should instead be made apparent in a Professional Profile at the head of the CV, throughout the career summary and in the all-important covering letter.

Referees

Basically, these do not belong on the CV.  They will be requested by a recruiter if and when you reach the final stages of the recruitment process.

The professional touch

Hopefully this article will have given you an insight into writing your own CV and you should now be fully prepared.  However, for those of you who now see that the task is rather daunting and would be better off undertaken by an experienced CV writer, we are able to offer a comprehensive range of services which we are confident will give your job search the best possible start.