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Advice for an excellent CV

A Curriculum Vitae (CV) is the means that enables you to showcase yourself (your skills, experiences and personal attributes) to potential future employers, in hope of meeting their criteria and sparking their interest in order to invite you to an interview. During the interview, you will have the chance to prove that you obtained the necessary qualifications and you have the criteria as well as a personality suited for the specific position.
 
Some tips that you should bear in mind whilst preparing your CV:
 
  1. Apply the offer and demand rule
Give them what they are asking for. Mention your additional experiences, even if you might consider these to be unimportant, and emphasize the positive attributes you have gained from them. For example, if you were a boy/ girl scout or volunteer for a specific organisation or charity group, highlight your willingness to help others and provide back to your community. If you have worked for a fast-food chain, do not hesitate to demonstrate your readiness to carry hard work regardless of pay. If you held a ranked position in a school student class union or committee, you held any rank in the army (National Guard), you could use this to demonstrate your leadership skills and your ability to take on responsibility and work effectively within a team.
      
  1. Image counts
One can imagine that an employer who is dealing with tens, if not hundreds, of CVs, will only dedicate a short amount of time to each one; possibly 10-15 seconds for an initial analysis of certain criteria and to decide if the specific CV is worth a more thorough reading. And if it is, s/ he might only dedicate a further 4-5 minutes for a second more in-depth analysis and review.
 
This means that, in this short period of time, s/ he must have available all the information that is necessary in order for your application to be appreciated correctly and for you to move on to the next stage of the application process. Your CV needs to be easy for someone to read (choose a suitable and simple font and writing style) and preferably should not be over 2 pages, as then the possibility of someone reading it all is reduced. Remember- only a few minutes!
 
  1. Illustrate progress
It is important for your CV to illustrate your progress and attainment of skills, education and experience throughout the years. Do not leave large periods of time without appropriate explanation, as no employer wants to see static periods of time with no progress in employees. It is preferable for you to mention anything you did or accomplished during these periods of time; as trivial as it may seem, try and find positive outcomes from all your experiences (e.g. you left your job because you wanted to continue your education, gain experience, or partake in specific volunteering programmes or projects).
 
  1. Be measurable
Employers want to see your true, measurable worth. Do not use general words such as “teamwork” without providing any deeper explanation. How dis you contribute towards your team? What exactly was your role? How did you work together as a team, as a whole? What suggestions did you make or what initiatives did you take responsibility for as part of the team, and which had an important impact? How did you help increase the profits/ gains of the company/ organization you worked for? Even better, try to quantify any success (e.g. I helped increase sales by “2%”).
 
  1. Your attitude counts
Never lose hope. Try and always have a positive outlook and believe in yourself. This will help increase the chances of a positive outcome in whatever you do. Having a negative attitude towards your career pathway might reduce your productivity and efficiency in executing tasks or work, including your ability to write and present your CV!

"The cover letter"
  • You must attach a cover letter with your CV
  • That cover letter is equally important with, if not more important than, your CV!
  • The introductory letter allows you to more freely(than the CV) say something about yourself that makes you stand out from the crowd.
  • It should not be dry and impersonal but witty and personal-so as to catch attention and create the following impressions: "this is a very intersting boy/girl, we must make sure to see him/her", or "that is exactly the kind of person we need in our organisation".

Please do not hesitate to contact us with any further questions you have!
 
Anna Michael MSc, GCDF
Senior Career Counsellor
 
Compass4U
 
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