Your CV…

Table of contents

    The CV is your life story i.e. the story of your life to date on paper. It is the document that usually is people’s first impression of you. It is a document that people should see only when there is a realistic chance of they wanting to meet you to discuss a job opportunity. It is your invitation to meet prospective employers and it is critical that it is tailored around the organisations business and the job being applied for. So, what are the key headings and narrative to meet all of the above requirements in a CV…?

    PERSONAL DETAILS

    Name

    Landline No.   (H)  and / or (W), if applying internally

    Mobile No.   (M)

    E-mail address   (E)

    LinkedIn address   (LI)

    PROFILE

    • The section is a two line paragraph summarizing you and what you are that meets the Job Title being applied for

     CAREER OBJECTIVE

    • This section is a five – seven line paragraph that outlines your relevant skills and competencies using words and statements from the Job Description / Job Advertisement, organisation website, stating why the advertising organisation should meet you. You also mention the Job Title being applied for and the organisation you are applying to (if known to you)

     SUMMARY

    • This section is 5-7 bullet points (no more than 2 lines per bullet point) specifically stating your experience, education, qualifications, training and any other relevant skills, competencies required by the organisation as outlined in their Job Description / Job Advertisement

     CAREER HISTORY

    • This section lists all your past or current jobs that are directly relevant to the job being applied for i.e. Organisation Name & Address, What the organisation’s business is, Job Title and Month year Start – Month year End starting with the most recent

    EMPLOYMENT HISTORY

    • This section lists all your past or current jobs that are not directly relevant to the job being applied for i.e. Organisation Name & Address, What the organisation’s business is, Job Title and Month year Start – Month year End starting with the most recent

    EDUCATION

    • This section lists your academic / educational details (i.e. full-time / part-time education in a curriculum year September to June) where you state the Name of the Qualification, Name of the Educational / Academic Institution it was achieved in or awarded by, their Address and Month Year Start – Month Year End

    TRAINING, LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT

     

    • This section lists all the relevant training you have completed during your education, career and / or employment history starting with the most recent i.e. Name of the Training Course, the Awarding Body, Name of Training Organisation that delivered it, their Address and the Month and Year it was completed

     

    KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS & ACHIEVEMENTS

    • This section lists all your relevant accomplishments & achievements under Career, Academia and Personal. Where possible, you try to use figures to enhance the narrative and draw the readers’ eyes to the page. Each is no more than two lines and briefly explains the achievement & accomplishment detail that impresses the reader starting with the most recent

    MEMBERSHIP OF ORGANISATIONS

    • This section lists the organisations / groups that you are a member of, that are linked to your career or organisation that you wish to work in

    COMMUNITY & VOLUNTARY WORK

    • This section lists the organisations that you do or have done community or voluntary work for

    INTERESTS

    •  This section lists your interests and what you do in your spare time outside of your work                        

    REFERENCES

    • Finally, the last section of your CV is ‘References available upon request’.

    Your CV must look appealing, be well-laid out and easy to read, informing the reader in the first half page everything about you, so that they can make a decision quickly whether to meet you or not. You only have 30 seconds of the reader’s time to do this…

     

     

    Scroll to Top