CVs
Your CV is a personal marketing tool used for job applications. The aim of a CV is to briefly describe your skills, experience and education to persuade an employer to progress you in the application process.
On this page we have listed the key principles to follow, however, a CV is a personal document and people will have different opinions. Ultimately it’s your CV, and you have the final decision about the presentation and content.
I never really imagined that I would come out of my first year getting the hang of writing a CV. It wouldn’t have been possible without the support of the Careers and Employability Service.
It might be tempting to rush straight into writing your CV but carrying out these important tasks before you begin may save you time in the long run and help you tailor your CV to the role and company you are applying to.
- Investigate the employer and the business sector - You should demonstrate your understanding of both of these throughout the application process. Sending a generic CV will not impress an employer and could lead to your CV being added to the 'no pile'. A recruiter will want to read that you are genuinely interested in their company and the role. This is known as commercial awareness.
- Research what the employer is looking for - Start with the job description - what skills and experience are required? Demonstrate you have the experience and skills by using examples from your degree, previous jobs or internships and extracurricular activities. Both paid and voluntary experience can be relevant.
The following descriptions are a standard CV structure that can be used when applying for jobs across many industries.
Length
- A CV should be two pages long at maximum. For advice on academic CVs visit out PGR website.
Contact details
- No need to put a title on your CV. Just include your name, email and phone number as it is obvious what the document is
- Use a professional sounding email address and remember that your university email address will not be available after you graduate
- Consider including links to your LinkedIn profile, personal blog or professional X page if the online content is appropriate
Personal statement or profile
If you decide to include a personal statement or career objective, then it should be a couple of sentences that state clearly who you are, what you have to offer and why you're applying for the job or career area.
Avoid cliche buzz words like hardworking and responsible - would anybody say they weren't hardworking and responsible?
Education
List dates, institutions and the overall grade of achievement with the most recent education first. If it's relevant to the job you're applying for, include details of:
- titles of relevant modules studied and key knowledge or skills gained
- module or year average grades (optional)
- title of your dissertation or a significant piece of work
- any competitive scholarships or academic awards achieved
Experience
A CV can include two distinct sections for experience: "relevant experience," highlighting roles closely aligned with the opportunity you're applying for, and "other experience," showcasing additional roles that demonstrate transferable soft skills.
If you have work or voluntary experience, you can make a chronological CV. A chronological CV lists your work experience in a chronological order from most recent to oldest whilst providing examples of your skills.
If you lack work or voluntary experience, you can make a skills-based CV. A skills-based CV focuses on your sills developed through extracurricular activities, hobbies and your degree. It shows how your transferrable skills match the job description.
Additional information
This section may contain information such as:
- Additional qualifications - Other qualifications such as language qualifications, IT skills, medical or first aid qualifications. Adding a driving license could go here if relevant to the role
- Additional achievements - You can include details of any other achievements but consider the relevance of these and suggest how your achievement can be transferred to another context
- Interests - If you have any interests that may be relevant to the role, feel free to mention them here
References
A referee could be a former employer, teacher, tutor or someone who knows you in a professional capacity. It's not crucial to include a references section in your CV. If you do not include references, state ' References available on request'.
Make your CV ATS-friendly
An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is software that employers use to filter job applications by scanning them for keywords and relevant information. To improve your chances of being noticed, it's essential to tailor your CV (and cover letter) to the job description and use a clean, simple layout without graphics. Clear headings and organised sections help ensure the ATS accurately reads your skills and experiences.
What to avoid:
- Avoid complex CV designs as recruiters are usually scanning multiple CVs at once. If your CV is hard to scan or understand the recruiter will likely ignore it. Some design based or creative roles may benefit by attracting attention and showcasing your creativity but your CV should be easy to read and understand first and foremost.
- For UK applications, don't add a photo or other personal information such as date of birth, nationality or marital status to the CV.
How can I make my CV stand out?
Make verbs work for you
- Use active verbs rather than passive ones. For example: I organised a programme of speakers, motivated the team or analysed research data
- Combine action verbs to further emphasise your achievements. For example: I researched alternative options and negotiated a better deal, I managed the project and delegated responsibilities to team members or I designed and implemented a new system
- Avoid weak verbs. For example: I tried to..., I hoped to... or I attempted to...
- Use the list of action verbs provided to ensure that you demonstrate a range of experience and abilities
Action verbs examples
Add outcomes or achievements to examples
Explain your contribution clearly by adding appropriate details. This can include quantifying your actions, but could also be receiving positive feedback or solving a problem. For example:
- Received praise from my manager on my ability to handle difficult customer interactions.
- Organised a charity ball for 150 guests and 12 VIPs.
- Created a new system for tracking tasks during a group project, which led to better communication and efficiency.
Cut the padding
Don't use overly long sentences or lengthy paragraphs. It is important to be concise in order to impress quickly.
Unlike writing an essay, when putting your CV together it isn't essential to use joining words such as 'however', 'furthermore' and 'nevertheless'.
It is also useful to limit your use of stock phrases. For example: as a result..., in response..., in order to...
Resources
Use our CV checklist as a reference for your CV creation process.
CV checklist
Should I include information about my disability?
Sharing Information About Disability
Telling a perspective employer any information about a disability(s) is a personal choice. It is up to you if, when and how. If you are unsure at any stage, consider what would be the advantage of sharing at that point. If you decide that you want to, think about what would be most relevant for the employer to know at this specific stage of the recruitment process.
Go to our Disability and Accessibility in Careers NOOC
After writing your CV - Review it with CareerSet
Get instant feedback on your CV or cover letter.
CareerSet:
- Uses advanced AI to give personalised recommendations on how to improve your CV or cover letter
- Scores your CV based on its overall impact, style and brevity
- Provides suggestions on how to optimise and personalise your cover letter
- Allows you to upload job descriptions of roles you are applying for and gives you tips on how to tailor your CV and cover letter to a specific role
When you upload your CV or cover letter, it will receive an overall rating with targeted suggestions to ensure you make it as effective as possible. Don't worry too much about the score you are given, you don't have to get 100%. Pay attention to the suggestions you are given which will help you make improvements, resulting in an increased score.
Still have questions about your CV? You can book an appointment to speak to an adviser who will review your CV and provide feedback on what you can improve.
Tailoring to each application
It is recommended to review and update your CV for each new role you apply to, using the job description and your research on the organisation as your guide on what to include.
How often to update
Proactively updating your CV with new experiences is encouraged, as this will help you remember details and save time when applying for roles.
You may want to keep a long version of your CV that includes all your experience. You can then use this as a starting point for new applications and choose the most relevant information from it as you are tailoring to a role.
To help you contextualise the previous information, this section contains example CVs based on the information that has been mentioned previously.
LinkedIn
LinkedIn is a professional networking tool where you can connect with individuals, groups and companies. If you have a LinkedIn personal profile, you can showcase your experience, knowledge and skills and use it to contact others. It's basically your digital CV. Find out more about
LinkedIn and get advice from our team on creating your profile.
Portfolios and academic CVs
Portfolios
If you have to develop a design portfolio to accompany your CV, for example for roles in architecture, visit our design portfolio page. For portfolios used in medical recruitment, please visit our medical page.
Academic CVs
Usually, CVs should be one or two pages long. CVs for academic roles may be longer. Find out more on our
Postgraduate researcher page.
Creating a CV can seem daunting and there is a lot of information that you have been provided with above. However, it is an important step in your career and can really help land your dream job. The following resources offer opportunities for further reading in the topic.
GoinGlobal
Access more than 16 million worldwide job and internship opportunities as well as CV guidelines for countries who approach them differently to the UK.
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