Feeling stylish
Perhaps using a border (something tasteful) or a tinted background will help you to stand out from the crowd – or maybe consider columns. Play around with the style until you find the one that makes your CV stand out – but in a good way. There are plenty of CV templates you can download for free.
Show yourself
What should really grab an employer’s attention is your personal statement or profile – an employer with a stack of CVs to read will have limited time to scrutinise each one and may only give each a few seconds (the average is six seconds) before deciding whether it’s worth carrying on reading or is rejected. Your statement has to sparkle and catch their interest. Avoid generic statements: “I’m hard-working,
reliable, flexible and work well with others or alone” – employers will expect these qualities from every employee. What employers want to see is a short, snappy profile statement that demonstrates your qualities, skills and experience and whether they match the requirements of the job.
Know your stuff
Flaunt your skillset
Employers don’t want to read through an endless list of generic skills – they will look for those that relate to the job for which they are hiring. The usual ones to mention are languages (good conversational French, basic Spanish, Russian, etc), computing (good working knowledge of MS, Access, Excel and programmes specific to hotel trade, etc) and driving (full clean driving licence, HGV, PSV, etc). Achievements can also be highlighted here – perhaps you’ve won an award. You need to blow your own trumpet to get yourself noticed!
Employment history
References
Ideally you should be able to supply references from your two most recent employers – if this is not possible, you could also use an academic reference or a character reference from a professional person. Many employers won’t be checking references at the application stage, so it’s fine on a CV to state ‘References available upon request’. Often though, when there is stiff competition
for a particular job role, an employer may have a number of suitable candidates to choose from. Having contact details for your referees on your CV (always agreed with the referees beforehand!) might give you the edge, as the employer could make a quick phone call to confirm that you are the right person for the job.
A little bit extra
Reverse chronological order is best, showing your most recent position first. As well as showing the name of the employer and your job title, don’t forget to include those all too important ‘from’ and ‘to’ dates – if you leave these out, most employers will wonder just when it was that you last worked and may even reject your application. Rather than listing the tasks involved with each job role, instead explain the roles and your responsibilities, including any key achievements – it will make for a far more interesting read.
Education and qualifications
Familiarise yourself with the vacancy information and use the job description to help identify the specific skills required that match your own skill set. Injecting passion and personality into your statement will go a long way to helping you nail the job.
Put your highest qualification first: degree subject and university, then A levels and GCSEs (or equivalent). Don’t forget any work-based qualifications that are relevant to the vacancy: hospitality practice, restaurant and bar service, front office, etc.
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You may also decide to add your hobbies and interests and any other additional information that you’ve not included elsewhere – it’s your personal choice.
Remember!
There are no hard and fast rules about what should or should not be on your CV and what order you choose to display it, but it has to be positive, personalised and tailored to your chosen employer or sector.
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