How to write a CV [Get noticed by employers]

a strong cv is your gateway to success when job hunting it's the very first impression that employer will have of you so you need to make sure it impresses this video guide will show you how to write a winning cv that will get you noticed by recruiters and employers and land you plenty of job interviews here at standout cv we've helped hundreds of thousands of people to land their dream jobs and hopefully the advice in this video will do the same for you during the course of the video you will learn what research needs to

be done before you start writing your cv how to structure your cv to best please recruiters how to format your cv for a professional outlook how to write a profile that will grab recruiters attention how to detail your work experience and education and if and how to include your hobbies and interests the biggest mistake that jobseekers make is failing to research their target roles before writing their cv if you don't know what skills and knowledge your potential employers are looking for it will be difficult to write a cv that impresses them so before you start

writing your cv you need to hit the job boards and browse through lots of relevant job adverts in your industry take note of the candidate requirements that keep appearing and make a list of them focus on hard skills such as industry specific skills i t system knowledge languages and qualifications don't worry too much about soft skills like communication teamwork and problem solving soft skills are great to have but they are applicable to most jobs so you need to focus on hard skills in your cv once you have a list of the most in demand skills

and knowledge for your target roles you know exactly what to focus your cv around this preparation will make the task of writing it much easier for you the structure and format of your cv will define its overall outlook and determine how the document will be read your cv should look flawlessly professional and should be easy for busy recruiters to navigate and find the information they need firstly you should use a word processing program like microsoft word or google docs to create your cv they are very easy to use and are the globally recognized format for

cvs across all industries here's an overview of how to format your cv keep the format simple by sticking to a clean and crisp font that can be easily read the color scheme should also be basic black text on white background is best don't be tempted to use fancy fonts and wacky color schemes in a bid to stand out this will look unprofessional and could make the cv difficult to read there is no set in stone rule around cv length but two pages of a4 is usually enough to tell your story without boring readers just remember

that recruiters and hiring managers sometimes see hundreds of cvs a day so try to keep it concise if you want to hold their attention use bold headings to divide the sections of your cv this will help recruiters to navigate it when skin reading once you have a format for your cv you need to structure it in a way that draws attention to your most valuable skills and creates a pleasant reading experience this is a brief overview of how to structure your cv before we delve into the details of each section your name and contact details

should sit at the very top of your cv so that recruiters can easily see how to contact you your cv profile or personal statement is a brief introductory paragraph that summarizes your abilities and aims to grab recruiters attention when the cv is first opened a bullet pointed list of your most relevant skills provides a snapshot of your offerings as a candidate your work experience should be listed in reverse chronological order to showcase your ability to apply your skills in the workplace your education should be listed near the bottom of your cv hobbies and interests are

an optional section and can be added to the bottom of your cv if you think they will add any value to your applications now let's take a look at each section in detail and how to write them you don't want your contact details to be missed so place them at the very top of your cv underneath your name you can also add a professional title next to your name to really set the tone of the cv anything from management accountant to chemistry graduate ideally it should relate to the roles you are applying for the only

contact details you need to include are your email address just make sure it's a professional looking one with no nicknames your phone number and your location you don't need to include your full address date of birth marital status or a photo of yourself none of these things will have any effect on a hiring decision and they will waste valuable space your cv profile or personal statement as it's also known is the first proper content section of your cv it is an introductory paragraph which summarizes your skills experience and knowledge and its purpose is to catch

recruiters eyes when they open your cv excite them and encourage them to read the rest of your cv it should give readers a nice overview of your industry specific skills types of companies you've worked for qualifications and the benefits you deliver for an employer to write a successful cv profile you should keep it short and sharp somewhere between five and ten lines pack it with in-demand skills and experience and avoid using cliche terms like hard working team player underneath your profile add a bullet pointed list of core skills your most valuable attributes split over two

or three columns keep the points under three words ideally so that they jump off the page and create a snapshot of your offerings which can be digested in seconds by busy recruiters and hiring managers it's a great tool for making sure readers stick to your cv and don't skip past it again these points should be heavily tailored towards your target roles including things like role specific skills qualifications market or industry knowledge languages and i t skills they can also be quickly edited if you need to tweak the cv slightly when applying for different roles your

work experience gives you a great opportunity to demonstrate your ability to apply your skills in the workplace and prove the impact you make your work experience should be listed in reverse chronological order that's latest to oldest with plenty of detail in recent roles and less detail in older roles the reason for this is that employers are more interested in your recent work as it gives a better reflection of your current capabilities if you don't have any direct paid work experience you can also add voluntary roles school or university work placements part-time jobs or any example

where you have worked to support a company or organization when writing role descriptions within your cv you need to ensure that you make it easy for recruiters to read them and process the information you are trying to get across this simple but effective structure is a great way to do that head each roll with the dates you are employed name of the employer and your role title follow with an introductory line which describes who the employer is where you sit within the organization and what the overall goal of the role is this builds context for

readers then list your responsibilities in short concise bullet points try to showcase your full skill set and demonstrate how your actions impact the employer most importantly try to round your roles off with impressive achievements that have made big positive impacts for your employer and try to quantify these achievements with facts and figures where you can to truly show how valuable you can be good examples of achievements include saving costs generating revenue saving time improving processes hitting targets and helping customers although there should be mentions of any important qualifications in your profile your full education section

should be placed near the bottom of your cv it should simply be a list of all the relevant qualifications you have along with dates obtained if you are an experienced candidate you can keep the detail light here but if you are a junior candidate then it will be worth going into some more depth hobbies and interests are an optional section and it's entirely up to you whether you include them or not you should only include them if you feel they will have a positive effect on your applications common interests such as eating out or watching

movies probably won't make a big impression on anybody so leave them out however if you have interests that are related to your target roles then it would be beneficial to include them for example you may be applying for writing positions and you run your own personal blog this will give you a chance to showcase more relevant skills and experience it can also help to include impressive achievements such as running a marathon or raising money for charity these types of achievements can show that you are driven and help you to stand out especially if you have

limited experience that brings us to the end of this cv video guide hopefully you found it helpful if you want to save this video to come back and replay whilst you write your cv don't forget to like the video and subscribe to our channel also if you want more cv advice or tips on how to land your next job please leave a comment telling us what help you would like from us below the video we will make more helpful job hunting videos based on your suggestions good luck with your job hunt