Consider the following nightmarish scenario: You stroll into a job interview, shake the hiring manager’s hand, settle down, and then realize you’ve arrived entirely empty-handed. No copies of your resume, no pen and paper for notes—it’s a marvel you remembered to apply deodorant!.
Unfortunately, you may have just lost your dream job due to a lack of preparedness. However, it is straightforward to fall into a formula that leaves it at the bottom of the pile. To make sure this never happens to you, make sure you follow this CV checklist to make it stand out!.
CV Checklist To Bag You The Job
Achievements not duties
Your CV should highlight your accomplishments. Your resume will sound more vibrant if you use ‘active’ language rather than ‘passive’ language. Changing ‘engaged in the firm’s promotion at industry events’ to ‘I promoted the company at industry gatherings’ is an example. This makes you sound more like a ‘doer’ than someone who was only ‘engaged.’
Length
The basic rule is that your CV should not be more than two pages long. Employers have a lot of resumes to look at and don’t have time or energy to read your novel of a resume!. Make sure your experience is relevant to the position; but, if you have a lot of appropriate abilities.
It’s all about tailoring and fine-tuning, so a Saturday job you had five years ago might not be necessary when you have a lot of other experience!.
Revamp It
Make sure your CV is up to date regularly! To meet the employment requirements, you’re applying for, you must keep all of your experience up to date!.
Please take this opportunity to go over old information, amend it, and double-check that all of your contact information is up to current! Imagine getting the job, but the phone number you provided is outdated and unusable!.
Edit, edit, edit
The first things employers check for in a CV are grammatical errors and omissions. It offers you a sense of pride and reflects your eagerness for the task if it appears that you have spent time over the process.
No matter how qualified you are, an employer will be turned off by a hasty and ill-planned CV. Regardless of experience, companies are quick to dismiss a CV with errors favouring someone who has put effort and time into their job!
You should also double-check all contact information, including addresses, phone numbers, and emails, and avoid dates that conflict!.
Focus it
Ask yourself the industry sector or job you’re applying for, and then design your CV accordingly. To catch an employer’s attention, make sure your relevant experience is the first thing they see. Don’t worry if you don’t think you’ve got any relevant experience! Instead, emphasize how your prior expertise is relevant to the job you’re looking for!
So you want to be a teacher, but you’ve only ever worked in retail? Do not be concerned! Your ability to think quickly and address a problem with an unhappy customer has given you a propensity for initiative, which will come in handy when calming down classroom conflicts!
Could you keep it simple?
The layout, like the font, is crucial to a decent CV! To ensure that the employer is aware of the entire scope of your abilities, they must be able to read it! The best formats for this are simple ones! Consider using templates to assist you.
Make it unique
Your CV should highlight your unique set of skills and experience. It must also pique the employer’s interest!. Using tinted paper, but not neon – it still has to be professional – is an easy way to do this.
Consider a paper with a slightly different cast than standard white. Also, don’t forget about the font; make it smooth and readable, but don’t feel obligated to use the legal options! Finally, remember that taking risks can be beneficial, but only to a certain level!.
