Writing a winning CV that gets you the job you desire might seem daunting, but an essential CV has elements and tips that showcase your skills, experiences and achievements, increasing your chances of landing an interview. In just a few minutes, you can create a professional-looking CV simply by following the steps below!
Define Your Objective
The objective on the resume provides a brief explanation of your professional goals to potential employers. Identify the job you are targeting and tailor your CV accordingly.
- Make sure you begin by identifying your professional goals and make them realistic.
- Endeavour to use concrete language to describe your achievements.
- Use action verbs to show you achieved results.
Choose a Clear Format
Make sure all the information is relevant and up to date, use a simple, organised layout with headings and subheadings, keep paragraphs short, use bullet points rather than long sentences and choose a readable font such as Cambria, Arial, Garamond and Times New Roman. The best CV format is a reverse chronological resume; you list your academic history and professional experience first after your contact information.
Write a Strong Header
It is a crucial element that sets the tone for your entire CV. It should be clear, professional, and easy to read. Your name should be the most noticeable element in the resume heading to make it stand out. The heading should include:
- Full name
- Professional email address
- Phone number
- LinkedIn profile (or relevant social media)
- Address (optional)
Highlight Your Educational Background
Make sure to list your educational background in chronological order in the CV; you can put your most recent degree first. In other words, work backwards, starting with your most recent degree and including the dates, field of study, degree and institution. Add pertinent curriculum and you can mention pertinent schooling that taught you skills related to the position you’re applying for if you don’t have a lot of professional experience.
Take Note of Any Grants or Honours
Add any research funds, scholarships or honours you have received and emphasize accomplishments. Provide a brief overview of particular certification-related accomplishments or projects. This demonstrates how you’ve used the skills you learnt while earning the certification.
Display Your Skills and Abilities
Emphasise the talents that are most pertinent to the position you are looking for in your skills section. This section can be made easier to scan by using a list with bullets. You can also develop a separate section for your skills, including:
- Technical skills (e.g., programming language software expertise)
- Soft skills (e.g., transmission, collaboration, leadership)
Emphasise Your Work Experience
Present your work experience, focusing on:
- Job title
- Company name
- Dates employed
- Achievements and responsibilities
Add Relevant Sections
Suggest adding sections for certification, awards, publications and presentations.
Proofread and Edit
Check your CV for grammar and punctuation errors, making sure that every word is spelt correctly and punctuation is correctly placed. Also ensure that the style and format are consistent and the dates, job titles and company names are correctly written and referenced.
Get feedback
Give your resume to family, close friends or a career counsellor for input and to make any necessary adjustments.
You will have no trouble creating a winning CV that effectively highlights your accomplishments, expertise and abilities if you follow these instructions!