Having a well-written, nice-looking resume is a critical piece of the job hunt puzzle. Here are 10 tips to help you accomplish the task:
Have a Winning CV
1. Presentation is important. Don’t hand-write your CV, or use wacky typefaces or colored paper. Arial or Times New Roman will do fine, in 10, 11 or 12 point.
2. Pay attention to layout: make your resume easy to read by spacing sections out and keeping margins generous.
3. Use a ‘professional’ sounding email address such as (your real name)@hotmail.com rather than [email protected]
4. Keep it simple. Weigh up information that has to be on there with stuff that’s more suited to conversation at interview.
5. Use active verbs (such as ‘achieved’, ‘set up’, ‘managed’, ‘led’) to make you sound positive and dynamic.
6. Don’t use bullet points: prose is easier to read and allows you to get more description into the same space.
7. Proofread (for spelling errors, misuse of words or poor grammar). Then do it again.
8. Then ask someone else to do it, too.
9. One last check: has the CV got your name, address, phone number and email address on it?
10. If you’re applying for more than one kind of job, you’ll need more than one CV. Have a ‘skeleton’ CV but be prepared to change the order of things around or highlight particular skills or experiences to fit the job you’re going for.