We are living in a rapidly transforming social scenario where everything changes at a fast pace. The job market and recruitment policies of the companies are also no exception to these changes. A good job that not only pays your bills but a job that you enjoy as well becomes a much-coveted thing today. We all would like to get a job that will be a perfect fit for us.
As if it wasn’t tricky already to land a job, writing the perfect CV or curriculum vitae becomes a challenge. You apply for a job and wait for their response which never arrives. Now at this point, your mind must be clouded with all kinds of thoughts about what could have gone wrong, where you could have made a mistake.
Now there could be only one of the two reasons or both for you not getting a response from the company: you lack the skill set required for the job, or you lack the skill to highlight your skills on your resume. If you also have suffered multiple rejections over time, we are here to help you with some writing tips for curriculum vitae so that you get a fair chance to compete and don’t get rejected at the first step based on your disorganized curriculum vitae.
Also Read: Resume Templates Examples Doc Word download
What is a Curriculum Vitae?
CV is the short form of curriculum vitae. It means “course of life” in Latin. A curriculum vitae traces your academic as well as work life. It is a written document that highlights the achievements of your scholarly career. More often than not, people get confused between curriculum vitae and resume. So, is there any specific difference between the two? No! Curriculum vitae are the British equivalent of an American resume. It is a detailed list of specifications.
Curriculum Vitae Format
How to write curriculum vitae for job applications is a skill everyone must learn to master. The candidate must realize that he needs to make his curriculum vitae stand out among a pool of other applicants. Research shows that on a daily basis, a recruiter receives over a hundred job applications. Until and unless you give him something to keep his interest, the chances of you not making it through the first round of sieving is very high. One way of doing it is by following a proper curriculum vitae format to make it look more organized. You can take hints from the curriculum vitae format mentioned below and write your curriculum vitae correctly.
In order to have a more clean and organized look, the curriculum vitae must be written in proper order.
Contact information
Your contact information must have your full name along with your phone number and email address. Some recruiters like to do some pre-research on their candidates, for which they tend to use their social media profiles such as LinkedIn or Instagram if it’s a business application. You are out of the race if your social media profiles are unprofessional or if the information on your curriculum vitae has no authenticity compared to your profiles. You can also add your postal address in this section if applicable.
Curriculum Vitae Objective or Curriculum Vitae Summary
One mistake that most people make is, after listing contact information, they jump right on to describing their work experience or education. Take some time to reflect on the job you are applying for and write succinctly why you are the right candidate.
Career objective is a good choice if you have a little work experience relevant to the job and highlight them. It is more suitable for fresh graduates and people who are in the early years of their careers.
On the other hand, the curriculum vitae summary is for seasoned professionals with a lot of experience in their field. A summary for them will highlight all their achievements and progress.
A sample for curriculum vitae objective
Aiming to gain practical accounting experience with the peerless finance team at your company
(To make it more specific, use the company’s name instead of your company.)
A sample for curriculum vitae summary
Receptionist with over 5 years of experience in both public and private sectors. Personable, diplomatic, and highly organized. Adept at managing sensitive situations with computer proficiency.
Work experience
When it comes to the work experience section, it needs to be given special care as the recruiter will spend the most time looking at this section. This section is not only about what you did but also about how well you did it. Use more action words like organized, created, implemented, analyzed, etc. To make it more catchy, tailor your curriculum vitae as per the job requirements. Highlight your previous experience with responsibilities that will be expected out of you at your new job, even if those were not your primary responsibilities.
Education
Keep this section filled with only your highest or relevant educational qualification. No need to mention your high school or senior secondary details unless that’s your highest qualification.
Tip: Mentioning your honors is optional. Don’t mention them if you don’t want them to do more harm than good. Mention them only if you have achieved a “distinction.”
Skills
You may have acquired a lot of skills over the years. But keep in mind that the recruiter is looking for a specific set of skills, and not all of the skills you have acquired will be relevant for the job. Hence, it is advisable to mention only those relevant to the job you are applying for.
Additional sections
Use this section as the serving, as a cherry on top. Use this section to show off your unquestionable triumphs. These things will prove your value as a candidate. If you are a fresher, this section can include your volunteer experience, hobbies, and interest, projects, freelance work, personal blog, etc. If you are a professional, this section may include industry awards, professional certifications, publications, conferences, additional training, etc.
Also Read: 20+ Students Resume Examples & Templates For All Students
Writing Tips for the perfect CV
Here are some points to remember before you jot down the right CV:
Choose clear legible fonts
Use fonts like Arial, Tahoma or Times New Roman, or Bookman Old Style in the font size 11 or 12 to write your curriculum vitae. Keep your name in a slightly larger font. Also, use proper spacing in your text.
Be consistent with your layout.
Keep it consistent in terms of your font size and date format. Keep your heading in bold. Avoid italics and underlining as much as you can.
Don’t cram your curriculum vitae.
Don’t cram it up with too much of a graphic. This might make it illegible when it gets printed in black ink later on. Also, don’t attach your photograph unless it is explicitly asked. And if it is asked, use a professional-looking picture but not as stiff as an ID photo.
Make it brief and relevant.
Keep only to the requirements of the job. Mention only the details that will be relevant to the job you are applying to. Save your curriculum vitae to keep the layout intact. Some recruiters want it in PDF format, and some ask for a word file.
Conclusion
You have the best curriculum vitae template, and now you can use it to the best of your advantage. Using the above-mentioned basic writing rules, you can easily create a curriculum vitae within minutes. Stick to the relevance of your information. It may vary from job to job and from industry to industry. So make considerable changes accordingly, and you’ll be good to go.
FAQs
1. What is a template for a CV?
Ans: A template for a CV gives you a proper order to follow while writing your CV. The one mentioned above is a classic chronological CV template.
2. Are there any free CV templates?
Ans: There are numerous templates for CV waiting to be explored for free. Microsoft Office and Google Docs offer excellent CV templates in their repositories.
3. How to write your first CV?
Ans: To do that, you need to sit back and make a list of all your professional and academic qualifications and achievements and arrange them either in the order mentioned above or in any other CV format. Also, keep in mind to keep your educational qualifications above your work experience if you are a fresher.
4. How is a CV different from a resume?
Ans: The key difference is that a resume is a summary of your work experience summed up in a page. At the same time, curriculum vitae are a longer academic record that includes all your experience, publications, and certificates. Also, a resume is tailored for a specific job, while curriculum vitae are more like a comprehensive overview.
5. Can I use a CV in place of a resume?
Ans: Yes, of course. As mentioned above, curriculum vitae are more comprehensive in nature and can be used to apply for a job in any industry. A resume, on the other hand, is more specific and is tailored according to your job. This gives you an edge over other applicants.
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