80% of CVs Don’t Make It Past The First Screen – Make Sure Yours Isn’t One Of Them!
Do you get a brain freeze every time you go to write your CV? Not sure where to start? Worried about how to fit everything into those all-important two pages? Maybe you don’t feel like you have enough to say. Don’t worry. You’re in the right place, my friend. I’m Elizabeth Willetts, Founder of the Investing in Women job board and recruitment site. I have over 18 years of corporate recruitment experience. I’ve reviewed thousands of CVs during my career. Here’s my step-by-step guide on quickly writing a brilliant CV to help you land an interview for your dream job.
Step 1: CV Structure
Recruiters get hundreds of job applications per job advert. They don’t have time to spend hours reviewing your CV to see if you have the relevant skills and experience, so an easy-to-follow structure is essential. Make sure you exclude all fluff. Keep your CV relevant and to the point. We prefer that all CVs follow a similar format so we know exactly where to find the information we’re looking for. Think like a recruiter – what questions would they have regarding your application? The fewer question marks they have, the more likely you’ll get to the top of their shortlist pile. They want your CV to give them the information they’re looking for easily and accessibly. To get a head start with your CV, download my FREE CV template here.
To be brutally honest, a Recruiter will decide whether to reject or progress your application in less than 10 seconds. Follow these simple steps when formatting your CV to ensure yours is not sent straight to the reject pile:
1) Appearance. Keep the font clean (Calibri or Arial) and easy to read (size 11 for the main points and 14 for the headings). Use black text on a white background. Don’t include any fancy (i.e., distracting) graphics (unless you are applying for a graphic design job or a similar role). We don’t need a photograph. Unless you want to be the next Kate Moss, no one will (in theory) be interested in what you look like. It takes up valuable space on what should be a short document and runs the risk of creating bias and opinion on you (and not your experience) before you’ve even been interviewed.
2) Personal Details. These should be at the top of your CV and include your Name, Location, Email Address, Phone Number and LinkedIn profile (if applicable). Please don’t include your age, date of birth, marital status, dog’s name – you get my drift!
3) Personal Profile or Biography. This should be a few sentences under your personal details that explain who you are, your key experience, the roles you are interested in, and why you’re looking for a new job. Think of it as a professional Instagram bio. If you’re on a notice period of less than a week, include it here along with your interview availability.
4) Career to date. Start with your most recent job, then add previous jobs in reverse chronological order. Add your job title as a bold header, followed by your employer’s name. Include dates employed ‘from – until’ (see my Top Tip below).
Now, list your responsibilities under each job header in bullet points so they are easy to skim. Be specific about your role and duties, and avoid generalisations. Consider the Hiring Manager’s perspective when writing about your responsibilities. You need to demonstrate your potential value to them, so ensure you include details of the impact you’ve had on each task. A good question to ask yourself when writing about previous roles is, ‘So what?’ This will force you to expand on responsibilities and spell out the benefits you brought when doing your role – and, therefore, the value you can potentially bring elsewhere.
If you’ve been in various roles with a single employer for several years, group them under a large heading, with each individual role under a sub-heading. This will help you avoid looking like a job hopper (if you haven’t been) and also demonstrate that your previous employer valued you enough to promote you through several roles.
Top Tip – if you have a career gap that you don’t want to highlight or perhaps didn’t stay with your previous employer for as long as you would have hoped, then put the dates employed to the right of the page. Placed here, they are naturally less visible (remember we read left to right). This keeps the reader focused on your job title, skills and experience rather than how long you have worked somewhere (or been out of work for). Make sure you also read my blog post – The Secret To Confidently Stepping Into Your Job Search, after a career break here.
Finally, add your reason for leaving each job in a short bullet point under your responsibilities.
5) Education. Your education should go under work history – unless you are a school leaver or recent graduate. Start with your most recent education first and work backwards. Include dates attended, which institution, what you studied and grades (if you did well). You don’t need to go as far back as GCSEs (unless you’re applying for your first job). You should include A-Levels (or equivalent) and above. Add all relevant training and professional qualifications to this section.
5) IT Skills. Are you a whizz at Excel, have an excellent working knowledge of some fancy software package, or are you brilliant at designing PowerPoint presentations? Let us know here! Specific systems skills are essential for certain roles, so don’t forget to include all the bespoke (and more vanilla) systems you can use.
6) Languages. If you speak any languages, put them here, along with your fluency level. Being multilingual will make you stand out from the crowd and give you an edge over other candidates.
7) Full Driving Licence. Only add this if it is relevant to the jobs you are applying for (and applicable!).
8) References. DO NOT PUT YOUR REFERENCE DETAILS ON A CV. Put this instead: ‘References available on request’ – or you can leave it out entirely. If you put your actual referees on your CV, nothing stops the Hiring Manager from contacting them to find out more about you – even before inviting you to interview. This could put you in the awkward position of being forced to explain why you are looking for a new role if your referee is your current or most recent employer (and they should be at least one of your referees).
I’ll also let you into a secret. Back in my Recruitment Agency days, if a candidate put referee details on their CV, a Recruiter would be on the phone with these referees immediately. This would be in the hope of backfilling your vacancy (remember, this is before you have even secured an interview)! Your referee is now on a sales call that they’d rather not be on. If asked how the Recruiter got their details, an inexperienced Recruiter might let it slip that they came from your CV. You do not want to be in the bad books of someone who will do you a favour by (hopefully) providing a good reference. You provide references at the job offer and acceptance stage.
Top Tip: Given the importance of formatting, I always advise sending CVs as PDFs rather than Word documents when applying for jobs. Although Word is best for editing, and therefore, you should always work from a CV in Word, the format can change depending on which device it’s viewed on. PDFs keep their format – no matter which device. So, edit it in Word, download it, and send it as a PDF unless the Recruiter asks otherwise.
Step 2: Use relevant keywords in your CV
You should know this – the Recruiter does not always do the first CV sift. This task may be performed by a computer (an Applicant Tracking System) or an outsourced CV screener. This CV screener may be based abroad and not speak English as a first language. This individual (or computer) will do CV sifts for multiple jobs. They won’t have spoken to the hiring manager and will rely primarily on what is written in the job advert to decide whether you are suitable. Therefore, your application will only pass the first sift if it contains the keywords and phrases asked for in the job advert. If they are not there, you will be rejected.
Make it easy for you (and the screener!). Fill your CV with the keywords used in the job advert. Don’t be clever; avoid fancy alternatives or abbreviations. Pretend your mum is reviewing your CV against the job advert, and you can’t go far wrong.
Step 3: What impact have you made?
This is so important. What positive difference will be made to the organisation by hiring you? Depending on the job vacancy, the Hiring Manager is fundamentally interested in one of three things:
- Can you save them time?
- Can you save them money?
- Will you make them money?
Maybe you are an Accountant who previously automated a set of reports, saving hours at month-end. Perhaps you work in procurement and have negotiated a new contract with a stationery supplier, saving thousands of pounds a year. You could be a salesperson who won a large contract with a prestigious client, making significant revenue for your previous employer.
This is all great stuff that they want to know! Therefore, include some key achievements in each job section under their own sub-heading so they stand out.
When writing about your achievements, follow the STAR technique (you can also use this when answering competency-based interview questions):
- Situation – share some context around the challenge faced.
- Task – what was your responsibility in overcoming this challenge?
- Action – what step-by-step action did you take to solve the problem?
- Result – how did this benefit your employer? Did it save x amount of time, x amount of money, etc.?
Step 4: Look professional
Your CV is a professional document that will (hopefully) be seen by your next boss. You want to make the right first impression. Therefore, if you have a silly email address from your teenage years, change it now! Use your first name dot surname at yahoo.com or hotmail.com (or similar)—something simple that won’t create any negative preconceptions about you.
Top Tip: Consider what to name your document when you save it. For example, Elizabeth Willetts looks cleaner and reads better than LizWilletts01Feb2024. It also makes your CV easier to find in a busy inbox.
Step 5: Keep it short and snappy
Your CV should mirror the job advert. It just gives the Hiring Managers a flavour of who you are, what you have done and your relevance to the role. Its main aim is to hook them in and demonstrate your potential value to them, so they want to know more about you and invite you to interview. Therefore, they don’t need to see the daily ins and outs of a role you did ten years ago. Your last two roles are the most important and should contain the most detail. You also don’t need to include a complete list of every hobby you have.
Top Tip – if you are worried about going over 2 pages, narrow the margins to fit more words onto the page rather than reduce the font size, making your CV harder to read. If you really can’t get your CV down to 2 pages because you have lots of RELEVANT experience, don’t stress too much, but don’t go over 3 pages.
Step 6: Check and double-check
I cannot tell you how important this is. Once you have finished writing your CV, please read it, read it, and then reread it. Then, send it to someone else to read through. A simple spelling mistake can cost you the interview – Recruter, anyone?!? Poor spelling looks sloppy. It creates an impression that you will overlook things and make mistakes in the role.
Top Tip: Keep things consistent throughout your CV. If you use shortened months for dates employed for your first job, don’t use longer ones for the next job.
Skills-Based CVs
Okay, let’s talk about the elephant in the room, the rebellious cousin of the traditional CV: the skills-based CV. I’m not gonna lie; I’m not their biggest fan. I feel they’re often a jumbled mess of keywords, lacking the clear timeline and narrative flow that I, as a busy Recruiter starting my day with multiple applications to review, need to quickly assess if someone has the right skills and experience. And I know I’m not the only Recruiter who feels this way. Yep – when I said we could receive 100s of applications per role and therefore only have seconds to assess your CV, I wasn’t lying.
To be honest, they feel like a candidate is trying to hide something, trying to distract you with glittery skills instead of solid experience. But I’m not here to judge; I’m here to inform. So, let’s explore the world of skills-based CVs, shall we?
Why Use One?
Career Change: You’re jumping ship, leaving the comfort of your current field for new pastures. A skills-based CV can showcase transferable skills, highlighting what you bring to the table when your job titles don’t scream relevance.
Limited Experience: Fresh out of school or lacking years of formal experience? Skills-based CVs can spotlight your skills and achievements, even if they come from volunteering, freelance gigs, or side hustles – although most Recruiters understand fresh graduates or school leavers’ relative lack of experience, and a traditional format should still serve you fine.
Gaps in Employment: Don’t want to broadcast your career sabbatical or job hopping? This format can downplay the timeline, focusing instead on what you can do instead.
How to Do It Right (If You Must):
Tailor, Tailor, Tailor: Don’t just copy-paste the same skills from job advert to job advert. Analyse each role, identify the key skills they need, and tailor your CV accordingly.
Quantify, Quantify, Quantify: Numbers are your friend. Quantify your impact instead of just saying you’re “excellent” at communication. Did you increase website traffic by 20% through your blog posts? Did your presentation save the company £5,000?
Use Strong Action Verbs: Ditch the passive voice and let your skills shine. “Managed a team of 10” becomes “Led a team of 10 to achieve a 15% increase in productivity by…”
Keep it Short and Focused: Remember, recruiters are busy. Aim for a maximum of two pages and prioritise skills relevant to the specific job.
Don’t Ditch the Traditional Entirely: Include a brief work history section, even if it’s not the main focus. This provides context for your skills and shows you’re not a complete mystery.
Final Verdict:
Skills-based CVs aren’t my cup of tea, but can be useful tools in specific situations. Just use them strategically, tailor them meticulously, and, for the love of all that is holy, avoid the keyword-stuffed mess. Remember, clarity and relevance are still the king (or queen) of the CV world.
If you’re still not convinced, feel free to stick to the tried-and-true traditional format. There’s no shame in embracing your career history in all its glory and showcasing your experience in a clear, straightforward way. After all, a good CV is one that gets you the interview, regardless of its format.
That’s it – my simple tips on writing a professional CV that won’t leave you in cold sweats AND hopefully secure you an interview. My FREE CV template makes it so simple to write a perfect CV that won’t send you straight to the reject pile. You literally just have to insert your own details. Make sure you download your free resume template today.
For more CV do’s and don’ts, check out my blog post – The Top 5 Most Common CV Mistakes – And How To Avoid Them!
Good luck with your job search. Let me know how you get on by tagging me on Instagram or sending me a message here or on LinkedIn. I can’t wait to hear that you have landed your dream job!
Blog Summary:
Capture Attention Quickly: Understand that recruiters spend an average of just 10 seconds reviewing CVs. Structure your CV to highlight your most relevant experiences and skills upfront, ensuring you make it onto the shortlist.
Structure is Key: Your CV should follow a traditional format to make it easy for recruiters to find the information they need. This includes a clean layout, personal details, a personal profile, a detailed career history, education, and additional skills or languages.
Highlight Your Impact: Beyond listing your responsibilities, use the STAR technique to emphasise the tangible impact you’ve made in your roles. This helps recruiters see the value you could bring to their company.
Professional Presentation Matters: Ensure your CV is professionally presented, with a sensible email address and a filename that reflects your name professionally. Meticulously proofread to avoid spelling mistakes or inconsistencies.
Consider the Format: While traditional chronological CVs are preferred for clarity, skills-based CVs can be useful in certain situations, such as career changes or when emphasising transferable skills. However, they must be well-tailored and clear to be effective.
If you want interview advice, check out my blog post – How to prepare for an interview and land your dream job.
Crafting a CV that stands out in a sea of applicants can be daunting, but it’s your first step towards landing that dream job. If you’re looking for expert guidance to ensure your CV not only ticks all the boxes but also tells your unique professional story, our CV Glow-Up service is here to help. We provide industry-specific keyword optimisation and a compelling narrative that showcases your skills and achievements. Elevate your job application with our CV Glow-Up service and take the first step towards a career that fulfils you.