If your goal is to land the dream job and nail it at the job interview, your CV must be, in plain words, meticulous. Well, this is usually easier said than done because you need to organize it neatly, and in the first place have WHAT to organize. The job search can be a lengthy and tedious process, and if you happen to have more rejections than you had envisioned, you need to boost up your CV to get more responses in the job market. Don’t let a messy and empty CV stop you from landing the job you have always envisioned having, and build it so that you reach your career goals. Here is how!
1. Reform and organize it
Form, vocabulary, register, and style are the first things future employees would look at. If the information on the CV is all-paces, you might get immediately discredited. A rule of thumb says that it takes up to eight seconds for an HR representative to go through the CV to see whether they would consider the candidate for the next round. Therefore, the format itself plays a significant role. What you need to do is have your name and personal information, including a neatly done photograph, placed in the top left or right corner. Insert information about your job experience first and format the wording by having paragraphs and bullet points. Later, insert your education, and other important matters. Break up the information in chunks so it is easier for the HR representative to read and call you for the meeting.
2. Showcase your accomplishments
Apart from crucial information related to job experience, education, and personality characteristics, you need to add other quantifiable statements to make your CV worthwhile. This includes showcasing all your accomplishments throughout your career. For some jobs, it’s of utmost importance to have a driver’s license, and unless you have one, you might want to check out some schools and find professional driver’s license courses to enroll in to get that vital document. Furthermore, you should include other notable accomplishments such as language certifications, seminar and workshop attendance, and other formal education and skills you have acquired during your career. This will skyrocket your chances of securing the passing in the next hiring phase.
3. Consider the length
The CV should neither be too long nor too short. CVs tend to encourage professionals and potential employers to discuss their expertise and qualifications in more detail, therefore, ensure that you reasonably express your thoughts and ideas, even if your resume exceeds one page. If you are at the beginning of your career, it would only be logical that your CV would be shorter than expected. On the other hand, if you happen to be an expired professional with outstanding academic experiences and versatile achievement aiming to take a different career path, then your CV would be more than one page. The key trick to mastering your CV is to insert all things vital for the position you are applying for and to add all certifications, academic achievements, and even completed volunteer hours while not worrying about the length.
4. Aim to upskill
To help you in the job search pursuit, you need to clarify all your past, current, and upcoming objectives. To make your CV look great, you might want to ask around to discover what skills are currently in demand and then take on a course for that. Nowadays, there are numerous ways you can gain new and versatile skills and insert such knowledge to build your CV. You can learn how to use new digital tools or software, join a French class, or upgrade your knowledge by tackling remote working practices. When you have an ideal job in mind, there’s no shame in spending more time than planned to get the desired skills and expertise so as to guarantee the job.
5. Elicit irrelevant details
Lastly, when you have a rich CV and plenty of information due to a well-established career, you could have less relevant intel that may take up too much space. Sit down, examine your CV slowly, and strip it out of irrelevant details. Omit any information that is not currently required for the role you are planning to apply for, rule out the role you have done at the start of your career, and focus on information relevant to the upcoming business role.
Check the grammar, check the spelling, check the spelling, check the format and style, and only then get your thoughts together and send it away.