Are you here for our wonderful cover letter & CV template? Great! Go ahead and download it for free in this secure link: Download Seven’s Free Cover Letter & CV Template – (open the document on a PC or laptop for best results).
Before you ask, “why is the template full of Charlie Jones’ social care experience?”. Don’t worry, this is dummy text and you can easily replace it with information relevant to you and your sector. Charlie Jones doesn’t even exist! But if they did, we would 100% hire them.
So, your CV now looks the part, but what do you write in it? Keep scrolling for top tips on how to write the perfect CV.
You’re in safe hands. Our recruitment experts read thousands of CV’s every day, so they have a pretty good idea of what will grab the attention of your future employers.
How To Write The Perfect CV
Whether you’re looking for a full-time position, temporary work, or you’re a graduate embarking on your first journey in the world of work, getting your CV right is crucial to securing that all-important interview.
You want to sound professional yet personable, organised yet passionate, experienced yet willing to learn.
Fitting everything into just one or two pages can seem overwhelming, but it needn’t be! As you can see in our free CV template, it’s all about being clear concise.
For Experienced Professionals;
If you’ve already got experience in the field, perfecting your CV will be all about cherry-picking the most relevant highlights in your experience and showing that your professional skills make you the perfect match for the role.
Don’t be afraid to tailor.
- While every CV should have a certain amount of basic detail, it’s always a good idea to edit your information to suit the position you’re applying for. Most job listings usually ask for specific skills or experience so make sure to highlight these in your CV and minimise anything that’s not as relevant.
Cut the porkies!
- If there’s a specific area of work you’d like to move into but you don’t yet have the right background, don’t lie about it or over exaggerate on your CV. Firstly, employers will check your references. Secondly, lying (or subtly bending the truth) only ends up landing you in a job that you don’t have the experience to deal with — which can result in a miserable experience for you, your employer and most importantly, your customers!
Keep it professional.
- As with any CV, you want to make sure yours is clear, concise, and free of any mistakes. Choose succinct summaries of your responsibilities at each position over lengthy or wordy explanations. Spell-check and ask someone to read your CV over for you, to make sure there are no errors. Lastly, do try to keep your CV to two pages at most — anything more than that usually won’t be read, meaning employers could be missing out on crucial information that makes you perfect for their position.
Keep it personal.
- That being said, a huge part of your job is getting along with your team and communicating well with customers. Don’t make the mistake of only listing impressive qualifications and specialities; make sure you highlight a few of your soft skills too. Use the ‘hobbies’ or ‘interests’ section of your CV to highlight your love of the sector you’re in or why you’re passionate about your career.
Stand out!
- Above all, a CV is supposed to show an employer why you, and only you, are the best person for the job. You want to make yourself stand out as a unique candidate so always highlight any unusual or interesting experience. Have you worked in a specific type of team or service? Are you a specialist in a particular subject? Have you worked in a niche or senior position? Make sure the employer can see exactly what you do and what you can offer.
Need more info on writing a CV that’s going to get you that all-important interview? Here are some extra tips for the perfect prep:
Extra CV Tips;
Always streamline.
- Our candidates usually have a wide range of responsibilities that differ from role to role. Instead of trying to cram this all on two pages, streamline your CV down to only the key experience that is being asked for. For example, if a job listing mentions emergency care, make sure any experience you have in that area takes precedent.
Highlight business skills.
- Depending on the role, many candidates often have to have excellent business skills including administration and organisation. Remember to highlight these in your CV as well as your specialist skills.
CV Writing Tips for Graduates;
Are you fresh out of uni and itching to start work? Are you searching for the elusive formula to securing an interview without any practical experience? Don’t worry, we’ve got your back! Here are a couple of CV writing tips to give you a head-start.
No experience? No problem.
- While it’s a massive bonus to have a demonstrable amount of work experience on your CV, you’re not going to be able to fill your pages with lists of previous positions in the way an experienced professional can. Instead, focus on attributes that make you stand out from other graduates. Study areas you excelled in, volunteering work, extra responsibilities you were given as part of your work experience, and specialist studies or research can all help you stand out.
Get help from a professional.
- Before embarking on your job hunt, it’s always a good idea to seek help from a careers advisor or recruiter. Not only can they help you identify your ideal career and how to achieve it, they can also look over your CV for you. If possible, try to get someone with industry experience to take a look at your CV too, just to make sure you’re on the right track.
Take control of social media.
- One of the first things an employer will usually do is check out a candidate’s online presence. If you’re a recent graduate, make sure your social media isn’t full of posts and pictures detailing every night out you had at university! That’s not to say you can’t be human, just try to hide or untag yourself in anything you wouldn’t want an employer to see. A good idea is to have a personal and a business profile across all your social media accounts. Then you can keep your professional profiles public and make your personal accounts private.
Hopefully that’s given you plenty of tips as you move forward in your career search. If you’d like any more advice on securing your dream job or perfecting your CV, contact us today!
If you read this at the speed of light and missed our interview-busting CV template & cover letter, click here for your free download. Happy job-hunting!
