The Telegraph has published the 15 most common mistakes when writing a CV. A mistake on your CV could cost you the job, yet these simple blunders are easily avoided. The list is as follows:
1. Inclusion of photographs
Unless you are applying to be a model or wish to work as an actor/actress then including a photo with/on your CV is definitely not recommended – at least not within the UK
2. Inappropriate heading
Your CV should be headed with your name, boldly and clearly, before any other details. They should no longer be headed ‘Curriculum Vitae’ or ‘CV’ – this is considered old fashioned.
3. Inappropriate email addresses
Employers will probably regard more ‘serious’ email addresses as simply more professional.
4. Superfluous personal details at the top of the CV
E.g. marital status, nationality and number of children / dependents
It certainly used to be the norm to include this sort of information on a CV, but is now increasingly rare, given modern anti-discrimination legislation, to find these sorts of details on a CV. Such information is not relevant.
5. Lack of clear section headings/separation of sections
It is vitally important for your CV to be easy for the reader to scan quickly and, to this end, clear section headings and separation of sections is essential.
6. Writing in the first person
The words ‘I’ and ‘me’ are often used repeatedly in homemade CVs. CVs should be written exclusively in the third person. Recruitment experts conclusively agree that this is the best way to do it.
7. Lack of proper Professional Profile
A Professional Profile is a brief statement at the very beginning of a CV which, in the space of a few short lines, conveys to the reader an overall impression of your key personal and professional characteristics. It’s essentially an introduction and should give the reader an overview before they read on in further detail.
8. Inappropriate section order
It’s extremely important to choose an appropriate order for the various sections of your CV. For example, the decision whether to put your Education & Qualifications before or after your Career History is critical. It all depends on what is your greater selling point.
9. No bullet pointing
In today’s fast-paced world, recruiters no longer have the time to read large, solid blocks of prose. They need to extract the information they need – and they need to do it fast. Long paragraphs of prose are tiresome for a recruiter to read right through and, as a result, many simply won’t bother.
10. Reverse chronological order not used
It is a standard convention on CVs to use reverse chronological order, i.e. to present your most recent information first, followed by older – and consequently less relevant – information.
11. Excessive details of interests
You should aim to keep your interests section brief. As with every other aspect of your CV, do include what you feel will count in your favour – but be selective about it. Choose carefully.
12. Date of Birth included
I often get asked whether or not you should include your date of birth (or age) on a CV. No, you shouldn’t. Not since the introduction of The Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006.
13. Referees included
Details of referees generally shouldn’t be included on your CV. They’re a waste of valuable space! They clutter it up and, more importantly, you will find that your referees get pestered unnecessarily by time wasters.
14. Spelling, Grammar & Typos
It is impossible to stress enough how important this issue is. Spelling and grammatical errors are amongst the most irritating errors a recruiter sees, amongst the most damaging errors you can make – and are also amongst the most easily avoided.
15. Length
This is one of the most common problems when people prepare their own CVs – they’re quite simply too long.
No comments:
Post a Comment