When a recruiter is looking at your CV, they are probably swamped by hundreds of others. So, this process will probably only take them as little as 10 to 15 seconds, especially when they have loads of other CV to look at. So how do you make your CV stand out? If this is your dream job that you are applying for, then you need to make sure that you beat all the other applicants, but how do you do this?
The way to do this, is to make sure that you impress at every possible opportunity and your first chance is with your CV. Whether it’s a recruiter, manager or HR professional reviewing your resume, they will know exactly what they’re looking for. In fact, they can probably spot a bad resume from a mile away, so you will want to make sure that you make a great first impression on them. Below you will find out how to do this!
Do you have the Relevant Skills?
A sure way to impress the person who is reading your CV is to list the same skills as the one on the job description (obviously you shouldn’t lie, but you can spin it to fit better with what they want). However, you need to make sure that they can see these skills within the first three seconds of reading your CV. You need to make sure that you either have a Summary or Skills section, which is tailored to the job that you are applying for.
Don’t worry too much if your job that you are applying for has a different title to what you are currently doing either. However, it might be worthwhile putting the target job title in the summary section as well, so that the person looking over your CV will be easily able to make that connection. This way the person will be able to tell that you are interested in this role and have similar qualities for what they are looking for. Remember, you need to tailor your CV to the job, otherwise there is no point in applying.
Does Your CV Look Good?
This might not be something that you have thought about, as surely, so long as all the information is there, it’s fine? Wrong. You need to make sure that your CV is well formatted and doesn’t have any spelling mistakes. If your CV has different fonts or uses complicated tables, then this is going to damage your presentation. Remember, the appearance of your CV is the first thing that your potential employer will see, so you want to make sure that it looks well presented.
If you are worried about doing this by yourself, then you can always make use of things like these various professional templates and examples to help you out. Sometimes getting started can be the toughest thing, but once you know what is needed to be done, you should be all good. Just make sure that you present your ideas clearly and concisely. Another tip is that bullet points work better than long pieces of writing.
Where did you Work and How Long did you Work There?
This is a really important step to consider when it comes to your CV, and it’s often something that a lot of people will forget about. The reason why where you work is important, is because even though you might have the same title, it could actually mean a different job, or at least a job at a different level. Being the Director of Finance at a small training company is very different to being the Director of Finance at a much larger company. This example shows that even though they have the same title, they are actually different jobs. Typically, if you’re applying to work for a large multinational company, they want someone who has worked in a similar type of company before, so this is something which you should think about before you apply. Obviously, you should apply though, as this might be the step up that you need. If you don’t apply, then how can you get your dream job? Just keep on trying, even if it takes time. If you are worried that you may never get the dream job that you want, then why not check out this article here?
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