CV, short for curriculum vitae, is a comprehensive snapshot of someone’s professional life. It comprises a potential employee’s proficiencies, experiences, skills, and qualifications. A hiring manager uses it to select or reject candidates for a job role. All the suitable candidates get a call from the company for an interview and then one is finalized. You might be thinking that a resume is a solution to half your problems as a jobseeker, but that is not true.
Not just any resume. You need to have the most practical and organized employment record to make sure it grabs attention. For that purpose, you first have to do some research. Yes, Research! When a job offer is extended to you, find whatever information you can about that position, company, and industry. Every bit of information is gold at this point.
Once you have accumulated all the material, use it to structure your resume in such a way that it looks strikingly professional. This means that the writer must present everything in a sophisticated manner. He must also follow the order and format rules suggested by experts. Every industry and company has different demands from the applying candidates. Therefore, an investigation becomes obligatory before forwarding the CV.
How Experts Suggest A CV Should Look Like
The standard length of a resume must be no longer than 2 to 3 pages. The length truly depends on the candidate. It is all about how he decides to manage his experience in the resume to influence the recruiter. Such as, sometimes an applicant can skip irrelevant skills when he has ample of the relevant ones. Whereas, in cases when there are not enough of them, the applicant may use other experiences to highlight his/her soft skills.
Moreover, it is necessary to meet the criteria suggested by professionals, to leave a lasting impact. It also ensures that you receive an interview call. So let us jump to the real discussion:
Character Formatting
A curriculum vitae needs to look ethical at first glance. This is why selecting a formal font united with an appropriate font size is crucial.
Remember to choose a traditional and widely accepted font style. A few examples are Arial, Calibri, Sans Serif, and Times New Roman. Such font types do not have tail-like strokes attached to them, reflecting more of a classic and clean appearance.
In addition, you must consider the magnitude of the type of style. A selected magnitude must be followed consistently throughout the employment records. The size must not be too small or too big. Just the ultimate right size, between 10 and 12 points.
Section Formatting
Have you finalized any one format, out of the three arrangements, for writing a CV? Not yet? Do not worry. You still have time. Your choices are chronological, functional, and combination. If you are finding it difficult to decide which suits your work life the best, we suggest that you hire a professional CV writer. They will guide you smoothly.
However, if you have already chosen an arrangement, it is time that you start planning the sections. Commonly used subdivision headings are contact details, work-life experiences, education, and extra skills. The section’s order and length will be dependent on what CV writing format you have picked.
Paragraphs Formatting
After the sections, we narrow down our prime focus to the readability of the document. If the order of the paragraphs does not make it legible and effortless to trail, it is a failed attempt.
The writer has to be careful with the line spacing and length of a paragraph. A few recommendations are as follows: spacing between texts must be 1.0 or 1.15, margins to be 2.5 inches from all sides, and after every subheading use double line spacing.
A perfect format requires every paragraph to have between 3 and 4 lines only. Although, if you opt to write in bullets, make sure that there are no more than 8 points, altogether.
Page Formatting
A feature mostly taken for granted is page formatting. More than half of the candidates pay less or no attention to the page formatting, but it is inevitably significant.
For instance, candidates who are highly frowned upon, minimize the page margin in the hunger to make the most of the space. So be careful and use your space wisely. Secondly, make sure that the alignment of the entire text is justified to give off a neater look.
Furthermore, the presentation of the CV document matters the most, so you must pay attention to the physical appeal. You might want to take reference from templates of CV Ireland or any other European country. Lastly, your printed work profile should be the size of an A4-sized paper, as it is the international standard.
How often should I update my CV?
The candidates should review and update their work profile annually, even if there are no massive changes. It helps them navigate their growth progress.
Which CV format is widely used?
The reverse chronological format of CV writing has become an unofficial international standard. It has been the most common practice in recent years, as it best fits most candidates.
Are linguistic skills necessary to add to a resume?
Language proficiencies are invaluable. One ought to make them a part of the work record as a specialized hard skill. It helps you stand out and brings you countless opportunities.
What are some common mistakes in CV writing?
The most repeated blunder is exaggerating and lying. Then comes adding unnecessary and generic information to the document. Lastly, the heading of ‘curriculum vitae or resume’ on the top of a CV, is the biggest NO!
To Conclude
Throughout this article, we have emphasized the inevitability of pre-conducted research. Such an investigation helps the candidate build confidence and make his employment record exclusively stand out.
It is tough for a hiring manager, as he receives a handful of applications every day. He has less time for reading all the submissions throughout. This is why each work profile is skimmed and scanned only. Deciding in less than 8 seconds whether this document is going in the dustbin or drawer.
Thus, we insist on proofreading the resume, each time you apply for a position. It is also highly recommended by experts to customize your applications as it increases your chances of seizing attention. May the force be with you!