Top 5 CV Writing tips for “newbies” in 2017, and the reality of sending your application to the employers or agencies:

The reality of sending your applications to the employers…

Most recruiters will know that employers don’t have time to wade through the vast number of applications they get in their inbox. Most of them have fine tuned their eye to spot the best applications from the heap, spending just a few seconds looking at a CV to identify if they are placed in the yes or no pile, so catching the eye of your employer early is very important.

Here are the top 5 tips when writing your CV.

• Take away the excess ‘fat’: Nobody wants an information overload that is not relevant to the situation, especially the employer that is spending an average of 8 seconds on scanning through your CV. So making sure your CV is both to the point and relevant are very key. In the long run you are better off leaving these off as you can then begin to talk about them in the interview. take note from Yahoo’s CEO Marissa Mayer’s one page CV.

• The truth always prevails: Although tailoring your CV to the role is appropriate to highlight your skill set in that area, there is a myth that everyone lies on their CV and that it is safe or wise to do it yourself. Lying on your CV can leave you in a lot of trouble, as a new employer may decide to run some extra background checks on you and discover you were dishonest at the start, which can lead to a very early dismissal and then constant questions for future interviews on what went wrong at this company. The bottom line is do not lie on your CV!

• Make it presentable! Making our CV look presentable is an art form in itself – don’t overlook this. Having a presentable CV will instantly demonstrate you know how to engage someone’s attention, as well as making clear any areas of key interest for the employer to look at. Check things like your font style and margins, as these simple yet important attributes can determine which pile the employer leaves you.

• Stand out from the crowd but don’t go too wild: Although it’s important to stand out from the crowd…Unless you are applying to the creative industries, most employers on the whole will be looking for an easy to read, to the point CV. You may feel frustrated at the amount of time you need to spend on your CV but how badly do you want that job?! For some job sectors handing out the same CV in bulk is not always a bad thing, however, when it comes to higher level jobs you are better advised to look carefully at your skill set and the employer’s needs, making sure you fill their criteria (it’s an age old pet peeve for recruiters who are inundated with CV that don’t match the job role they’ve applied for). So making any experiences that are relevant to the role stand out will give you a better chance.

• Good references: References can be very important and some employers can sometimes spend more time reading these then your actual CV, they may back up the skills you believe you have, and instantly help you on your next journey to employment. So, if possible try to leave a good impression wherever you are, and keep building on the good reputation you have.