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Do you know what a CV stands for?
A CV is an acronym for Curriculum Vitae, which means 'course of life' in Latin.
In this blog, we will cover all aspects of writing an impeccable CV that will secure a job for you post the pandemic.
While hunting for your next job or if it is the very first time you are applying for a job, it is pertinent to start with your CV first.
A great CV is your ticket to a glorious career. Hence it is important to draft a carefully thought out CV first.
Let us look at the topics that we are about to discuss below:
- Understand what a CV is and how to write it
- Key sections of a typical CV
- Do's and dont's while drafting your CV
- How to draft a great CV
- A sample CV
CV: Curriculum Vitae
Now that we know what CV stands for, we should also know what it means: what is a CV?
The same logic is applied here, though at the crux cv is a document detailing your professional and academic life, listing all your major and noticeable achievements. It typically includes all the achievements in the academic and professional field, including research, publications, affiliations, awards, and so on.
CV vs Resume
A cv is often confused with a resume. These two terms are not interchangeable in the United States and the UK, however in some countries they are.
Research on the cv guidelines of the country you're applying it is necessary, it will save you from committing major blunders.
A cv is generally a document detailing your academic and professional background, covering your academic history and achievements from school through college. It archly focuses on academic coursework and research.
Whereas a resume is a shorter version of this document enlisting the same details but refrains from overtly focusing on academic history and achievements. It is tailored for a specific job profile and hence includes only the information relevant to the targeted profile. While the same doesn't hold true for a cv.
CV in America
In the United States, cv is used when applying for academics, education, research, grants, fellowship, and more. It is usually more than 2 pages, extending as per the experience.
In the UK a cv is what you would call an American Resume, A cv means different things in different places, it depends on your geographical location. If you are in the United States a cv will mean something very different in its structure than what it means in the UK, hence context is very important.
How to write a cv
Your cv is the first impression you're going to make on the recruiter, turn it into a lasting one. On average, not more than 6 seconds are spent on a single cv so your cv should speak volumes in those 6 seconds to pick the reader's interest.
Distinct sections in a CV
There are certain must-have sections on a cv:
- Contact information
- Academic history
- Professional experience
- Qualifications and skills
- Awards and honors
- Publications
- Professional associations
- Grants and fellowships
- Licenses and certificates
- Volunteer work
- Personal information (Optional)
- Hobbies and interests (Optional)
You can add or remove these sections as per your need.
CV Format
To make your cv stand out, the cv format should complement the content.
The title of the cv, which is your name, should be consistent through all your personal and professional documents.
- Use the white space in your cv as your ally, don't just keep on cramming information without leaving any space
- Try incorporating bullet points wherever you can
- The font and size used in the cv should be professional
- The alignment of the cv should be consistent throughout the page
- Use reverse chronological format while listing education and achievements
Things to include in your CV
Your cv gives you space where you can mention all your accolades and experience which you couldn't on your resume.
Although keep in mind that everything that is written in your cv should somehow contribute to the opening you're applying for.
While mentioning your academic journey, do add the skills honed because of them. The recruiter should know that your vast experience and research in the field contributed to the making and improvement of your skills.
Whether your cv is for a job or a higher degree, make sure to bring in the qualifications and the skills the reader is looking for. You need to tailor your cv in a way that makes you look like the best candidate for that position.
Hiration provides Online CV builder resources, if you want a noteworthy CV, go ahead and check out our website.
Common mistakes while writing a CV
It is one thing to know what to add in a resume but it is also critical to know what to avoid while drafting your resume.
All the good work in drafting an impeccable resume will be lost if you commit these mistakes.
Keep it coherent
cv provides us with enough space to include everything that we couldn't in our resume, but that doesn't give a free pass to including unnecessary information.
You need to use the space provided in the cv wisely, add relevant information that you couldn't in your resume. Use it to cover up gaps in your career if any.
While you are talking about your achievements make sure that you don't come across as boastful, rather engage with the reader and convince them of your capabilities.
Make sure that you have evidence enough to back your statements, it will keep you from getting off-topic and will keep the reader involved.
Readability
Readability is very important, if you aren't coherent then your cv is just going to be added to a pile eating dust.
Going over the top with heavy words is not going to impress the recruiter, they hardly spend a few seconds on each cv, and if in that duration they have to go through a highly unreadable CV is going to add to your downfall.
Proofreading is very important, basic grammar and spelling mistakes should be avoided at all costs. A cv with grammatical errors will leave a bad impression on the recruiter.
The structuring of sentences to the proofreading of cv is a crucial step in building an impressive cv.
Research
The research comes off as a daunting task, but it is also the most important part.
A well-researched cv speaks for itself, while on the other hand lack of research can keep you in an unemployed state for a long duration.
Before you start working on your cv make sure that you have researched enough about the desired designation and the cv guidelines, it will definitely save you the embarrassment of perpetrating a blunder.
Tips to write a great CV
So we know the rudimentary things about a CV. Now let us look at augumenting your CV so that it stands out from the sea of other applications. The devil is in the detail.
So let us look at all the key points which make an ordinary CV a great one.
Professional Design
A CV is as much about how we convey the information as it is about the content. That being the, if the CV is not crisp or easy to read, it will not serve the purpose.
Design of the CV is essential part of drafting a job-winning resume. You do not have to go overboard in creating elaborate designs.
However, the CV has to be ideally a single-page document, easy to read through quickly and ATS compliant.
What is ATS
ATS stands for Applicant Tracking System. It is a software applicaton which parses your resume searching for keywords that are relevant for the job you have applied for.
For example the ATS might be looking for specific terms like 'Marketing Manager' whereas you might have mentioned 'Senior Manager' in which the ATS will deem your resume to be irrelevant for the job.
Key Skills
Ask yourself the question, what are the top skills to add in your CV?You can look at the sample CVs relevant to your industry as well as check the job description thoroughly.
Always use the commonly used keywords in the industry and avoid writing long sentences or phrases in the key skills section.
While enlisting your key skills on the CV, be sure to segregate soft skills and technical skills seperately.
Completely avoid using soft skills which you cannot substantiate under your professional experience or key acievements section.
A professionally designed CV will take care of all the above aspects of a CV so that you can completely focus on what to put on your CV.
Types of CV
You might be wondering how could there be a particular type of resume? A CV is just a CV, right? Not quite.
Your CV will show your career progression as well as the highlights in your professional career and key achievements.
Now each of these are very critical and forma the core of your CV. Likewise, the manner in which you decide to put these aspects on your CV determines the type of CV.
There are 3 types: Chronological, Functional and Hybrid.
As the name suggests, a chronological CV is where the career projection is shown chronologically from the beginning till the present. This is most suitable for those who have a substantial work experience.
The advantage of this type of CV is that it will enable you to showcase your most current profile which will be relevant when applying for the next job.
The recruiter will know that your skills are not just a 'been there, done that' scenario but something that can be counted on.
A Functional CV is where you choose to focus on your acquired skills than your work history.
This type of CV is preferrable for those who do not have a substantial work experience to show on the CV. Ideally suited for freshers but not limited to.
Instead of work experience, you could furnish any certifications or pet projects that you may have embarked upon.
A Hybrid resume, as the name suggests, is the combination of both chronological and function CV.
In this type of CV, you are highlighting your skills along with the key acievements related to the paticular skill at the very beginning on the CV.
This is a powerful format if you can leverage it. But you should be careful because this format is not suitable for all.
As for the work experience, you still the retain the chronological order showcasing your most recent work experience.
Reduce redundancy
For your hiring manager, going through your CV should not be like finding a needle in a haystack.
The recruiter typically spends only a few seconds assesing a CV. So he or she will be looking for things very specific and to the point.
Imagine in such a scenario one has to sit and read through a never ending title of a project, paragraphs after paragraphs elaborating about some specific project but your contribution towards the project needs to be only assumed!
If you are adopting such an archaic way of drafting your CV, you need to mend your ways immediately lest you may miss out on an exciting job offer.
More data is always good but redundant data is something which you have to avoid at all costs.
Power verbs
It is time to supercharge your resume. Think of a good salesman and what distinguishes a good one from the avergae.
It is the way in which one expresses, through words. Your CV content must have an impact when it is read. How do we achieve that?
You might have aleady guessed by the sub-heading, power verbs. What is a power verb?
A power verb is an action verb which auguments your involvement in a task. Instead of using words like 'I worked in this division...', you can use power verbs which enhances your prominence in the role.
A few examples of power verbs are as follows:
Pioneered
Spearheaded
Innovated
Orchestrated
Engineered
CV Examples
We have always said and believed that customization and research are the keys to creating an exemplary cv.
But it is easier said than done, right?
no, it is pretty simple only if you know what you're doing.
When questions like how to write cv for grad school?, or how to write cv for a job, or even just how to write a good cv? pop up, it can get overwhelming.
Here is a sample CV for your consideration:
- Directing project budgets worth USD ~325 Million to ensure the company obtains best possible pricing
- Accounting for savings & contingencies by overseeing & analyzing prime project buyout of USD 1.1Billion
- Ensuring that the project team understands all the aspects of respective contracts
- Meeting the customer deadlines and Service Level Agreements for 100% customer satisfaction
- Supervising seamless communication on project scope & schedule between customers & contractors
- Demonstrating a thorough understanding of the organizational structure and the prime contract checklist
- Achieved a 15% reduction in costs annually by recognizing & minimizing risks in the buyout process
- Writing and distributing bid packages amounting to 8% of total production costs
- Recruited ~400 technicians and provided remote support to technicians in the field
- Managed & led the smooth functioning of 20+ gyms in the city
- Conducted & optimized gym operational budget of USD 60 Million, staying within budget by ~10%
- Provided strategic & fiscal leadership to attain the company’s long term goals & maintain organizational vision
- Controlled accounts & designed budgets for multiple projects as well as salaries of ~500 staff
- Hired & recruited ~ 40 gym level associates and managers through various channels
- Oversaw the successful opening of 2 new outlets in the city bt maintaining the brand standards
- Achieved targets of ~15% annual increase in revenue by optimizing sales process and systems
- Produced & directed radio and TV commercials, documentaries, and marketing presentations
- Recommended the best products based on individual budgets by identifying the needs of the client
- Liaised & coordinated with various advertising agencies & political consultation firms
- Led the team to win ‘Best Team Award’ for maintaining 99% quality | Jan ’11
- Recognized for significant contribution to Corporate Social Duties initiatives | Dec ’10
- Top 15 percentile of the class
- Awarded the 'FullBright Scholarship' for extraordinary performance
- Certified 'Project Management Expert' from the Sloan School of Management, MIT | Jan '10
- Speaker, Association of Professional Operations for Stuart Convention | Jan '16
- Speaker, Venture Cap Conference, SF organized by Copper Crunch | Apr '14
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Key Takeaways
To conclude, let us summarize the key points that we have discussed so far:
- What is a CV and how to write a CV
- All the key sections of a typical CV
- Things to include in a CV and things to avoid
- Tips for drafting a great CV
- A sample CV
We believe we have covered all the aspects of writing a compelling CV which will ensure a personal interview with your recruiter.
We trust that this information was thorough and helpful to you. We would love to hear your thoughts on this and if required, we are willing to help you better.
Go to Hiration career platform which has 24/7 chat support and get professional assistance with all your job & career-related queries. You can also write to us at support@hiration.com and we will make sure to reach out to you as soon as possible.
