Recruiters can receive hundreds of CVs a day, therefore it important that your CV stands out. To ensure that your CV gets noticed is it essential that all information is formatted correctly.
Granted, there is no specific way to write a CV, but tailoring it in a suitable format can only increase your chances in obtaining an interview.
To ensure that your CV is easy to read, we have come up 10 tips on how to format it perfectly:
1) Chose Your Format
Make sure you write and save your CV in a suitable format so recruiters are able to open your CV. We would recommend saving your CV in a ‘Word’ format as the majority of companies will be able to open it. If you have don’t have this option, PDF is an acceptable format to save it in too.
2) Pick The Right Font
Choosing a font that is easy to read will put you in good standing in a recruiter’s eyes. Don’t forget if you would like to highlight a key point, you can do so by putting it in bold or increasing the font size.
3) Include Essential Information
Essential information includes your full name, address, your D.O.B. and if you have access to your own transport. Ensure that this information is clear to see, as this can help a recruiter review your suitability for a position.
4) Compose Your Contact Information
Remember to include your telephone number and email address before sending your CV off to a job advert. If you have a suitable website, include the URL in this section, so a recruiter can have a deeper insight into your experience.
5) Add A Summary
Don’t forget to add a summary below your contact details about your experience and suitability for the job. Remember to keep it short and explain what you are great at, which direction your career is going in and what you can offer a company.
6) Keep It In Order
Your work history should be formatted in a chronological order, with the most recent employer at the top. Remember to include the name of the company, your job title and dates which you were employed.
7) Use Bullet Points
When listing key duties and achievements ensure that you use bullet points and not continuous prose. Also, don’t be afraid to have white space in your CV as this can contribute in making it easy to read.
8) Explain Any Gaps
If you have any gaps in your employment history explain why in your CV, as a recruiter will question this. Include what you were doing at time; whether it was actively seeking employment or taking part time in any voluntary or training opportunities.
9) Avoid Images
Avoid using any images or embedded tables in your CV, as they can use up valuable space in the body of your text. Using images can also confuse the recruiter’s operating system which can result your CV becoming jumbled up and not formatting correctly.
10) Keep It Short
Try to keep your CV to two sides of A4 paper, producing a longer CV can be off-putting to a recruiter. Remember to summarise your experience and to present it in bullet points to save as much space as possible.