Cv

livelyred

janet37 wrote: »

I have found this really helpful as well as i have to do a cv and haven't done one for twenty years!!!! OMG have you seen some of the application forms for some of these jobs you need a degree to fill them in!!

I agree i have never done a CV and i know that the health service is quite picky about CVs ,i havent a clue and yes the application form OMG ? I think i will be ok with the application form its the CVs bit lol

katiecoodle

Top Tip!

...you don't have to have just one copy of your CV you know? How about tweaking it for each application - make it relevant to the job or company you're going for.

(I've worked in recruitment for 7 years so I do feel like this is my area of expertise )

livelyred

Can you give us some advise when filling a CV in please,what to write where etc please

tinkerbell84

Lively, with respect, we can't tell you what to write because we don't know you!

Google for some templates, and then slot your information in. If you then paste on here what you've written, we can look it over and maybe improve it for you.

Does that make sense?

livelyred

tinkerbell84 wrote: »

Lively, with respect, we can't tell you what to write because we don't know you!

Google for some templates, and then slot your information in. If you then paste on here what you've written, we can look it over and maybe improve it for you.

Does that make sense?

Im not asking you to write the CV for me i just wanted to know where to put where eg my experience,what sort of person i am etc, my career goal these sorts of things, i dont want to blubber in my profile just wanted to know what to include in this part ?

tinkerbell84

livelyred wrote: »

Im not asking you to write the CV for me i just wanted to know where to put where eg my experience,what sort of person i am etc, my career goal these sorts of things, i dont want to blubber in my profile just wanted to know what to include in this part ?

Mine is structured as follows:

Page 1 - top: name, address, phone number, e-mail address
- middle: schools attended and qualifications
- bottom: work-based training

Page 2 - details of jobs covering 10 years (max)
- short para explaining role and responsibilities for each one
- bottom: 2 x referees

No need for a personal statement or anything about the kind of person I am. Recruiters should get that from everything else that is on there!

livelyred

tinkerbell84 wrote: »

Mine is structured as follows:

Page 1 - top: name, address, phone number, e-mail address
- middle: schools attended and qualifications
- bottom: work-based training

Page 2 - details of jobs covering 10 years (max)
- short para explaining role and responsibilities for each one
- bottom: 2 x referees

No need for a personal statement or anything about the kind of person I am. Recruiters should get that from everything else that is on there!

No Key Skills,Interests ?

tinkerbell84

livelyred wrote: »

No Key Skills,Interests ?

Nope - it's all covered by my qualifications and work based training

livelyred

tinkerbell84 wrote: »

Nope - it's all covered by my qualifications and work based training

I will give it a go your way ,if i dont get anywhere i will change the CV.

katiecoodle

If there's a specific job that you're going for then its usually a good idea to read that spec thoroughly first. Make sure that you totally meet their requirements & it's obvious in your CV.

For example, if the job spec is for a programmer and you call yourself a coder, then the HR dept who is 'filtering' the CVs may not recognise the jargon and rule you out. (I have worked with HR people who have been hiring for java developers and have literally picked the CVs which have had the most hits of the word java in them. Very poor practice but then you don't know who will be looking at the CV!)
Also, if the job spec has mentioned soft skills (patience, team player, etc) then make a paragraph in your CV to highlight yours. Don't be afraid of putting it at the top of your CV under personal profile or something similar. Interests are usually at the bottom of the CV if they're relevant but honestly, reading, socialising and keeping fit is pretty standard fodder and downright boring to read so unless you do something different like husky-driving then steer clear.
If you have any interests which are particularly relevant (ie working with children) or any voluntary work which you'd like to elaborate on in an interview then its worth considering.
Don't bother putting GCSEs on the CV (honestly its rarely a consideration) unless the job spec requires them.

I agree that a key skills paragraph is pretty useless as your job descriptions, if accurate will reflect your key skills well.

Make sure your previous job history is in REVERSE chronological order and don't go back further than 10 years. You can put the phrase "Further Job Details available on request" at the bottom of the CV and that should help you to condense it. Try to keep it a reasonable length - gone are the days when people expect to see it all on one page. 2-4 is about standard i'd say.

Make sure the font is easy to read, is consistent, the formatting is consistent too (all the subheadings in italics for example) and your contact details are on there. Once you've despatched the CV - phone and check its arrived & ask when you'll hear a response & just log your name with the company as a very interested party.

Don't put your refs on the CV unless specified. It's bulky & rarely useful at this stage - and it can lead to unnecessary hassle for your referees.

Hope this helps. PM me if you'd like some personal help.