What Not to do on your CV

Your CV is important whether you are applying for work or an apprenticeship, so getting it right to make sure you give yourself the best chance of success is key. Your CV should offer enough information to get the interest of your potential employer and make them think you are worth speaking to. With most recruiters spending a very short amount of time looking over CVs of applicants it is important not to fall into the trap of making obvious mistakes which will see your application in the discard pile.

The first mistake is sending the same CV to every job, it may seem time consuming to tailor your CV to every job you apply for but a generic-looking application will be passed over in favour of one that is suited to the role. When choosing a job or career, make sure you know what is expected for the role and match your C.V. accordingly.

Writing too much is another common mistake, a CV should not be longer than 2 pages otherwise the employer won’t bother to read it. You have to try not to waffle, so anything that won’t be helpful for the job is pointless being on your application. Bullet points can help achieve this – a recruiter needs to see a clean and crisp layout that is easy to read and get the info they need.

While bullet points are great, don’t be tempted to try and spice up your C.V with fancy fonts, tables, or graphs! There is some leeway with this if you are applying for a particularly creative role, but generally-speaking it is best to err on the side of caution and keep it looking professional.

A recruiter may have to read hundreds of C.V.s to find a shortlist of potential candidates – so try to avoid using the same phrases as everybody else. ‘Socialising with friends,’ or being good at team work are common things to see on a C.V. – but they also fail to make you stand out from the crowd.

Poor spelling and grammar are a definite no-no. These type of errors make you look lazy – if you couldn’t be bothered to check your spelling, how does that make you appear as a potential employee? Over half of all recruiters say that poor spelling is their main reason to pass over an application. Get someone to proof-read your application before you send it in.

See more at: www.notgoingtouni.co.uk/blog