Your CV will naturally lengthen overtime

Opinion has changed over the years. Most now agree that a two to three page CV is the ideal number. One page certainly isn’t enough and more than three can become boring and often misses the point.  Most importantly your CV should include only relevant information but should reflect the depth of your experience.

Please get things right – managers can at times have two dozen CVs to look at and the smallest things can spoil your chances of interviewing when someone needs to be particularly fussy to get twenty four CV’s down to a manageable six. You could be perfect for a job but might run the risk of not being called for interview if you’ve only written a one page CV or more than three pages.
 
As you progress through your career your CV should focus on what you have most recently being doing.  Your current role should enjoy the most detail and as your progress through your work history edit and reduce the amount of information to only include brief highlights.

Write a Profile

It’s important to write a ‘Profile’ or ‘Objective’ to introduce your CV. Think about what you want to say very carefully. People naturally read from the top of any document and you need to create a very good first impression.

Arguably, the most important line of any book is the first line. Failure to inspire or generate interest is likely to result in someone not bothering to read beyond the first few lines.

A number of points need to be taken into consideration when constructing your profile. It is your work and you can write whatever you want to write. You can be as creative as you want to be. The words you choose are down to you – the sentences are your work and nobody else’s.


Try to inspire, try to write with interest and creativity - and be honest.

Avoid sounding dull or repetitive. Use words and sentences you are comfortable with. Don’t use words you wouldn’t use in your everyday English. A profile is a wonderful opportunity to get your point across – don’t waste it by churning out the same four boring lines that everyone uses.

Don’t try too hard to sound intelligent by using words that someone may not understand. Re-read your profile. Does it flow nicely? Does it start well? Does it finish nicely and say what you want it to say?

Think about your sentence construction – are your sentences too long or too short?

Make sure you have a very keen eye when checking for spelling mistakes, poor use of grammar or incorrect use of tense. Don’t slip in and out of tense. Be accurate.

Your profile is the first chance to prove that you are a capable communicator – try to write with flair, style and imagination and your CV will get you to interview stage.

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