10 tips for CV writing that will get you Hired

1) Objective

Write clear and short objective. Don’t write an encyclopedia of your achievements. Just give 2-3 lines on how you are planning to add value to the company or how excited you are to grow with the company.

2) Be relevant

If you are applying for marketing job for GOD sake don’t list 3 pages of your designing experience and then half a page of your marketing expertise. Time is money and in business if you are not relevant you will be kicked out right from the door.

3) Double check your spellings

First impression is the last impression. In school they deduct your marks if your spelling is wrong but in business they drop your CV. Make sure spelling feature is enabled in your Word pressing program.

4) Keep it short

Don’t overdo your CV. Keep it short. No need to write paragraphs of your expertise just lists it down in bullet points. That will be enough.

5) Keep it simple 

Don’t just copy and paste stuff from other CV’s. Give it some time, organize your CV and divide them in sections. This will make it more readable and judgment will be easy.

6) Size matters

This tip is specially for designers because it took me half an hour to download a CV which was around 35mb L . Don’t send huge presentations or heavy PDF documents. Just write a 3 page CV and send. For experience part just copy your work in a USB or burn it in a CD then bring it along on your interview.

7) How you can be valuable to the company?

Most of us don’t really know why they are applying for the job. Take out some time and write a paragraph in which you will define what benefit you can provide to the company. Google company’s website or visit their Facebook fanpage. Check out what they are missing and write that down in your CV.

8) Use clear fonts

The most common fonts for writing curriculum vitae are Times New Roman and Arial. These are used because they are clear, easy to read and look professional. But I personally prefer Calibri (which is more clear and nice).

The most common size that candidates use is between 10 to 12 points, with 10 being the most popular. Anything smaller may be difficult for some people to read. Whilst anything bigger like 14 points will look unprofessional.

9) GPA Vs Experience

When I was in university I use to hear a lot that “Keep your CGPA (grades) above 3.5 or you won’t get a decent job.” But now I realize that my job was purely on the basis of experience I gained while working on extra stuff. Like designing, marketing and social media.

I am not suggesting that GPA doesn’t count I am only suggesting that other than studying do some internships (even if they are offering for free) and work part time if you can.

10) Re-check before you hit the send button

Before hitting the send button do pause for 5 seconds in which you will check email address of company and also do check that CV is attached with the email.

One final tip to finish off is to write your name, address and contact number on top so it’s easier to get call you for interview.

Your resume is the story of your career experiences and achievements.  Errors discount your value and minimize your ability to communicate the value you bring to a prospective employer.  Your resume is the hiring manager’s first impression of you.  Remember that old adage, “You never get a second chance to make a great first impression”.