CV’s

How to make them effective!

Why are effective CV’s essential!

• Employers can’t meet everyone, they wish they could but they can’t!

• They tell your story, who you are at a glance, this helps them shortlist who they meet.

• Some jobs get thousands of applicants.

• BT had 26,000 applicants for their 300 apprenticeship opportunities last year

What CV’s should do!

• Tell your story, everyone is an individual, you all have very different qualities and strengths (all of you, be confident) so no CV will be the same.

• You should follow general guidelines though to ensure they are read properly!

What CV’s should be!

• Be simple to read and well laid out.

• Should show off your plus points.

• Be written for someone else’s perspective, think about what they want to read about you!

What CV’s shouldn’t be!

• Difficult or confusing to read!

• Be too long, maximum 2 pages!

• Have poor spelling or grammar!

• Irrelevant (they do not need to know how you are an Xbox champion unless you are applying to a be games tester!)

What you need to put in a CV!

• personal and contact information

• education and qualifications

• work history

• skills relevant to the job

• interests

• references

How to highlight your interests and experience!

• Examples of team working

• Voluntary or work experience

• Positions of responsibility

• Activities that show initiative

• Skills learned that take dedication and practice

Examples• Part time jobs

• Work experience

• Team captains, project leadership, house captains, Scout or Guide leader

• Playing sports regularly, learning instruments, hobbies (fixing things, cars, computers), Dance or Drama clubs.

Key Skills

• It’s also important to include a section dedicated to your skills. The ones that you mention will depend on the job you're applying for, but some examples of key skills can make you really stand out.

• Key skills include:• computer skills - including using commonly-used

programs, writing a blog or knowledge of web design • communication skills - if you’re confident in speaking in

front of groups and calm and friendly on the telephone • teamworking - if you’ve ever worked in a large group of

people like a sports team or a drama group • problem solving ability - think about any problems you

have overcome and how you did it

Tailoring your CV!

• Research the company website properly, what do they do, why do their customers buy their product!

• Research the job specification, what would they want you to do, highlight key words!

• Find examples of what they want in what you have done, highlight these!

Keep your CV updated

• Keep your CV up to date with any new experiences you think would be relevant.

• Modify it to send to specific opportunities.

Useful site’s for Careers help and CV advice

• This resource is a government run website, describing in detail what it is like to do a job, the transferable skills needed, salary, progression routes into the profession, and other useful links.

• www.careersadvice.direct.gov.uk• This resource is run by a charity called icould, it is a collection of videos of

life stories of individuals, including their career paths and education.• www.icould.com/watch-film-stories/by-job-type/• This resource is part of the government run website referenced above.• It contains valuable LMI (Labour Market Intelligence) • for anyone who wants to know what future any given career might have.• www.careersadvice.direct.gov.uk/helpandadvice/dmr/• This resource is part of a government run website, it contains information

and a live jobs site for those interested in Apprenticeships.• www.apprenticeships.gov.uk