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DiversityJobs CV Writing Style Guide

In the competitive world of job hunting a great CV is the key to getting interviews, but with just 8 seconds to grab the attention of the person on the receiving end, it’s not just important, it’s paramount.

The following information provides proven style guidelines and tips to follow when writing a CV that when put into practice, will bag you more interviews than competing applicants.

 
There are five main components for all CV’s, in order of appearance they are:

 

• Name and contact information
• Summary / Profile
• Areas of Expertise / Core Competencies / Skills & Qualifications
• Professional Experience
• Education
  

   

Your Name and Contact Information (fig1) 

Your name and contact information should appear at the top of page 1. Limit contact information to email, telephone number and street address. Do not include info such as LinkedIn profiles, personal WebPages, Website address and other web-based contact information as they do not belong on a CV. Your name should be the most prominently formatted information in the document.

 

Summary/Profile (fig 1)

The summary/profile should be one full-length paragraph (between 4-11 sentences max) preceded by a positioning title that targets the candidate’s CV for a field and/or position. The summary paragraph should be an objectively worded assessment of the member’s career trajectory and character traits that are in demand at the level for the job you seek.

 

Don’ts:

• Divide the summary statement into bullets.
• Use cliché terms like “results-oriented, goal-oriented, detail-oriented, driven, proven track record, self-motivated,” etc.
• List soft skills like “strong leadership” “excellent communication / interpersonal skills,” etc.
• Use a mix of first and third person voice.

 

Areas of Expertise / Core Competencies / Skills & Qualifications (fig 1)

This section appears just below the summary and should consist of 6-12 succinct, bulleted keywords and phrases that represent your transferable skills as well as the areas of strength in your specialized and related fields. Remember that these days your CV is more likely to be viewed by a computer system first, most employers use in-house systems to show them CV’s that match their needs, this is due to the sheer volume of applicants, a well “Key worded” CV will appear high in search results and therefore increase your chances of being viewed by a human.

Don’ts:

• Lump keywords and phrases together without bullets.
• List soft skills.
• List technical skills in this section.

  

fig 1. Contact Information, Summary and Areas of Expertise example

 Professional Experience

Job descriptions in the Professional Experience section should appear in reverse chronological order I.E. most recent first - See fig 2. Job descriptions should be divided into 3 parts:

 

1. One to two lines for company description (or division description if more appropriate), including metrics such as company’s/division’s main products and/or services, number of employees and average revenue (when relevant) over the past two years.

 

2. A paragraph describing personal responsibilities and duties performed within the position.

 

3. A bulleted list of achievements, preferably quantified and outcome oriented. 3-7 bullets per job description are sufficient.

 

Don’ts:

• Bullet tasks rather than achievements.
• Use large chunks of text without variation in formatting (over-bulleting or over-paragraphing).
• List achievements without any explanations in bullets (e.g., “• Sold 200% of quota”).
• Mix first or third person voice.
• Use inactive, passive voice, and trite verbs, such as “Responsible for,” “Worked with,” “Maintained,” “Monitored,” “Oversaw,” “Administered,” “Supervised,” “Planned,” “Participated in,” “Assisted,” “Handled,” etc.
• Use gerunds, e.g. “Providing,” “Developing,” etc.
• Use inconsistent denominations (e.g., “…£2M…£16 Million”)

  

 

fig 2. Job Description example

Education, Certifications & Training (fig 3)

Educational background is presented at the end of the CV, unless you are a recent graduate (less than 2 years out of college) or have no marketable experience. This section should be limited to basic university and post-graduate information: degree earned the name of the institution, and the location of the institution. Graduation dates are not required if you have over 10 years of experience.

 

Don’ts:

• Include extensive coursework and/or thesis/dissertation information, unless directly related to position being sought.
• Include extensive on-job training information.
• Include information on publications and/or patents.

 

Fig 3. Education, Training and Certifications list example

Additional information and Appendices

In special cases additional sections are required in some candidates’ CVs. Here are some examples:

 

• A Technical Skills section. This section should appear below the Education section, in a compact yet easily readable format.
• An appendix of publications and/or patents for candidates if in the same field as the one in which they are applying, or if it augments the professional experience.

 

 

 

Elements of Design and Style

Your CV should use a reader-friendly, conservative design that avoids excessive use of design elements other than bolding, italicizing and font size variation. Use elements such as borders, shading, ellipses, horizontal lines, and text boxes sparingly because they could hamper readability.

 

Fonts:

Avoid using the overused Times New Roman and Arial fonts (and their facsimile fonts—Times, Helvetica), which seem to appear on about 90% of all resumes.

Some suggested alternate fonts (in alphabetical order): Calisto MT, Californian FB, Candara, Corbel, Garamond, Georgia, Goudy Old Style, Lucida Sans

 Don’ts:

·   Inconsistencies in use of elements

·   Use of clip art, images, or illustrations of any sort

·   Include photographs of yourself (unless specifically requested to do so for the use in the film industry for example)

·   Use check marks, arrows, or any unprofessional-looking symbol as a bullet point

·   Use underlines and all-caps, both of which affect readability and professionalism

 

 

 

See fig 4 Below for a Finished Example: