CV Writing Mistakes

Spelling mistakes: It is a proven fact that around 50% of CVs contain spelling mistakes. This easy mistake will make you seem careless and could also distract the reader's attention from the content. It may be worth considering asking a family member or a friend to read your CV and check for mistakes.

Jargon: When writing your CV you may believe that using industry-specific jargon is a good idea and that the person reading your CV will understand it but using acronyms without explaining them can be confusing to the reader and may deter someone who is not familiar with them.

Qualifications: A common mistake in a CV is to detail all your academic history - even from 10-20 years ago whilst also listing all your grades! This is not necessary. On a graduate CV or someone with limited employment history it may be useful, but for others, just briefly cover your qualifications - detailing your most recent achievement and list older ones. If you have vast employment experience spanning many years, the chances are a recruiter will not even read your qualifications.

Employment: When compiling your employment history there is no need to provide the address of your employer - all you need is the company name, your job title and the date you started and finished employment with them. Then, you can talk about your duties and achievements in each position.

Hobbies: Your CV is a personal sales tool. Any available space on a CV is limited and you want to use it to sell your skills and experience effectively. Everyone likes reading, listening to music, keeping fit and socialising with friends, so unless you have done something special - and relevant to the job you are applying for - leave it out!

Too many pages: All too often, employers will receive CVs that are too long! A good CV should be no more than around 2-3 pages (for graduate or more executive positions this may vary). The more there is to read, the less likely it is that all your skills and qualities will be noticed. Try to decipher between what information is relevant to the job you're applying for and what is not.

Unnecessary information: As stressed in the facts above - when compiling your CV, try to keep all the information relevant to the job you are applying for. Unnecessary information will take up much needed space which can otherwise be used to help persuade the reader to continue with your application. Another common mistake people make when writing their CV is including their reason behind leaving previous jobs. Examples of these can be, "I got bored" or "I didn't get on with the Manager". Obviously, this is not necessary, will make you look negative and will decrease your chances of being included on the shortlist.

No Degree

What happens when you are a perfect fit for the job but you have no degree.

There will many times when some aspects in your CV will be less that the requirements of the job you would love to take up. So what would you do? Give it up? Absolutely not. Keep in mind this universal secret about a job: there is absolutely no perfect fit for anyone to any job. There is always a bit plus and minus and that is why the interviews usually take place to find out actually how much of the plus and minus is there, so they can make an informed decision.

So you have no degree. Okay. Let us focus on what you have. What do you have that can compensate for the lack of degree and which the company would count as a balancing benefit?

Additional skills: Do you have any additional skills that pertain to the job? Have you undergone any special skills training program? Are your talents pertaining to the overall goal of the company? Then by all means write them down in the CV first.

Additional experience: Do you have a long and accentuated experience which has put you in the league of experts? Write and offer them references for the purpose. In many cases experience far supercedes qualifications; hence put your best foot forward and apply

Special personal traits: Are you an artist by birth? Is acting a second nature to you? Are you a born leader? These all are personal traits that can stand you in good stead when you apply for those traits specific jobs. In that case, you will definitely get preference over people who are more qualified and more experienced than you. Be sure you highlight you traits properly and that those which are highlighted exactly match the requirements of the job (otherwise it will dilute you case still further labeling you as totally misfit for the job)

Avoid the educational column altogether: A lot of people who are uncomfortable writing 'undergraduate' on their CVs, can simply omit the column of education altogether. However, this will not be questioned much in the CV only when the other skills and traits will be draw the attention of the employer away from the need to know the qualifications

Half truths: Another way, but highly unadvisable, is to state that you have started the course but do not mention you have finished it or not. While this tactic may get to the interview table, it will not hold water when asked, and the trick is seldom seen kindly by the employer. Hence, the best policy is indeed to tell the truth

Overqualified

You are overqualified - how do you make it look good on the CV

It will so happen every now and then that people want to take up a job which is slightly below them due to certain benefits that they perceive the job will offer them. In fact being overqualified for a job and applying means that you are underselling yourself and if this is not done well, you will come across as a person who has low self-esteem or low value overall. The employer will feel the same as you would feel if you all of a sudden if something very valuable in the market were being sold at half the price. However good it would be, it would make highly suspicious and even if you would not find anything wrong with it, you would still not prefer to buy it for fear that there is a defect that will creep out later on.

In the same manner, when an employer sees he CV of somebody overqualified, will immediately think, 'what is wrong with this person?', 'why is he/she here?'. Your job is to allay the fears and suspicion that arise from this situation effectively through the CV itself.

The CV should in this case clearly contain your acceptance that you are aware that you qualification exceed the expectation of the job. Then, proceed to explain why inspite of this fact, you would still want to be considered for the opening.

You could highlight you strongest skills and connecting them to the growth prospects in the company, imply that working for that company in question would actually make allowance for such a sacrifice on your part

You could say that after having a gap in working (for legitimate reasons - such as child rearing, spouse career support, launching business in the family, etc) you are looking forward to work again in the industry which was and is your first and last love (this should match with your career objective)

Put your willingness to work in a lesser position as a method for the company to test your abilities and attitude, highlighting the fact that you are a very hardworking person as well who would very soon be a highly valuable member of the said company

Bring away the focus from your educational qualifications by putting high emphasis on your skills and achievements which should match (or made to match) perfectly with the job requisites

Little Experience to Show

What to do when you have too little experience to show?

This drawback usually plagues the lack of experience to show on the resume. There are many things that can be improvised in this scenario:

Bring the attention of the prospective employer away from the lack of experience by highlighting your match to the job in terms of skills and personal traits. Be sure you use those skills and traits that are best required by the job you are applying for

A skills CV (see also functional resume)will be the best bet for you - more so when you can highlight you willingness to work hard and long hours to gain valuable experience. Your willingness to work hard should come strong enough to attract the attention of the prospective employer, so it should not be written as an after-thought, rather as an emphasis after your description of skills.

If you have an outstanding academic background, highlight this explaining that you are a fast learner who can in no time be a valuable member of the organization. Attract attention to the subjects and/or areas where the matters are supportive of the job's requirements.

Do you have any extra-curricular activities that would boost your skills (with respect to the job you applied for). For example if you are applying for a PR or marketing position, your standing first in elocution and debate competition (proving the gift of the gab) would stand you in good stead.

Highlight the fact that you will be honored to start your career in an elite company such as X (name of the organization) and assure that you would be happy to work harder than anyone else to prove your abilities and become a valuable employee of the organization

Be candid in your application and down-to-earth. People usually like young people because they have a nothing-is-impossible attitude. Try to project that attitude without sounding over confident or cocky. You can do that by repeating at different intervals that you are willing to learn and work hard so you can fit even better not only in the job, but also the goals of the company overall (do your homework and be specific here; vagueness will seem like boasting) You indicate that you would be willing to travel, relocate and/or work late (even on weekends) so as to learn the ropes as fast as possible

Fresher

What to do when you are a fresher?

A fresher is a fresh graduate by definition. What should you do if you are a fresher who will compete for regular jobs where other more experienced people will apply:

Do not be intimidated about the competition. Apply highlighting your academic records (if it is good), your personal traits (for example extremely friendly, deadline oriented, a good organizer, a born leader, etc) which best match with those required for the job.

Mention specific courses or training programs which you might have attended and which might give you a good edge over those who have only the required qualification and work experience. Relate the achievements in such a way that ti should show you as a theoretical expert in certain angles

You might also mention in your CV that you are self-taught person in terms of the latest technological trends and techniques; for example you can learn basic programming, software engineering and design and web designing (among million other such skills) by yourself with the help of the Internet and good book supplements. Be prepared to be asked in detail question at the interview though - so be careful that you write only what you really know well

Highlight the fact that you are young, rearing to go and are ready to work hard to prove yourself; many employers love the enthusiasm of the young and the go-go approach which is very good for the company

Highlight the fact that you are a fast learner and that you are looking forward to start your career in a established and famous company such as X (the company you are applying for), and an excellent learning experience

Offer to get additional training (naming the exact courses with their duration) if the job entails it without any interference to the job deliverables.

Career Move

How do you explain a change in the career move?

When you want to have a career change, it is of course, your prerogative. However, you will still have to satisfy the curiosity of the would-employer as he/she would be measuring you in terms of your performance, stay with the company and other capabilities.

Hence, you will owe an explanation to him/her as to what prompted you to want to change careers. While speaking it is easy - with the right preparation, to say it objectively why a career change took place - however, in writing it is a bit difficult to explain so it comes out clearly.

What you need to do to make your point clear enough so that you would be called for an interview:

write as concisely as possible about your educational qualifications and skills set; most people will concentrate on highlighting their skills sets as the best reason for switching careers; however your qualifications also could be a good direction pointer at times (for example you are an excellent office secretary/ personal assistant with a Master's degree in English and are good at PR work and communication training - you could make a good teacher for undergraduate students based on your high qualifications and excellent skills set)

highlight certain experiences in the past (during or outside the last job ) when you had experienced extreme satisfaction taking up different responsibilities, which actually had opened your eyes to your new talents - and these experiences motivated you to seek out jobs as the present one.

Ensure that you assure that you are confident that you will perform well in the new line of work and that a change in career based on the chosen reasons will actually help you grow professionally and personally, which in turn will make you a valuable addition to the company.

Job Fired

Is it necessary to show you were fired in your CV

To answer this question bluntly, 'NO'. You really do need or owe it to anyone to own up information that you were fired from your last job. That is do not volunteer it. There are no rules that require you to write the reasons for leaving your last employment; it is usually understood that this people leave for better prospects.

However, some companies do have a column asking 'reasons for leaving previous job'. When you are faced with the direct question, tell the truth.

Scenario no 1: You were fired because the company was downsizing. Write the truth - downsizing means people will lose their jobs and it is not necessarily because they were not worth it, but because they were more expendable than others. Be matter of fact when you say this, and keep the bitterness and sarcasm out of your language. End with maturity and show confidence that your skills and experience will add value to the future job

Scenario 2: You were fired because of inter-personal conflict, you could explain the facts briefly - again, without any bitterness - that your boss and yourself did not agree on certain matters which made it difficult for you to continue. Be objective, and matter-of-fact explaining that the experience taught you better interpersonal relations and that in future you would handle such a situation differently.

Scenario 3 - You were fired on grounds of negligence/ poor performance/ insubordination, etc. This is a very touchy situation, because most of the employers would ask for feedback from the last employer. Hence, you need to tell the truth and use the opportunity to tell 'your side of the story'. In order to make it as positive as possible, indicate the circumstances (such as difficult task or deadlines while multitasking; or communication gaps; or wrong reporting of facts by supervisor, etc) and be as matter of fact and brief as you can. Avoid the sordid details - just touch the important points and in the end highlight that you have learnt a lot from the lesson which has already cost you dearly, and that it made you a better person and employee as a consequence. Be candid and objective. Never badmouth anyone nor blame anyone. Show a positive outlook and the capacity to move on in the face of adversity.

Out-of-work gaps

How to explain your CV with out-of-work gaps

First of all, understand that having out-of-work gaps is not a big deal by itself. People are not comfortable with it because it looks that they were not productive for sometime, and that implies some sort of failure. Nothing could be further from truth - but the custom remains to hide or 'close' the gaps in the CV to have a continuous work-line. What can you do if you have gaps in your work line that you cannot really explain in lucrative terms. Easy - get them to lucrative terms:

You may like to say that you have been self-employed for some time, trying to set up a business for a friend, brother, father, etc - be prepared to answer some nitty-gritty's of the business you were self-employed at. Be careful to have a plausible explanation as to why you are seeking employment again. A good reply here would be that the business is now successfully handled by the friend, partner, father (or someone who could take over) and you are looking forward to pursue your main career goals

Another idea is to say you had volunteered to raising funds for some cause such as an orphan home, local community clean up, get a library fund, and so on. Here too be prepared for a lot of questions - so it will be good if you have some data and people to back you up on this.
You may also say that you are/ were in-between jobs and did some odd jobs to keep yourself afloat financially, till the right job came along. In this case, you will need to have the list of the odd jobs you worked at during the in-between period.

It is also possible and legitimate (as well as acceptable) to adjust against your spouse demanding career in order to support your children. Hence, you could always say that you had decided to stay with the children who were young, so your spouse could pursue his/her career. Now that the children are big, you are again looking to fulfil you career goals.

As a last resort - and not one that I would personally advise anyone to do - you could just fib saying that 'from the year so-and-so to present I was working in the following capacities' and enumerate you jobs without giving the years. It is possible that the employer assumes that your work is uninterrupted. However, such deceptions (however mild it may seem) can create a deep sense of mistrust when found out - hence it is advisable to always use the truth in your answers.
Look for normal, legitimate ways to bridge the gap. However, you should not worry too much if you cannot really carry it off. In that it is better to tell the truth directly (such as you could not get the right job) and highlight the fact the you would be a valuable asset to the company (do not be over eager when you say this - just act confident and sure of yourself).

Gap history in your CV

How to manage gap history in your CV

The CV is the basis on which the employer makes his/her first impression about you. We all know that. Hence, we always tend to put our best qualities in it so as to create the best possible impression. However, sometimes there will be some minor (and some major) hiccups. Are you able to sail through with poise and rationale? The commonest reaction is to bluff (or tell a white lie) but with an employer it is really not an advisable path to take because truth has the knack to come up at the most unfortunate moments of your life and create some major embarrassment, if not more. There are better ways to handle difficulties - with the truth put across plausibly:

Scenario no 1: Suppose you have a two years gap in you CV between to jobs when you did not have any job. 'What happened in the gap period?' the employer will ask. In most cases, people leave their jobs to pursue higher studies - if that is the case with you, do let your employer know. In this context the gap will be seen as a benefit. If this is not the case, and you have just been in between jobs for a gap of more than one year - you might say that you have helped your father, uncle, bother, friend, etc to set up their business (be sure you have the details ready as you will be asked for it); you may also say that you have volunteered to work for some philanthropic cause that your family, community, or friends created (again be ready to give details); you can say you wanted to be with your family for sometime before you started working again (be sure you have plausible reasons - like grandmother sick or wife/husband having a too demanding career which neglected the children who were young at the time).

Scenario no 2: Suppose you have a minor gap of a few months (less than a year). In that case nobody needs to know about it really. All you have to do is to write your CV with yearly gaps instead of giving the month and year. In this way, when you mention only the years it will not be visible that there is a gap of a few months in between. If the gap indicates the time period you took for having a child, then it is good to tell them so, without any qualms. Be ready however, to be asked whether you plan to have any more babies ( so they could judge whether you will drop out again in the near future) - answer truthfully - 'not in the near future' or better still, 'not anymore'.

The point is that you have to assuage the fears of the employer that you may not be dependable. They will be worried to see the unexplained gaps because they would picture you as an unreliable person. Hence, it is best to explain the gap in as simple and realistic situation as possible, which in all probability will not recur in the future.