The art of writing your CV

CV (Curriculum Vitae) also known as Resume, Personal Profile, Bio-data or Summary is a written statement of an individuals Personal history – Educational Qualifications, Work-Experience, Achievements, Biographical details, References etc… that makes an individual suitable for getting selected for a job and is usually attached to an Application Letter. Its core objective is to convince the interviewer that you are the perfect candidate for the position. The key elements are contents, focus, uniqueness, structure and design. Visually the CV should be unique, attractive, easy to read, tailor made, one of its kind, almost unmatched and specifically written in terms of job requirement.

According to Mr. Karan Punamiya, a Career Consultant, following are some important categories of information in the Resume:

1. Personal Details/ Data :- Include your Name, Address, Contact Number, E-Mail Address, Mother Tongue, Other Languages Known, Strengths, Career Objectives, Interest / Hobbies (Never intend to list Watching T.V, Reading Magazines as your Hobbies), Height and Weight (if specifically demanded – like airlines, military). Applications for overseas should include Nationality, Passport Number and Foreign Languages Known.

2. Educational Qualifications :- Include all details of Institutions attended, Degrees/ Diplomas obtained, Scores obtained, Name of the Examination body/ University, Special Subjects/ Specialization (if any); future information which can be added are Awards, Prizes, Scholarship received, Participation in co-curricular Sports/ Cultural Activities/ Projects. List your Qualification in order of your relevance, i.e. from most to least important.

3. Work Experience :- Include the company’s name, position held, period of time, tenure of service, job description, job specifications and any achievements. Qualify your experiences; show you’re result oriented by connecting your skills with job history. Any experience that highlights your skills or showcase your achievements can be included. Highlight any goals which you achieved ahead of time or any special cost cutting measures successfully adopted. Remember: Never write “No Experience” instead write “Fresh Graduate”.

4. References :- Educational, Professional and Character references are supplied for verification of facts which one has presented on the Resume. As a rule don’t include References in your CV, keep them ready but provide only if asked.

Omit all needless items like social security number, marital status, health, citizenship, age, irrelevant awards/ association/ membership/ publication/ recreation activities/ references and travel history. Thus, a Resume should be simple, clean structure, very easy to read, symmetrical, balanced and uncrowned since it is a tool with one specific purpose – to win an Interview and make your first impression effective on your prospective employer for which here are few significant Tips.

DO’S

- Keep it Brief and Concise, shorter is usually better.

- Highlight your Strengths and de-emphasize your weaknesses.

- Italics, Alignment, Boldface, Bulleting, Underlining and Font Size should reflect similar ideas throughout the resume.

- Check your Resume for proper Grammar and Correct Spelling.

- Whenever you feel that a particular facet or characteristics might work to your disadvantage, delete it immediately.

- Proofread and have an expert to review your Resume, avoid typographical errors.

- Laser Print the CV on plain, white Paper. Handwriting, typing, dot matrix printing and even ink jet printing looks unprofessional.

- Finally, Be Honest; never lie since it can be checked for its verity anytime in the future.

DON’TS

- Use long Winded Sentences and Old Fashioned Language.

- Use “I”, “Me”, “My” in the CV. Don’t sprinkle your CV with Personal Pronoun.

- Overuse Professional Jargons and Abbreviations.

- Enclose supporting documents unless they are asked for.

- Fold the Resume.

- Go into reasons for leaving any of your previous jobs.

- Mention previous pay rates, supervisors name and designation, second mailing address, i.e. your permanent address to avoid confusion.

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