How to Create the Winning CV

So I started like most of my peers. I went to a cyber cafe and had the technician, who I was better qualified than, make a standard CV for me. It is funny now how I review hundreds of CVs, and I see what was my CV in 2010. Standard CVs cannot get you beyond their true level — Standard.

What is a CV?

Curriculum Vitae means a brief account of one’s life and work. It is originally a Latin expression which literally stands for “course of one’s life”. A Curriculum Vitae is a representation of who you are. It is like your professional life’s story — in summary. All of your education, employment experience, skills, accomplishments, publications, grants, awards and other personal information, including referees, must be included. In a nutshell, a CV should contain all of your life’s outcomes.

CVs were born in the 15th Century and have evolved over the years. From a simple card that lists a person’s skills to a document that has to be masterfully rendered to impress potential employers. From paper documents, we now have AI-based systems where people can create and grow their CVs in real-time.

A CV is a living document. This implies that it is not cast in stone and should be updated from time to time. It is thought that every year without an update in your CV is a measure of stagnancy and should keep you further down the job lines. However, many human resources experts believe that the real issue is a lack of skills to adequately articulate one’s learning and life outcomes. In this article, we shall attempt to look at why CVs are important, what should be in a CV and how to conduct life outcome-harvesting. Finally, we shall conclude with streamlining a CV to suit a specific employer.

Why are CVs important?

A CV is the first impression of you to your future employer. It’s an irony that many people graduate from higher institutions without ever taking a class on how to develop a CV. If schools are actually preparing individuals for the workplace, then CV development should be in the Curriculum. Anyways, a good CV will make a good impression, and while this does not guarantee a job, it could, at least, get an interview. Most people do not realise that their CVs are not a reflection of who they truly are. Some may know this but are not sure how to improve this situation.

Truth be told, the destiny of bad CVs is the trash can! Your sole responsibility is to ensure that your CV stays away from trash cans. A bad CV can be detected from the very first page. Factually, the first few lines of your CV will tell if you know what you are doing or not. With tough competition for job positions, most people who are very qualified will not get a chance at their dream jobs because of their ‘standard’ CVs.

What Should be in your CV?

Before I commence the usual rundown of CV sections, it’s important to note that every organisation or job position requires a different set of information. One CV is not good enough for every job application. In fact, no organisation wants the same skillset for employees even if they will work in similar job roles. So, you must master the art of recreating your CV every time a new opportunity opens up. Most people will not be submitting their CVs in person and maybe, stick around to explain any sections that are unclear. Hence, any items that are not good enough are thrown away.

The problem is not often what we don’t include in the CV, its what we do include and mostly, how we write. A CV could be tall, but employers would rather have a summary in a few pages. Hence, for each CV component, a few tips on how to better it will be provided. The components are as follows:

• Contact information
• Academic history
• Professional experience
• Qualifications and skills
• Awards and honors
• Professional associations
• Grants and fellowships
• Publications and presentations
• Licenses and certificates
• Volunteer work
• Personal information (Optional)
• Hobbies and interests (optional)

Contact information

The first and simplest thing on your CV is the name, and that is where the problem begins for many people. How should a name be written? The most acceptable international Standard is to use the First Name — Last Name format. My first name is Michael, and my last name is Ukwuma. Middle names should be written in between. In my CV, my name has to be written as Michael Ukwuma. Readers would consider whatever you put at the end of your name as your last name.

Other notable information that must appear in this section is your Permanent address, a phone number, and an email address. If any of these informations are not available, then a proxy can be used. But do well to indicate that you can be reached via those means. An alternative email or phone number can be included if there is a history of difficulty in reaching you. Your address doesn’t have to be the entire thing if you don’t feel like it, you know, with zip code, street and all. Listing your city and country works in most situations. While most employers do not care about your residence, some want to know that you reside in the city where the opening exists. In such cases, the job ad would clearly state that applicants are expected to reside in XYZ city. Understand that sometimes, they just want someone who knows the city or already has networks they can leverage for a quick start on the job.

Tips:

• Make your name conspicuous at the top.
• Use the first name — last name combo.
• State your address, for example, Accra, Ghana.
• Make sure you include your professional email address. If you don’t have one, create it now.
• A professional email combines your name, for example: firstnamelastname@xyz.com. A complicated email might be the reason you don’t hear back, since the employer might type it out incorrectly. Also, please don’t use slang and nicknames like juicypinkiechubbylips@xyz.com or gunzablazing4ya@xyz.com. I’m sure you see what’s wrong with that.
• If you include a phone number, make sure it works. If you include someone else’s phone number, make sure they know about it.

Academic history

All records of academic achievement have to be included here. It is advised to begin with the most recent achievement. These must be presented in reverse chronological order, that is, if you have a doctorate degree, include it first, followed by the master’s degree and others.

Be sure to name the institution(s) that you attended. Also, remember to state the date of the award. Desist from including academic qualifications that you do not have at the present time. It is shocking to find CVs with advanced degrees, such as a Master’s or Doctorate enlisted while the program is ongoing. Never do this unless the institution to which you apply indicated interests in knowing of any ongoing academic programs. The only time this is okay is if you are applying to a role where having a certain degree you almost have gives you some added advantage. For instance, you are applying to lecture at a University. The required degree is a master’s, but you just have to show off that doctorate. Here, it says you are interested in advancing to higher degrees that are coveted in that field. A note of warning: this will backfire in many cases where you are required to be qualified and certified before you can get into the field.

Tips:

• Show off your degrees and everything that makes them shine brighter, like that first-class grade.
• If research is an important component of the role to which you apply, include your thesis or dissertation.
• Put in the most recent qualifications first.

Professional experience

Professional experience refers to any job, whether full-time or parttime where you worked for at least 20 hours weekly. What counts is not the number of jobs you have been involved in; it is the results you achieved in each workplace that count.

The purpose of this section is to show prospective employers what they stand to gain when they recruit you. If a person is applying to a marketing position, he needs to emphasise the results that show them as good with sales, communication, negotiation and relationship management (these are for learning purposes and do not reflect the qualities of a good marketer).

Therefore, it is not enough to state, “I taught Biology to School Children aged 7 for 5 years” or “I worked in the electronics department of a sales store for 5 years. These only state the actions you took and not the results. It may be better to state: “During the 5 years I taught Biology, 300 students studied with me without a single failure and 100 distinctions, the most recorded in the School’s history within that timeframe” or I beat my sales target by 50 per cent annually in the 5 years I worked in the electronics department”. The last set of experiences shows a track record of success.

Tips:

• State only job positions that are relevant to the post you aspire to. This creates a connection.
• Unconnected positions can be streamlined by identifying achievements that fit with expected roles and responsibilities in the prospective position.
• State at most 3 achievements in each job position
• Gaps between jobs should be explained

Qualifications and skills

This section has to be concise and straight to the point. You may have other qualifications that are not academic but professional. For instance, a Proficiency Certificate in Management awarded by the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM) or the Human Rights Educator Certificate awarded by the Equitas International Centre for Human Rights Education should be cited here. Name of Certificate, awarding institution and date should be written.

Skills are characteristics and competencies that you already possess at a proficient level. They could be IT Skills, interpersonal skills, technical skills, etc. It is also alright to state your proficiency level in each skill using high, intermediate or low, or some other scales. However, it is best to state only skills you are quite proficient in. Many CVs list skills that the applicant is neither conversant nor proficient in. This must be avoided at all costs

Tips:

• Identify skills that the employer desires and reflect them in your CV (assuming that you possess them).
• Do not include a skill or qualification that is not relevant to the role to which you apply.
• It is okay to enrol in a training to acquire the skills you so desperately need, with hopes to complete the training before you get hired.
• Review the published job description and tailor your skills section to those identified by the employer.

Awards and honors

Every person gets an honour or wins an award at a time in their life. Honours could be knighthood bestowed by the Queen, King or the Pope, or maybe just a title given by peers for being a great sport. Awards can be due to a wide range of reasons, including academic achievement, sporting achievement, social skills or for any other reason. The key thing here isn’t to list all awards and honours but to identify those which agree with the position to which you apply. For Instance, if you apply to an academic position, religious honours may not be as important as academic awards.

Tips:

• This is the part where you blow your trumpet like crazy. As they say, if you don’t blow your trumpet, no one will do it for you.
• Strive to get awards in preparation for your dream job. No one will come to your home to offer you one; go out and get them.
• Simple things like volunteering to coach a local kids’ team, doing some community service in a nonprofit, or even a small donation to some cause might earn you recognition. Do it!

Professional associations

This is the point where you list all the professional bodies to which you belong. They may be local, national, regional or international organisations. It is expected that to be informed, one needs to belong to closed groups of professionals which provide training opportunities for their members. Note that it may be wise to skip this section if you do not belong to any relevant or related professional bodies. For instance, listing a religious body for a tech position may do harm to your application. However, a job in a religious establishment may find religious body membership attractive.

Tips:

• Some professional bodies require you to write an examination to join, like the Project Management Institute and many others. If you can afford it, do it.
• Every profession has an affiliated institution; join up and get active.
• Sometimes, funding is all you need. Save up and get the memberships relevant to the job role you seek.

Grants and fellowships

Grants are funds that you are given to conduct a project, which could be research, studies or community development. They could be given by an individual or an organisation. However, fellowships are mostly related to studies, which may be academic or professional. While grants put funds in your hands and let you manage it, fellowships present opportunities and apply the funds to pay for your studies.

The significance of grants and fellowships is that it demonstrates your trustworthiness. People invest in you because they see your potential for greatness. If you have received a grant or fellowship, be sure to include them, no matter how small they are.

Disclaimer: Please do not list all the cash gifts you have received. Gifts are not grants because you are not required to account for gifts. All grants and fellowships demand reports, and a full account have to be presented for each.

Tips:

• List grants/fellowships, awarding institution or entity and period (dates)
• Start with those that directly relate to the job you are applying to
• State the most important and recent awards if you have loads of grants
• Except you are applying to grant writing position, no not include more than five (5) awards.
• It is okay to skip the section if you have not won a grant or fellowship.

Publications and presentations

Many professionals write for journals and make other forms of publications. Publications can be academic or professional. Depending on your field of work, these may be required. Keep a list of publications using the appropriate referencing styles. Be sure to include the names of authors, year of publication, title of publication, forum where it was published and any other relevant information, such as volume, issue, and page number.

Most professionals make presentations at conferences and other formal fora. These presentations can also be included in the CV. They are referenced similarly to publications.

Tips:

• Care must be taken not to include all publications if there are too many. Publications should not take more than half a page, except if you are submitting the CV to a publishing company for an academic institution.
• Prolific writers should cite their most important publications or the most recent ones.

Licenses and certificates

In order to operate in certain fields, certain extra certifications and licenses are required to operate. This exists across professions. Examples include a medical license and a driving license. A license is often renewable. Professional bodies of programmers, Project Managers, and all others provide internationally recognised certifications for persons who meet certain standards. If the job requires a specific certificate or license, be sure to include it.

Tips:

• Include this section only if it’s required. Don’t throw in a medical license for a mechanic role.
• If the job role does not require a certificate, throwing in one might disqualify you.

Volunteer work

Volunteerism is a requirement in many climes now. There are many reasons why recruiters desire individuals who have volunteered elsewhere for employment. Some of these reasons include experience, knowledge, and skills gained. If a person already volunteered in a similar organisation, the transition period during which they get acquainted with how the organisation functions is reduced. For admission into higher institutions and work in some organisations, it may be a requirement. Therefore, ensure that every time you volunteer for a project, you get some contacts and documentation to show that this happened.

Tips:

• Volunteering is a thing you should get used to doing, even if not for a job, do it because it’s a good thing.
• In the nonprofit sector, this is a strong requirement.

Personal information (Optional)

This section used to be a thing, but it’s no longer required. You don’t have to display your gender, age, marital status or any other personal information in your CV.

Tip:

• Some jobs require that you be of a diverse origin. If this is a requirement, state it.

Hobbies and interests (optional)

Hobbies and interests are again very unimportant, but might be a way to demonstrate that you are a good sport. Sometimes, the human factor comes into play. A recruiter who supports the same club as yourself may favour you over other candidates.

Tips:

• Research the firm and see if they support any sports you like. Build it into your CV.

Extra Tips to make your CV better

1. Avoid typos

In all you do, please avoid typos. They are a big turnoff for most people. There are many tools, including AI, to help you clean your CV and keep it correct and easy to read.

2. Format like a pro

Formatting is important when developing your CV. A poorly formatted, well-written CV may not get a chance. On the flip side, a poorly written, well-formatted CV might survive an initial screening. Here are some tips to help you format your CV adequately:

• Make the letters legible and easy to read. Font sizes should be at least 12 points. 1.5 line spacing seems ideal. Single line spacing might be difficult to read.
• Helvetica, Arial, Geneva appear easier to read. But if a specific font has been suggested by the recruiter, be sure to use it.

3. Utilize your space effectively

• CVs can be unduly long depending on your years of experience.
• Use bullet points for lists like publications, skills or awards…
• Separate the various sections using headers: use levels of heading if your word processor allows it (make headings bolder, larger or underlined).
• Make important concepts such as name and job titles bold to make them distinct.