How to write a Professional CV | Top Modern CV Tips

Many job applicants struggle to write a CV or resume that they feel confident with and comfortable in sending to job vacancies. In all of Europe, the word CV is essentially just a synonym for the resume. So, if you’re applying for a position in the EU, and the job asks for a CV, you should know that it actually means a resume.

A Curriculum Vitae, CV is a professional document that summarizes your work history, education, and skills. The main purpose of a CV is to sell you, as a candidate, to prospective employers. When applying for a position, you’re always going to be asked for your CV, coupled with a cover letter, in some cases.

How to write a Professional CV

This article aims to help candidates who strive to write a professional CV or resume that maximises their chances of being invited to job interviews. Writing a professional CV involves organizing your content into six main segments. They include:

  • Contact information
  • Personal statement/profile
  • Work experience
  • Education
  • Skills
  • Additional sections (targeted to your audience)

Let now discuss these main segments required to achieve a Professional CV.

How to write a Professional CV: Contact information Section

Your contact information is the first element of the CV and serves as the header of the document. It sits at the top so that interviewers can contact you easily. The section should contain only the following elements:

  • Your full name
  • Phone number
  • Job title
  • Personal email address
  • Social media handles (optional)
  • Professional website (optional)

Is not necessary to include the following in your contact information:

  • Date of birth
  • Physical address
  • Your current business contact information such as work email addresses or phone number
  • Photograph (unless it is stated in the job posting)
  • Personal social media handles

Provide only the information requested in the job description. Also, only include personal social media handles in your CV if it will boost your chances of landing the position. Consider using a professional email address, like abc@gmail.com.

How to write a Professional CV: Personal statement/profile Section

A personal statement (or CV personal profile) is a concise statement at the beginning of your CV that describes your top skills and the capabilities you will bring to the role. Mention skills, experience and achievements relevant to the job. The personal profile is not mandatory sometimes. If you include it, keep the profile well-written and original. Include positive words such as confident, adaptable, self-motivated and enthusiastic.

Your CV personal profile should:

  • State who you are
  • Outline top skills and achievements
  • Mention the name of your target employer
  • Your goals as a potential new employee

The following should not be on your CV personal statement:

  • Why you are applying for the job
  • Why you left your former employer
  • Salary requirements

How to write a Professional CV: Work experience Section

The work experience section allows the interviewer to see your career path and its relevance to their role. Outline your expertise in reverse-chronological order (i.e most recent first). If you have little or no practical knowledge about the job, education should come before this section.

Your work experience section can include up to 15 years of experience and state the following information:

  • Title of the role
  • Company with city, state
  • Dates of employment
  • Three to five bullet points outlining your responsibilities and achievements for each job entry
  • Research projects
  • Lab work
  • Field experience
  • Volunteer work
  • Numbers and metrics to prove your achievements

Your work experience should not include:

  • Tables, charts or images
  • Gaps in employment history, if avoidable
  • Company addresses
  • Professional references or supervisors’ names
  • Short-term employment, unless you have less than two years of work experience
  • Irrelevant work experience

How to write a Professional CV: Education Section

List your education and dates from the most recent to the oldest. You can include your class of degree, dissertation title, coursework, professional qualifications and top academic achievements that relate to the role. If you have more than two years of relevant work experience, you can highlight all of your post-secondary educational qualifications, including the name of the degree and institution.

How to write a Professional CV: Skills Section

The skills section describes your accomplishments at previous jobs, like the key skills you developed and experiences that apply to the job. The skills to include in this section depend on the industry, position and your personal background. Research the skills relevant to the industry or position and read the job description carefully. If you have lots of relevant skills, consider writing a skills-based CV.

List only 4 to 8 skills relevant to the role including job-specific skills, soft skills and hard skills. Some examples include:

  • Foreign languages
  • Technical skills where relevant
  • Certified skills
  • Consider also mentioning your proficiency level such as Basic, Intermediate, Advanced or Expert for every skill on your list.
  • To further illustrate your skills, list projects where you leveraged your talents and the results.

How to write a Professional CV: Additional sections (targeted to your audience)

Additional sections targeted toward your audience can include professional certifications, publications, industry awards and extra training, anything that is relevant to who’s reading your CV. This is a chance to stand out so use the space wisely to showcase your unique achievements.

If you are a student, you can list your volunteer experience and academic achievements. Mention things you can discuss in further detail at the interview.

It may be appropriate to include hobbies and interests on your CV if you have limited work experience. You can mention specific non-work activities in an entry-level CV if they portray you as a good fit for the employer, such as activities that demonstrate your dedication to a cause the employer works with or allow you to practice skills you use on the job.

Some employers may not actually need references, so their inclusion may not be necessary. You can give employers the option to ask for references, which can show them that you are willing to reach out to your network to those who can vouch for you.

In Summary

Before you start writing your CV sit down, place the job advert in front of you and start making a list of all your skills and abilities that match the requirements listed in the job description.

Tailor your curriculum vitae to the job you are applying for. Do this by writing every sentence and paragraph in your CV at the vacancy in question. This may sound like hard work as you will have to write a different one for each vacancy you apply for, however your chances of success are immeasurably increased.

by Scholars Hub

Scholars Hub is a site created for Scholars, to guide you write professional CV, professional Resume, Biodata, Common Interview Questions and Answers. Tlcpost.com is NOT awarding scholarships, is NOT an employment site, NOT recruiter or agency or third party, and tlcpost.com is NOT directly or indirectly involve in any stage of recruitment or employment. We don’t charge anything for any information shared in this site.

The aim of setting up this interesting site is to help Scholars/Students, mostly from developing countries, by sharing and giving you some guidelines to write professional CV, Professional Resume for Job application, including some Common Interview Questions and Answers.

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