Your CV is a crucial document that will help you draw the attention of employers, get interview requests, and secure a job offer. Your resume should showcase your key skills, abilities, and experience and help a hiring manager or recruiters see that you are a match for their vacancy.
Your cover letter and CV will be unique and tell the story of your education, job history, and industry. However, all CVs should follow a particular format that ensures the correct information is relayed, including your work history, previous job titles, career goals, and contact/personal details. Here we look at the sections of your resume and reveal what information you must include on to create a compelling CV that attracts the attention of prospective employers. You can also read our latest guide reflecting changes in the CV writing approach - How Can ChatGPT Help When Writing A CV?
Name and contact details
Your name should be the title for your CV and be followed by your telephone number and email address. It can also be advantageous to include your location and a link to your professional profile such as your LinkedIn profile, portfolio, or website.
You do not need to include your full address if you are applying online. You also do not need to state your marital status when you write a CV or cover letter. The potential employer should only ask job seekers for more detail, if it is relevant to the job.
The personal profile and contact details on your CV might appear like this:
Brian Higgs
London | 0204 784xxx | brian.higges@gmail.com | LinkedIn
Read: What personal information should I include in my CV?
Personal statement
When you write a CV, your personal statement summarises your CV and should convey who you are, why you are qualified for the job, and your career aspirations. We recommend creating a fresh personal statement or personal profile for each job application. Your bespoke introduction, prevents your CV from appearing run of the mill, and can then include the soft and hard skills the employer is seeking, which you will find within the job ad. Remember, this is your personal marketing document, so make use of the valuable space available.
Read: What to include within a personal statement on a CV
Education and qualifications
The education section of your CV is essential for everyone but more important to school leavers and graduates who have little work experience. If your industry requires a degree or professional certification, then this information must be included, or you risk being disqualified for the position. If you are not a recent school leaver, consider focusing on professional associations, professional affiliations, and online courses.
You should begin with your most recent achievements and include the following information:
- Name of the school, college, or university
- School’s location
- The degree, A levels, or GCSEs obtained
- Year of graduation
- Grade or degree classification
- Achievements or recognition achieved during study
- Relevant modules that demonstrate important skills
If you have a degree, it is acceptable to emit your high school information. If you have many years of work history, you may want to summarise your educational achievements to ‘Seven GCSEs grade A-C.’
Read: What education and qualifications should I include on my CV?
Job history / Employment history section
In the professional history / employment history, you should begin with your most recent job and list your professional title and relevant work experience. You then work backwards in reverse chronological order. With your work history, we advise not going back more than fifteen years if you have worked for many companies. School leavers should include part-time and summer jobs that demonstrate they have the same skills as those in full-time employment. If the work is not relevant to the career you wish to embark on, focus on the transferable skills. Volunteer work and club memberships can also be used to create this section of your CV to build an effective CV format.
For each job, you should include:
- Name of the employer
- Job title
- Years of employment
- Bullet point list of accomplishments
- Technical skills and key responsibilities
It is vital to focus on accomplishments rather than tasks and duties. After all, an employer is looking to see what you have achieved, and this can be quantified using figures or percentages, such as ‘Introduced XYZ marketing initiative, increasing sales by 28%.’
Read: How much job history should I include on my CV?
Skills
The skills section of your CV should include information such as technical achievements and your hard and soft skills. For example, if you have earned a master welder certificate or have excellent communication skills, it should appear here.
As with all CV sections, look to highlight the skills and abilities that the employer mentions in their job advert. You can improve the reader's experience by using bullet points. Take the time to read the job advert thoroughly, write down the keywords mentioned, and ensure these appear in your CV’s text.
Hobbies and interests
Your hobbies and interests offer little value in the recruitment process if you simply list them. It helps to pick the hobby where you can describe how a skill you use achieved a positive outcome or show how your personality will fit the employer’s company.
Read: Should I include hobbies on my CV?
Remember, hiring managers use an Applicant Tracking System to search CV databases and applications. A CV online should include keywords the recruiter and their software may search for.
CV template examples
Before applying for your next job, read our career advice and view our CV templates to gain inspiration on how a CV might look for your career. Using a resume template and a CV builder will guide you to include in your CV the correct elements.
- Accounting CV template
- Agriculture CV template
- Arts CV template
- Automotive CV template
- Banking CV template
- Charity CV template
- Construction CV template
- Customer Services CV template
- Education CV template
- Engineering CV template
- Environmental CV template
- Facilities Management CV template
- Finance CV template
- Healthcare CV template
- Hospitality and Leisure CV template
- Human Resources (HR) CV template
- Information Technology (IT) CV template
- Leadership CV template
- Legal CV template
- Manufacturing CV template
- Marketing CV template
- Media CV template
- Office Administration CV template
- Personal Care CV template
- Professional Services CV template
- Public Sector CV template
- Retail CV template
- Sales CV template
- Science CV template
- Social Care CV template
- Telecommunications CV template
- Transportation and Logistics CV template