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In this article, you are going to know how to write a CV. Most of us will have to write an effective CV (Curriculum Vitae.) In short, it is called a CV (called ’resume’ in American English). People need a CV for various purposes such as getting a job or scholarship, etc. Writing a good CV is a skill all of you will need for your career.
What Does CV Mean?
Generally, a Curriculum Vitae (CV) is a personal history of a person that presents his/her academic degrees, training, employment, publications, scholarly interests and skills that s/he has achieved. In this ever-increasing competitive job market, a CV works as one’s envoy to the work field. Every day an employer receives numerous CVs for every available job. So, it is very essential to write an effective CV matching the job requirements so that your CV stands out in the crowd. In short, a well-written CV is a must to obtain an expected job and career progress.
To be more cleared, CV means to introduce you and your background to somebody who does not know you. It should present you in the best possible light, in a concise and well-structured manner. A regular CV for business purposes should definitely not go over one A4 size page. If one wants to use it for academic purposes and not for a job, the CV can pass that limit. We should use the additional space to describe academic activities, like conferences, publications list, etc.
A well-written CV shows first what is most important but contains all the relevant information. To this goal, we recommend that you adapt it to suit your target (a specific type of job or scholarship). Pay attention to the order in which you present information in your CV.
A CV should be clear, concise (no longer than two pages), complete and up-to-date with current employment and educational information.
Types of CV/ Resume
- Entry-level CV (Functional CV)
- Experienced level CV (Chronological CV)
Entry Level CV/ Resume:
- Career Objectives
- Education
- Personal Details
- Interests
- Achievements
- Language Competence
- Computer Skills
- References
Experienced Level CV/ Resume:
- Career Summary
- Professional Experiences
- Seminars/ Training Attended
- Language
- Computer Literacy
- Extra-Curricular Activities
- Personal Information
- References
How to Write a CV
Here is a guideline for writing a good CV. Although there are a number of ways to write a CV, they agree on some common details.
The following information you need to provide in your CV (curriculum vitae):
Personal details: Here you should include your date of birth, contact address, telephone number, and nationality in your resume. In case you have a permanent address different from your temporary address, include both. Personal details can be written with smaller fonts than the rest of the CV if you want to save space. You should write your own name with a bigger font than the rest of the text. By doing so, the reader can easily see whose CV s/he is reading.
Objective: You should state very concisely what you accurately want to do. Say something like, “To develop a career in ….. “, or you can be more specific like “to obtain a position in where I can use my skills in…” You can write a few lines to describe that specifically. But keep in mind that you should show what you can do for the organization or company. You are sending the CV to more than what the company can do for you. Writing a good objective is difficult, so take the time to think about what exactly you are going to write there.
Academic Achievements: After your personal details, give details about your education. We suggest that your present details about education in reverse chronological order. Start with the latest degree and go gradually back. You should mention scholarships and all your academic achievements including grades/divisions/classes. You should also mention the awards you received along with your achievements in co-curricular and extracurricular activities in your academic life. Mention the awards such as best student’s award, best debater’s award, extempore speech, sports and games, and so on.
Experience: Here you should include experiences if you have any relevance to the position you are applying for. You should show that you are a person who can take initiative, has creativity and is innovative. You should be able to convince the employers that you will be the best pick for the job.
Extracurricular activities: If you are writing a professional CV, you should mention activities/programs you have attended/participated in.
Language Skills: You should also mention your level of competence in any language you knowing all the four skills. For example, whether you are average, good, very good, or excellent in Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening.
Computer skills: Write if you know Microsoft word, computer or anything else of the computer. Nowadays, almost every company selects those who know operating computers.
Hobbies: List your hobbies if the page has sufficient space. They look fine on a CV, showing that you are not a no-Life workaholic, but a normal person.
You can introduce other headings that suit your needs; Your curriculum vitae should have there references section. In these sections, you should list the contact details of two persons who would write reference letters for you.
These are the usual components of a CV.
Print the CV on plain-white paper. You should never send a CV without a cover letter. If the advertisement does not say anything about a cover letter, you still should send one. Send the Curriculum Vitae with covering letter in a matching A4 size envelope.
Sample CV examples:
- Computer Operator CV/ Resume with Cover Letter
- Account Officer CV/ Resume with cover letter
- CV to get enrolled in Post-graduation course in English
