Aspirare Recruitment

Create a Document with a Difference

At Aspirare we understand the importance of finding the perfect job, in order to achieve long term happiness and success. Although there is no single route to success when writing your CV, the following advice is designed to help you create a document with a difference.

Target your audience

Employers do not have time to work out what your CV is trying to tell them. Make your information clear and concise, highlighting the skills you have that you think will be the most sought after for the job. You must convince potential employers that you will be an asset to their company. Many jobs are filled after an employer matches key words in a CV to particular skills and experience that they require, so it is important that you clearly define any key skills or experience you have using the correct terminology. Any large, unexplained gaps in your CV will be off-putting to employers. Plan and Design · Keep it simple; use only one font style and size. · Avoid boxes and underscoring; the text should flow, with section headings in bold. · Leave out any irrelevant material. · Use the minimum amount of words to make the maximum impact. · Ensure grammar and spelling are correct. · Keep it fairly short: no more than 2 pages if possible.

Content

Most CVs are presented in chronological order with general information including name, address, date of birth, telephone number and email address at the top of the page. You may also decide to use a profile in order to summarise your key skills and experience. This can provide an overview of your suitability for a position at a glance. Whether you commence with your experience or qualifications should be dependant on which is strongest. Always put the strongest first. A good CV will contain and focus on the following: · Work Experience; focus on the key skills you have gained in previous roles. · Education and qualifications, with a key focus on those relevant for the job. · Extra-curricular activities; use any interests you may have to say something about you, such as positions of responsibility or sports team memberships. · Other skills, such as a foreign language, driving licence and computer skills that you posses.

Editing Your CV

Different aspects of your CV may be more important for some roles than others. Therefore when applying for different roles it is worthwhile to edit your CV to emphasise key strengths and experience specific to each job. You very rarely achieve a perfect CV first time so keep rewriting your CV until you are happy, carefully checking all spelling and grammar. Aim to end up with an easy to read CV that really sells you.

Covering Letter

Having a good covering letter can be just as important as having a good CV. This will be the first thing a potential employer will view and a badly written covering letter may send your CV to the bottom of the pile. When writing your covering letter bear the following things in mind: · Tailor the covering letter to each individual company in order to personalise your approach. Relate the letter to the specific needs of the company and refer to particular skills in your CV that are of relevance: This will probably mean doing a little research into the employer, and looking back at the job vacancy advertisement. · Visiting the company’s website or obtaining company brochures can provide important information on the employer.