Rebecca Corfield - Preparing the Perfect CV: How to Make a Great Impression and Get the Job You Want

Preparing the
perfect CV

How to make a great impression
and get the job you want

5th edition

Rebecca Corfield

For YB

Publishers note

Every possible effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this book is accurate at the time of going to press, and the publishers and author cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions, however caused. No responsibility for loss or damage occasioned to any person acting, or refraining from action, as a result of the material in this publication can be accepted by the editor, the publisher or the author.

First published in 1990 by Kogan Page Limited as Preparing Your Own CV

Second edition 1999

Third edition 2003

Fourth edition published in 2007 as Preparing the Perfect CV

Reprinted 2007

Fifth edition 2010

Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, this publication may only be reproduced, stored or transmitted, in any form or by any means, with the prior permission in writing of the publishers, or in the case of reprographic reproduction in accordance with the terms and licences issued by the CLA. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside these terms should be sent to the publishers at the undermentioned address:

120 Pentonville Road

London N1 9JN

United Kingdom

www.koganpage.com

Rebecca Corfield, 1990, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2010

The right of Rebecca Corfield to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

ISBN 978 0 7494 5654 2

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library.

Typeset by Saxon Graphics Ltd, Derby

Printed and bound in India by Replika Press Pvt Ltd

eBook by Graphicraft Limited, Hong Kong

Contents

Look on our website for supporting downloadable CVs that can be adapted for personal use.

To access, go to

www.koganpage.com/PreparingThePerfectCV

and enter the password: CV1347

The world of work is changing fast. Many more of us will take temporary positions, have periods when we work on a freelance basis and move permanent jobs more often. Our careers are likely to change direction more than once in a lifetime of 40 years of working life. Job flexibility can mean job insecurity for some of us, forcing us to leave jobs before we want to, as employers needs change and working roles are redefined. As a result, most of us will change careers and move in and out of different jobs many times in our working lives, perhaps going on training courses in between to make ourselves more employable.

This means that we are all applying for jobs more frequently in an increasingly competitive environment. Job-search skills that we used to need only at the start of a long period with one employer now need to be regularly sharpened and practised. The way that we present ourselves is crucial to being successful in todays job market. Every aspect of contact with a prospective employer needs to be as good as we can make it in order to impress.

Imagine this situation you are looking to change your job when you notice an advert in the paper that seems right up your street. You are keen to put in an application until you realize that the advert specifies that you must send in your curriculum vitae or CV and you do not have one. Whats more, you have never had such a document and are not sure exactly what it would look like.

The fact that you are reading this book is likely to mean that you are:

• reconsidering your future if you have just been made redundant or had your hours reduced;
• looking for a job perhaps you have been out of work for a while or have just finished a training scheme;
• trying to change your job you may not be enjoying your current role or just feel that, for your career development, it is time to move on for some reason;
• planning a future change of career while your job may be proceeding well at the moment, you may want to get ready for your next move in advance;
• preparing your personal job-search materials even if there is no immediate prospect of a job change you may feel that it is sensible to keep your documents up to date just in case. You may want to check the current conventions and layout of CVs if you have not updated yours for some time;
• advising people in one of the above situations you may be a careers or personal adviser, a teacher or a parent, wanting to keep your information about good practice current;
• interested in re-doing your CV; you have one but think it needs a makeover to refresh and improve it for todays use.

You know that the paper processes of applying for jobs are what make the difference in terms of attracting the right kind of attention from recruiters. The key to getting an interview rests on impressing an employer in writing in most cases. You have heard that a curriculum vitae or CV may help to get the job of your choice and need help to know where to start.

The importance of a good CV

Feeling that you are in the wrong career or that you cannot get the job you want can be very depressing. Finding a job, or a better job, is fraught with difficulties at the best of times. Having to present yourself in a positive light when you are probably feeling overwhelmed, demoralized and not at your most self-confident may seem just too challenging. Even the most successful careerist can be anxious when it comes to applying for new jobs. You need the right help to compile a CV that will give you a big advantage in overcoming the hurdle of this lack of confidence that can affect any of us.

Anything that aids you in your job search is valuable but a good CV can be a real boon. A curriculum vitae is an extremely versatile document and it can enhance your job prospects regardless of your circumstances. You will benefit from compiling a curriculum vitae whether you have:

• many qualifications or none;
• had many jobs, or never worked;
• been unemployed for long periods;
• experienced career success or have not yet found your niche;
• excellent references or none.

When an employer is looking for an employee, one of the applicants has to be successful. That person could be you as long as your CV stands out from the rest as being full of evidence that you are the best candidate for the job. Equally important, if this evidence is presented in a concise and attractive way, your CV can be a powerful influence working for you. Your CV does not have to knock all the others off the employers desk; it just has to be up there amongst the most impressive so that you get called in for an interview for the post.

Employers want an easy time when they are looking for suitable candidates to employ. If they can spot a good potential employee from the papers that arrive in response to a vacancy, they will spend much less time than usual in finding the right person for the job. Generally the numbers of people applying for every vacancy mean that any typically busy recruiters are looking for a way of reducing the number of CVs in front of them. Any that are less impressive, not as well presented or in some way disappointing, will be eagerly seized on and thrown in the bin. This book shows you how to ensure that this does not happen to your CV.