M M Dowden - Job Search Success--CV/RESUME--How to Get CV Writing Down to a Fine Art Without Making Costly Mistakes

Job Search Success

How to Get CV Writing Down to a Fine Art

Without Making Costly Mistakes

Book 3

M M Dowden

JMSD Publishing Limited

First Published in Great Britain in 2016

by JMSD Publishing Limited

Updated in September 2021

Copyright 2016 M M Dowden All Rights Reserved

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Just one example of comments received ...

... from help with revamp of CV and letter to response to job application - 3 days.

From interview coaching and role-play (didnt realise how awful I was at it) to interview with the company - 4 days.

From first interview to job offer received by email - 3 hours.

From start to finish - all of 7 days!

Now, that's what I call a result! And its all down to you and I can't thank you enough.

SC London

Introduction

M illions of job seekers are genuinely confused about what constitutes a good CV/Rsum, because there is so much conflicting information not only about what you should include or exclude from your CV or Rsum but also how it should be formatted.

No doubt, you have followed the advice of a number of experts, only to find that few, if any of your applications produced the desired result. Since not many recruiters even acknowledge receipt of your application, much less give feedback, you remain puzzled as to why your application failed to get to the next stage of the recruitment process.

Even the few recruiters who do respond, may merely state the obvious: your application was unsuccessful on this occasion . So, you are none the wiser as to why this was the case. In the absence of feedback, you probably chopped and changed your CV based on the next set of advice gleaned from other sources with equally disappointing results. Does that seem familiar?

It is to debunk the many myths that surround this subject that I wished to produce this book. In the course of my work at my recruitment consultancy, I came across countless poorly presented CVs. Most of the worst examples were from experienced and senior executives.

A very small percentage of candidates applications were impressive enough to prompt one to want to meet the applicant. It is not an exaggeration to state that out of every 100 CVs for a given vacancy, barely 10% made it to the applicants-to-interview tray. Of those, only three or four made it to the short-list for presentation to the client for consideration for a particular vacancy.

In this book, I plan to disclose a number of the more common mistakes made by most applicants and provide practical and easy-to-follow tips to help you make your CV stand out from the many hundred applications that are received for any given vacancy.

It does not matter whether you are applying for your first job, or seeking a position as a senior executive. The suggestions apply equally to all office disciplines and levels of seniority.

You will discover:

• Which CV/Rsum format works best and why;
  
• Whether or not you should use CV/Rsum templates;
  
• When a two-page maximum CV/Rsum works for or against you;
  
• What to include and what is best left out of your CV/Rsum to appeal to prospective recruitment companies and employers;
  
• Why avoiding one, particular common mistake may make all the difference between rejection and being included in the shortlist for an interview.

Chapter One

Curriculum Vitae/Rsum

T he Curriculum Vitae or Rsum is one of the first documents you need to prepare prior to your job search. So, what, exactly, is a Curriculum Vitae or a Rsum?

Curriculum Vitae is a Latin term that means course of life . According to the Oxford Dictionary, the CV is a brief account of one's education, qualifications and previous occupations . Notice, it does not say a selection of previous occupations .