cv writing

How to write a CV

What´s a CV?

CV

A CV (short for the Latin phrase curriculum vitae, which means “course of life”) is a detailed document highlighting your professional and academic history. CVs typically include information like work experience, achievements and awards, scholarships or grants you’ve earned, coursework, research projects and publications of your work.

Two types of CV

There are two main types of CV.

Skills-focused CV – useful for career changers, school leavers or people with gaps in work history. Work-focused CV – useful for showcasing work experience and for people progressing to the next stage in their career.

Skill focused CV

https://www.careers.govt.nz/assets/pages/cv-and-cover-letter-templates/Skills-focused-CV-example.pdf

Work focused CV

https://www.careers.govt.nz/assets/pages/cv-and-cover-letter-templates/Work-focused-CV-example.pdf

dIFFERENCE

• SKILLS

• WORK

Make your CV easy to read

Recruiters take 15-20 seconds to scan your CV the first time. If you make a good impression, they'll read your CV more closely. To make your CV look good:

To make your CV look good:

Use a black, easy-to-read font in one size

Use bullet points to list information

Use short sentences .

To make your CV look good:

Keep the tone formal.

Avoid abbreviations, slang or jargon

Avoid photos or images

To make your CV look good:

Keep your CV to two pages.

Save your CV as a word document and PDF

WORD / PDF

Save your CV as both a Word document and a PDF. An employer may need either one of these file formats. Label your CV files with your name, the application date, and the job you're applying for. If you update your Word document, remember to also create a new PDF .

What to put in your CV?

A CV must include:

Your name and contact details

Technical and personal skills

Work, and community and volunteer experience

Qualifications and education

referees (you can include referees or note that referees are available on request).

An objective and personal statement

Achievements

Interests

Job-specific information (for example, a teacher would put their teaching philosophy in their CV).

What NOT to put in your CV?

Don´t put:

a photo or images

coloured or fancy fonts or design

your date of birth or age

your marital status, religion or bank account details

too much text and bad spelling

a funny or rude email address

work experience or interests that are not relevant to the job

lies about your experience and skills.

Name and contact details

Make sure you include:

first and last name

phone number

email address.

Your email address is work-appropriate

Your phone voicemail message only gives your name and a request to leave a message

Objective and personal statement

An objective gives brief details about the type of work and role you would like and the industry you want to work in. A personal statement gives the employer an idea of who you are in three or four sentences. You can include:

• What you're currently doing for employment or education
• What attracted you to the job you're applying for
• Your reason you're applying for this job
• Your career goals.

Skills

The skills you put in your CV should be the same skills listed in the job advertisement. Technical skills Include a technical skill section in your CV to list skills such as:

• Driver's licences
• Languages
• Computer programmes.

Work history and work or volunteer experience

List your most recent jobs or work and volunteer experience first. Your work history needs to include:

• the name of the employer
• the job title/role
• where the job was located
• start date and end date.

Qualifications

List your qualifications or education in the qualifications section of your CV. You can include:

• certificates, diplomas or degrees
• micro-credentials and short work-related courses
• work-based training
• professional development courses, conferences and workshops
• online courses.