What is a CV?

A CV is a document used when applying for jobs. It allows you to summarise your education, skills and relevant work experience enabling you to successfully sell your abilities to potential employers. Alongside your CV, employers may also ask for a cover letter.

CV stands for curriculum vitae, a Latin phrase meaning 'course of life'. In other countries, such as the USA and Canada, CVs are known as résumés. These documents tend to be more concise and follow no particular formatting rules.

How long should a CV be?

'We recommend CVs are no longer than two A4 pages,' says the careers service team at the University of Chester. 'Although for students seeking part-time jobs, they may be shorter, and for academic CVs slightly longer.'

Take a look at our example of a chronological CV for inspiration.

That said, one size doesn't fit all. Although not used as often, a three-page CV might be needed for those in high-level roles or for people who have gained a lot of experience or worked in multiple jobs over the last five to ten years. For example, some medical CVs may be longer depending on your experience. While it's important to keep your CV concise, you should also avoid selling your experience short.

When writing a CV, save space by only including the main points of your education and experience. If you're struggling to edit your CV, ask yourself if certain information sells you. If it doesn't, cut it out. If it's not relevant to the job you're applying for, delete it and if it's old detail from ten years ago, summarise it.

What should I include in my CV?

• Contact details - Include your full name, home address, mobile number and email address. Your date of birth is irrelevant and unless you're applying for an acting or modelling job you don't need to include a photograph. If you have a professional networking profile, website or online portfolio, link to it within your contact details.
• Personal statement - A CV personal profile is a concise statement that highlights your key attributes and helps you stand out from the crowd. Usually placed at the top, it picks out a few relevant achievements and skills, while expressing your career aims. A good CV profile focuses on the sector you're applying to, as your cover letter will be job-specific. Discover how to write a personal statement for your CV.
• Education - List and date all previous education, including professional qualifications. Place the most recent first. Include qualification type/grades, and dates. Mention specific modules only where relevant.
• Work experience - List your work experience in reverse date order, making sure that anything you mention is relevant to the job you're applying for. Include your job title, the name of the company, how long you were with the organisation and key responsibilities. If you have plenty of relevant work experience, this section should come before education.
• Skills and achievements - This is where you talk about the foreign languages you speak and the IT packages you can competently use. The skills you list should be relevant to the job. Don't exaggerate your abilities, as you'll need to back up your claims at interview. If you've got lots of job-specific skills, you should do a skills-based CV.
• Interests - 'Socialising', 'listening to podcasts' and 'reading' aren't going to catch a recruiter's attention. However, relevant interests can provide a more complete picture of who you are, as well as giving you something to talk about at interview. Examples include writing your own blog or community newsletters if you want to be a journalist, being part of a drama group if you're looking to get into sales and your involvement in climate change activism if you'd like an environmental job. If you don't have any relevant hobbies or interests, leave this section out.
• References - You don't need to provide the names of referees at this stage. You can say 'references available upon request' but most employers would assume this to be the case - so if you're stuck for space, leave this out.

For more help and advice on how to create a CV and to find CV templates, see example CVs.

How do I format a CV?

The layout of your CV also has an effect on its success. Keep in mind the following tips when crafting your CV:

• Avoid titling the document 'curriculum vitae' or 'CV'. It's a waste of space. Instead, let your name serve as the title.
• Section headings are a good way to break up your CV. Ensure they stand out by making them larger (font size 14 or 16) and bold.
• Avoid fonts such as Comic Sans. Choose something professional, clear and easy to read such as Arial, Calibri or Times New Roman. Use a font size between 10 and 12 to make sure that potential employers can read your CV. Ensure all fonts and font sizes are consistent throughout.
• List everything in reverse chronological order. Then the recruiter sees your work history and most recent achievements first.
• Keep it concise by using bullet points. This type of CV layout allows potential employers to skim your CV and quickly pick out important information.
• Double check your margins. Having white space around your CV makes it easier to read and look less cluttered. Aim for 2.5 centimetre margins all the way around. Don't be tempted to make these smaller to fit more in.
• Name the document when saving. Don't just save as 'Document 1'. Make sure the title of the document is professional and identifies you, such as 'Joe-Smith-CV'.
• Save with the correct file extension. Double check what this is by looking at the job advert, application instructions or by contacting the recruiter. Some adverts my state a .PDF file extension while others my ask for .docx.

How do I write a good CV?

• Use active verbs when possible. For example, include words like 'created', 'analysed' and 'devised' to present yourself as a person who shows initiative.
• Avoid generic, over-used phrases such as 'team player', 'hardworking' and 'multitasker'. Instead, provide real-life examples that demonstrate all of these skills.
• Tailor your CV. Look at the company's website and social media accounts. Find out if they've recently been mentioned in the local press and use the job advert to make sure your CV is targeted to the role and employer.
• Create the right type of CV for your circumstances. Decide whether the chronological, skills-based or academic CV is right for you.
• Make sure your email address sounds professional. If your personal address is inappropriate, create a new account for professional use.
• Don't lie or exaggerate on your CV or job application. For example, altering your degree grade from a 2:2 to a 2:1 is classed as degree fraud.
• If posting your CV online, don't include your home address, as you could be targeted by fraudsters.
• Always include a cover letter unless the employer states otherwise. It will enable you to personalise your application. You can draw attention to a particular part of your CV, disclose a disability or clarify gaps in your work history.