Write a CV that is easy to understand

Start with a record of what you have done

Before choosing a template, list your jobs, projects, education and practical skills. For each role, note the dates, the setting, the work you handled and a result you can explain. Include relevant volunteering, placements or family-business work when it helps show what you can do.

A useful CV is selective. A master document can hold all your experience, while the version for a particular vacancy contains the evidence that helps that employer understand your fit. Keep the master copy so you do not lose useful details when shortening an application version.

Use a structure readers can follow

Begin with your name and the contact details needed for a reply. An email address, phone number and city or region are often enough for the first conversation. Avoid putting identification numbers or unrelated personal information into a CV.

Use familiar headings such as Profile, Experience, Education and Skills. Put the most relevant information where it is easy to find. A recent graduate may lead with a substantial project or qualification; someone with relevant work experience will usually give that work more space.

• Keep job titles, employer names and dates in a consistent order.
• Use the same date format throughout the document.
• Separate different roles clearly, including promotions within one employer.
• Explain a course, project or qualification with the details relevant to the target role.

Describe actions and evidence

A list of responsibilities tells the reader what a role involved. A stronger description also shows what you personally did. Begin with a clear action, add the context, then give a result or purpose when you can support it.

You do not need to turn every task into an impressive percentage. If you have no reliable measurement, use an accurate description of the scope, frequency, process or outcome. A precise modest statement is easier to defend in an interview than an invented improvement.

Broad: Responsible for customer service. Clearer: Handled customer returns, explained refund options and recorded recurring product issues for the store manager. If supported by your records: Trained three new colleagues on the returns process.

Make skills specific

Separate tools you have used from skills you are still learning. Instead of a long list of broad qualities, show where a skill appears in your work. Scheduling, stock checks, lesson planning, spreadsheet reporting and food preparation can all be useful evidence when relevant to the vacancy.

Include an appropriate level of detail. A software name can be useful, but so can the task you completed with it. Avoid rating your skills with unexplained stars or percentages; the reader cannot know what your scale means.

Review the file you will send

Choose a readable font and enough space between sections. Check the document at normal size, not only while zoomed out. Clear layout helps readers, but no particular template guarantees acceptance by every hiring system.

Follow the file-format instructions in the vacancy. When sending a PDF, open the exported file and check that text can be selected, headings are visible and page breaks do not split important details. A scanned image can look correct while making the text harder to reuse.

• Check spelling, dates, email address and phone number.
• Remove example names and template instructions.
• Check that every claim reflects your own experience.
• Use a useful filename such as Firstname-Lastname-CV.pdf.
• Keep a copy of the version sent with the application.

Put it into practice

Put the guide into practice in the CV builder →

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