Ten Things NOT To Write In Your CV - Part Two

This article is continued from ‘Ten Things NOT To Write In Your CV – Part One’. Your CV (Curriculum Vitae) – Resume for our American friends sells you to your prospective employer. It has to be straight and too the point. However too many CV’s contain irrelevant information. What are the ten things that you shouldn’t write in your CV?

6) Don’t be all things to all people

Some people with a broad range of experience or an eclectic background feel that this can’t be anything but good news for their employment prospects. Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong! In all but a handful of circumstances, unless you can demonstrate a clear, logical career progression in your CV then you’re diminishing your chances of future employment. This doesn’t mean that you should lie about your past on your CV. It simply means that you should try and find a common trail of experience in the bullet point summaries of your previous experience. Try not to highlight a vast range of skills from administration to sales unless you’re applying for a general management position.

7) Don’t mention every qualification you’ve every earned

This again stems from pride. It stems from pride and a willingness to demonstrate that you’ve achieved things in the past. Unfortunately gaining a basic qualification in Geography at school doesn’t mean a thing unless you choose to study the subject at University! A rule thumb should be that a better qualification replaces the one before. If you have a degree, you are generally better off not mentioning your school qualifications. Similarly, if you have over five years experience in your chosen industry then you’re probably better off not mentioning your school qualifications. Remember that people will only skim your CV and you only want relevant, important details to be read.

8) Don’t be too personal about your personal interests

You can probably turn people off more than you can turn people on when they’re reading your CV. The secret is to include nothing more important or appealing than your employment experience or qualifications. Sure, you should mention the fact that you enjoy playing golf in your spare time. Some people however talk about their favourite golf course or their best score. That’s going too far. Leave that for bonding with the interviewer if appropriate.

9) Don’t make your CV longer than 3 pages

No matter the quantity or quality of your experience there is no need to have your CV longer than 3 single sides of paper. If you are relevant for a job role, your prospective employer may ask for more information – but until then don’t take the risk of them not finding the most important information. Again, remember that the first and only purpose of your CV is to get you an interview. A CV by itself will never get you a job; so don’t expect it to contain everything about you.

10) Don’t add referee details to your CV

Don’t give out any reference details until you are asked for them. It is unethical and unnecessary for anyone to ask others for information about you before the interview stage. In addition, good references are hard to come by. Why bother your referees about a position that you may not be interested in? You want your referees to be bothered as little as possible and only contacted when necessary. Don’t take the chance that someone may contact them after seeing your CV ‘on spec’. Take their names and contact details off your CV.

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David Bain is a consultant to www.UteachRecruitment.com - a specialist teacher jobs recruitment agency. U Teach Recruitment is based in Coatbridge, Scotland and brings schools and teachers together from all over the UK. Teaching opportunities include English teaching jobs. Visit www.UteachRecruitment.com to search for teacher jobs today.