Preparing Your CV

If you’re looking for a new job, your CV is a crucial document for you to get right. The time and energy you spend in preparing your CV will pay dividends when it comes to getting noticed and helping you to stand out among the many applicants that may be challenging you for that dream job.

Noble Futures, a leading specialist recruitment consultancy for the Animal Health, Agricultural, Equine & Pet industries, shares some expert advice with VetClick.com readers to help you to prepare your CV and give yourself the best chance possible at getting the job you want.

The objective of your CV

A CV is an outline of your educational and professional history and is, in a nutshell, your own personal Sales and Marketing document. Its purpose is to promote you and highlight your credentials in the most positive way possible in the context of the position you are applying for.

In preparing your CV, bear in mind that it should have two objectives: to gain you an interview and to help form the basis for the interview discussion and flow of your meeting with your potential new employers.

How to stand out

Your CV will normally be one of many that the employer will be reading, so it must catch the reader’s attention early when being read – your target is to achieve this in the first half page of reading.

Make it relevant to the role and Company that you are applying to and when outlining your experience emphasise your major achievements that reflect the position being sought. For example, if you are applying for a sales or marketing position, emphasise examples of where you have demonstrated: persuading, influencing, results, listening, negotiating or relationships skills etc.

Research the Company you are applying to and establish a view of its culture and way of doing business. Is it aggressive? Does it operate in a competitive area? Does it have a collaborative approach to its clients? Does it provide thought leadership? Is it a new or established business? Again, where possible seek to reflect this view when outlining your experience and major achievements and consider both your past work, educational periods and personal interests such as sports as examples of these. This will help you to stand out as the right person for the job.

Be concise, positive and check, check and check again!

Your CV must be clear and succinct, well laid out, easy to read and it should be no longer than two pages of A4 and remember that correct spelling and grammar is essential – nothing will turn a prospective employer off quicker than mistakes in your CV!

The CV should present a positive impression of you – highlighting your strong points, strengths and emphasising your individuality wherever you can, give examples that show your - desire to succeed, assumed responsibility, work ethic, your ability to work as part of a team, leadership, problem resolution skills etc.

Keep it accurate and honest – dishonesty will be uncovered!

Prepare both a paper copy and an electronic version either in a PDF or MS Word format and use a standard business font such as Arial. However, variations to this may be appropriate if applying for a position working in a creative, young and/or energetic business, so know the business you are applying to.

What should your CV include?

The key areas to include when preparing your CV are:

• A professional and personal summary, remembering always to emphasise the relevant aspects only.
• Work Experience - include a summarised list of your work experience, with your current position first. Highlight the key, relevant achievements – show results and do not merely list the tasks of previous roles. If you are applying for your first role in industry, then include in this section a bullet point list of any part time work that helped you support yourself through University or College – this will help reflect a good work ethic and sense of responsibility.
• Qualifications and Education - Show your degree, subject and university, your secondary education school and list of achievements and your professional qualifications, ensuring relevancy is considered.
• Personal Interests - only show interests that reflect well on your personal traits and that are likely to be of interest to a future employer.
• Contact Details, including your LinkedIn profile.
• References - a note that professional and/or personal references are available should suffice. But do make sure that these can be produced if and when required.

So, that’s it! If you follow all of the above, you should be well on your way to producing a CV that will help to get you the position you deserve.

Just a few extra things to remember include that you should check that your social media permissions are secure or ensure that the images are something that you are happy for a potential employer to see – they are likely to be checked. Ensure your email address is of a professional or neutral nature – it does reflect an impression of you. And always send a covering letter or email when forwarding your CV, which will provide you with a further opportunity to impress and to stand out from the crowd. Never send bulk despatches of your CV by email to multiple Companies - do it individually and remember to ensure that the CV and covering letter reflect the specific Company.

Wishing you the best of success in your future career! If you would like any free and confidential advice on achieving the career of your dreams in the Animal Health, Agricultural, Equine or Pet industries, please do get in touch with Noble Futures; their team of expert recruitment consultants are ready and on hand to answer any of your questions.

For more information, the latest vacancies and to talk to one of Noble Futures’ team of consultants, see www.noble-futures.com, Tel: 0161 820 3510 or email: [email protected]

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