The key principles of a CV format
No one denies the whole importance of a CV for a successful job hunting. If you keep failing to get an interview with a potential employer, don’t hurry to blame the content of this paper. What about the wrong CV format? It can spoil the first impression.
Format a resume in the proper way
Clumsy CV formatting can prevent hiring managers from seeing skills. What’s more, it provokes irritation. As a result, an application finds its last home in a trash can.
Fortunately, it’s still possible to change your situation for the better. Just a couple of tweaks will greatly increase the chances to attract the precious attention of a potential employer. Follow these tips below.
Reduce the CV page margins
Since you don’t have much space when composing a curriculum vitae, it’s up to you to decrease blank space and fill the pages with relevant content to convince recruiters to reach out to you.
The top quarter of a paper is especially crucial due to the fact it’s the first thing a hiring manager will see upon opening. So, make this part interesting. Reducing page margins will enable you to place more information on the top of the page and in other places of the document.
Reduce contact details
Another thing that can potentially spoil a resume is an unnecessary abundance of personal details at the top. As with page margins, too much contact information at the top will simply push the basic content of your paper down. As a result, the hiring manager may be reluctant to continue his acquaintance with your paper.
In fact, hiring managers don’t require seeing a full address as well as the date of birth on a curriculum vitae. Just provide a phone number, name, email, and approximate location. That’s enough for hiring managers to reach out to you if they like a resume.
Divide it into sections
To make a document easy to read, you should make it look professional. So, it should come with clearly headed sections.
Most probably, you have a profile section at the top. It’s followed by employment history as well as qualifications and educations. Ensure that every section is titled in the proper way, with the text for your heading in bold and also larger than content in paragraphs.
Of course, you can have subheading in a paper but they need to be emboldened. Moreover, they should be a bit bigger than your paragraphs but smaller than your main heading text.
Make use of bullet points for your role descriptions
We recommend utilizing bullet points for your role descriptions. It will make it easier for hiring managers to comprehend a paper and instantly spot the required information.
Recruiters are extremely busy, so they won’t appreciate the necessity to read messy and clumsy paragraphs in a document. Break your roles into bullet points in order to underline the most crucial skills of yours.
Send it in a Word format
There are two indisputable reasons to use Microsoft Word as a primary document type for your CVs:
- It’s strikingly compatible: Some hiring managers might fail to open PDF or txt resumes, but it’s not about Microsoft Word. It won’t be a problem for them to view a CV if you save it as a Word document.
- It’s very editable: The hiring manager might require editing a paper before sending it to other staff. It will be much easier for them to make all the necessary tweaks in a paper if it’s available in the common Word format.
The proper file name
It’s a professional document, so its file name shouldn’t look clumsy and foolish. Write a name and a position you are applying for and it will be enough. For example, name it ‘Mike’s Jones sales manager CV’.