When it comes to producing the ideal curriculum vitae remember that “Less is More”. Keep things simple - flowery language, fancy fonts and brightly coloured paper are not only unnecessary, but will probably lead to prospective employer sending your application on the fast-track to the bin. When faced with piles of CVs, businesses are looking for reasons to reject as many as possible as quickly as they can. Your resumé should be entirely straightforward and easy to read, without selling yourself short.

Employment experts say a good CV should be no longer than two sides A4 paper, or three at a push. To do justice to your fabulous career history and unbounded potential in such a short space is challenging… but not impossible. Here are a few tips:

• Use bullet points to make your CV more concise and easier to scan.
• Set out the information under clear headings.
• Keep it truthful, concise and jargon-free.
• Repeated use of “I” is hard on the eye – drop it.
• Hackneyed phrases like “dedicated self-starter” are weak and quirky ones such as “interesting and interested” belong in the lonely-hearts ads.

Getting started

First, start with plain, business-like white paper. Your resumé should be attractive because of its content, not its hue, or indeed its eccentric typeface. Use a standard font, such as Times New Roman, Arial or Verdana. Keep the use of capitals and italics to a minimum.

Type your name – first and last, no middle names – across the top. Shortened names like Nick and Abi are fine, but nicknames like Tiger and Bubbles will give the wrong impression! There’s no need to write “CV” or “Curriculum Vitae” - it should be obvious what the document is. Follow this with your address, telephone number and e-mail address. Don’t include a photo unless it is relevant for the job.

After your basic personal details, you might want to make a short “mission statement” about who you are and what are aiming for - something along the lines of “experienced and versatile salesman seeking management role”. Some career advisors believe this is a good way of selling yourself, but others feel it is an Americanism that won’t go down well with British recruiters, who want to know what you can do for them, not vice versa. Such job objectives are appropriate only if you have done a lot of job-hopping, or are a recent graduate with little work experience.

Skills

The first meaty part of your CV should be a short list of skills. Every resumé you send out must be tailored for the job for which you are applying – particularly in this section. Some research into the company and the role you’re after will help you tweak your list. It should be about six relevant words or phrases long.

Experience

Prospective employers want to know what you are capable of, not how clever you are, so after your list of skills, you should précis your career. Begin with your current or most recent job and work backwards, stopping before you get to part-time summer student jobs. Stick to relevant and recent experience. However, you may want to briefly mention part-time work you have had in order to avoid time gaps. If your career has been a long one, there is no need to go right back to the beginning in any detail.

Wherever possible, quantify your achievements by giving a number, a percentage or a value – such as “increased sales by 12%.”

Don’t include salary details. If a prospective employer knows what you earn, they will offer only enough to get you to work for them. Leave discussions over pay for later in the recruitment process.

Qualifications

This should follow your work experience, not precede it. Start with the biggest qualification first. Be brief. If you have a degree, you don’t need to list all your GCSEs and the grades you achieved – and there’s no need to mention exam failures!

Optional extras

• Interests This is a popular optional feature on CVs. If you include a list, make sure each item is interesting or indicates skills transferable to the workplace. Don’t exaggerate your favoured pastimes or include mundane ones – “watching telly” is not a valid interest.
  
  
• Age It is frowned upon for job adverts to specify an age range, so stating your age is not absolutely necessary. Employers should judge whether to offer you an interview based on your experience and potential. However, you can include your date of birth if you wish.
  
  
• Marital status It is now illegal for prospective employers to ask about your relationship status. Some career advisors suggest that, despite employment legislation and HR policies, there is still discrimination against “unreliable” married women, and single men and gay people. Employers may want to know whether a candidate has a family, which may have to be uprooted in the event of relocation. Use your discretion about whether or not to include any information here. Use the term “single” rather than "divorced.”

Further help

Our Jobs Channel offers a links to the top UK sites offering CV services (www.uknetguide.co.uk/Employment/Jobs/CV_Sites.html ) plus links to useful Career Planning and Career Advice sites (www.uknetguide.co.uk/Employment/Jobs/Information_Sites.html). Why not start your job hunting with our Job Search (www.uknetguide.co.uk/Employment/Job_Search/)?