7 Tips for Resumes

When you apply for a job, you are usually asked to send a CV or resume. This is a history of your education and work experience. Here are 7 tips for CVs and resumes in English:

Tip 1: Use design that demands attention
Employers don't have time to read through each of your job descriptions to know if you have the skills they need. The design of your CV must do it for them. Your CV should be concise, well-organised and relevant. It should emphasise the most important and relevant points about your experience, skills and education.

Tip 2: Use "power words"
To control the image that an employer has of you, use power words that match the position you want. Certain words are used frequently by recruiters in their job descriptions. You should study recruiters' advertisements and job descriptions and use these words in your CV and covering letter.

Tip 3: A number is worth 1,000 words
Numbers are alive and powerful. They create images in our minds. General statements are easy to ignore. Be specific! Use numbers when describing your duties and achievements.

Tip 4: Put important information first
List important information at the beginning of your job descriptions. Put statements in your CV in order of importance, impressiveness and relevance to the job.

Tip 5: Sell benefits, not skills
Holiday companies don't sell holidays. They sell relaxation, adventure, sun, sea and sand (the benefits of a holiday). You should not sell your skills (many other people have the same skills). You should sell the benefits of your skills. When you write your skills and past duties, you can explain their benefits to the employer.

Tip 6: Solve the employer's (hidden) needs
Employers want people who can solve problems, not create them! Your CV and cover letter should show how you can solve the employer's problems and needs.

Tip 7: Target the job
You will have more success if you adjust your CV and cover letter for the specific skills an employer is seeking. This means that you would write one CV for one particular job and a different, modified, CV for another job.

Contributor: Josef Essberger