Tip 2: Curriculm Vitae (CV).

Getting the right CV is important. But you knew that already.

Concentrate on a simple layout that is easy to read with bold heading titles. No snazzy fonts or colors. Keep it simple.

It should broken down into areas such as the following:

  • Name and address including contact details.
  • A quick paragraph about you so you can sell yourself in a few sentences.
  • Your list of technical skills.
  • Your work history (leave nothing out!).
  • Your technical and personal qualifications.
  • Professional achievements.
  • Date of birth and marital status.
  • Personal and professional interests.

The last two items are not so important but it is quite funny how often people leave off their date of birth. I’m sure an employer is more keen to know that you are skilled in SQL Server and can lead a team of 20 people rather than knowing that in your spare time you like to help out at the local church. It is worth putting a few items in your list of interests as it will give them an idea of what kind of person you might be. A base jumper might be a little less reliable than a part time church minister for example.

I won’t go into detail about constructing your CV as there are plenty of websites and services that will assist you with this.

Skill Set

One important thing you have to remember is that when you apply for a job online or submit yourself to an agency or website your CV will be uploaded into a database. When an agency is searching for staff for a particular role the CV database will be searched for matching candidates based on location and skill set.

Therefore, make your list of skills as good as possible. Sure, not many people use Windows 95 any more, but my current role still requires me to support it. I was even asked about it in the interview, so it was definitely something they were looking for. I’m sure that some people who can support Windows 95 didn’t bother to put in on their CV as they thought it was redundant.

If, like me, you have skills that you might score only 2 out of 10 on technically, then put them on the CV. You might get a few more enquiries about roles you may not be able to perform but at least it will get your name into the heads of the agency staff.

Multiple Personalities

Creating a few CVs highlighting different skills can also be important. I had only two as I was looking for a specific type of role. One CV concentrated on my technical skills and the other on my managerial and lead experience.

Doing this will allow you to target your audience more effectively.

Sell Yourself!

I have a tendency to undervalue what I do in my technical roles. Us geeks don’t like to make too much noise. We are all quiet and shy insular types, you know!

Don’t be afraid to “big yourself up” and shout your achievements on the CV. As long as you can back them up in an interview then put them on there.

If you looked after a set of servers that were in use 24*7 then surely you would have been “supporting mission critical application servers”. If you regularly pulled paper jams out of the MDs printer then surely you would have been “supporting and assisting users up to director level”.

One golden rule though. Don’t lie. It will get you caught out and might loose you the job.


This post is part of the How to get a job online series by Taoski.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

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