5 steps to make your CV stand out

1. Make it relevant

When tailoring your CV, make sure you add the most relevant information first. This could be your degree, work experience or voluntary experiences. The order is important because recruiters often scan through CVs before deciding to read it more thoroughly or reject. Adding the most relevant information first highlights to the employer you have the skills for the job.

Your examples could come from a range of contexts such as

• your studies
• work experience
• part-time jobs
• extra-curricular activities, such as volunteering or peer mentoring
• hobbies and interests 

If the job description lacks detail, or you’re sending a CV speculatively, you may not know what skills the employer is looking for. To help with this, use the skills listed in the job profiles on the Prospects website as a guide.

These links also have advice on the skills employers look for, and how to demonstrate them:

2. Emphasise your results rather than responsibilities 

Instead of listing your tasks or responsibilities, make your CV stand out by highlighting key achievements. Try to back these up these where possible. For example, if you fundraised for a society, you could include how much money you raised. You could also include any excellent academic results for modules or assignments in your Education section.

Using strong action verbs such as: ‘managed’, ‘implemented’, ‘co-ordinated’, ‘achieved’ will give your CV extra impact. You can find more action verbs on our CVs & Covering Letters workbook.  

3. Choose your format

Think about how you arrange your experience, skills and achievements. You want to make it easy for a recruiter to scan through quickly and pick out your key points.

Types of CV formats:

Chronological CV

A chronological CV lists your education and experience in reverse chronological order. Start with the most recent and working backwards. This is the most common style of CV and is more suited to new graduates. It's also generally preferred by employers as it’s easy to skim through.

Skills-based (or functional) CV

This may be useful when your degree subject and work experience are not related to the role. This is because it allows you to show relevant transferable skills. You need be very clear on what the employer is looking for and be able to provide evidence through examples.

They can be useful for experienced graduates who want to change career direction. But for new graduates, we'd suggest a chronological CV rather than a skills-based one.

Targetjobs has more advice on whether a chronological or skills-based CV is right for you.

Academic CV

Use this style to apply for academic jobs such as a postdoctoral position or lectureship. It’s usually built around three areas:

• your research
• teaching
• administrative experience

It can also include publications and conferences you’ve attended. 

Checklist for a professional CV format 

• Choose a clear, readable CV font, such as Arial, with a minimum font size of 11 for your main content.
• Add the most relevant information first. Recruiters often scan through CVs quickly before deciding to read more thoroughly or reject, so the order’s important. Based on what you know about the job, start with what’s most relevant, for example, your degree, work experience or voluntary work. 
• Use bullet points to break up the text, rather than writing in block paragraphs. Start each point with a strong action verb.
• List each section in reverse chronological order. Show your most recent education, work experience and achievements first.
• Ensure your CV is the right length. It can be no longer than 2 pages. The only exception is that if you’re applying for academic positions, your CV can be longer. If you're applying for a role in investment banking, a one-page CV is standard. 
• Different countries have different CV formats.

Find out more about specific CV formats on the following websites:

4. Check your spelling

Check your CV carefully to make sure there are no spelling or grammatical errors. Read it out loud to yourself, use the spelling and grammar tool in Word. You could also ask a friend to proofread it for you.

Find online and in-person resources to help you use grammar and punctuation correctly:

5. Include a covering letter 

Unless it says specifically not to, always include a  cover letter. This helps to highlight the important parts of your CV and your motivation for applying.