CV's and application forms

Employers will usually ask for you to fill in an application or to hand in your CV. Find some quick tips below on how to present the best impression when handing in either an application or your CV.

What is a CV?

When to use your CV

Types of CV

Chronological CV/ Skills CV

What to include

Writing a cover letter

CV Do's

Application Forms

Quick Tips

Common Panics

A CV is your chance to show a potential employer why you are the best person for the job. It does this by describing your work experience, qualifications and skills. CV is short for 'curriculum vitae', which literally means ‘course of life’ in Latin.

Some job advertisements ask for a CV. If you apply to a recruitment agency, they will ask for a CV. If you contact an employer speculatively. If you have a CV, it can also be useful for jogging your memory when you are completing an application form.

There are two main types of CV.

Chronological CV: The most common type of CV. It’s useful if you are applying for a job similar to your past jobs, you have fairly continuous work experience, and your experience shows steady career progression.

It describes the jobs you have done in date order (starting with the most recent first).

If you are changing career.

• Don’t have much work experience, so want to highlight skills you have developed through life experience, university activities or voluntary work.

• If you have had a variety of unconnected jobs or If you have had one or more career breaks, then use the Skills CV: This is sometimes called a functional CV. 

Chronological CV: The most common type of CV. It’s useful if you are applying for a job similar to your past jobs, you have fairly continuous work experience, and your experience shows steady career progression.

It describes the jobs you have done in date order (starting with the most recent first).

If you

• are changing career.

• don’t have much work experience, so want to highlight skills you have developed through life experience, university activities or voluntary work.

• have had a variety of unconnected jobs.
• have had one or more career breaks.

Then use the Skills CV: This is sometimes called a functional CV. 

What to include?

Personal/contact details: Include your name, address, home phone number, mobile and e-mail address.

Personal profile: An introductory paragraph that is a good way of summarising your key skills/experience that you can bring to the job.

Career history: Include your job title, company and the dates you worked there. (Either the month and the year or the year only). Include a brief description of what your job involved, and give examples of your key achievements. 

Explain any gaps in employment. 

Education and training: Start with your highest level qualification and work backwards. Give the most detail about your highest level qualifications, including the dates you studied and where you studied. Remember to include training you have undertaken as part of your previous work.

Skills and experience: Where you could include details about what your good at. Typical skills could include typing speed, what computer programmes you use, although you could also include things like ‘excellent customer service skills’, teamwork, budget planning. These skills can come from anywhere!

Interests: This is your chance to show that you are a rounded person with a variety of interests. Do not call this section ‘hobbies’!

Additional information: This is the place for anything that shows you in a positive light that doesn’t fit anywhere else. You may decide to include ‘Full clean driving licence’ here, but not if you have already included it in your ‘Skills and experience’.

You don’t need to include:

• Any detailed personal information such as your age, marital status, if you have children, political/religious beliefs etc.
• A photograph.
• Contact details for referees (unless they have been requested).
• Last or expected salary (unless requested).
• Copies of references or qualifications.

Covering letter

A covering letter needs to be short, and explain why you are sending the CV. If it is response to an advert, you can describe why your skills and experience are ideal for the job. If you are writing speculatively then be specific about the kind of role you are looking for.

Always address your CV and letter to a named person. If you don’t have the name, ring the company and ask who it should be sent to, and what their job title is.

Keep it Short and Simple: Short and simple sentences and two pages at the most!

Type your CV using an easy to read font!

Send an original, NOT a photocopy!

Get someone else to read it – they may see errors that you don’t.

Write in the present tense!

An example of writing in the present tense would be:

“I am [current] highly skilled in using in databases” rather than

“I used [past] databases.” (This implies you don’t anymore, so you may be out of date.

An employer will usually give this to you, by mail, hand or, if you are registered with one, your agency.

• Take a photocopy so that you can practice.

• read through all the instructions before you start filling in the form.

• Read through the whole form before you start filling it in, so that you know what you need to do.
• Use black ink - employers often photocopy forms and other colours don't copy as well.
• If you need to attach extra sheets, put your name and the job title/reference on the top of the page and attach it securely to the application form.
• Answer all the questions. Don't include your CV and write 'refer to CV' - this kind of short cut can look lazy.
• Get the form in by the closing date - most companies just throw away any late applications without looking at them.

What do I put in the 'tell us about yourself' section?

This section goes by many names, such as 'Tell us about your reasons for applying for this job'; 'What skills would you bring to this job' and 'Is there any other information you would like to add in support of your application'.

To write this section, the first thing to do is look at the further information, person specification and/or job description that you have received with the application form.

If there is a person specification, go through each skill the employer wants and show how you have what they need, using examples where possible.

I haven't got many qualifications, but they've left loads of space to fill in that section of the form - should I bother applying?

YES! The most likely reason that there is a lot of space is because the employer uses the same application form for all their vacancies, so it needs to include enough space for the kinds of jobs where they ask for a lot of qualifications.

If you are still worried that it looks too blank, you could include details of any in-house training you have done, for instance in health and safety or equal opportunities - and remember that in most jobs, experience and skills are as important as qualifications.

I haven't got anything to write for a section!

Try and write something for every section that asks you to describe your experience or suitability for the job. If there is a 'factual' section (eg 'Professional qualifications' where you definitely can't write anything (the employer may wonder if you have just forgotten to fill it in). Instead, write 'not applicable'.