Before and After CV Example
This is a basic example of a CV before and after a review and re-write. Please note: all our CVs are unique and individually tailored to match each client's requirements. For more examples of our work, feel free to contact us.
CV Before
Our review comments prior to the revamp (scroll down to see the final result)
Address and Profile Sections
John has not included a contact telephone number and / or an email address; significantly reducing the chances of the recruiter getting back to him.
Throughout the CV, John has started points with, "I..." You can write your CV in the first person (i.e. I have) or the third person (i.e. he/she has). However, you do not need to use 'I', 'he' or 'she' in a CV because its use is implied.
This profile is extremely generic and full of clichés. A profile should communicate John's record of achievement, his experience level and unique selling points.
No need for an 'Objective' in a UK-CV. These can often be limiting and be seen as negative by recruiters.
Employment:
ABC HEALTH
There is a gap in employment between May 2007 and October 2007. Why should John allow any weakness to be questioned when it's easily resolved by not including months? Usage of months is unnecessary and only serves the purpose of spotting gaps.
John has stated that he, "increased customer satisfaction" at ABC Technology; but, by how much?
John's writing swings between active voice and passive voice. To be effective, his CV should be prepared in the more natural and active voice. "Responsible for", or noun phrases tied with prepositions, such as "member of", are indicators of the passive voice.
Never include salary details on a CV! It will never work in your favour as your salary could be seen as either too high or too low, (and it's confidential until salary negotiations have commenced).
Most of John's information is task-based, not results-based. He should consider including some achievements. Achievements are by far the most important part of your CV (and when done correctly, will target the position you seek, include all relative keywords, and showcase measurable employer benefits).
ABC RECRUITMENT (HEALTH SERVICE)
Reasons for leaving are not needed in a CV!
Previous positions should always be in past tense.
John should consider reformatting this section of his CV using bullet points to make it CV easier to read and prevent it from feeling too verbose. When reviewing a CV, the summary is read and then the rest of the document is scanned quickly with job titles, bullet statements, and other highlighted material being read first. Total reading time is about 45 seconds. If a CV can't be read that quickly, it won't be read.
For the second time in his CV, John has written, "Responsible for organising workloads". He should vary his terminology and keep an eye out for word redundancies. For example, if the word, 'responsible' is used repeatedly, employers may then assume that he has a limited vocabulary or that he simply didn't want to put thought into correcting an issue.
HEALTHY ABC LTD
There is a distinct lack of content here. What John has now is going to leave the reader with too many questions.
Unless John has hobbies that relate to the job / industry he's interested in, he should consider removing this section. This provides extra space for him to expand on more relevant information. If hobbies are to be included, he should try and include something original - a lot of people like music and socialising, for example.
General Comments
Visually, John's CV looks a little ordinary. Although a CV is a formal document that needs to be conservative in appearance, making some judicious use of formatting options can bring a CV alive and make it more inviting to read.
Spelling error; did you spot it? The spell check sure didn't! In this candidate's profile, the word, 'manager' is spelt incorrectly, with 'manger' (missing an 'a').
Recruiters might ask what John did after his degree? Although there's no need to go into detail, a short 'summary' should be fine.
Grammatical inconsistency: some bullets have full stops, others don't.
To help make his CV easier to read and generally appear tidier, John should fully justify the text, rather than leaving it aligned to the left.
CV After
