Cover letter

• Always send a covering letter
• Keep it brief.
• Avoid using generic letters, address the person/consultant and sell your relevant experience and selection criteria to this specific job.

Personal Information

• Include your daytime contact details as well as your home and email addresses.
• Keep your career and personal objectives up to date. Some candidates aren’t aware they are culled from a job shortlist because their objective is to work in an advertising agency when they’ve applied for a role in an insurance company.

Length

• The length of your resume should be proportional to your work experience ie. graduates 1 – 2 pages, experienced candidates 5 pages maximum.
• Bear in mind your reader, make it visually appealing and easy to read.
• Use bullet points and avoid longwinded paragraphs.

Employment History

• List your current/most recent position first.
• Include the dates of employment, employers name and company overview, position title, key responsibilities, key achievements and reason for leaving.
• Give greater emphasis to the more recent and relevant roles.

Proof Read

• Use spell check but don’t rely on it.
• Ask yourself how will your CV rate if the reader is reviewing another 40 resumes?