A good CV should include the following elements at a minimum:
1. Name and contact info:
Your full name should be clearly displayed at the top of your CV, along with the following contact info:
- Mobile number – it‘s ok if you’re not able to answer a call during work hours but do respond promptly to messages left by potential employers and most critically, make sure your voicemail message is polite and professional!
- Email – nearly all job applications are now made online and it’s likely that you will hear back about any applications that way too. Make sure that the email address you’re using is inoffensive. The creative address you used as a teenager may not be appropriate when you’re applying for employment as an adult!
- Address – You don’t need to include your home address on a cv but noting the city and suburb is generally still expected.
- Online Employment Profile (such as LinkedIn) - If you have one (and it’s recommended that you do) this is where to include the URL, embedded as a link if possible, so readers of your CV can easily check it out.
2. Your personal statement and objectives
In New Zealand it’s common to include a personal statement and employment objectives in your CV. Just make sure to keep them concise and to the point, 4-5 lines each is a good rule of thumb.
- Personal statement – this should detail your skills, strengths and passions around the industry you are applying for.
- Objectives – these identify what you’re trying to achieve by applying for this job.
3. Your work history
There is a standard format for listing work experience on your CV. Each entry needs to include:
- The company name
- Your job title
- The dates you worked there
- Your main responsibilities (keep it short, bullet points, not paragraphs)
Always list your job history in reverse chronological order, with your most recent position first. This is important as employers are wanting to see your recent and most relevant work experience first.
You don’t need to go into detail for very role you’ve held, particularly if you’ve had many. Just give five or six with some substance, and then list less relevant roles including just the dates that you worked there.
4. Qualifications
These should also be listed in reverse chronological order.
Make sure to include:
- Qualification type – for example, Health Assistance – Level 3, or Bachelor of Science.
- Institution – for example, University of Canterbury.
- Dates – the time period over which you completed the qualification.
If your qualification is directly relevant to the role you’re applying for, you could also include key details of your study that you think will be appealing to the potential employer.
5. Your referees
Most of the time it’s fine in the referees' section to just include a sentence like ‘references available upon request. If you are specifically asked to include them up front or wish to include these details, give your referees’ phone numbers, email addresses (and their relationship to you) at the bottom of your CV.
Try to choose referees you have worked with recently, or those most relevant for the industry you are going for. Most employers will ask for two references and will prefer the most recent ones.
How to format your CV
- Length – In NZ a standard CV is one to two pages long. We like CV’s to be relatively short and to the point.
- Keep the most relevant content front and centre.
- Fonts – the best font for your CV is one that’s easy to read. Commonly used fonts in CV’s are Times New Roman, Cambria, Georgia and Verdana. Whichever you choose, stick to it throughout.
- Layout – clearly label each section and remember to be brief by using bullet points for your experience and qualifications sections.
- Margins – keep the margins the same throughout.
Proofing your content
This is so important! Make sure you run spelling and grammatical checks on your document before submitting an application. If possible, show your CV to someone you trust to review, a fresh pair of eyes can make all the difference.
Templates
A quick Google search on ‘CV templates’ will bring up a myriad of options to explore. These can be helpful in making your CV stand out and look professional. Just keep the above points in mind when creating the content.
