It’s important to take your time creating your CV for jobs in the UK. It will tell a recruiter or potential employer about your skills and experience and is the first opportunity you have to make a good impression.
There are many ways to create your CV. We’ve got five great CV examples that you can use as references when creating your own.
The chronological CV is the best way of telling your story. You can easily remember it because it’s formatted in the way you experienced it. This helps when writing it and when talking about your experiences in an interview.
The most recent working experience should be at the beginning and your very first working experience at the end. This makes it an easy conversation starter for any interviewer, as they can see the start of your professional experience all the way up to the present day.
A chronological CV is the most common form and is an easy way of showing an employer what you did and when you did it. A top tip for writing your chronological CV is, if you have experience from a long time ago that is more relevant than your most recent experience, you can split the CV into two sections. These two sections can be ‘related experience’ and ‘additional experience’, which can both be put in chronological format.
Additionally, it can also work to sell your professional progression, which is what employers look for in terms of where you have started and where you have got to.
Some examples of this would be a promotion at one of your jobs, or graduating from college or university after years of study. It’s all about showing your progression.
A skills-based CV is a lesser-known type of CV. This CV highlights your skills first rather than showing your chronological experience. But, like the chronological CV, it goes into great detail on what they are, their benefits and any other qualities you may have.
They're useful if you have no direct experience working in a certain field.
For example, you may have recently graduated from an engineering degree but have little to no experience in an engineering role. Or perhaps you’ve completed a work placement but are wondering how your CV can stand out next to applicants with more direct industry experience. In these cases, you can focus on the skills you’ve developed in your degree or work placements and talk about how they apply to the job.
Directing an employer or recruiter’s attention to your skills is a great way to create a lasting impression. You’ll notice in the example, the CV focuses on analytical, communication, team working and organisational skills rather than time spent in various positions.
Our best tip for writing a skills-based CV is to analyse the job you’re applying for. What are the key skills required to do that job? When you figure that out, you’ll be able to see where your own skills match. When you’ve written your CV, make sure you’ve structured it to match the skills relevant to the role.
Getting a part-time job while at university is a great way to earn a little extra money and learn a new set of skills. It also shows your future employers that you can balance the pressures of university and a job.
Applying for a part-time job can sometimes be just as competitive as applying for a full-time job. When companies hire for part-time staff, they’re looking for flexibility and someone they can depend on, as well as key practical skills such as communication, teamwork and customer service. They’ll also appreciate it if you’ve done similar work in the past, which can either be paid or unpaid.
This type of CV can be written the same as either the chronological CV or the skills-based one.
With all types of CV, always talk about your achievements. An employer will like to see you’ve performed well in other areas of your life as it will tell them what type of worker you’ll be. For example, you may have won an award for your academic work that shows a potential employer how dedicated you are.
In the example CV, you can see how the person has focused on their other part-time work experience while at university. They also included an ‘Additional Skills’ section - a section that talks about other skills gained in an extracurricular setting (which is also recommended in a graduate role CV).
These next two CV examples are more focused on specific career paths. If you’ve got a career path in mind, you can use these as inspiration to create a effective CV.
For a career in mechanical engineering, you’ll want to create a CV which is all about demonstrating your relevant skills for a mechanical engineering role. The CV example includes a detailed explanation of their Mechanical Engineering degree. There, they talked about relevant modules such as electrical engineering and energy sources and storage.
In the second section, they focused on the mechanical engineering placement they took at BMR Engineering, explaining their role and the responsibilities they had there. Both of these sections explore how each responsibility has given them the relevant skills to succeed in an engineering role. They’ve also included specific examples as evidence of their skills, as well as achievements and responsibilities.
The example includes helpful instructions on what to include in a CV for engineering students.
The last CV example for students is based around a degree in Biomedical Sciences. Similar to the Mechanical Engineering CV, this CV also focuses on the specific skills they have gained from their degree.
Creating a CV specific to one role is best achieved when you show your working knowledge of that field. For example, this person includes information such as:
‘Completed practical laboratory sessions related to genetic analysis, including modifying and analysing recombinant plasmids, bacterial transformation, restriction enzyme cloning, PCR and electrophoresis analysis.’
You can also do this by including your own unique experience in a role-relevant setting. For example, you may be applying to a position based in a biomedical lab, so you should explain any past lab work you have done, including the techniques used and skills developed.
Don’t forget to include the obtained official result or predicted degree results you gained. Employers want to see that you have an official result proving that your knowledge is suited for their organisation and the role you’re applying for.
Finding a job after graduating is an incredibly important part of your life. If you’re wondering where you can find the best information on CV writing and job applications, then don’t worry, we have lots of resources to help.
Newcastle University even offers a dedicated Career Service who are able to offer information and advice when it comes to careers, CV writing and application feedback.
Download our ‘Getting Work Ready’ guide for useful information on how to write CVs and cover letters, how to prepare for a job interview and even how to develop your online persona to be more attractive to potential employers.
It also covers information on how to find a job. This useful information will help you when entering a competitive job market.
Click below to download your guide today.