{"id":256291,"date":"2018-07-08T09:00:46","date_gmt":"2018-07-08T07:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=256291"},"modified":"2018-07-06T14:32:27","modified_gmt":"2018-07-06T12:32:27","slug":"this-is-what-the-perfect-cv-looks-like-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/business\/256291\/this-is-what-the-perfect-cv-looks-like-2\/","title":{"rendered":"This is what the perfect CV looks like"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Recruitment site <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.glassdoor.com\/index.htm\">Glassdoor<\/a><\/strong> has provided a breakdown of what the perfect resume should look like in 2018.<\/p>\n<p>According to the job specialist, recent research shows that recruiters and hiring managers can tell within seven seconds whether they want to move forward with your application or not.<\/p>\n<p>As such, Glassdoor\u2019s research will serve as a useful point of reference for South Africans trying to get an edge in a very difficult market.<\/p>\n<p>Below are the four things that it said everyone should be looking to include on their CV when applying for a job<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>1. Choose the right type of resume<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If you thought there was just one type of resume, think again. There are multiple different kinds, and the one you should use will depend on your own unique career circumstances.<\/p>\n<p>A\u00a0<strong>chronological resume\u00a0<\/strong>lists your different positions top to bottom from most to least recent, and is best for those whose careers reflect a clear path to the role they\u2019re applying for.<\/p>\n<p>A\u00a0<strong>functional resume<\/strong>\u00a0emphasizes relevance over recency, with different positions listed top to bottom from most to least relevant, a skills section and a\u00a0professional summary\u00a0explaining why you\u2019re a great fit. This is a great option for those who are transitioning into a new field or re-entering the workforce after a resume gap.<\/p>\n<p>A\u00a0<strong>combination resume<\/strong>\u00a0borrows from both formats by combining the professional summary and skills section of a functional resume and the chronological work experience order of a chronological resume. This is a good way to emphasize skills and experience equally, and is a great choice for many different types of job seekers.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p class=\"p1\"><b>2. Know What You Need to Include<\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Resumes tend to have six major components: a header and contact info, professional summary, skills section, work experience, education and additional experience.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Here\u2019s a brief rundown of what they are, and tips for how to make the most of them:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Header + Contact Info:\u00a0<\/b>The top of your resume (or whichever is the most prominent part) containing your name and contact info.<b><\/b>\u00a0Think twice before including your street address. It\u2019s largely unnecessary nowadays, and can hurt your chances of scoring an interview if you\u00a0live far from where the position is.\u00a0<b><br \/>\n<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Professional Summary:\u00a0<\/b>A brief, one- to three-sentence description that encapsulates who you are, what you do and why you\u2019re a great fit for the job at hand.<b><\/b>Avoid descriptors like \u201chard-working,\u201d \u201cself-motivated,\u201d etc. \u2014 those terms are vague and generic. Focus instead on the skills and accomplishments that set you apart.<b><br \/>\n<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Skills:\u00a0<\/b>A list of the key skills you possess that will help you do the job you\u2019re applying to.<b><\/b>Can\u2019t decide what skills to include? Look to the\u00a0job description to see which skills matter the most.\u00a0<b><br \/>\n<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Work Experience:\u00a0<\/b>A list of the different titles you\u2019ve held, places you\u2019ve worked and achievements you accomplished.\u00a0<b><\/b>When writing out your bullet points, use the STAR format (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to not just describe what you did in a previous job, but what sort of impact it had. \u00a0<b><br \/>\n<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Education:\u00a0<\/b>Details on the level of education you\u2019ve attained, where you went and what you studied.\u00a0<b><\/b>Only include your GPA if you\u2019ve graduated in the last couple of years and earned a 3.0 or higher \u2014 the further along you are in your career, the more recruiters and hiring managers pay attention to experience over education.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Additional Experience:\u00a0<\/b>A catch-all section where you can add your volunteer experience, hobbies, awards, etc.\u00a0<b><\/b>Some companies are particularly passionate about volunteering and\u00a0giving back to the community. If you\u2019re applying to one of them, use this section to describe how you\u2019ve made a difference &#8211; it\u2019s a great way to show culture fit.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p><b>3. Don\u2019t Forget Design &amp; Formatting<\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">At the end of the day, a well-written resume with relevant experience will win out over one that\u2019s pretty, but light on content.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">However, if you combine great content with a neat, clean design and proper formatting, you\u2019ve just hit upon a winning combination. Here are a few things to keep in mind if you want your resume to look its best:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li1\">Use an easy-to-read font of no less than 11 pt.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li1\">Add margins of at least .7 inches.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li1\">Make sure there\u2019s sufficient white space between sections<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li1\">Keep your resume to 1-2 pages max, unless you\u2019re in a field like academia or medicine and must cite papers and publications.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li1\">Don\u2019t go overboard with intricate design or decoration &#8211;\u00a0touches of color are fine, but avoid any clashing or visually busy details.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>4. Check for These Last-Minute Items<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Once you\u2019re feeling good about your resume, don\u2019t click submit just yet. Uploading your resume before giving it a thorough scan can result in errors and missed opportunities to make the best impression.<\/p>\n<p>Check off the following items to make sure your resume is ready to be seen by the world:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li1\"><b>Verify your employment information\u00a0<\/b>to make sure that it matches what you have on LinkedIn. Any discrepancies, even if they\u2019re accidental, might raise red flags for a recruiter.<b><br \/>\n<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li1\"><b>Use a platform like\u00a0<\/b><span class=\"s1\"><b>Grammarly<\/b><\/span><b>\u00a0to edit your resume.\u00a0<\/b>Grammarly can save you from misspellings, hundreds of types of grammatical and punctuation mistakes and words that are spelled right but used in the wrong context, all of which look unprofessional on a resume and can seriously hurt your chances of making it to the next round.<b><br \/>\n<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li1\"><b>Save your resume with a simple file name\u00a0<\/b>to maintain professionalism and to simply keep better track of it in your files. You can\u2019t go wrong with \u201cLastname-Resume-2018\u201d.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li1\"><b>Double check capitalization\u00a0<\/b>on company names and titles \u2014 consistency in your resume is key.<b><br \/>\n<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li1\"><b>Review your bullet points\u00a0<\/b>to make sure they\u2019re focused on showing results, not simply listing your tasks.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Read: <a href=\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/business\/255391\/6-things-you-should-never-say-in-a-job-interview\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">6 things you should never say in a job interview<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Recent research shows that recruiters and hiring managers can tell within seven seconds whether they want to move forward with your application.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":116884,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9872],"tags":[7186,26],"class_list":["post-256291","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-glassdoor","tag-headline"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256291","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=256291"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256291\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":257129,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256291\/revisions\/257129"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/116884"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=256291"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=256291"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=256291"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}