CV help!!

[Lolohboy]

Please help, I've been 'jobhunting' on and off for almost 2yrs! I can never get interviews! I have taken MUCH advice about CVs, it's all conflicting but I've tried it all and never gotten any closer to interview.

I work in marketing in a specific area of the food sector and have been self employed for over a decade, picking up projects via word of mouth. The brexit vote changed all that, the uncertainty made people unwilling to commit money in a particular direction i think? I lost my biggest contract to date over it :( I am seeing job adverts for the same thing, but can't get past application stage.

Stuff like:

I'm told it's a no-no to put date of birth on?

Should I put MA after my name at the top, or is that wanky?

A recruiter told me a personal statement at the beginning is utterly pointless, I stuck to that for a while, is he right?

I keep the formatting simple but classy to show I know design/my way around a computer. I spell check. I don't put a picture on.

I'm setting it out as a project manager type CV due to the freelance/project based nature of my experience.

'References avail. on request', or write them in?

I had to update mine a year ago. I tried myself and was told it was far too old fashioned - and I work in a very conservative field. Luckily someone sent me a template they’d used and a copy of theirs.
My new cv looked completely different and worked.
Do you have someone who works in same field who might send you theirs as a template?

Otherwise I’d say on mine (using template) I did put qualifications after my name, as this was first thing they see. So Cherry Pavlova B.A, M.Ed etc. As a recruiter, I think it’s odd when those qualifications include things like ADC (advanced driving certificate) or similar. Only formal academic and professional qualifications.

Age. I suspect it matters not a jot. My template didn’t and no need to but the content and job history would give a rough age usually anyway. I sat GCEs not GCSEs so am clearly ‘of an age’.

White or cream paper. Black ink. A sans serif font. Arial preferably.

Mine has a summary of who I am at outset which details my key skills and value base.

You need a slick template - try canva
Absolutely no date of birth or personal details like sex, nationality.
Include a personal statement

If you have degrees and work experience absolutely no need to be listing GCSEs

Thank you - i have a masters and tend to just put that on, my alevels were a bit underwhelming and gcses 'ok/good' but it hardly seems relevant somehow!

I'll have a look at canva

It’s not relevant :)

What is your cover letter like?? Are you writing specific to each place on how you meet their JD requirements?

I disagree that if you have a degree then you don’t include exams taken at school. We certainly require a full picture - we’d accept 10 GCSEs at grades A/A* rather than a subject list. Even if you have a degree many employers still want to see GCSE English and Maths as a minimum.

I'd say pop a personal statement in. If I was an employer in Marketing, the first thing I would look for is if someone can market themselves to me. A personal statement is a good way to do that.

Also, stick to more than 1 but no more than 2 pages was always the tip I was told.

I've never been sure on the references thing either. I've always stuck with available on request as I haven't wanted to tell current boss I'm leaving until I have somewhere to go.

List achievements, not responsibilities, and quantify. Use action verbs, e.g.:

Led the successful implementation of a new ERP system. Managed a crossfunctional team of 20 specialists and a budget of $2 million. [other project outcomes]

Thanks for all the help everyone, canva especially seems very good for swiftly formatting to look a bit better than it was and is a tool I'll use in future! I ran everything by a trusted friend who had no major complaints and applied, so fingers crossed!

I went with 'available on request' - I have no current employer, but plenty of previous clients more than willing to vouch for me.

Good tip about listing achievements rather than responsibilities, I think I sort of hovered between the two, saying something along the lines of 'tasked with/sole responsibility for, did this via x, y, z' etc.

Cover letters I always tailor but I think I've been a bit flat and formal, I've taken a risk and gone with a bit more personality and pizazz this time :/

Feeling much more confident now!

Hi
Lots of great tips already above, but I thought you might want to look at little wider than just your CV. I recently came across this blog post and it has some really useful tips. Essentially, do things that very few other people are doing. Good luck!
blog.usejournal.com/how-i-got-7-job-offers-in-8-weeks-part-1-please-interview-me-21e6f4ded106

Ooh, thanks!!

I've not worked in recruitment but worked in a student careers type role. A personal statement is always recommended as it's selling YOU.
Do you have a 'skills' section? Listing specific graphic, video editing etc software you can use?
References available on request fine but generally unnecessary as I'd say 99% of jobs will request so it's moot.
DOB is not recommended at all (neither is a photo) - if companies request this I would be very wary (dob fine on an application form).
You should have more than 1 CV depending on the roles - highlighting different areas.
For example marketing should have a different personal statement to a project manager role. And your employment specifics should be ordered differently;
I.e
Applying for marketing jobs should look like:
Made up company xxx date - xxx date
Marketing Exec

• Specific Marketing related duties
• Project Management duties
• Admin duties

But project management would look like:
Made up company xxx date - xxx date
Marketing Exec

• Project Management duties
• Specific Marketing related duties
• Admin duties

Looking at Canva makes me realise how outdated my CV is

Same, mine looked pretty smart with Word, but canva has definitely taken it to another level!

Glad to have helped!

I look for:

Good, clear layout, with no spelling and grammar mistakes. Don't use a wacky font. No more than two pages.

As far as formatting goes - we read CVs/download onto phones, ipads or desktops - Mac or PC - depending where working from. 80% of the time the format gets screwed up! Not sure quite what the solution is, but would rec keeping it simple above all, to try to avoid cross-platform mistranslation.

A personal statement could be useful, and yes I'd want to know what quals you have, but maybe in a separate section?

Regards hobbies and pastimes - no more than a line.

Good luck!