A CV is a self-marketing tool used in applications that enables you to demonstrate your key skills and experience.
Below you will find information and advice on how to prepare for writing your CV, what to include and how to put this into practice.
If you haven't yet created your CV use the CV Builder to create a professional CV to suit your skills and experiences.
Why not try the CV360 tool on the UoS Career Hub? CV360 scores your CV against more than 50 checks. You get instant, detailed feedback so you can optimise your CV and significantly boost your chances of getting to interview.
We also offer a number of CV workshops as part of our Events Calendar and an opportunity to discuss your CV and get feedback from an adviser through our Ask the Adviser appointments. You can also watch our online version of our Discover...CVs workshop below, which provides the key principles for building an effective and professional CV.
For further resources including over 400 books and e-books, as well as free publications available to you, see our Careers Library and e-books pages and read our CV and Covering Letters Guide.
We've created an online version of our Discover...CVs workshop which provides the key principles for building an effective and professional CV.
View it hereUse our CV and Covering Letters Guide to help you create a CV that has impact with an employer.
Know yourself
Before writing your CV it is important to know what skills you possess and what evidence you can provide to support this. The best way to do this is by conducting a skills audit. You should reflect on your past experiences, including your degree, previous jobs, work experience and even extracurricular activities, to work out what skills you have used and developed.
Know the job/employer
In order to give you the best chance at success, it is important to tailor your CV for each position that you are applying to. This means adapting your CV to give relevant examples of the skills/experiences that the employer is looking for.
There are several different types of CV:
Some annotated CV examples can be found in our CV guide. TargetJobs also offers some good example CVs for specific sectors.
There are many different sections that can be included on a CV and these can be moved around in order to best reflect your skills and experience. Below are some of the sections most commonly found on a CV and an explanation of what to include.
Name, telephone and e-mail. Address is optional but ensure you are careful with your personal details if posting your CV online.
Other personal information is not required, however you may wish to disclose this in certain circumstances. If you are unsure and would like to discuss this further, come along to our Ask the Adviser Service.
This is optional and can offer employers a quick summary of your key skills and experience that relate to the role. Personal profiles can be tricky to write so have a look at the guide above for some tips and examples.
Annotated examples can be found in the CV guide.