How to Write a CV for a Job Application {5 Golden Tips}

Curriculum Vitae

Most people do not know how to write a CV for a job application. Although they learnt about CV writing in school, they still find it difficult to design a good curriculum vitae that will help them land that coveted job. If you find yourself in that category, this article will arm you up with golden tips that will make you a master CV writer.

To begin with, you have to appreciate that a job application CV has some unique characteristics that distinguish it from the types of CV that students write in school. Knowing these characteristics and curving them to your advantage will give you an edge above the rest of the applicants.

A Winning CV for a Job Application {Unique Characteristics}

Design

A CV for a job application must have a unique design. The way you design your CV can work for you or against you. In the current world where joblessness is a major concern, rest assured there will be hundreds to thousands of applicants for a given job advert. To get noticed and have your CV picked out of the pile, your CV must be unique. You must give the recruiting officer a reason to pick it out of the rest.

Your design should be unique in terms of style and language use. Style here refers to the font size, colour and your profile picture. Yes, you heard me right. Your CV must have your profile picture on the front page. Remember a picture speaks a thousand words. Just from your picture, a lot of information can be gathered about your personality and character.

Coming to the font size and colour, the ones you choose should make your CV attractive and worth reading. No one will be interested in reading a CV written in plain black text without clear sections. In case you get lucky and your CV gets picked, will you keep the reader glued to it, or drop it the next second? The answer to this question is the golden opportunity that a unique design offers you.

Conversational Language

A CV for a job application is not a scientific report. Just as quick bullet points make your work easy, so that you finish writing your CV quickly, it also makes the work of the recruiting officer easy - They will drop it as soon as they pick it.

In your CV writing for a job application, imagine that you are having a written interview. Figure out the questions that are most likely to come up, and answer them in a flowing conversational tone. Speak through your writing in such a manner that the reader will get immersed in your world and read to the end, without getting bored.

Job Specific

This will surprise you. Every job requires a unique CV. You cannot use the same CV to apply for two or more different jobs with different requirements. It even gets worse if you use a CV that you wrote 2 years ago. Form a habit of updating your CV every time there is a turning point in your career life. Do not wait for a job advert to do this. It will only make your work difficult.

Job requirements keep changing every day. It is upon you to discover the skills required in the job market, compare them with the ones you already have, and bridge the skill gap by taking relevant courses. Even a free online course taken within a week can become a game changer in your job search. It is a sure sign to your potential employer that you keep improving yourself whenever you get the opportunity.

Unique Naming

After editing your CV, make sure you rename it. The file name should reflect the month and the job your are applying for. For example, Ronald is applying for a job advertised by Safaricom in January 2022. He stands a better chance if he renames his CV file, "Ronald Safaricom CV January 2022."

Even if you update the contents of your CV but retain the old file name, it will occur to the potential employer that you are not keen to details.

How to Write a CV for a Job Application {5 Golden Tips}

Let us now discuss the 5 golden tips on how to write a CV for a job application.

Tip 1: Read the Job Advert

Read the job advert keenly. Employers always highlight what they really look for in the job advert. If you fail to read that wordy advert keenly, you will miss out on some minute details that should be included in your CV.

Even if you get the call for an interview, chances are that you will not sail through if you don't read the job advert keenly. Do not assume that you know the questions that will be asked. However similar two job opportunities may be, each will have some unique requirements that will set it apart from the other. The good thing is that these unique aspects will be laid out clearly in the job advert.

Use the wordings of the advert to your advantage. Follow them judiciously in both your CV and cover letter and you will never go wrong.

Tip 2: Study the Educational Requirements

Some job adverts require interns, others require starters that will grow on the job, while yet others require highly qualified individuals. By studying the educational requirements, you get to understand what is at stake. A job advert that states that a master's degree is a must, is different from one that states that a master's degree is an added advantage. While a bachelor's degree graduate need not to apply for the former, the latter is worth giving a try.

Tip 3: Note the Work Experience Required

Experience is a factor that some recruiters lay much emphasis on, while others do not. If you are just a few years shy of the years of experience indicated in the advert, you can still win the employer's heart by proving that you have performed beyond your experience before. Remember to be truthful though, as lies might put you in an uncompromising situation when verification is done.

Tip 4: Study the Roles and Responsibilities for the Advertised Post

Sometimes you might not meet the educational and experience requirements, but still get picked, owing purely to how you frame your CV. If you clearly prove in your CV that you have the skills to carry out the roles and responsibilities at stake, you stand a chance of getting picked. Some employers find this as an opportunity to cut down on the wage bill, as failure to meet some qualifications will mean you get less pay than a more experienced person, who probably does not have the soft skills that you are bringing on board.

The interesting bit is that your salary can skyrocket within a short time if you prove to be an asset. The initial salary is normally just for the probationary period.

It is therefore important to study the expected roles and responsibilities. If you feel you have what it takes to carry them out, go ahead and apply, indicating your ability clearly in your CV.

Tip 5: Format Your CV to Match the Advert

Having read the job advert and noted the requirements, the next step is to format your CV to be aligned to them. This will call for creativity, as you will have to slash off some unnecessary parts of your CV and replace them with details that are more specific to the job you are applying for.

CV Formatting

The process of CV formatting involves changing some parts of the CV to make it more suitable for your target job. While at it, you will need to update your profile picture. You might also want to update your personal information to match the job requirements. To achieve this, always have a word version of your CV that can be updated for each new job opportunity. Only convert it to PDF after making all the necessary changes.

Once you are done, use the PDF for your current application and keep the word version to be edited for the next job application.

Profile Photo

As we had discussed earlier, your profile photo or profile picture reveals a lot about you. If you indicate in your personal information that you are thirty five years old, it will not make sense if you retain the profile picture that you took immediately after college when you were twenty four. Always use your most current photo as a profile picture for your CV. Also, make sure your dress code and facial appearance match the requirements of your dream job.

Job Specific Profile

Let your profile be specific to the job you target. Make a deliberate effort not to appear too overqualified or under qualified. Always strike a good balance. Only provide adequate information related to the advertised job. Nothing more; nothing less.

Final Thought

How do we conclude now? By reading this post, have you understood how to write a CV for a job application? I hope so! Please consider liking this post and subscribing to keep posted when we drop another one. If you have a question or a comment, you can send us an email and we will surely reply.