In most cases, the first impression a prospective employer gets of a candidate is from their CV. It is therefore vitally important that you make it count.

It needs to grab the reader's attention quickly and hold them, by providing sufficient detail and relevant information to interest them enough to invite you for an interview. The reality is that you have less than 30 seconds to make an impression with your CV.

Here are some simple guidelines that should be followed to ensure that your CV is presentable and markets you to a prospective employer most accurately.

CV Content
Your CV should include the following basic information:

Personal Details
It is essential that you include your name, address, contact telephone number and email address.

Career Profile
This should be short and snappy (3 or 4 lines) and it is a really good opportunity to sell yourself. You can include your professional status with career highlights, skills, strengths and career ambitions.

Employment History
List in chronological order your work experience, with current/most recent position first and in the most detail. Include a brief description of any other roles and bullet point your key responsibilities/achievements.

Education & Qualifications
List the most recent qualifications first and only list relevant education (no school qualifications unless you have just graduated).

Interests & Achievements
Include a brief list of your main hobbies and interests to show that you are an interesting and likeable person. However, this is not essential so if space is an issue leave it out.

References
Do not give details -simply state 'available on request'

DO

• Be honest
• Include your key achievements
• Spell check and proof read
• List you technical skills, operating systems, programme languages and platforms in which you are experienced.

DON’T

• Under / over sell yourself
• Leave gaps in your work history
• Exceed 3 pages.