Your CV must be typed/printed on A4 good quality white paper and clearly laid out. If you are not good at typing and/or do not have access to a PC it is worth asking someone else to do this for you. Remember an employer may have to look at dozens of CVs- if yours is hard to read and looks messy he/she will move on to the next one.

>     Grammar and spelling:

Make use of spell checker or a friend/colleague with an eye for detail to check that your spelling and grammar are perfect.

>      Length:

Ideally a CV should be not much more than 2 sides of A4 paper. If it is too long and wordy and contains too much information it is hard for the employer to focus on the important information. He/she will get bored and move on to another CV which is shorter and easier to understand.

>     Chronological order:

Although it is possible to build up a CV on a functional basis i.e. looking at particular skills rather than at a job history, most employers prefer to see a chronological career history. So you should list previous employment with your current position as the most recent and you should account for any gaps i.e. where you were overseas for a couple of years accompanying a partner on assignment.

>     Make it interesting:

Your CV needs to grab the reader's attention and make him or her put your CV in the 'Invite for interview' pile on his desk. To do this you need to demonstrate why your skills and experience are right for the job so you must focus on the skills you have used and developed in your previous experiences. For example, a poor CV would say 'I worked in a cake shop, where I dealt with customers, put cakes on the shelves and counted the cash in the till'. A better CV would say 'I was responsible for creating the daily display of merchandise and was able to use my excellent interpersonal and communication skills to maximize sales. I was also given sole responsibility for cashing and banking daily takings and reconciling the till'.

>     Cut out irrelevancies:

A common mistake is to include too much detail on things which are no longer relevant i.e. once you have several years of career history behind you, you do not need to list every single academic qualification. It would be enough to say you left school with, for example, 9 GCSEs and 4 A levels and obtained a 2.1 degree in Law from Bristol University. Similarly, once you have been working for a few years, details of summer student jobs etc. are no longer relevant.

>      Referees:

If you wish, you can include the names and contact details of your referees on the CV or simply state that they can be supplied on request, unless you have been asked to do otherwise. You must ask your referees for permission and it is a good idea to give them as much detail as possible about the job you have applied for so that they know how best to adapt what they want to say about you so that it is relevant to the job you have applied for. Some employers require a written reference, in which case if your referees are overseas you should provide an email or fax contact so that references can be obtained quickly. Other employers prefer to take up references verbally, in which case bear in mind that in view of time differences, you may need to provide both daytime and evening telephone numbers. You should also bear in mind that your referee should have a good command of English. Please note, it is not acceptable in the UK to use a partner or relative as a referee. Impartiality, which is very important in this country, cannot be guaranteed. Employers are also somewhat suspicious if you do not give your last employer as a referee. In these days of email, it is no longer difficult to communicate across the miles, so there is no excuse for not using referees in other countries.

4.3              Covering letter

Whether you are sending a CV in response to a job advertisement, forwarding an application form or sending in a speculative application, you must always also send a covering letter addressed to a named individual in the company. A job advertisement will usually give the name, but if you are sending in an unsolicited application, you should telephone the company and ascertain the name of the person in recruitment or who is in charge of the department in which you wish to work.

The covering letter gives you the opportunity to encourage the reader to consider your CV or application form and should make them want to know more about you. Your covering letter should be handwritten (many employers like to see your handwriting), neatly presented and with no spelling or grammar mistakes. If you make a mistake in writing it, you must write it out again rather than attempting to make corrections. It should be only one side of A4 paper and written in simple concise sentences. It should comprise three distinct sections:

>      Introduction- state the reason for your letter

If this is a speculative CV describe the type of work you are looking for. If responding to an advertisement state source of advertisement and date.

>     Content

In this section you should explain specifically why you are interested in the job and summarise your strongest qualifications to do the job. You need to 'sell yourself' to the employer.

>      Conclusion

Refer the reader to your CV enclosed. State that you are interested in an interview, and if you are not currently working, it is worth mentioning that you are 'immediately available' as this can be an advantage if the employer needs to fill the position very quickly.