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This Is The First Thing Employers Look At On Your CV

By Selipha Kihagi

Sending applications for consideration in various open jobs has never been easier. All you are required to do is send a CV and Cover Letter through an email address provided or upload the documents on the company recruitment portals. Some organizations will not even ask for the cover letter but are instead content with just your CV. But while the application process is getting easier, the selection process is getting tougher.

Employers are faced with the challenge of selecting a few suitable candidates from a large sum of applicants applying for the same job. This becomes even harder when the number of graduates multiplies by size every passing year. As this becomes the case, employers are now establishing fast and more effective methods to select suitable candidates with ease.

And these methods have one thing in common; they begin with employers looking at one particular section in the CV.

As you come with your professional CV, this is what employers want to see:

The experience section. When it comes to the hiring process, employers and HR professionals are more concerned with your years of experience than they are with your educational qualifications. Not to say that your Degree or Diploma is not important, it is, but it will always come secondary in the selection process.

Most employers do not want to begin on training after they are done with hiring. It will constitute to using more resources, which is one thing employers want to avoid especially with the current economy. It will also use up time that companies and organizations do not want to lose out on. This is why you will even find internship positions requiring a little bit of experience.

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So, as you apply for that job today or tomorrow, remember this;

1. Your experience comes first
If you look at a job advert and confirm that you match the education and skills, don’t assume that employers will overlook the fact that you do not have the needed years of experience. Most employers will not even get to read your education section if your experience is nil or lower than what they are looking for.

If you can, maximize on portraying your experience in the field however insignificant you think it is. This will get them to continue reading through your CV, even if it is a CV with no experience. 

2. Your duties will also matter a great deal
Having the experience needed is one thing and the duties held in each position are another thing altogether. You may have held the position advertised in a different company but your duties do not translate to the experience needed.

“When it comes to hiring, the top 5 duties are what matter to employers,” says Perminus Wainaina, Managing Partner & Head of Recruitment at Corporate Staffing Services. So, maximize on showing relevance to the current job by listing the most important duties first.

Once the employer is satisfied that your experience matches what they are looking for in the job, they then move towards vetting your other qualifications for suitability. So when applying to jobs, put focus on the experience required to avoid unnecessary rejection.

Are you looking for professional CV writing services? Do you want a good CV that will showcase all your skills? Contact our Career Advisory Team. Email cvwriting@corporatestaffing.co.ke

90 Comments

  7. This is great and refreshing, Perminus. This is an area most of us fail to bring out strongly. Now l know going forward.

  11. Thanks so much for your advice. Hope to get an attachment or an internship soon.

  13. Thanks so much for this lessons. I am now sure of what has been preventing me from being shortlisted.

  14. Thanks for making that clear.
    We are learning a lot from you.keep it up and may God bless

  15. And why is that experiece is and you are not shortlisted. I have droped aplliyed since i quited my last job,but no turn out

  17. hi melody I have send the money so please am depending on you to the best job i have dreamed for

  18. Now, if every employer does not want to train people, where are we supposed to get this experience from surely?

  19. Thank you very much for highlighting the different between c.v and resume, now I know.

  20. Hi Mark,

    That is just a myth and is not true. As long as you are well qualified and have the experience to enable you perform at the job, then you should be able to make the interview.

  21. bt many think its the university or college that mattrs during recruitment,how about it

  25. Very encouraging but i want to challenge our employers to please consider fresh graduates in this job positions.If you dont employ this people where do you expect them to gain the so called EXPERIENCE?????

  40. Hi…what about if you’re just fresh from school and the only experience you have is a couple of months internship?

  47. Thank you, my C.V was worked on professionally by your team am good to go.

  50. U guys are God send who on earth will give u search ingredients let me effect ua expertise n hope all will be well Kudo for ua concern for kenyans

  54. Hi Beatrice,

    Your attachment and internship is part of your experience. Get more of that and you will be able to get a good job soon enough.

  55. For those who doesn’t have any experience… what do we write then
    or it means we will not get employed?

  58. It helps to know that the experience part of my CV matters to the employer. .can one be over experienced for a given Job? Can it work against you?

  63. Have completed my graduate diploma in business management n have no experience of more than a year in working now how do I do to get vacany in acompany?

  64. Thanks…..but am really confused cz aki have jst completed my graduate diploma in business management n have no experience in this big jobs xo now wen will I get chance in a company so that I can have experience

  66. Selipha, I agree with you. The employer will pay more attention to the experience as it will cut the training cost and the employer will be an instant asset to the organisation.
    But why have I been seeking for a job yet I meet the required experience to no success.
    I have over 5years experience in banking,audit firm(pwc) and have worked as a chief accountant in a manufacturing firm.
    I posses degree in finance and CPA(K).
    Please assist me and incase of a requirement contact me on 0733367908

  68. thank you madam for the services you have deliver to our candidates who are seeking for their proffesional areas. God bless you

  70. Hi Angellah, I think this article meant that the employer will first check your experience before your educational qualifications. Not the format.

  72. That’s true. I have experienced the need for one’s experience and duties in most of the recruitments and interviews I have undertaken. That’s why even the remuneration is not pegged on educational qualification but what one can do with what he/she knows. Great work you are doing to enlighten us. Kudos!

  73. Hi, am a holder of bachelor of business management (finance and banking) is there any job that is fit for my area of specialization

  75. hae I sent my CV for job application last month,I have not gotten any reply,on poultry assistant production manager, Embu

  79. It’s really very helpful am be blessed and continue enlightening many job seekers, again thank-you for clarifying that this is what is given as selection parameters not CV format

  85. Hi Rachael,

    To which email address did you send the CV and what specifically did you want assistance with? Was it a job or our CV writing service?

  87. Hi Angellah,

    This article is not based on CV format but on the selection process to determine the right candidate for the position. Work experience is given priority over other qualifications, regardless of where it’s listed in your CV.

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