20 Reasons Your CV Is Letting You Down (Part 3)

By Ruoro Kairu 

Your CV is the means you use to attract the attention of a recruiter or potential employer. To a job seeker, it is, therefore, one of the most important tools of your job search.

Unfortunately, I have interacted with many job seekers who do not share this opinion. To many of them, they believe the experience and education they have is enough to substitute a substandard CV.

Think of it this way, If you build a beautiful house, but you leave the finishing as poor, no one will look at that house. If the owner of the house intends to put it up as a rental premise, they may not get any inquiries.

Think of your CV as the house, if the interior decor is outstanding, but the exterior look is awful, no one will look at it. If your CV details the needed experience and qualifications, but you do not showcase them in a professional manner, the recruiter will be frustrated with the CV.

In the first and second part of why your CV is letting you down, we looked at some of the common yet repetitive mistakes most job seekers have on their CVs. Have you looked at your CV and noticed some of these mistakes? Have you rectified them?

Today, we shall continue with the list. Remember, you can have a free review of your CV by visiting our offices with a hard copy of the CV. A professional CV writer will help you put into light some of these errors, and consequently help you create a better and more effective CV.

Here are more reasons your CV is sabotaging your job search efforts.

7. Misleading information

In part two, I touched on how referees and having inaccurate dates could ruin your chances of getting called in for an interview.

The same applies to writing misleading information on your CV. As noted in the second piece, recruiters and employers do an extensive background search either before or after the interview. As a result, if they find you have misled or lied on your CV, your application is tossed out the window.

Additionally, you could list one thing on your CV, but say something totally different during the interview. If you are unsure how you should answer questions while at an interview, consider the services of an interview coach.

Some of the areas that I have seen most job seekers record misleading information include;

  • Inflating salaries earned
  • Exaggerating job titles
  • Bloating education achievements
  • Inaccurate recording of dates
  • Overstating career accomplishments
  • Lying in regards to roles and duties

Quick Read>>> 20 Reasons Your CV Is Letting You Down (Part 1)

8. Unprofessional fonts

Everyone wants to be unique and have their CV stand out. Some job seekers will result in changing the fonts on their CV to achieve this.

To most job seekers, having a unique font is perceived as being artistic. However, you need to remember the job search process should be professional all through.

I spoke with Ms. Ida, one of the recruiters here at Corporate Staffing Services. She said if she receives an application with a funny font, she pushes it to the back of the line and considers other applications first.

In a bid to understand which fonts are generally acceptable and considered professional while writing your CV, I also spoke to Ms. Brenda, one of our professional CV writers. She said the most acceptable fonts are Calibri, Arial, and Times New Roman respectively. She also spoke of the font size, which should at least be 10, anything lower and your CV will appear busy.

Finally, Ms. Brenda advised you to print out a copy of your CV and look at the appeal it has on paper. You can also pass it around to friends and colleagues to see what they think of the CV.

Also Read>>> 20 Reasons Your CV Is Letting You Down (Part 2)

Remember, for a free review of your CV, visit our offices with a hard copy of your CV. If you have any question regarding your CV or would like to enlist our professional CV writing services, give us a call at 0722 735 216.