This Most Important Part Of Your CV Might Surprise You
In this day and age, CV standards keep changing. However, there’s one thing that has never changed and it’s the section that many employers view as the most important.
Most people may assume that the “experience” section of their CV is what employers are basing their final decisions on.
However, for many, another section drives their interest.
Fixing this part of your CV might help you land the job.
The “skills” section of a CV shines through with the greatest importance, according to many employers, for several reasons.
Why the skills section Matters Most In Your Job Search
1. Skills can be learned through other venues other than work
Even if a candidate doesn’t have the necessary experience an employer is looking for, they may still have the necessary skills, which suggests a potential for growth.
A candidate that lacks experience should still have the necessary skills, showing a potential for growth.
A variety of skills is also important to indicate that a candidate has a number of interests.
“Skills” should be placed towards the top of your CV to grab the attention of the employer.
2. It passes the 6 second rule
Employers, on average only spend five to seven seconds looking at a CV.
You want your CV to stand out and not get thrown in the trash. That is why it is important to focus on what they are going to look at during those precious five seconds!
The first thing they look at is the skills section as it is the easiest section to skim through. It also gives a bird’s eye view of whether the candidate knows what is needed to succeed in the advertised role.
3. The use of Applicant Tracking Systems
Lastly, with technology ever-changing, many companies automatically filter out CVs that don’t list specific skills or keywords they’re looking for using an ATS.
Having an extensive skills section will ensure that your CV isn’t thrown out by applicant tracking systems before a hiring manager even reads it.
The worst thing to do is leave out the “skills” section altogether. If you leave the skills section blank it gives off the feeling that you either don’t have confidence in what you know, that you don’t care, or you don’t have many skills. None of those are a good sign to the employer.
Where to include the skills section
Believe it or not, the placement of the “skills” section is significant, too. A mixture of six to eight soft and job-related skills should be placed towards the top of the CV.
Once the employer zeros in on those, you’ve sparked his or her interest. He or she will want to continue reading about you, the candidate and move on to the experience section.
In conclusion,
Now that you know about the importance of the skills section don’t forget to explain the skills you listed using the STAR method in brief. Not sure on how to do this? You can always reach out to professional CV writers who will help you craft a winning CV.