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Resume Writing
What is a Good CV?
A good and effective
CV provides information not just about your qualifications and experience but is
presented in such a way that it meets the employer’s requirements.
Thus, you can tailor your CV to fit the job.
It follows that you
should analyze the job requirements and see how they match with your interests,
qualifications and achievements. For
example if a company is looking for a sales representative who has to do a lot of
traveling and you are the kind who does not like meeting people or traveling then
you may not like to apply.
The Process of Writing a CV
First collect all the
factual information about yourself, including academic record, along with the years
of passing and the class you have obtained. Mention any special skills you have,
especially so if they may be helpful in the job applied for.
After collecting the
information, it is important to organize it.
This information should include:
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Personal details: contact address and phone number, date of birth,
email
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Educational qualifications
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Special training or skills, if any. E.g. Typing, NCC
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Experience and achievements
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Any special honors
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Special personal qualities which make you suitable for the job
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References: Names and addresses of persons who can vouch for you
Tips for writing a CV
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Begin the resume with what is important.
Prioritize your resume by listing information your reader will look for first
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Begin with your most qualifying experience: If limited experience,
begin with education
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Emphasize specific accomplishments over duties and responsibilities
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Highlight your achievements
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Highlight your skills like knowledge of software, foreign language,
laboratory skills, etc.
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Use concrete examples that can be measured: instead of “has leadership
abilities” be specific as in “supervised eight employees” or “conducted workshop
on…”
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Use the complete page, put keep space between sections
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Use bullets, bold type, capital letters, and underlining
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Think of your resume as a marketing tool.
Your resume will serve as a brochure about you. Market yourself through your
resume
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Use your resume to obtain an interview.
You don’t need to go into detail about every accomplishment.
Strive to be clear and concise.
The purpose of your resume is to generate enough interest in you to have an employer
contact your for an interview
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Use bulleted sentences.
In the body of your resume, use bullets with short sentences rather than lengthy
paragraphs
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Construct your resume to read easily.
Leave white space. Limit the
length of your resume to 1-2 pages. Remember, resumes are reviewed quickly
Your CV should be interesting,
attractive, brief and informative.
It should stand out amongst the many CVs that the employer receives.
Covering Letter
Apart from the CV a
short covering letter containing reference to the advertisement in response to which
you are applying and indicating your most significant qualification for the post
is to be made out. Basically it is
a short business letter and serves as an introduction to your CV.
A covering letter must
include:
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Your Address and Date of writing the letter
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Employer’s Name and Address
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Salutation
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Body
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Complimentary Closing
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Signature
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Enclosures, if any
Tips for Writing a Cover Letter
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A cover letter is sent with your CV.
It can make the difference between being successful in your job search or
not.
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Always include a cover letter even if the job ad does not specify
that one is needed.
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Your cover letter should not be a copy of your CV.
Specify some of your achievements in the cover letter achievements
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Your cover letter should be customized for each employer.
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Do not mention salary in your cover letter.
If the job ad requests your expected salary then mention a range rather than
a specific amount.
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