CV tips for graduates

Simon Reichwald, director of Bright Futures — a company that helps students make informed career choices, network with employers and develop employability skills

Don't waste space on a personal statement: Personal statements at the top of a CV — those three to four lines which use words to describe you such as energetic, enthusiastic and committed — add little or nothing, as everyone uses them. So, instead use the space to write a career summary — three or four lines outlining what you want to do as a career and why. This is both different to the norm and helps you show some focus on what you want to do. Focus is key for employers when recruiting graduates, as too many applicants have no idea what they want to do. Plus focus and direction are still a rarity in graduates, in my view.

A typical statement that adds little or no value would read: "I am a confident, enthusiastic and hard-working person. I am responsible with a mature outlook and have excellent interpersonal skills and enjoy meeting new people. I take pleasure in working as part of a strong team. I am highly motivated, creative and enjoy learning news skills." This is just a mass on adjectives for any role — so with no real focus

A better one would be: "Career objectives: I am focused on building a successful career in sales and marketing for [organisation name]. I have deliberately looked for and found work experience in this area so I know that the fast paced, results-orientated environment will give me the challenge I thrive on. I am a strong relationship builder, resilient and motivated by success."

Lucy Cheatham, marketing director of Grad Central — a recruitment specialist in the West Midlands

Is your CV keyword-search friendly? Graduates need to be mindful of how CVs are searched and screened by employers and recruitment specialists. With the growing popularity of searchable job board CV databases and sophisticated recruitment databases able to run multiple keyword searches to find the perfect matching CV, it's really important for job seekers to create search-friendly CVs that show case their skills and competencies to the full. Thinking about the key words and phrases that recruiters will be looking for should be part of your planning phase when you're writing your CV. Prospective employers will be looking for terms relating to specific personal qualities, key competencies and technical skills relevant to the role and the industry.

Key areas of expertise might include direct marketing, social media marketing, search engine optimisation and campaign management. Key competencies could include teamwork, communication and negotiation.

Rowan Manahan founder of career management consultancy Fortify Services and author of The Ultimate CV

Give employers a reason to meet you: The most common problem I encounter with CVs at graduate level is that they are overlong and they don't give me a reason to want to meet you right up front. Think about the person who is scan-reading your CV in the midst of a pile of dozens, maybe hundreds, just like it. What are the three things that person needs to know about you that distinguish you as someone who is worth meeting out of that large pile? Give serious thought to your points of difference — in marketing terms, your unique selling point — and put those three things up front in a visually accessible way. Making the recruiter's life easier greatly increases your chances of being shortlisted.

So, include examples from your work experience/internships or from your extra curricular activities that demonstrate accomplishment, initiative, leadership potential, communication skills and the ability to work smoothly and effectively with others.

Rob Cross, expert in graduate and talent development and author of Grad Expectations: the essential guide for all graduates entering the workforce

Focus on value, not tasks: Having read hundreds of graduate CVs, I find it amazing at how many people are still fixated on telling us what they've done, rather than what value they've delivered. In writing their CVs, what these people forget is that as an employer I have customers, shareholders and employees, and each of these parties expect something from the investment or effort they put in. And because of this, it's essential that anyone joining our company is focused on adding value. With this in mind, as you write your CV it's essential that you focus on proving that you're the type of person who can use your initiative to deliver real value. This means writing a compelling story about value you've delivered, not just the tasks you've done. For example, a person writing about tasks would state: "head waitress at local restaurant", whereas a person writing about value, would state: "increased nightly takings and customer satisfaction 20% by implementing new training programme as head waitress". When you read this second example you immediately take notice; you want to employ them because they make a difference, they add value. This is what will make me want to give you a job.

Richard Freeborn, national graduate recruitment manager at the bank, Santander

Spend time on your applications: My top tip would be to spend a good amount of time on your applications. Every day I see applications that have been rushed, with some candidates just putting one word answers in boxes with a word limit of 100. It's important to develop your answers logically, stating the context, what you did and what the end result was. By following this loose structure, you should be able to outline your answer in an ordered, cohesive way.

Linda Buckham, director, Careers and Employability Centre, University of Sussex

Be relevant: Tailoring your CV to make it relevant for the job you are applying for is something students sometimes overlook. Most employers don't have long to read your CV, so don't include irrelevant information — the title of your dissertation, for example — unless it is relevant. Instead, describe some achievements and skills which you used when writing it. For example: "For my dissertation, I analysed and interpreted information from various sources including the internet and library." Also, be clever about presenting your experience. If your most relevant experience isn't the most recent, you can split your experience under two headings: relevant employment and additional experience.

Jonathan Black, director, Careers Service, University of Oxford

Employers hire graduates who take responsibility and achieve things: It can be a useful exercise to write the body of your CV using these phrases "I was responsible for ..." and "my achievements included ...". Even if you don't use those exact words, it will help you avoid process descriptions — "I attended numerous meetings to plan the student ball" — and instead demonstrate what you were responsible for and what you achieved, however little. For example: "As music officer, I was responsible for arranging the four professional bands who played at the student ball". Don't worry about the activity you're describing; employers don't mind much whether it was the wine and beer society, the rugby club, the church or the orchestra, as long as you can demonstrate that you achieved something. And don't worry about the quantity involved; not everyone raises hundreds of pounds for orphanages in Africa, raising £50 from your friends for the local hospice is great too.

Ruth Wilcock, careers consultant, Centre for Careers & Skills Development, City University London

Tailor applications for every role: It is so important that when applying for a job that you tailor your whole application. Employers want you to apply for the job they have advertised not just any job. Before you start editing your CV or writing a cover letter or person specification, research the position and employer you are applying to. What skills and experience stand out that directly related to your own experience? It's important that you highlight this in your application.

Don't be afraid to shuffle things around on your CV with each job you apply for (if fact I would recommend it), have a relevant employment/experience section on the first page of your CV so the employer can see that you have really thought about the position you are applying for and how it directly relates to your previous experience. With the experience you've had that is not directly relevant to the role highlight the relevant skills and activities you've used and been involved in so you are still tailoring it in that sense.

Your education/training section can also be tailored to the employer, it doesn't just have to be as dry as listing the course/degree you studied and institution you attended. Think about your course work, major assignments, team projects or major research project like your dissertation. If it is directly relevant and you've performed well, list this concisely under the education section of your CV. Not only does it demonstrate you have studied something relevant but you have been successful at using transferable skills that are important to the employer.

Have you got any good CV tips? Share them with us below and we'll compile the best ones on the Careers blog.