Application Tips - Creating your CV

Personal Details:

• Full name
• Address for Correspondence
• Email Address
• Mobile and home telephone numbers

Education & Qualifications:

Starting with your most recent qualification, this section should include:

• Any professional qualifications attained e.g. CIPD, ACCA etc.
• Name of College/University, qualifications and grade achieved
• Name of secondary school and Leaving Certificate (or equivalent qualification), subjects studied and grades achieved

Employment History:

Start with your most recent position and work backwards in reverse chronological order. The following information should be given for each position held:

• Dates of employment
• Company name and location (town/city name only)
• For each position include the job title and briefly outline the key duties and responsibilities of the role Keep this section clear and concise by using bullet points
• Include any significant achievements that may have come about as a result of your work
• Avoid overloading this section by only including your most recent and relevant employment

Key Skills:

• Include technical skills such as PC Applications, hardware, operating systems, software etc.
• Include any relevant non-technical/soft skills, such as presentation skills, team management skills etc. Outline the manner in which you gained these skills.

Achievements:

This section should be short and relevant and include no more than 3 achievements. These achievements may be from your hobbies and interests, your education or indeed your employment history, if you have not previously mentioned them above.

Hobbies and Interests:

At the end of the CV include hobbies and interests.

Additional Information:

You may wish to give other information here that will add value to your application such as:

• Details of why you are suitable for the position you are applying for, or if speculative, what type of role you are looking for
• You may also wish to include that you hold a full drivers licence if appropriate
• You may wish to indicate your preferred geographical location or whether or not you are willing to relocate

Points to Remember

• You should rework your CV for every job you apply for, emphasising the aspects of your work history, skills and abilities that best suit the requirements of the position.
• Avoid long paragraphs of text
• Bulleted paragraphs are a great way to save space and add impact
• Be brief and concise