Careers Skills Workshop
How to create a winning CV
Diane Appleton
Careers Adviser
University of Liverpool
Careers Skills Workshop
Objectives
 To understand what different types of employers want
from a CV
 To learn some strategies to make a good impression
 To look at examples of successful CVs and to understand
what makes them effective
 To enable participants to critically view their own CV
 To gain quality feedback from fellow participants
Careers Skills Workshop
Format of session
 45 minute presentation on what makes an effective CV
 Academic CVs/Researcher CVs
 Non-Academic “graduate” CV
 45 minutes in group
 Critiquing CV in pairs
Careers Skills Workshop
The Purpose of a CV
• To inform the employer about your past experiences
• To persuade the employer to offer you an interview
 To do this you need to tailor your CV to a particular job or
employer
• Tailor your description of your research to the audience.
• Consider the person reading it - their questions are likely to be:
• Why was this research done?
• Was this person successful?
• Why is it useful to me?
Careers Skills Workshop
The simple key to a winning CV
• Evidence
• Evidence
• Evidence
Careers Skills Workshop
Match the Job
• Find out what the job involves
 Read brochures or reports
 Look at the job description
• Find out what skills, qualifications and experiences are
required
 Look at job details/person spec
 What personality would suit the job?
• Link your own skills, experiences and qualifications to
the job
 Give evidence of how you gained those skills
Careers Skills Workshop
Experience from which these skills should be drawn
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Training courses
Conferences
Departmental committees
Teaching undergraduates
Supervising research
Joining your professional body
Work placements or shadowing
Voluntary work
Part-time work
Employment
Careers Skills Workshop
Job Match Exercise
Skill Required
Example
Excellent academic record PhD, undergraduate prizes
Strong technical skills
Experience with relevant equipment
Communication skills
Conferences, demonstrating, written publications
Initiative
Finding funding to attend conferences
Leadership
Postgrad rep, running project
Commercial Awareness
Attendance at GRADschool, part-time work, dealing with
funding
Careers Skills Workshop
Types of CV
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Reverse chronological
Functional (skills profile)
One sided
Two sided (most usual for non-academic posts)
Academic/Post-Doc
Careers Skills Workshop
A CV for an Academic post
• Whilst some academics have strong views on the
correct format for academic CVs, these can differ.
However, virtually all academic CVs are built around
these three pillars:
• Research
• Teaching
• Administration
Careers Skills Workshop
What should an academic CV contain?
• Professional & Research Experience or Education & Research
Experience
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Aims - clear aims of research
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Achievements - what you have done to achieve them
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Techniques - only if relevant to the application
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Practical experience - research related placement, field
work
• Responsibilities - your role on the research group,
demonstrating, teaching
• Publications - essential for academic positions, but if still ‘work
in progress’ try...
• Dissemination of results - at conferences, other forms of
publications
Careers Skills Workshop
and……
• Training - research training, skills development, GRADschool
attendance
• Awards - any extra sponsorship to attend conferences? any
prizes?
• Conferences - noting any posters or presentations as well as
attendance
• Committees - particularly where you have held positions of
responsibility
• Funding - awards to attend meetings, conferences or prizes won
• Professional qualifications - membership of learned societies
• References - Name three referees. These are likely to be
academic and academic related (eg from relevant industrial
experience)
Careers Skills Workshop
Additional info
• No strict rules on length BUT…….
• One strategy is to produce a 2/3 page CV and then to put
a synopsis of your research, conferences, publications
and references as an appendix on a further page/s
• Get feedback and advice from your supervisor, who will
have experience of academic CVs
• Ask for feedback from a Careers Adviser
Careers Skills Workshop
Non-research job outside of academia
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Personal Details
Career Aims/Objective?
Qualifications/Education
Work (or other) experience
Skills
Interests
Referees
• Focus on relevant skills and qualities - backed up by evidence
• Don't use specialist terminology - emphasise your ability to
write and present information suitable for different audiences
• 2 pages
Careers Skills Workshop
Skills identified by PhD students
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Specialist in-depth knowledge - going into detail
Working unsupervised
Enhanced communication skills - encouraging others, debating
Persistence and vision to continue with a project
Overcoming obstacles, problem solving
Self-motivation - making things happen
Time management - managing the research timetable, part-time work,
meeting deadlines
Researching skills
Debating
Analytical skills (advanced)
Innovation
Continuous learning
Handling information
Careers Skills Workshop
Your 20 second commercial!
Careers Skills Workshop
Saatchi and Saatchi…….
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AIDA!
Attention
Interest
Desire
Action
Careers Skills Workshop
Tips for Professional Presentation • • • • •
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For non-academic CVs, 2 sides of A4 maximum, new sheet for each side,
laser printed. For academic CVs, get most of your good stuff on the first
two pages
Use new, good quality paper; white or “professional” in colour (e.g.
cream, parchment). Avoid folders or fancy slippery covers
Graphics – use only if relevant and only if they add something
Use bold, italics or underlining but not all at once or you will lose impact
Avoid background shading – when photocopied it can be blotchy or
obscure text
Use distinctive headings and clearly separate the different areas of your
experience
Indenting sections and using bullets add visual interest and signposts
key information
Careers Skills Workshop
…………..
• Rambling prose and endless lists are boring to read – the
recruiter may not bother. Make it punchy and to the point
• Use strong active words such as demonstrated, initiated,
reorganised, co-ordinated – there’s a useful list in the
Careers & Employability Service CV guide.
• Be specific and quantify achievements for credibility and
impact – eg. “negotiated £100 sponsorship from local
companies to promote department charity fun run,
raising £760”
Careers Skills Workshop
Covering Letters
• In response to advert
• Speculative
• Usually one page typed A4
• Purpose is to:
• highlight your key selling points
• show why you are interested in that job
• show why you are interested in that employer
• explain any issues/problems?
Careers Skills Workshop
Structure of letter
• Address to named individual if possible
• Why you are sending the CV
• Why you are the right person for the job
 job match exercise
• What attracts you to the employer
 show your research, name drop!
• What happens next
 especially if speculative, e.g. follow up with phone
call
Careers Skills Workshop
Summary
• There is no single right way to do a CV or letter as long as it
shows:
 What you have done
 What you have gained from this
• Tailor each CV and letter to job/employer
• Avoid CV templates on the web
• Undertake research into job/company and identify the type of
person sought
• Show good knowledge of yourself and good evidence for your
skills
• Demonstrate your necessary technical/subject specific
knowledge
• Present yourself positively by using “action verbs”
• Seek advice before sending
Careers Skills Workshop
Useful websites
• www.grad.ac.uk
• www.liv.ac.uk/careers
• www.prospects.ac.uk
• www.jobs.ac.uk
Careers Skills Workshop
Questions?
Careers Skills Workshop
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