What goes on a CV, in this order
- Name and contact details: phone, email, city and country, and a LinkedIn link if it is up to date. No photo, date of birth or marital status for UK, US or most international applications.
- A two or three line profile that says what you do and what you are looking for. Skip it if it would only say “hard-working team player”.
- Work experience, most recent first. Job title, employer, dates (month and year), then three to six bullets per role.
- Education, most recent first. Put it above experience only if you are a student or graduated in the last two years.
- Skills: the tools and methods the job advert asks for, grouped so they are easy to scan.
- Optional: projects, certifications, volunteering or languages, when they support the role you are applying for.
How to write bullets that get interviews
Each bullet should show something you did and what changed because of it. Start with a strong verb, name the task, then give the result — ideally with a number.
- Weak: “Responsible for customer emails.”
- Strong: “Answered 60+ customer emails a day and cut the average reply time from two days to four hours.”
- If you have no numbers, describe scale (how many people, how often, how big) or the outcome (approved, launched, adopted).
Length, layout and file type
One page if you have under five years of experience, two pages at most after that. Use a single column, a normal font at 10–12pt, and clear headings. Fancy graphics, tables and skill bars confuse the applicant tracking systems (ATS) many employers use to filter CVs.
Send a PDF unless the employer asks for Word. Name the file with your name and the role, for example “Priya-Sharma-Data-Analyst-CV.pdf”.
Change it for every job
The same CV sent everywhere is the most common reason for silence. Before each application, reorder your bullets so the ones that match the advert come first, and use the advert's own words for skills you genuinely have.