As many students receive their exam results and for some the world of work beckons, one CEO has shared her tips for writing a stellar CV.

Anita Tweats, Business Leader and CEO of financial recruitment experts The Finance People has detailed everything from controversial topic such as photographs and social media handles to structural issues such as summaries and subheadings.

In the same vein as writing your CV, students can have trouble in all areas of educational writing, such as an essay, thesis, dissertation, etc. they might turn to other professionals like this CEO who can help them, or they might look at the website collegepaperworld.com for guidance.

Common issues which arise when writing CV’s come from knowing what to include, and what doesn’t need to be on the page.

Anita said: “Writing your first CV can be very daunting but most importantly, you need to make sure all the key information is included, and it’s easy to find.

“Reading a big block of text isn’t fun for anybody, so make sure you signpost the reader to where they can find the information – sub-headings are a great idea.

“Finally, a CV is about showing yourself off. Although it does need to be formal, try to inject a bit of personality into the pages – by using colour, for example.

“Your CV is probably going to be the first thing any employer sees, so you need to make sure it stands out and shows you at your best.”

These are The Finance People‘s 13 top tips for writing a CV:

1. Don’t add a photo. Although it can be argued that it allows employers to get a first impression from you, this also means that they can make judgements from your image, which could be either positive or negative.
2. Your date of birth should also be omitted due to it being another diversity factor.
3. Your CV should be no longer than two pages. If it’s any longer, you’re not writing succinctly enough.
4. Use LinkedIn – if employers are interested in you this is a fantastic way to find out a little bit more and what you get up to in your professional life.
5. Social Media – unless it’s relevant for your industry, such as social media management, photography or journalism, potential employers aren’t going to enjoy your selfies, so leave your social handles off of your CV.
6. Ethnicity or religious choices don’t need to be displayed on your CV. If employers are monitoring diversity statistics, they will probably include their own questions as part of the application process.
7. Don’t put your address on your CV. Subconsciously, employers could favour someone closer to the role over someone who has to move. If necessary, a town or area name would suffice.
8. Ensure you have a sentence or two summarising yourself as a person. This is your chance to put some personality across and sell yourself before the employer looks further down the CV.
9. You should alter your CV every time you apply for a new job. If you can change your CV so that it matches words in the job specification it shows that you can tick these boxes and that you’re motivated enough to take the time to look into the company.
10. Do write in formal English. There are a time and place for shortening words such as ‘don’t’ or ‘you’re’, but your CV isn’t one of these. Write as you would if writing an essay, to show you’re acknowledging the formality of the proceedings.
11. Do make your CV stand out. Whether that is adding relevant skills and experiences, ensuring the employer can see how they relate to the job that’s being applied for, this will give a good first impression. If you don’t have many skills to show, maybe considering a vocational program might be something worth looking into. Check out sites like Upskilled for more information. It’s never too late to learn something new.

    This can seem difficult when there seems to be so many ‘rules’ surrounding CVs but adding a bit of colour and thinking about the design of your CV can help you stick in the mind of an employer.

12. Get to the point! If you can’t reduce a long sentence to a couple of words, it’s probably too descriptive and can be removed.
13. Subheadings make sure you’re keeping your points relevant and also act as a great pointer for anyone reading your CV. If they’re looking for a specific fact about you, they can go straight to it, instead of having to read through a whole block of text.