Contents of a good CV or Curriculum Vitae

Cover Letter : A covering letter should be included with every curriculum vitae you send. Your covering letter provides detailed information on why are you are qualified for the job and explains the reasons for your interest in the company. 

A good cover letter must include :

• The content of your cover letter should be brief and structured, avoid lengthy repetition of information covered in your CV. Unlike a CV, it is acceptable to write a covering letter in the first person.

• Your letter should address the relevant contact, whose name often appears in the job advert. Avoid Sir or Madam if possible.

• If you are replying to an advert, say so. Mention job title, any reference number and where and when you saw it.

• In some cases, an advert will indicate a more substantial letter is required. Always follow a specific instruction and include any information if it is particularly requested, for example, current salary.

• Briefly, outline your current situation and why you are seeking change. Include current or last job, qualifications and professional and academic training, tailoring your information to make it as relevant as possible to the organization or job applied for.

• Tell the potential employer a little about themselves to demonstrate you have properly read the advert and that you have done some research into the organization. Also, state why you are interested in them as an employer.

• You need to succinctly emphasize why an employer may want to meet and employ you. Highlight your transferable skills, achievements and versatility; what you can contribute and what makes you different. Mention personality traits relevant to the role applied for, taking care not to appear too subjective.

Contents in CV

• Ensure that your CV covering letter flows freely however and does not slavishly match every point on the job description. The reader should be left with an overall impression that you are a potentially valuable addition to the workforce.

• Negative information of any sort should be avoided in your covering letter as well as CV.

• Close your letter with a polite expression of interest in further dialogue with the recruiter. Do mention that you would like the opportunity to discuss your suitability further at an interview and that you await a response in due course.

• Ensure your letter is neatly and clearly presented with no grammatical or spelling errors.

• Email covering letters should be written in a common font with standard formatting and should emulate a handwritten letter in terms of style.

• Contact information: At the top of your CV, include your name and contact information (address, phone number, email address, etc.).  Personal information, such as gender, date of birth, marital status, and even names of children, etc are extra information unless asked by the company.

• Education: This may include college and graduate study. Include the school, college and universities attended, dates of study, and degree received.

• Honors and Awards: This may include dean's list standings, departmental awards, scholarships, fellowships, and membership in any honours associations.

• Thesis/Dissertation: Include your thesis or dissertation title. You may also include a brief sentence or two on your paper, and/or the name of your advisor.

• Research Experience: List any research experience you have, including where you worked, when, and with whom. Include any publications resulting from your research.

• Work Experience: List relevant work experience; this may include non-academic work that you feel is worth including.   List the employer, position, and dates of employment. Include a brief list of your duties and/or accomplishments.

• Teaching Experience: List any teaching positions you have held. Include the school, course name, and semester. You may also include any other relevant tutoring or group leadership experience.

• Skills: List any relevant skills you have not yet mentioned. This may include language skills, computer skills, administrative skills, etc.

• Publications and Presentations: List any publications you have written, co-written, or contributed to. Include all necessary bibliographic information. You should also include any pieces you are currently working on. Include papers you presented at conferences and/or associations: list the name of the paper, the conference name and location, and the date.

• Professional Memberships: List any professional associations to which you belong. If you are a board member of the association, list your title.

• Extracurricular Activities: Include any volunteer or service work you have done, as well as any clubs or organizations to which you have belonged. You can also include any study abroad experiences here if you have not already mentioned them.

Read More

17 CV Building Mistakes, which you must avoid

Don’t you wish your CV was so perfect that the moment a recruiting manager goes through it, he decides to hire you?

Don’t you wish you knew exactly what points in your CV will nail the job for you and what will get the CV trashed immediately?

Job-hunting is a truly adventurous process. You are racing against the odds to land that desired, much badly wanted job – and writing a great CV is vital in this race.

CVs are critical as they represent the initial idea of the potential employee to the employer. Hence people may resort to all kind of methods and ways to jazz up their CV, to create that perfect document which will pass all tests.

However, while doing so they may go overboard and be negligent about certain things, which may end up defeating the whole purpose of their CV:

Your CV – your future!

So you can see why it is so important to be aware of what NOT to include in your CV, so that it does not get rejected in the recruitment process, even before it reaches the interview stage.

This is important as statistics show that recruiters spend barely 15-20 seconds on a CV and it is essential that your CV grasps their attention within that time span. In addition, within seconds of posting an ad, hundreds of applications are received and one can imagine how well crafted the CV has to be to capture the attention in such a short time.

So, check out these pointers on what you should never ever include in your CV, so that you can increase the chances of your CV making it through:

1) Unnecessary details:

There is no need for labelling your resumé as resumé and only your name need to be used as file name as managers can distinguish a resume. You also can avoid details such as date when you wrote the resumé. The only dates that need to be quoted are the dates related to your education and employment.

2) Senseless objective or purpose:

The objective of your CV should not be outlandish and unbelievable; rather it should be practical, achievable and matching with your abilities and skill set, else your CV would be thrown into the bin without your credentials even being read. Avoid vague and meaningless objectives such as “looking for a challenging role” or “looking for an environment that lets me utilise my skills completely” is rather vague and gives no indication on what your specific goals and objectives are. A good objective is accurate and specific and talks about the specific profile you are looking to apply for. A good objective will sound something like “A customer support executive with 3 years experience looking to effectively handle customer calls and increase conversions, thereby increasing the top line”.

3) Applying for an unsuitable post:

Applying for a position for which you are not qualified is another thing that you should not do, when you craft your CV.  You may think a certain job looks interesting but if you don’t have the minimum qualifications, the skill set and the experience, you would be best advised not to apply for it. Your application is bound to be ignored and send to the trashcan.

4) Unnecessary personal information:

While a resumé needs you to mention your personal details such as age, sex, marital status, and may be even your hobbies, do not go overboard with your personal likes and dislikes.  No one has the time to read through the details of your personal life, and you may find your application rejected, even if you are qualified for the job. Things such as gender orientation and religious views are apt to be controversial and create conflicts in the minds of people who are screening the applications. Avoid also interesting stuff such as your social life and unorthodox experiences, which may convey a non-serious image. If you do want to include any personal information, use those that would be relevant to your work profile.

5) Irrelevant work experience:

If, in addition to having relevant previous work experience, you also have unrelated work experience, it is best to keep the latter as brief and concise as possible. While it is important that you state all your experience, but if it is not related to the role you are applying for, you need to shorten it, without going into the details of it.  You may have had diverse experiences, but if it has nothing to do with the job you are applying for, then it is a waste of the recruiter’s time. They would wonder, “what has this got to do with this job anyway”, may think you are not serious about the job and discard it.

6) Irrelevant achievements:

 Some people may put anything and everything they have done in life as an achievement; these could be very minor things and not relevant to the job. One candidate actually stated, “I cane first in school long distance running”! If it is about leadership, you can show examples which validate that such as community service, leadership abilities in previous posts held, extra responsibilities, and so on.

7) Excessively lengthy CVs:

Overlooked by many people, this is a sure-shot way to get your resumé trashed. You may have a lot of skills and experience, but if it runs into pages of long stories of the nitty gritties of you did, your recruiters would lose interest in your CV and discard it. Be focussed on what you want to convey through your CV.

Emphasise the key points, which are relevant and vital to your application. Show what you are bringing to the organisation and how you are going to add value.  Keep it brief, but convincing and compelling.  Restrict your CVs to within two pages.

Always remember that more details can be provided during the personal interview. You can keep a detailed account of your experience for your own reference, and for preparation for interview.

8) Incorrect attitude:

A CV can convey all the right or wrong messages, depending on how you look at it. Hence, if you are not really interested in a job or you don’t like a position, but you are applying out of compulsion, it will be evident.

The energy changes such as passion, disinterest, etc. can easily be projected out to an astute recruiter, through the writing. So apply for a post for which you are bringing genuine passion and sincere interest.

9) Poor grammar:

One of the biggest CV killers is poor grammar. Poor spellings and grammar belie the claims you make in your CV regarding your education and are considered as unforgivable mistakes. It may cost you dear as this is used as a predictor of your attitude when you are working in the organisation. Poor grammar makes the recruiter look at you as negligent, and no organisation would like to hire a casual person.

Make sure you proof read your CV a number of times, ask someone to verify whether you have not omitted anything to ensure that everything is thorough, as a third person’s perspective always helps.

10) Highlighting negative facts:

Showing a lack of experience may reflect negatively on you. So try to couch these things in a more neutral or slightly positive way. Instead of saying “I have not completed this course”, write “I shall be completing this course by this date”. Highlight positive things, which you have accomplished.

11) Salary expectations:

Expectations of salary are not something to be advertised on your CV. Any mention of them can be shelved till you are called for an interview. If you state the remuneration you expect, you might either by over-expecting or under-expecting what the company is looking to offer, and you may lose the role because of a salary mismatch.

12) Overdressed CVs:

Your CV should be simple, straightforward and professional. Flashy CV’s can put off most recruiters as they are looking for a professional. Avoid the use of personal pronouns such as I. Instead of referring to you, refer to your achievements and experiences in a list, using bullet points

13) Fake information:

Avoid lies and making false claims. It is very easy to obtain personal information these days. So choose your words carefully on your CV. Be as truthful as possible. Statistics show that one in three employers reject candidates on the basis of information found online.

Do not lie about your salary in order to land a better job. In case you get recruited, and the employer finds out later that you have falsified information, you are liable for criminal action. It is also best to avoid unverifiable information, anything negative against your previous employers, whining and complaints, as this is a sign of lack of professionalism.

14) Photographs:

Do NOT display a photo of yourself on your CV unless you are in a profession, which demands the necessity, such as modelling or films. Selection of CVs on the basis of photographs may lead to accusations of discrimination later on for the employers. Statistics show that the rejection rate for CVs with photographs is 88%.

15) Improper email addresses:

Do you know that 76 % of CV’s are ignored because the e-mail address you used conveys a lack of professionalism? Use email addresses for your CV which sound professional and not something that raises questions on your common sense! Emails like hotsexyluv@… and lazysod@… have been actually used in CVs and needless to say, they didn’t land a job.

16) Mentioning reasons for leaving previous employment:

Someone actually mentioned his reason of leaving the previous job, as “It was hard work”. It is best not to mention reasons for leaving the last job. These things are best discussed during face-to-face meetings. Mentioning this on CV’s would distract the recruiter from the aim of the CV.

17) Poor structure:

Many recruiters admit that messy and disorganised CVs are one big reason why they reject CVs. White space is very important. The better organised the content of your CV, the better it would stand up to the scrutiny.

Focus on what makes your CV stand out, not what depletes it!

In short, focussing on what to do and what NOT to do can really save you from costly experiences if you are looking for a job. So do take heed of the above pointers, and polish your CV, so that it truly reflects you in the best possible way. Your CV is your selling point and it is your job to ensure that it is received with a bang, than with a hiss.

.

Source: http://theundercoverrecruiter.com/things-never-ever-include-cv/

Read More

What Recruiters Really Want to See on Your CV

1) What are the first things recruiters look for in an applicant when recruiting?

The essential skills and experience required for the job in terms of Minimum educational requirements, relevant experience, a desire to do the job and the ability to work in that location.

2) What are major CV mistakes

1. CV is made for another job sector rather than the one applicant is applying for.
2. This tells recruiter immediately that the role applicant is applying for is his/her plan b, or c and in this job market that is an immediate turn off.
3. Presentation of CVs is very important. If a CV looks bad the implication is that the candidate is bad and they are either too commercially unaware to know how important a CV is or too apathetic about their job search. 
4. Some examples of ‘bad presentation’ include shabby formatting which makes it hard to read and follow, bizarre pictures, floral borders, a Graduate CV that covers six pages or just no content at all. Consistent formatting with bold headlines, clear dates and headlines such as achievements, awards, education and duties really helps to find the information recruiter is looking for quickly and efficiently.

3) What are the industry secrets to really getting noticed and known?

1. Call first! Every graduate recruiter gets hundreds of applications for each role they are in charge of. So before you apply, try and call the person who is advertising and introduce yourself.
2. If you make yourself known to them they are more likely to take you forward. Even if you can’t get through they will still get a couple of messages from you and hear your name so they are more likely to flag your application out of interest.
3. If you can’t get through then ask for their direct email and send the CV to them so it doesn’t get lost in the system.
4. Follow it up within 2 days for feedback and be persistent until you get an answer.
5. If they don’t want to interview you then try and get a reason as to why so you know what you need to do or where you are going wrong.
6. You can also drop them a LinkedIn request after you have spoken to them.
7. Linkedin is king at the moment and should be on every graduates guide of how to get a job.
8. State clearly in your LinkedIn headline who you are and what you want, for example “DU Economics Graduate with Analytical Banking Internship looking for a Graduate Investment Banking Analytical Scheme”.
9. Then add an online CV so employers can really get to know you.
10. Start linking in with everyone relevant in that industry and hiring managers; don’t be shy to request to add them and explain why in the email.
11. Then start being proactive on the site; join relevant groups and “Like” updates to get noticed.
12. Be proactive! Don’t just sit there applying and hope the jobs come to you – go out and find the jobs yourself, building up a big network of contacts whilst you do it.
13. Keep track on Excel spread sheets so you are always on top of who you are in contact with, who they work for and what they can offer you.

4) How to make sure that your CV will make an impression and get you through to the next stage?

1. Many large recruiters use job portals to search CVs for content before a human sees them, so mirroring the language they used to advertise the position will make sure your CV gets put forward for review.
2. For example, if they are looking for high achievers then use this exact phrase and pack the buzzwords in so you tick all their boxes.
3. The more relevant words to the job description you have in your CV the more likely your CV will get through.
4. Even for jobs with small or mid sized employers make sure you use relevant words on your CV as much as possible. This looks great when someone scans your CV as they instantly see all the great qualities they are looking for.
5. Make the language relevant to the role, for example, if it’s a sales position use strong sales focused words like: drive, targets, ambition, success, business, entrepreneur etc. to make your application as suited as possible to the position.
6. Basically, don’t just be average. Find out what the person recruiting for the job you want is looking for – and then be that person.

Read More

CV vs. Resume: The Difference

Have you ever wondered, what is the difference between a CV and a Resume?

Have you ever thought about, if one of these is correct or both are?

Ever wondered about where to use CV and where to use Resume?

If you have these questions, here are the answers:

CV: What is it ?

• CV - Curriculum Vitæ, means course of life in Latin.
• It is an in-depth document that can be laid out over two or more pages containing a high level of detail about your achievements, a great deal more than just a career biography.
• It overs your education as well as any other accomplishments like publications, awards, honors etc.
• The document tends to be organized chronologically.It should make it easy to get an overview of your full working career.
• A CV is static and doesn’t change for different positions; the difference would be in the cover letter.

Resume: What is it ?

• A resume, or résumé, is a concise document typically not longer than one page.
• The reader is not intended to dwell on your document for very long, so keep it brief.
• The goal of a resume is to make an individual stand out from the competition.
• The job seeker should adapt the resume to every position they apply for.
• It is in the applicant’s interest to change the resume from one job application to another and to tailor it to the needs of the specific post.
• A resume doesn’t have to be ordered chronologically, doesn’t have to cover your whole career like and is a highly customizable document.

Summarized Difference between CV and Resume :

  The length :

A resume is a brief summary of your skills and experience over one or two pages while your CV is more detailed and can stretch well beyond two pages.

The purpose

The resume will be tailored to each position whereas the CV will stay put and any changes will be in the cover letter.

The layout.

A CV has a clear chronological order listing the whole career of the individual whereas a resume’s information can be shuffled around to best suit the applicant.

So, we can say that, a CV is intended to be a full record of your career history; it can be long enough to cover your entire career and is static in nature,  and a resume is a brief, targeted list of skills and achievements; which has to be brief, though high customizable.

Read More

How to Get Internship and Job at Google

Google dream companies for all students to do internship and for every graduate, the dream place to work.

For the college students all over the world, having internship at companies like Google and is one of the most prestigious internship opportunities.

But, getting an internship offer at Google is not an easy thing.  About internship opportunity at Google, there has been a saying that getting at Google is even harder than getting admission into top colleges like Harvard and Stanford.

Probably because, every month Google receives approx. 50000 plus applications for internship and only about 27000 get the first interview.

So, if you are applying, you need to make sure that you get that first interview.

Well, easier to say than doing.

 Here are some tips, advice, and other helpful articles to increase your chances of getting selected.

1. Preparation and the application.

The journey to getting internship in Google starts with an effective application process.

When you submit your application, you need three things: resume, cover letter, and transcript.

1)     Resume

Think to answer these questions :

What do recruiters see when they look at your resume?  How can you take your resume to next level?

Here are some of her ideas that can help you in building your resume.

a)     Be Specific :

Include how you impacted the company or organization you worked for.

This is important because many people only describe their past jobs. What's more important is demonstrating how you contributed to that job.

b)    Be Concise and to-the-point

Recruiters only spend about seven seconds on average glancing at a resume so that means you want to keep your resume at a maximum of one page.

c)     Let the numbers talk:

It is very important to quantify your achievements when possible. Rather than telling you were exceptional in your previous job, let your achievements do the talking.

For example, if you saved the company $25,000, put that number in your resume.

The tangible, concrete, and quantifiable data really grabs attention of recruiter.  

d)    Prefer Using Action Verbs

Use of action verbs really matter. It represents your go getter attitude.

For example, instead of saying ‘I made a new algorithm that increased traffic,’ it would be better to say ‘Initiated a new program that increased traffic by 25 percent.

e)     Never, ever embellish

If you are uncomfortable in talking about something during an interview, never ever mention that in your resume.

For example, mentioning your knowledge about multiple programming languages might lead interviewer to put some questions about that.

f)      Don’t put an objective statement :

Everyone knows you’re looking for an internship or else you wouldn’t be applying for it, then why to waste space by putting irrelevant information on it.

g)     Don’t put images of yourself :

Putting images in resume doesn’t help at all. Instead it takes more of your valuable place.

h)    Mention Accomplishments not JD :

What you do want to put, is your results and accomplishments, not your job descriptions. What did you do differently from the last person who was in your position?

i)       Tailor your resume to the particular internship you are applying for :

Go on the website and check out what words they are using to describe what they want and copy it. This will make sure Google sees that you are the perfect match.

j)      Mention Side Projects

Yes, I agree, a high GPA or name of a top-tier school in resume does sure help, but what recruiters like Google really looking for are people who have builders attribute. Show them that you have a passion outside of the classroom.

It can be anything from starting a little side project like a simple website to launching a full on startup.

Demonstrate your creativity, passion, and drive to start something from beginning to end. Recruiters are going to love that.

The question that you must be prepared to answer is :

How did you increase your productivity on your side projects at the end of the day when you were tired from work/college?

2. Your Digital Footprint  (Online Presence) :

Recruiters spend a lot of time online looking for candidates and finding out the activities of applicants.

First of all you need to improve your digital footprint by optimizing your social media profiles and pages. 

Also, be active on the relevant platform that matches your skills, for e.g., Engineers can put their work on Github. For designers, there is Behance and Pintrest. 

Sites like Career Cup or Collegefeed Connect can help you with some practice interview questions.

Get involved in the relevant community through Twitter , Quora etc.

Love writing, get started with your blog on wordpress.

End of the day, make sure that along with your other social media profiles, your LinkedIn is also up to date you are engaged with relevant groups and discussions on it.

3. Connections

This is probably one of the best ways to make it into Google. A candidate referred by a Googler or a Xoogler has a much higher chance at getting in the right hands than a candidate that comes out of the blue. Check in your Linkedin profile, if you have any 2nd or 3rd degree connections.

If not, don’t be sad. There are still plenty of people, who got in without connections; they just had to put in a little more work.

So, how to improve your connections :

You can start it by attending networking events and talks. Instead of wasting your weekend in random stuff, participate in weekend startup Meetups, compete in a hackathon, or attend other Meetups of your interest.

There are so many people at events like these and chances are you might run into the right person at the right time.

4. The Application

Check the careers page of Google here for open positions.

https://careers.google.com/students

If, the position you are looking for is not open, have patience and wait. Keep on checking. Once the position is open, apply and now hope that all the preparation work. If all goes right, you may get a call in next 2-3 days.

5. Interviews:

The interview process varies with the position. For a programmer the process and number of interviews will be totally different than that for a UI UX designer.

The solution to this problem is : Practice, Practice and Practice

There is no shortcut to it. You need to practice for your interviews irrespective of the position you are applying to.

Practice at your school/college career center with mock interviews and seek help if your friends.

Work on making mock interviews as realistic as possible.

You’re going to have phone interviews so try to practice at the location you’ll be at and how you’ll be setup during that interview.

Demonstrate Your True Self -  Who You Really Are

A major part of interview is to see if you’d be a great cultural fit. It’s not going to be 100% technical.

Don’t answer scripted answers. Get involved, be personal, show you care about the fit as much as the company does.

Your interview is not one sided, its both way. You are interviewing them as well to see if they are a good fit for you.

Do your homework and prepare questions showing that you really want to be there. Use the opportunity of “Do you have any questions for me?” to shoot your questions.

Hiring Committee:

Members of the hiring committee review the feedback from your interviewers, your resume, and other related documents. If you appear to be a strong candidate, your information is placed in a pool for host matching.

6. Host-Matching Stage.

This is the place where you need to have a lot of patience. There is no way to speed it up.

Projects and teams play a big priority in Google’s intern hiring process. Teams submit their potential intern projects and once they are approved, they are able to choose candidates from the pool of applicants who make it to this stage.  This process is pretty different for each role.

Once you find a potential host, it will be followed by a couple of telephonic interviews which are generally non-technical. The host just tries to determine whether you would be a good fit for the team (and vice versa).

It is pretty similar throughout the board. You fill out a questionnaire that asks what Google products you’re interested in, where you’re interested in working at, and other pretty simple questions. The hosts and teams then go through and choose their favorites. There’s no limit to how many hosts can choose you. Some people get three host matches, while others get none. It all depends on the hosts and what they are looking for during that season.

This process usually takes a while for most people, from a couple weeks to even a few months. Don’t get discouraged if you haven’t heard anything yet, be patient!

Word of advice :

Competitive Programming:

It’s probably the most straight-forward and easy way to prepare for and crack the technical interviews of all top-notch tech companies.

A good rank or rating on CodeChef / TopCoder / CodeForces will help you to clear the resume screening which is often the biggest hurdle for most of the candidates. A good performance will not only help you in technical interviews , but you will also get good referrals as the referrer can quickly verify the claims.

No Brainteasers:

Google stopped asking complex brain teaser-type questions in the interviews long ago after realizing that such brainteasers don’t really predict the performance and problem-solving ability of the candidates; instead, they focus on structured interview questions now.

 Check out this guide by Google on how to develop your technical skills- https://www.google.com/about/careers/students/guide-to-technical-development.html

Do your research:

Most students don’t get matched to a host because they are too rigid while filling the questionnaire. Be little general. Research about various Google products and the teams behind them for a better possibility of finding a team which resonates with your interests.

TIPS :

 Get used to coding on a whiteboard, in Google Docs, and get comfortable talking about coding over the phone.

You can also watch these two videos prepared by Google recruiters themselves on Technical interview tips and Non-technical interview tips.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qc1owf2-220&autoplay=1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DINxNbBOEoI&autoplay=1

You can also read about the exhilarating experience of Anushka while she did her summer internship at Google.

If the software industry is your calling, you can check out these cool Computer Science internships. To apply for more of such internships, please register here.

NOTE

 The information is based on online research, talks and experience shared by multiple people who have been through the interview process. Readers are advised to go through the Google website for latest information.

Read More