As a professional recruiter and owner of a CV/resume writing business, I regularly come across great candidates all the time who wish they had asked or sought CV Help with their CV/resume before they submitted it to all those important jobs.
However, none of them think this help is free – how wrong could they be! They normally only learn this lesson once they have been rejected, and actually how much information and help is available to them for free.
The Statistics:
The statistics of the job search process are brutal. Most applicants learn form their mistakes, because getting to grips with the HR processes is too complex. But simple statistics can tell you much. In an average profile of applications to a typical job advert, whether that be via newsprint or the internet, the answers are:
- 20% of applicants are rejected because they don’t include a Cover Letter
- 20% are rejected because they don’t have the basic skills required
- 20% are rejected because of errors in their application – mostly spelling, also grammar
That last one is just a crazy statistic, and its one I always question when most good word processing programs include a spelling and grammar checker. But every month, my companies own statistics tell the same story!
So, how can candidates improve their chances of getting an interview
Free CV Help:
There are plenty of free resources to ensure that your CV is better presented:
Microsoft: a majority of applicants will use MSWord to prepare their CV. So why not use the spell check, and the grammar check tools?
Hewlett Packard: it is more difficult to see typing and grammatical errors in your CV on your PC screen. Once you are happy with a version of your CV, print it out
A red pen: to ensure that the printed version is correct in both spelling (spell checkers ensure the words exist in English, not that they are the right words), and grammatically, scan it through using a red pen to lead your eye across the page. Mark any errors
A highlighter pen: with a paper version of the job advert, use a highlighter to pick out the first five key skills/competencies. Now see if you can find the same five skills/competencies in your own CV. If you can’t, you will be rejected
Read it out loud: check that it reads well. To ensure this, stand up and read it out loud – this makes it easier to spot poor sentences
Your eyes: Having printed out a now literally correct version of your CV, take each page and hold it out at arms length. Does it look correct, is there a balance between the black ink and white paper?
Now you have a version of your CV which probably contains at least ten less mistakes, and hence ten less reasons for rejection. However, this is only your own check, so there are two more free resources you can use before sending your CV in for a job application. Ideally, you need to use these resources at least three times to ensure the best optimised CV version.
Firstly, many Professional CV writers provide free CV/resume reviews. These are often – like our own – are marketing driven services, but offer dedicated self-CV writers excellent and free access to professional resources. Secondly, there are also your friends. Ideally at least one could be a present or ex-HR professional, but make sure it is read by at least one man, and one woman – women are generally more detail orientated, but you never know who will be the first person to review your CV in the desired employer.
If candidates used this information and process to check their CV’s and ensure they were optimised for free, they would significantly reduce their chances of rejection, and increase their possibility of interview.
Good Luck!