More often than not, people fret over making their CVs for that perfect first impression. In fact, a lot of people applying to SHOUT as contributors face the trouble of wondering what to put into their CVs or even what it should look like. Here we explore common pitfalls you can avoid.

WHAT SHOULD IT LOOK LIKE?

Unless specified by the place you're applying to, usually a standard free template off the internet works best. Don't go for fancy; go for something that is simple. Looking organised is far more important than looking pretty in this case. Also, don't stretch your pictures. If you're putting in your photo, make sure to resize it while maintaining the ratios. 

STOP QUANTIFYING YOUR TALENTS

A lot of CVs have these arbitrary progress bars or ratings of one's skill. Unfortunately, being 90% proficient at MS Word is not something that can easily be visualised by someone reading it even though you literally visualised it with fancy graphics. What does being 7/10 at Photoshop mean? What's a 10 and what's a 1? Without such benchmarks set, it's best to just say what sort of work you are comfortable with under proficiency and move on. Best is to show certifications. There are lots of online academies with courses you can take which provide certifications.

CANNED LINES MAKE YOU LOOK LAZY

Nothing is more groan inducing than reading that someone is a "dynamic individual" for the 463rd time. You don't have to put in your life's mission, vision and objective to make yourself stand out. And even if you are doing that, copy-pasting someone else's words is really not the point. Rather, look towards defining yourself in a few lines.

HOW LONG SHOULD IT BE?

As a lot of us know, size doesn't matter. Or it does. Depending on the requirements of the organisation, you might have to keep your CV to certain lengths. Usually one to three pages is considered fine. You're really pushing it at four. If your CV is seven pages long, you're either looking for a spouse or you don't actually need a CV for a job.

WHAT ECA SHOULD YOU INCLUDE?

I personally put everything into my CV to show that I am a flexible, dynamic and motivated individual without actually copy-pasting those words from a career advice website. However, a good rule of thumb is to only include stuff that could be relevant to the job and if none of them are relevant, you could put a few in anyway. This would go on to show that you did other stuff besides studying — extra important for those overachievers who have stellar grades.

One thing to remember is that these are not steadfast rules. Industries change and HR professionals find new things to look for in CVs. A one-size-fits-all approach isn't the best idea in most cases. Hopefully these pointers will help you land your dream job!

Rumman R Kalam is the In-charge of SHOUT who struggles with writing fiction and loves cats. Send him cat pictures [you took] via email at tehgoatlord@rantages.com