7 things that will get your CV ignored

There’s a vast ammount of good information online on how to write the perfect CV, but here are 7 points that are easily overlooked and can get you ignored:

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#1 The summary is key

This is absolutely the most important part of your CV and you need to get it right. Draft and edit it over and over until it is powerful and succinct. Get someone else to review it.

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#2 Top 1/3rd of the 1st page.

Recruiters and employers will only take a few seconds to decide whether your CV is of interest and if your summary is poor your application will be ignored. A top recruiter explained it to me: ‘Why I open a CV on my laptop, only the top 1/3 is visible on my screen. Only if that grabs my attention do I scroll down”. Don’t waste that space with incidental detail.

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#3 Less is more.

Edit it down to the essential info Unless detail is specifically requested and required, limit your CV to only the essential information required.

Too much information becomes ‘noise’ that not only detracts from the quality of the CV, but also gives a worse impression of you

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#4 Make it easy to read

Similar to above, making your CV easy to read helps create a good impression. So remove any “unnecessary ink”: don’t put lots of boxes or bullet points or shadows in there. With the possible exception of an application for an artistic role, avoid any kind of graphical, artistic or colourful features.

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#5 One size doesn’t fit all – Do a different one for each application

Everyone talks about having a CV, as if you should have only one. Actually I’d recommend doing a different CV for every application. It is easy enough, it means just tweaking it to suit the specifics of the role you’re applying for. This not only means you your application will be better, but if your CV is being scanned for AI and ChatGPT input, it will be less likely to be discarded.

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#6 Check the culture

Different countries have different ways of writing a CV. For example, the traditional German CV is very long and very detailed, including a photograph and copies of qualification certificates.

Even if you are applying for a role in your home country, if the organisation is foreign-owned, they may expect your CV to be aligned with how they do things. It is worth checking this and, if necessary, either asking them or putting in a note to acknowledge it by offering the alternative format if required.

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#7 Align with LinkedIn.

Make sure your CV aligns with your LinkedIn profile. They don’t have to be exactly the same, but at some point they will check and significant differences might raise questions about you and your CV.

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