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Writing Your First Professional CV

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Writing your first professional CVExamples:

You chose your study path

Tell them why, what was in your mind, what evolution there has been in the light of experience, what skills you believe it has given you, appropriate to what kind of roles in real work. Do this in a concise and intelligent way that tries to imagine what they want to know about you (see above). Make sure it is not merely blind ambition but also shows judgement, knowledge outside the syllabus, awareness of modern developments in culture and business.

You have non work activities

Don't just list them in a dull way; if you practice martial arts mention the resolve and inner calm they help you achieve; if you have participated in voluntary work say why you did it and what you got from giving your time; if you have rebuilt a VW Beetle from scratch and supercharged the engine, you can describe your engineering achievement; if you have travelled and worked abroad, make the most of it by laying down at least one interesting piece of bait for people to connect with at the interview.

The heart of your proposed CV

The focus is bound to be your studies, and for some professional starts it is essential to achieve high grades, which can justifiably be mentioned in detail.

I often advise people to say why they chose specific courses, who their tutors were (if famous) and what they learned, specifically, from that branch of study. If you fancy investment banking, for example, and have experience in using the same appraisal system that top trading organisations actually use, then mention it and say what you did with it. If you haven't, and you expect to break into a golden career, find out quick!


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