Tips for Improving your CV Presentation
by Catherine Allen, President, Techaid Inc.
Most HR recruiters spend less than 10 seconds reviewing a CV, and agency recruiters may spend only twice that. There is therefore limited time for your CV to present your experience clearly so recruters can quickly recognize you as a qualfied candidate. An easily readable CV that highlights your skills is essential.
At Techaid we review hundreds of CV every week. Here are our tips for a technical CV that will make your qualfications stand out:
1. Remove distractions
Help the reader to focus on your technical qualifications and experience. Eliminate unnecessary words, lines and icons to create a clean and easily understood CV. This includes:
- Limiting the use of different fonts. Choose one or two fonts and use them consistently throughout your CV.
- Avoiding dividing your CV into multiple columns and subsections. Your CV will look crowded and harder to read, making it difficult for recruiters to quickly understand your qualfications.
- Removing photographs, logos and icons. Photos are not appreciated on technical CV, and company logos or icons distract from your message.
2. Increase white space
You should aim for at least 30% white space on your CV to improved readability. Avoid reducing white space to force your CV onto a single page. A well presented 2-page CV is more effective in communicating your qualifications than a crowded 1-page document.
3. Don't waste the top of your CV
Important information should be presented first. Non essential information, such as detailed coordinates, personal information, education (unless you are a recent gradusate) and lists of skills
should be moved to the end of your CV and not take up valuable space at the top. Likewise, decorative badges, coloured borders, etc. should be avoided.
Reserve the top of the first page of your CV for your name,
(in a standard font size), email and/or phone and a short Summary of your technical qualifications followed by your Experience.
4. Use bold fonts sparingly
Use bolded text only for your key qualifications and experience, such as your job titles, diplomas, etc. so the reader's eye is immediately drawn to your skills. Avoid bolding less relevant information such as company names, schools, dates, etc.
5. Use an easy to read font and font size
Modern, readable fonts include Arial, Helvetica, Calibri and Cambria, all of which are sans-serif. Times New Roman, a serif font, is also very readable, but may make your CV look dated. A font size of at least 10 to 11 points, depending on the font, is the minimum for readability.
Making these changes will improve the readability - and ultimately the impact - of your CV, helping recruiters to quickly understand your qualfications. For tips on improving your CV content, see below.