Preparing a CV That Gets You Interviews
Your CV is often the first thing an employer sees, and it needs to make a good impression quickly. A clear, honest and well-organised CV will get you more interviews than a fancy design ever will. Here is how to put one together for the Jamaican job market.
Start with your contact details. Put your name, phone number, a professional email address and your parish or town at the top.
Add a short profile. Two or three sentences about who you are, your main strengths and the kind of role you want. Tailor it to each job.
List your work experience. Start with your most recent job. Include the job title, employer, location and dates, then a few bullet points on what you achieved, not just what you were responsible for. Include part-time work, internships, summer jobs and volunteering if they are relevant.
Show your education and training. List degrees or diplomas from UWI, UTech or other institutions, then CAPE and CSEC subjects with grades, and any HEART/NSTA Trust certificates and their level. Recent school leavers can put education before work experience.
Include key skills. Computer programmes, languages, a driver's licence, customer service, first aid or trade skills are all worth listing if they relate to the job.
Add references or say they are available on request. Choose people who know your work, such as a supervisor, teacher or pastor, and ask their permission first.
Keep it tidy. One or two pages, a clean font, consistent headings and no spelling mistakes. Save it as a PDF with your name in the file name.
Leave out what is not needed. Photos, your TRN, date of birth and marital status are generally not necessary on a CV.
Proofread, and ask someone else to read it too. Then start applying through Splash Jamaica.