Questions about CV

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Shockwave_

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I'm currently in my final year as a Comp Sci Student and currently putting together a CV.

I have experience with Web and UI design and wanted to design my CV to reflect that , but i read some articles online that say that employers want CV's that are simple without any fancy designs .

I want to improve my chances of finding a job and am unsure which direction to go


PS: any other advice to help with putting together a CV would be greatly appreciated
 
Run a spell check on it when you are done...twice.

Send it as a PDF, not a Word doc.

Most relevant experience first although you probably don't have much to write yet ;)

Everybody has their own "perfect" idea of a CV/resume. I prefer bullet points and short relevant descriptions:


Personal Details

Who are you, what are you doing, what are you looking for (short)

What is YOUR "tech stack"

Work experience
- title, company, dates
- what did you do there
- why did you leave

Education
 
Hamster said:
Run a spell check on it when you are done...twice.

Send it as a PDF, not a Word doc.

Most relevant experience first although you probably don't have much to write yet ;)

Everybody has their own "perfect" idea of a CV/resume. I prefer bullet points and short relevant descriptions:


Personal Details

Who are you, what are you doing, what are you looking for (short)

What is YOUR "tech stack"

Work experience
- title, company, dates
- what did you do there
- why did you leave

Education
Click to expand...

Noooooooo!!!!!!

List the Job title and duration:

Bullet points are very bad for a CV;
No bullet points ever;
No fancy boxes around the egdes either, please;
Use full stops there where you have valid sentences following eachother;
Rather use ; to indicate the end of that point;
Then list the next skill duty, like making your boss' diary appointments;
Scheduling all his travel arrangements;
Definately check the spelling more than once, unlike me who will shortly click post;
And yes, as mentioned, sending a PDF format CV is definately more wise than sending a word, excel or powerpoint CV. It delivers better presentation;


List next job(bold and 14 font, clear style, no funny curlies):
Then list those skills, in 11 or 12 font. Do not use bold or italics;
Keep it simple and clean;
 
Last edited:
Venomous said:
Noooooooo!!!!!!

List the Job title and duration:

Bullet points are very bad for a CV;
No bullet points ever;
No fancy boxes around the egdes either, please;
Use full stops there where you have valid sentences following eachother;
Rather use ; to indicate the end of that point;
Then list the next skill duty, like making your boss' diary appointments;
Scheduling all his travel arrangements;
Definately check the spelling more than once, unlike me who will shortly click post;
And yes, as mentioned, sending a PDF format CV is definately more wise than sending a word, excel or powerpoint CV. It delivers better presentation;


List next job(bold and 14 font, clear style, no funny curlies):
Then list those skills, in 11 or 12 font. Do not use bold or italics;
Keep it simple and clean;
Click to expand...

What do you mean Nooooooo!!!!!! if you basically agree with most of what I said. The bullet points? Fair enough...if you're going to bullet point everything and make it look a release note the sure, bad bad bad. Bullet points will force you to keep it short and on point, that's what I was going after.

PDF over Word also works better when we open a CV and don't have Office installed. Some of the formatting in those docs just don't convert very well.
 
Hamster said:
What do you mean Nooooooo!!!!!! if you basically agree with most of what I said. The bullet points? Fair enough...if you're going to bullet point everything and make it look a release note the sure, bad bad bad. Bullet points will force you to keep it short and on point, that's what I was going after.

PDF over Word also works better when we open a CV and don't have Office installed. Some of the formatting in those docs just don't convert very well.
Click to expand...

Noooooooooooooooooooo! Make sure that it looks good in notepad in case no PDF viewer is available.

:p
 
I've been looking at a lot of CVs this year trying to fill a few open positions. I have read in the past that a CV should be black and white, but I disagree. It's really refreshing to get a CV with a bit of colour in it. And if you are going for a creative position and you back yourself to make a professional looking CV then go for it.
 
me_ said:
I've been looking at a lot of CVs this year trying to fill a few open positions. I have read in the past that a CV should be black and white, but I disagree. It's really refreshing to get a CV with a bit of colour in it. And if you are going for a creative position and you back yourself to make a professional looking CV then go for it.
Click to expand...
I would write a very short CV and add a url at the top to your "fancy" one. I'm management we basically scan the CV and look for keywords.
 
Hamster said:
What do you mean Nooooooo!!!!!! if you basically agree with most of what I said. The bullet points? Fair enough...if you're going to bullet point everything and make it look a release note the sure, bad bad bad. Bullet points will force you to keep it short and on point, that's what I was going after.

PDF over Word also works better when we open a CV and don't have Office installed. Some of the formatting in those docs just don't convert very well.
Click to expand...
Stay pointed short and sweet* and no bullet points.
*important.
 
:rolleyes:

Anyway, OP, when you've set up your CV and fancy a development job in Johannesburg, send it to me.
 
Do people still include a cover letter in their CV?

I still have the same cover letter which I started with as my 1st page - not sure whether I should just bin it?

It basically says what I'm like and why they need to pay me a lot without any proof.
 
Wait, no bullet points:confused:? Why? All the internet searches I've done on good CVs show CVs with bullet points and I've been modelling mine after these.

If you go through CVs a lot and you have extra time or a loyal minion does can you please post images of a good example of a CV (not someone's real CV, for someone fake)? Or a link to a good example online? I need to send my CV out this week and I want to see what I have to change.
 
sandwitch said:
Wait, no bullet points:confused:? Why? All the internet searches I've done on good CVs show CVs with bullet points and I've been modelling mine after these.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I don't get her either but if that's the way she likes CVs coming to her then that's how it is.

I worked with a guy that'll trash a CV if there were spelling/grammar mistakes in your email or if your LinkedIN photo was a pic from your wedding/a car selfie.

Me, I get annoyed when I read as part of your job responsibilities "Root cause analysis on production errors and putting preventive measures in place" (so basically you can read a log file and fix bugs). Adding bs fluf like that tells me you had to look for something to put on your CV.

Luck of the draw wrt who reads your CV I guess.
 
Hamster said:
Luck of the draw wrt who reads your CV I guess.
Click to expand...
I always thought as much but it's a little sad to hear. Although I agree about your coworker about the spelling and profile pic.


Welp. As no one can give me an example of a good CV without bullet points I'll keep mine short, sweet & bulleted. Esp. because design-wise it's easier to scan through and I think it looks pretty.
 
I have a 2 pager with a few headings:

Professional Profile: A short description of who you are, what you do, tech stacks and industries that you have worked in.
Education (including all the modules that you did for each degree): Bachelor of Commerce, Information Systems Honours, Business Science, Bachelor of Science, Computer Science, 6 month long advanced Soft Skills course.
Experience: in the different titles that you have worked in, and the tech stacks that you have worked with within those roles/departments.
References.

And then I have a few documents to accompany my CV with examples of applications that I wrote within those different tech stacks with UML diagrams to better explain to the reader in the "bird's eye view", plus testimonials linked to each project.
 
Last edited:
sandwitch said:
I always thought as much but it's a little sad to hear. Although I agree about your coworker about the spelling and profile pic.


Welp. As no one can give me an example of a good CV without bullet points I'll keep mine short, sweet & bulleted. Esp. because design-wise it's easier to scan through and I think it looks pretty.
Click to expand...

Just style it so it reads easy and follow the standard order of things.
 
me_ said:
I've been looking at a lot of CVs this year trying to fill a few open positions. I have read in the past that a CV should be black and white, but I disagree. It's really refreshing to get a CV with a bit of colour in it. And if you are going for a creative position and you back yourself to make a professional looking CV then go for it.
Click to expand...

This is a pertinent point.

Every different job has a different or rather more relevant CV requirement and there is no one size fits all.

GoB said:
Do people still include a cover letter in their CV?

I still have the same cover letter which I started with as my 1st page - not sure whether I should just bin it?

It basically says what I'm like and why they need to pay me a lot without any proof.
Click to expand...

In my view your CV should be the constant and your cover letter should be customized per job application and specific to that role to illustrate why you would fit in there.
 
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