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5 Mistakes To Avoid In Order To Get Interviews For Graduate Jobs
Spell-check your CV each an every time. By this I mean when you first create your CV, but also when you make any changes to it. Spell-check it and proofread it without fail. If at all possible, ask somebody else to read over your CV, as it’s easy to be blind your own mistakes. In an age of Microsoft Word and that conspicuous red underline, many employers will see a professional CV with spelling errors as totally unacceptable. If you're going for graduate jobs online, the red underlines will often be all too glaring for the employer. In fact, one minor error even in an application on paper could leave the recruiting manager scrunching up the application to take pot shots at the bin. It doesn't take a great deal of effort, and it is important, so thoroughly check your CV till you’re absolutely sure it's free of mistakes. Don't embellish your achievements. This might be tempting, when you’re not sat in the same room as your prospective employers. But even if it improves the probability of you getting an interview, you'll quickly get your payback in a face-to-face situation if your interviewer knows what he or she is doing. Practised interviewers are trained to ask to see evidence of achievements, and they are also more than capable of spotting someone who’s not being wholly truthful. If you’ve beefed up the truth to get to the interview stage, ready yourself for not exactly being on the gravy train as you’re leaving. Meanwhile, accurate achievements that you can substantiate with evidence will make you seem professional and honest in an interview. Try not to use unusual fonts and italics. It must be that those who adopt this strategy think it will make them stand out from the crowd. Standing out is definitely a positive when it links up with the job criteria, but anything else and you may just be making your CV harder for the recruiter to read; this in turn communicates poor judgement and reduces the chances of you being called up for an interview. Just use standard fonts such as Arial and Times New Roman, and steer clear of italics. Don't chop and change between font sizes and styles. It’s fairly easy to do if you’re adding to your CV as your experience strengthens. But as with spelling mistakes, it can signal someone who shows a lack of care and attention detail in doing something that is quite crucial really. Don’t leave gaps in your employment history. A CV should be a written record of what you’re about professionally. Years left out here and there without due clarification can only be seen as negative when spotted. If the interlude was of positive benefit to your CV, you wouldn’t have left it out! Whether a year’s gap after unemployment, travelling, or illness, it’s wiser to put it in because it’s part who you are now. Something concealed is unlikely to stay concealed forever and will show a slightly dishonest side of you. Those who aren’t English graduates may not have the necessary skills to write an amazing CV – even though the skill-set you do have may be great for the graduate jobs that you are applying for. Yet without being able to produce a good CV, the fact of the matter is you might not get the chance to demonstrate these skills in the work place. If you're still not certain how to make your CV do its job, look for professional help: there are many CV-writing services on the Web. Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com John Bult runs an internet job site for graduate recruitment agencies to post graduate jobs in the UK |
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