How To Get The Job You Really
Really Want - Creating The
Perfect CV - The Order of Things
The Employment History section of your CV should
always be in reverse chronological order. That is most
recent job first. Why do people insist on doing it the other way
around? Your CV should aim to get you an interview. You are not
going to do that if the potential employer first has to read about
how you joined the greengrocer as delivery boy for three months
after you left school. He wants to read about what is most
relevant, and, in 99% of cases, that means most recent. If the
reader has to plough through fifteen years of irrelevance he will
have lost interest long before he gets to the information that will
secure your interview. If he loses interest, your CV will be
meeting with good old file 13 again.
Incidentally, I hope you are beginning to see how
many trap doors there are for your application to fall
through. I know I keep repeating it, but it is so important,
everything you do must be aimed at making it as easy as possible for
you to get the job. For giving you the advantage over the
competition.
If you have written your CV in reverse chronological
order like good little job applicants and the reason for doing so is
that the most recent jobs are the most relevant and therefore
important.....it follows that you should write in more depth about
your recent employment experience. Agreed?
Good. So the write more about your current and
recent experience. As you go further into the past, and
experience becomes less relevant, write less about it. Hey, that's
an easy one. Seriously though, anything over five years ago is
probably not relevant, so just one small paragraph will normally
do. If it's over ten years ago the company, dates and position will
normally be enough. Remember what we talked about in chapter two,
the pace of change and all that. Ten-year old experience is more
than likely outdated by the changes that have taken place in the
workplace, if by nothing else.
As always, there are exceptions. If you developed a
certain skill the job you are applying for requires, then
obviously mention it. However, the general rule is as above,
unless special circumstances prevail. If you do go into great
detail about jobs ten years ago, you'll end up with a twenty six
page epic that will end up you know where, and contribute to the
downfall of the rain forest and global warming.
Next Page -
CV What You
Should Include
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