WALKER HAMILL

Your CV and how you behave throughout the interview process is critical to your success. Our advice will help you market yourself and secure that vital first interview

We have also provided a downloadable template so that you can simply fill in your details and prepare your own CV and you can send this to us if you want our assistance with your job search

There are far too many theories on the best way of preparing a CV. We have kept our advice simple and concise, sticking to a formula that works - it's the template that we use for every candidate we introduce and it has proven successful time and time again

An excellent CV:

• Should be no more than 2 pages long. If necessary, use an appendix to show completed transactions or projects
• Should focus on factual information such as your personal details, your academic and professional qualifications, your career history and your key attributes and achievements
• Will make a positive impact by being concise and well set out
• Must include all information requested in an advertisement. When responding to a particular role, adapt your CV to highlight the attributes that make you suitable

• Should emphasise your most recent positions. Older roles can be summarised to keep the CV to a manageable length
• If you enclose a covering letter with your CV, keep it brief - it's your CV that people want to read

Finally, if you are responding to a particular advertisement, make sure that you follow the instructions. If it says email, then email, if it says write, do not call! First impressions make all the difference!

Things to avoid when preparing your CV:

• Don't include pictures or coloured text. They may be seen as 'gimmicks' used to hide poor content
• Don't make subjective claims about your abilities. An 'executive summary' is always a bad start
• Keep your personal information to what's really necessary. That doesn't include your spouse's name, your children's ages or your height and weight!
• Do not include your desired career objectives or your salary expectations. You're very unlikely to say exactly the right thing and it only means more things to change each time you submit your CV