How to Write a CV

Tips on How to Write a CV Career / Objective Statement

Choose two adjectives to describe your work style such as, "Dependable and conscientious student seeking..." or "Detail oriented and quality conscious accounting clerk..."

Inform your potential employer of "what is in it for them", such as, "seeking to utilize 10+ years experience in the industry..." or "...proven sales record..."

One sentence is good, but making sense is better! If warranted, two sentences or in some cases a short paragraph will improve an objective statement.

If you know the job title for which you are applying, use it. There is nothing to be gained in trying to define a new position for yourself.

If you have read the job description in an advertisement, try to mirror one or two of the words listed. For instance, if the job indicated a desire for a self-starter, then experiment with using the same term or one with the same meaning.

Grammar and spelling count! It is expected that CVs and resumes will have short sentence fragments, abbreviations, and little punctuation, but your career objective statement should be written without error.

Avoid being too general. It is better to do a little research with the company and uncover some of what they may be looking for than to write an over-generalized objective.

Ambition is nice, but statements such as "work my way up to..." will impress no one and may undercut your credibility.

Experiment with writing an objective without the use of the word, "I". "I", is more appropriately used in a cover letter. Using "I" and "my" too frequently may loose a recruiter whose context and focus is on what the company can gain from a new hire.

Do not promise more than you can deliver! If you are chronically late, then describing yourself as punctual will only undermine your credibility later when it is discovered that you have misrepresented yourself.