CVs
Create an impactful CV that is tailored, structured and relevant.
A CV (curriculum vitae) is a document, typically 2 sides of A4, used to apply for jobs, work experience and postgraduate courses, that outlines your education, work experience and skills. We recommend looking at your CV not simply as a factual overview of what you’ve done but more as a marketing tool with a clear purpose – to promote your suitability for the specific position you have applied for. As such, it’s really important that you invest time and effort into writing your CV, ensuring that it really showcases your potential and is appropriately tailored to each opportunity.
Please note that advice within this page applies to the UK – CV conventions vary all round the world. If you are a current Cardiff University student, you can access the GoinGlobal platform for CV templates for different countries.
Types of CV
Chronological CV
A chronological CV is arguably the most traditional and commonly used CV. Information is simply presented in reverse-chronological order so within each section, your most recent education, work experience, achievements etc come first and then the oldest last. Education is usually the first section, followed by experience, skills and interests.
It's best to use a chronological CV when you have experience that is relevant to what you're applying for or when you're applying for a role or opportunity that is in the same field as your degree subject.
Skills-based CV
A skills-based CV is very similar to a chronological CV but the key difference is that it places more emphasis on your skills.
If you are applying for a role where you don't have relevant experience or a role that is in a different field to your degree subject, then a skills-based CV is more suitable for you. Focus on evidencing the key skills needed for the role - as a result, your skills section will be longer than in a chronological CV and will likely be included before other sections.
Creative CV
In some industries, your CV is also an opportunity to visually showcase your creativity, as well as your digital, design and branding skills.
Creative CVs are becoming increasingly common in the following roles:
- Media - including producers, script writers, film makers, photographers and engineers
- Content writers and journalists
- Digital advertising, public relations, sales and marketing
- Architecture
- IT roles - including web development and design, information architecture, UX design and front end development
- Apparel specialists - including stylists, garment technologists, visual merchandisers and fashion marketers
- Designers - fashion, textiles, 3D and interior
- Illustrators and animators
- Artists, makers and performers
Consider how appropriate a non-traditional CV would be for your chosen sector and the specific employer you are applying to. A highly visual, creative CV might impress an illustration company or a digital advertising agency but could seriously put off a law firm!
Use resources such as CV Parade, Guru, the Guardian and the Creative CV Guide to inspire your creative CV.
Academic CV
An academic CV is used to apply for positions in academia after completion of a PhD.
It will likely be longer than a CV used to apply for most other positions - up to 4 pages is fine for an academic CV, but entirely unsuitable for most job roles. An academic CV will place more emphasis on research, academic and teaching experiences and could have additional sections such as teaching experience, research experience, publications, conferences and funding, prizes and scholarships. It's also a good idea to include your references within your academic CV, especially as they are likely fellow academics in your chosen field.
Vitae has excellent advice on creating academic CVs.
Video CV
To stand out from the crowd, you may choose to submit a video CV alongside your application in order to apply for a role. It is a short video that outlines your suitability for the position, whilst also showing the employer your personality.
As with creative CVs, you should consider how appropriate a video CV is for the type of role you are applying for. It will be more suited to creative and customer-facing roles for example.
Read Prospects' and Indeed's advice on creating a video CV.
What to include in your CV
Watch the video below with our Careers Adviser, Cath, for a detailed overview of what to include in your CV:
To summarise, your CV is likely to include the following information:
- Personal details – provide your name, phone number and email address. You may also want to include a link to your LinkedIn profile or other relevant online profiles showcasing your skills and work. You shouldn’t include your address, date of birth or photo
- Education – include your GCSEs (or equivalent), A levels (or equivalent) and current degree. For qualifications gained outside of the UK, it can be helpful to mention within your CV what UK qualification level it is equivalent to
- Employment and work experience – provide details of any jobs and work experience you have undertaken or are currently doing. Highlight achievements, as well as duties and responsibilities
- Skills – provide examples of where you have developed the skills needed for the specific role. Use the role description to help you do this
- Interests – employers are keen to understand who you are outside of work, so include examples of hobbies and interests, and explain how these have helped you to develop qualities and skills relevant to the role and employer
- References – it is common to simply state ‘References available on request’ at the bottom of your CV but you might choose to provide their details (name, job title and contact information) if they are prominent in your field (with their permission of course!)
Top tips for creating your CV
Remember the TLC acronym to create an effective CV:
- T – Tailor your CV
- L – Format your CV with an effective layout
- C – Use concise language
Find out more about this below:
Whilst we suggest developing a master template for your CV early on in your degree, you should always tailor it to the specific position you've applied for. An employer will be reviewing your CV with their specific requirements in mind so make it easy for them to see you've got the skills, experience and qualifications that they're looking for. Experienced recruiters can easily spot a generic, untailored CV, so make sure you give it the time and attention it deserves if you want to progress to the next stage of recruitment.
You can do this through:
- The language and wording you use - include wording used in the role description
- How you present the information - present your CV in order of importance and make sure an employer sees relevant experiences first
- Including a personal profile - your personal profile should be a very focused summary highlighting how you are the right fit for the role and expressing a clear career goal (or goals) which align with the role
- Skills - provide clear examples of where you have demonstrated the specific skills the employer is looking for in a Skills section
Some employers also use Applicant Tracking Software (ATS), electronic software which scans your CV, usually alongside the requirements of the job. It will be detecting how good a fit you are for the role, based on the information provided in your CV. In either case, whether it's a human recruiter or ATS system, it's vitally important your CV is well tailored to the role.
Your CV should be easy for an employer to scan quickly as you may only have a matter of seconds to make a good impression. A CV with a clear and effective layout makes it easy for the employer to read and process the most relevant information.
- Aim for 2 sides of A4, no more (unless you are using an academic CV). You could use 1 side of A4 if an employer requests it or if you don't have much experience yet
- Use a clear template, like one of the ones we have included below. Simple formatting is better, unless you are applying for an industry where your CV template is an opportunity to showcase design skills (see our advice on creative CVs above). When using a template, be sure to personalise all information
- Use a simple font and aim for a font size no greater than 11
- Avoid tables - they are hard to follow and are hard to process by ATS systems
- Use bullet points to break up sentences, so employers don't have chunky paragraphs of text to read through
Use positive and active language to save space and highlight your achievements and impact. Do this by starting sentences with verbs (such as developed, analysed, created, reported, investigated, implemented, changed and achieved). It is common to write your CV without any personal pronouns - for example, instead of saying 'I developed my research skills by conducting a thorough literature review', you could write 'Developed excellent research skills by conducting a thorough literature review.'
As with all applications, make sure your CV has no spelling or grammar mistakes!
Watch our video below to hear advice from employers about the common CV and cover letter mistakes to avoid:
CV examples
Use the below CV examples to get inspiration for your CV, but remember your CV is your own document!
Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
- Business Management CV
- Business CV – HR
- Geography and Planning CV
- English Literature CV – Publishing
- Journalism and Communications CV
- Law CV
- MA History CV
- Modern Languages CV (PG) – Translation
- Politics CV
- Social Sciences CV – community engagement and development
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Physical Sciences and Engineering
- Chemistry CV – Industrial placement
- Chemistry CV – Public engagement
- Computer Science CV – 1 page
- Earth CV
- Engineering CV – First year
- Engineering CV – Final year
- Maths CV
Get feedback on your CV
- Use our online CV checker to get feedback on your CV, which you can access as a Cardiff University student and recent graduate
- Book a careers appointment via your Student Futures Account for feedback on your CV
Common CV queries
What if I don't have much experience to include in my CV?
Don't worry! This is common, especially if you are in the earlier stages of your degree. Remember university is a great time to gain experiences which will help you develop important skills, as well as build your CV. It's also vital for competitive roles, such as internships and graduate jobs. Read our advice on how to develop skills whilst at university, as well as how to get work experience, and consider joining the Cardiff Award to enhance your employability. In the meantime, consider using a skills-based CV, where you can expand on the skills you have gained through your degree and interests, while you gain further experience.
How do I deal with gaps in my CV?
It's important not to leave anything to doubt in your CV - make sure there aren't gaps or that any gaps are explained and in as positive a way as possible. Don't worry about summer holidays and small periods of time between different education courses, for example, from finishing your A levels to starting your university degree - these aren't considered gaps! We have additional advice about this if you have a gap on your CV due to a disability or a health condition.
How can I tailor my CV if there isn't much information in the role description or advert?
Sometimes you don't get much information about a role to help you tailor your CV. Use the job profiles on websites like Prospects and TargetJobs to give you an idea of the skills often required for that role. You could also look up similar roles on jobs websites and see what other adverts say about what is required.