Your resume will not win you a job, but it can absolutely prevent you from having an opportunity to do so. Your goal is to provide maximum content with minimum confusion on the part of the reader. Keep in mind what a CV/resume truly is: A record of your professional history and achievements in a concise yet comprehensive form. Your audience is looking to be informed about your achievements while gaining an understanding of the benefits you will bring to their organization, team and culture.

Please keep the following in mind:

• Choose words and terminology that actually mean something. "Assisted with," "Worked on," "Contributed to” do not convey much to a prospective employer. The more specific the better. Paint a picture that describes your actual role, using terms like “Managed,” “Led,” or “Designed.”

• Make sure you have dates listed for everything. If you have a gap in your resume, we can help you to appropriately explain it, but please do not leave dates off a job or a degree. Leaving the dates off your resume/CV will convey the message that you are careless or, even worse, dishonest.

• Target your resume for each opportunity. If you are truly interested in an opportunity, do not take shortcuts. Your prospective employer isn't going to be impressed by your inability to adjust one document to meet the company’s needs. Try to highlight at least three accomplishments that match up with the requirements of the specific opportunity.

• The further into your past the job was, the fewer bullets you should have describing it.

• Make sure your formatting is neat. Line everything up and check the spacing.

• Absolutely no typos. Using spell check is not enough. Ask a friend or family member to read your resume to double check that there are no mistakes.