Hello. My name is Mitchell Graham. I’m the new transitions officer for DRP Scotland. This video is for you if you are thinking about leaving school or looking for a job. Don’t worry, I’ll give you some tips on how to write your CV.
CVs are very valuable and important because they are maybe the only direct communication you get with an employer so it’s important to have a well-written CV to show your best side. Your CV is an opportunity to make a big impact on a potential employer.
I have a few simple tips to share with you, which you may find useful and want to follow. You may not, of course, it’s up to you!
The first thing you should do is make sure that you read the job description carefully and take note of what skills are required for the job. This will help you adapt your CV.
Also, think about how you structure your CV and take care deciding which things you are going to include and how you prioritise them. I can think of nine different elements that I consider are important to include on a CV and I’m going to suggest an order of priority.
- The first thing you should include is your name.
- The second thing should be a personal statement.
- The third thing is to list your key skills
- The fourth thing is your education.
- The fifth thing is an employment history.
- The sixth thing is your additional experience.
- Seventh thing is personal development.
- The eighth thing is hobbies.
- The ninth and final thing should be references.
I will go through each of these in turn:
Firstly, put your name. Make sure you also include your address and an email address or mobile number so that people can contact you directly.
The second thing is your personal statement. Make sure what do you say in your personal statement matches the job description. For example, I might mention my experience in youth work and sports, and my commitment and passion to inspiring young people and adults to become involved in sports. I might also say I am very motivated to learn more skills and develop my networks.
The third thing should be your key skills. There are some particular words and phrases you might want to include here. You could talk about how you are a good communicator, have time management or leadership skills, the ability to work as part of a team, or that you are self-motivated. There are lots of different key skills you might choose to mention.
The fourth thing is education. You should start by mentioning your present or most recent educational experience, for example, university or college, and then work backwards, to school. It’s important to include your exam results. List your grades, for example, at school you maybe got a B in Maths, a C in English and a D in Graphic Design, or whatever.
The fifth thing is your employment history. Again, in the same way as you did for education, you should start with your current or most recent experience and then work your way back. You should include some details about the company that you worked for, their address, and outline the kind of work that you did in each job.
The sixth thing is additional experience. This section is relatively open, but you could perhaps include information about relevant experiences, such as being a prefect at school, or sitting on a panel or on a committee, or being on the school council. The experience you list here might not be directly related to the job description of the post you are applying for, but it might impress a potential employer to see what additional experience you may have, and they may adapt a role to include that.
The seventh section is personal development. This is the section where you should cover additional training such as First Aid qualifications, attending a safeguarding course, youth committee training, and any similar courses relating to your personal development.
In the eighth section you can note your hobbies and interests. Maybe you enjoy sports coaching, or video editing, cultural pursuits of walking in the country. You can add these here.
The ninth section is where you should list your referees. Put down the names of people who would be happy to be contacted by a potential employer and will provide you with a reference or recommendation. Do not list your parents or other family members. A referee must be someone like a teacher, a previous employer, or someone in an organisation that knows you well and will write a good letter in support of your application.
If you have any questions or would like me to clarify anything from this video, feel free to contact me. Thank you for watching!
