What NOT to do while drafting a CV.

Snags to Avoid in a Curriculum Vitae

In the article ‘Writing a Technical Curriculum Vitae for Electrical Engineers’ what a CV should contain has been discussed . Now, it is time to learn what not to do while writing or sending a CV.

A CV is your first introduction to the company, in which you are trying to seek a job. It is your first move in the company. It is not just a statement of your skills; it is a reflection of your personality. It is not only for securing the first job that one requires a well drafted CV, even while shifting a job an effective CV is required. More the information that has to be provided, more difficult is the job of drafting a CV.

It is an important career tool and enough care and thought should be put in while drafting a CV. We have already discussed the necessary heads of information which form a part of the CV. In this article we discuss the snags that we need to watch out for while drafting a resume.

1. Do not omit mentioning the technical projects. Remember, you are an electrical engineer; you are being sought for your technical skills. Mention the practical projects that you have handled while working or while pursuing your education or both. Let this part answer the question how capable are you as an Engineer?
2. Do not state attributes for the sake of saying, authenticate them with results and endeavors. Simply stating ‘team player’ is no good. Tactfully mention in the CV, what extraordinary did the team achieve with you as a member. ‘As a team successfully compiled the results of the experiments one month prior to the stipulated time frame’ could be a nice way of conveying the necessary attributes.
3. Do not mention information about any health problems, religion, and marital status. Leave this kind of information for the interview.
4. Do not lie. In a CV do not tell lies. Though a CV with some amount of lie can be made to look very attractive, but do not fall in the trap. Interviewers are people skilled at their job. They have ways of checking the veracity of information that is provided in a CV.
5. Do not hesitate to have a multi page CV. If what you have to tell about yourself exceeds the limit of a single page, do not hesitate. In a bid to limit the information to one page, one may either end up omitting the necessary information, or choosing a font which is very small or any such mistake. State the necessary information, leave enough space between the lines, and choose a comfortable font. Going into multiple pages may tempt one to provide unnecessary information to fill up empty space. Watch against this too.
6. Do not talk about what you are expected to do at the current job, list what you actually do. Remember, the company is not interested in knowing for what jobs your current company had hired you. They want to know, what job responsibilities you discharge. Let your CV talk of your accomplishments. State how you contributed in the successful launch of a new project, or salvaging a project which was about to be shelved etc.
7. Do not prioritize the dates over the positions. In a bid to list your experience, do not lay stress on the dates, but rather lay stress on the job titles and the name of the company. The interviewer is more interested to know what positions you have held over the dates when you held them.
8. Do not move in a hap hazard manner. Do not shift from a head giving professional details to a head mentioning personal information and back to professional information again. Remember that you are a technical person; you are being hired for your technical skills, finishing listing all the information that falls under technical and professional heads first before starting with the personal information.
9. Do not provide references and photographs till you are asked for the same and suggestions like, ‘References will be provided on request’ are not welcome.
10. Last but not the least, Do not sound negative for a job already handled, for the responsibilities or the previous company. Do not make statements like, ‘I was laid off……’ Such statements need to be avoided both in the CV as well as the interview. Nobody would like to work with a negative person.

Do not omit to give the necessary contact information and make sure to take a rough print of the CV. It should be a visually appealing and a readable print. A well drafted CV aims at striking a balance between the necessary information and visual appeal. Try and ask a friend to review the same for you.

All the best!