Many people struggle to write an interview-worthy CV. When applying for positions, human resource managers and recruiters receive many resumes. How do you write one that stands out? The most significant guideline for creating a CV is to stand out and emphasize your selling point.
It’s crucial to realize that there’s no right approach to writing a CV. Keep in mind, too, that your resume should showcase your qualifications for the position you’re applying for. This will help the recruiter or HR manager determine whether to schedule an interview with you.
Every day, the world changes rapidly, especially in the labor market. Hiring managers are becoming more cautious when hiring remote recruits, professionals are becoming more adept, and competition is heating up. Even though things aren’t as easy as they once were, you can overcome these hiring challenges.
What is a CV?
When applying for a job, your first goal should be to ensure that your CV earns you an interview, as it is usually the first thing a hiring manager sees before inviting you to one.
A curriculum vitae, or CV as it is more often known, is a brief summary of your education, work experience, and skills that is typically used in job applications.
There are two types of CVs: experience-focused and educational CV. While the former focuses on professional experience, talents, and accomplishments, the latter is often designated for applicants with no prior work experience and stresses academic work and educational/professional qualifications.
The best way to list professional or educational experience is from most recent to oldest. It is vital to edit your resume for posted openings and to personalize it to the industry in which you want to work.
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What is the Difference Between a CV and a Resume?
Many people do not know the difference between a resume and a CV. Even seasoned recruiters use both interchangeably, although there is a slight difference. Your Curriculum Vitae contains more extensive information concerning your educational background, such as hard skills and certificates achieved. Other essential criteria include employment history, research experience, and professional affiliations.
For obvious reasons, this is most useful for new graduates and specialized professionals.
A resume, on the other hand, is a one- or two-page summary of a person’s professional experience, educational background, and skill set. Many people use both terms, CV and resume because business professionals appear to use resumes more often.
Which Choice of CV templates should I use: Traditional vs Modern
The CV template you select will be largely determined by the company to which you wish to apply. Certain businesses, such as consulting, accountancy, and oil and gas, tend to be more traditional.
If you’re applying to media companies, a tech startup, or any other organization looking to hire creative people, you should consider using the modern CV template.
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How to write a CV for A Job as a Waitress in Nigeria
- Read the job description carefully.
- Select the CV template you want to use.
- Determine and list your essential skills.
- Begin with your name and then enter your details.
- Begin by listing your most recent employment experience and notable accomplishments.
- Describe your educational background, starting with the most recent.
- Include your qualifications, training, and talents.
- Add any other information that is relevant to the position you’re applying for.
- Check that all of the material is correct and proofread.
- Write an accompanying cover letter
This is a full guide on how to write your application letter for a waitress job.
What are the Sections to Write in a CV for a Job Application in Nigeria?
There are 5 primary sections that every CV should have:
- Contact/personal information
- Personal profile
- Work Experience
- Education
- Skills. Interests, Abilities
- References
Format On How To Write A CV For Job Application In Nigeria
In this section, this is how to write a CV for a job application in Nigeria;
1. Personal Information
This section includes your name, address, phone number, email address, and age (if applicable, this is necessary). Place these strategically with legible fonts so that the recruiter or HR manager can quickly notice them. Ensure that the data is accurate and up to date.
Expert Advice: Never use another person’s email address. Avoid writing your unprofessional email addresses, state of origin, or religion (unless explicitly stated in the job advertisement). Examples of this include sexyprincess2015@xyz.com and chiswag10@xyz.com. Maintain professionalism at all times.
2.Personal profile
Your profile is sometimes referred to as your personal statement. Your personal statement is a brief paragraph that often consists of two or three phrases and appears at the top of your resume. It summarizes your accomplishments, abilities, experience, professional goals, and motivation for applying.
Remember to keep your personal statement to a few phrases that are appealing and short. You can center your personal statement around these topics:
- Who you are
- What you do
- Why you are applying for the role
See also: How To Write an Application Letter for a Cleaning Job with no Experience in Nigeria
3. Work Experience
This section allows you to provide information about your previous employment, work experience, and internships. This is an important part of your CV because it shows the employer what you’re capable of.
Employers find it easier to hire a candidate with experience in any role rather than a candidate with little or no experience.
To ensure that the employer sees your most recent employment experience first, put them in reverse chronological order.
When listing your previous positions, include your job title, the name of the employer or company, the dates you worked there, and a brief overview of your responsibilities. To make your resume easy to read, include your primary responsibilities, qualifications, and so on in bullet points.
An example would be:
Ginger Communications Limited 2016 – (Present)
Job Title: Marketing Executive
Ginger Limited is Nigeria’s number-one marketplace for electrical home appliances.
Achievement:
- Individually increased the monthly revenue from N15 million to N25 million in 6 months.
- Worked with the marketing team to spread our products from Lagos to all 6 states of Western Nigeria within a year.
- Won the ‘Salesman of the Year” award consecutively for November and December 2020.
Expert Advice: Always ensure that your employment history matches the position you are applying for. It will make your employer think more highly of you.
3. Education
Another important aspect of your CV that should be addressed is your education. Many job descriptions specify educational requirements.
You should list your educational background in reverse chronological order, just like you did with your professional experience. Give the name of the school and the dates you enrolled, then state your qualifications and final grades.
If you are a recent graduate, you can list a few of your most relevant courses, assignments, and projects alongside your degree.
The most recent educational certification should always be first. This section should also include any professional certificates applicable to the position.
Example:
University of Lagos – 2022
Qualification: B.A. History and International Studies.
Excellent diplomatic skills and versed in three foreign languages – French, Portuguese and Chinese
Graduated with a first-class grade of 4.56 and won the ‘Best Graduating Student’ award.
Expert Advice: Unless you are a recent graduate with no work experience, you do not need to include your primary school first leaving certificate if you have a tertiary education degree. This section includes professional credentials, affiliations, and memberships, training, and seminars, which could also be included under education.
See also: How To Write an Application Letter for Midwife with no Experience in Nigeria
4a. Skills and Abilities
If your primary purpose is to highlight your work history, education, and experience, you have created a functional CV. In this style of CV, you list your work experience in chronological order.
Aside from writing a functional CV, your skills are one of the most important pieces of information that you should include on your CV.
It is critical to strategically include skills on your resume that are relevant to the career you are seeking for. Read the job description carefully to determine which skills are required to complete the task.
Make sure your skill set is organized based on relevance.
4b. Interests and Abilities
The interests and abilities section of a CV is very important if you don’t have much professional experience.
Your interests and abilities will allow you to demonstrate to a potential employer that you have the skills and interests required for the position you desire, even if your CV lacks professional experience.
This should be a concise and basic section. It’s crucial to remember the following:
Be specific about your hobbies rather than using broad terms like “creative,” “motivated,” “team player,” “problem solver,” or “self-starter.” For example, instead of saying “running,” say, “I jog about 300 km every weekend.” This indicates your dedication and discipline.
Expert Advice: Mention hobbies that match the potential employer’s corporate social responsibility initiatives.
5. References
While some organizations require two referees, three is the typical amount. A CV receives greater attention when it has fewer pages. Employers like to avoid resumes that look like handouts. A CV of two pages is ideal. As a result, be concise, persuasive, and direct.
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Tips on How to write a good CV
- Use active verbs whenever possible. Words like “created,” “analyzed,” and “devised,” for example, can help you project a proactive image.
- Your resume should have no spelling or punctuation errors. Check it over with a second pair of eyes and a spell checker.
- Avoid using broad phrases like “multitasker,” “hardworking,” and “team player.” Instead, include examples from real life that demonstrate each of these characteristics.
- Check the company’s website, the local newspaper, and the job announcement to ensure your CV is appropriate for the role and employer.
- Choose whether to use an academic or skill-based, chronological CV.
- Choose whether to use an academic or skill-based, chronological CV.
- Provide a professional-sounding email address.
- Never lie or exaggerate in your CV or job application. You may face serious consequences in addition to revealing your dishonesty to a potential employer. For example, altering a 2:2 degree to a 2:1 is deemed degree fraud and may result in a prison sentence.
- Your home address should not be posted on any resume you post online since scammers may target you for this information.
- Physical description: It is not necessary to add a physical description of yourself to your CV. The recruiter will not find it appealing to read. You should leave this information to the recruiter to discover during the interview.
- Salaries vary by business. Including your income information on your CV may have a greater negative impact than you know. Putting your salary information can make you earn lesser than you should earn. Furthermore, the information may give the recruiter the idea that you are unwilling to negotiate, disqualifying you for the job.
- Unless the firm specifically requires otherwise, always include a cover letter. You will be able to modify your job application with it. You might highlight a specific section of your resume, disclose a disability, or explain any gaps in your work history. Learn how to write a convincing cover letter on Writersgig.
What are the Things Employers Look Out For in a CV? How To Write A CV for a Job Application In Nigeria
According to an employer poll, the following characteristics were the most sought-after.
- 45% Previous related work experience
- 35% Qualifications & skills
- 25% Easy to read
- 16% Accomplishments
- 14% Spelling & grammar
- 9% Education (these were not just graduate recruiters or this score would be much higher!)
- 9% Intangibles: individuality/desire to succeed
- 3% Clear objective
- 2% Keywords added
- 1% Contact information
- 1% Personal experiences
- 1% Computer skills
Why is your CV’s structure Important?
Your resume will most likely go through a bot before it reaches a recruiter’s desk. The applicant tracking system (ATS) bot is in charge of selecting the most relevant resumes from among the hundreds that a recruiter would have to go through in the absence of the ATS.
The applicant tracking system (ATS) collects all resumes and applications, compares them to the job description, and ranks the most qualified applicants based on the matching keywords in the resumes.
The recruiter will then receive your CV; they will not see you and are unlikely to contact you, but they will review the one- or two-page resumes that passed the ATS.
To put it simply, when you write, you create content for both your audience and the computer.
So, how can you seize on your next opportunity and defeat the ATS?
First and most importantly, always change your CV to match each job description. Do not use a generic CV for everyone. This is important since the ATS evaluates resumes based on the job specifications. To pass the first automated screening, you must tailor your professional resume to each job that you apply for.
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How to Write your CV to pass ATS for Job Application for Students and everyone
Use keywords and phrases in your CV that are relevant to your field and the position you are applying for. These are the specific skills, abilities, and attributes that hiring managers and recruiters seek in candidates.
Because most firms use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to electronically pre-screen applications, keywords and phrases are essential. It’s not that you’re not excellent enough on occasion; rather, your CV isn’t powerful enough to make it past the ATS and to the recruiter. This is why you aren’t always contacted back for interviews.
How can you optimize your CV to include the right keywords?
When we mention adapting your resume to each job ad, we do not mean that you should construct a new CV and cover letter for each application you submit. Rather, it entails changing and selecting the portions of your professional story that you want to highlight.
If you want to successfully fit each job description, you’ll first need to read it thoroughly.
Let’s take this Marketing executive JD for example taken from an article in Indeed.
Responsible for the company’s marketing initiatives. Uses market research and analysis to direct marketing strategy and planning. Production of all promotional materials and marketing campaigns. Reports marketing and sales results to senior executives.
Requirements
Develop strategies and tactics to get the word out about our company and drive qualified traffic to our front door.
Deploy successful marketing campaigns and own their implementation from ideation to execution.
There are several keywords here, see how you can translate it into your CV below –
Develop strategies – Strategists,
Responsible for the company’s marketing initiatives – Proactive, Researcher, Effectively developed marketing strategies
Reports marketing and sales results to senior executives – Effective Communication skills.
After reading a job description, ask yourself, “What are they looking for and how can I fit into this position?” Don’t let desperation or the idea that “I want to be the first to apply” cause you to overlook these important details that could determine whether you place last or first. The recruiting manager will recognize that you’re a good fit when you communicate in their language. You can find additional keywords that represent the company’s brand and values by browsing the company website.
See also: How To Write a Cover Letter with No Experience But Willing to Learn in Nigeria: Sample & Templates
Conclusion
Your work history or professional experience is one of the most important aspects that companies will review to determine whether or not you would be a good fit for a position. Your professional experience should be listed in order of relevance to the most recent experience. Your resume should quickly convey your qualifications for a position to a potential employer.
Remember to write in the third person. For instance, instead of “my name is Victory and I am a copywriter and blogger” try “ A steadily progressing content creator and blogger with over 3 years of experience….”
We hope this article has made it easy to learn how to write a CV for job application as a student in Nigeria with no experience.
References
- Jobberman – how to write a cv for job application as a student in Nigeria
- Reventify – how to write a cv for job application as a student in Nigeria
- My jobmag – how to write a cv for job application as a student in Nigeria
