CRAFT YOUR NUKE (CV) BETTER

For one brief moment, I want you to consider yourself as a ruthless conqueror who wants to own the whole world. Now you have invaded many countries and won them. Yet some countries won’t bow down. The only way to invade them is to attack with the most dangerous, sophisticated, hazardous weapon of the era; Nuclear Bombs. Well, you did that. But, nothing happened, it turned out that your weapon of mass destruction is just an empty shell of metal. It doesn’t work!

You have failed! What to do now?

The answer is simple, craft your nuke better. Make it workable.
As you have read the above scenario, I want you to thank yourself for that. Now, you are about to find yourself right at the shoes of this imaginary conqueror in your own life. Brace yourself...

To get a job or internship opportunity in any company, you need to submit a CV. And you must also have a burning desire to get into the company, a desire to invade the recruitment process of the organization. But only having that isn’t enough. Every desired organization is just like those countries from the above case, who haven’t bowed down at your feet. To win them and to invade them, you have to attack with your most important and powerful weapon, your CV. But what if your CV doesn’t work just like the nuke of the above conqueror. What if you also fail?!
Well, failing isn’t a choice for you. You have to win. Just believe in yourself and think that you aren’t like everyone and that’s why Your CV is going to make a difference.

Now, it is considered that, who is above 18 years old have a basic idea of creating a CV. This article is NOT going to focus on the basics of writing a CV, rather it will focus mainly on how you can make your CV effective, interesting and acceptable. And if you don’t have the basic idea then check out our other blog in the same section.

Now, if you are ACTUALLY CONCERNED AND INTERESTED in making your CV better and workable, see the art how to craft it:

Size does matter

First and foremost, don’t make your CV a 10-page essay. Look, the recruiter has tons of other CVs to look at. S/he will probably become disinterested and won’t even want to flip through the pages. Your CV may end up at the Bin. To make it interesting, KISS it. Which is KEEP IT SIMPLE AND SHORT.

It is prescribed that you should get your things done on one page or one and a half pages. Recruiters don’t have the time to go through your 20 activities and achievements in different fields rather they will want to see the most important ones. Research shows that nearly half of the CVs that are more than two pages long are discarded.

Tone and style

Don’t use vague terms just to sound good. Use simple conversational language to be realistic.

About the formatting of the CV, there is no exact format that all must use. Rather it’s up to you. You can choose what to write and how they will be organized. Make sure it meets professional standards. About the font and size of it, the same rule applies. There is no fixed rule yet the font, “Times New Roman” and 12 points are prescribed.

Cover letter

About the contents of this part, It’s basically up to you. whatever you’re gonna write to catch the eyes of your expected party, it should be the best gourmet burger your recruiters want. Whatever you say, just give a proper logic/point and give them relevant reasons to justify your logic/point. i.e. if you say you are optimistic then tell that you have gone through this and you could successfully pull out that.

Picture

If you do opt to include a photo on your resume, the recommended place is at the top of the page. The photo should be a professional headshot, similar to or the same one you used for your LinkedIn profile.

Career objective

It is of utmost necessity that you craft this part too nicely and attractively. You need to keep it simple and be specific about your point. Also, give adequate convincing logic to support your introduced point.

Such an example can be, the company or organization you are applying to is a huge multinational company that works with investment banking. You shouldn’t write here that you want to persuade a career with a multinational company. Rather say that you want to persuade a career in investment banking, in which you find a huge interest and also because of passion you chose to select the current course of study.

Note that, you should generate and give your reason. The above one is just an example.

Education

Many of us prepare boxes and whatnot (especially for this section). But it’s pointless. Save some space here. You don’t need boxes here to look intelligent in your CV.

On a different note, Scholarship is an achievement, not your educational qualification (in terms of CV).

Pre-professional/professional experience

This is like a boost in a racing game. No.4 part is going to add some value (maybe the most value). State which ORGANISATION you have served and don’t use vague terms. Such an example of an Organization can be VOB. Specifically, mention on which part you have been working with.

Note that, being a musician of a reputed club can be written in your ECA, but obviously not here.

Software proficiency

Now, most people write all the names of MS Software specifically even though they know all of it. Don’t do it. Keep it clean and write MS Office. Simply put, it looks perfectly modest and professional.

Giving a drive link of a task you have done using this software can make this burger (software proficiency) extra delicious.

Skill/Abilities

The most common mistake we often do is, we use generic phrases like “Creative”, “Team player”, “Crisis solver” and the list goes on and on. This mistake can easily be avoided by demonstrating or putting forward examples that depict those qualities. Using phrases like the above makes your CV look artificial.

Now, most people have confusion regarding how to write about your communication skills. If you don’t know what qualities make up the term communication skills, give a quick google search and you will get to know many. Think carefully and see which of the skills matches your qualifications. You need to think carefully just because you will need to put forward the logic with a relevant example. Such a case can be; Negotiation skills: you have successfully closed deals with 3 companies for getting sponsorship of an event or convinced 10 media houses for covering an event for free.

Coming to the point of language proficiency, if you are good at any foreign language then it’s always going to add some extra value. But you should mention those languages only which you know in all the terms of writing, reading and speaking.

Personal information

Just let this sink in for a moment; Managers sitting behind those oak panel desks aren’t there to know what’s your blood group or what’s your hometown or father’s name. Let them know what’s important and can be meaningful to them.

Reference

This completes your CV and also makes the CV look more credible. It is wise to get two references. Your references are people, called referees, who can testify about your character, skills, and abilities to prospective employers. You could consider them as your advocates or ambassadors. The employer might call them up or request in writing some information about you.

Miscellaneous

Whatever happens, don’t lie. Research shows that around 52% of candidates believe that it is wise to lie for getting the job. In real life, it doesn’t work in that way. It’s unethical and if the recruiters can find or understand that anyhow then you can imagine the consequences. The last person I would like to hire for my organization is an unethical person.

Don’t get your CV written by another person. S/he won’t be able to speak and communicate with others like you. You will be amazed to know; 43% of CVs get rejected because they are written by the third party. I don’t want to end up being in this 43% and neither do you. So, do it by yourself.
I hope that will be pretty much enough for now. Work on them and if required, work on yourself so that you have appropriate content to put on your CV. Voice of Business family wishes you good luck. May you prosper and may you finally bombard those ignorant states with your newly crafted nuke and be the conqueror you always want to be. Good luck



Written by:
Asif Nawaz
Department of Finance
Faculty of Business Studies
University of Dhaka


Edited by:
Fouzia Fariha
Department of Finance
Faculty of Business Studies
University of Dhaka