You may need to create a CV for your job search. Formatting your CV correctly is necessary to make your document clear, professional and easy to read.

A curriculum vitae (CV), Latin for “course of life,” is a detailed professional document highlighting a person’s education, experience and accomplishments. A CV may also include professional references, as well as coursework, fieldwork, hobbies and interests relevant to your profession. You might also choose to add a personal profile that lists your skills and positive attributes to ensure employers have a well-rounded view of your personality and achievements.

In layman’s term, CV is the representation of your skills, strengths, qualifications, your journey etc. CV defines who you are. CV determines whether you are the best deserving candidate for the job or not! CV is a crucial part and a key factor in your job selection process. When you go for interviews, the interviewee will go through your CV.

A well-composed CV shares all the most essential information employers need when considering you for job opportunities. By making sure your CV is comprehensive, correctly formatted and easy to read, you’re one step closer to landing the job you want. Therefore, it is very important that we have a presentable CV that is composed with the best writing techniques.

Every CV should include the following sections:

(1)   Contact Information,

(2)   CV Profile,

(3)   Work Experience,

(4)   Education,

(5)   Skills.

Good additional sections to put on a CV are listed below:

(1)Certifications,

(2)Associations,

(3)Languages,

(4)Extra Training and Courses,

(6)Conferences,

(7)Publications,

(8) Awards.

When it comes to formatting your CV, there are four more factors you’ll need to consider:

(1) Choose the right font type and size.

Your CV should be legible and easy to follow. To improve readability, it's best to choose a font size between 10 and 11. It should be clean and simple without much detail or decor. Several examples of good fonts for your CV are times new roman, Arial, Avenir, Calibri, Helvetica, Lato, Roboto, Proxima Nova, and Verdana.

(2) Check your margins.

A good technique is to keep your margins between 5 - 1 inch. Margins that are too large will leave too much white space while margins that are too small can make the page look busy and overfilled. Both may be distracting or off-putting to recruiters and hiring managers.

(3) Utilize your space effectively.

CVs can become lengthy, especially if you’ve been in your industry for several years and have amassed a great deal of experience. To ensure you’re using space effectively and your CV is easy to read, consider using the following techniques:

(a)Organize with bulleted lists.

(b) Use section headers.

(c) Bold keywords.

(d)   Remove irrelevant information.

(4) Re-read

It is very important to carefully re-read your CV over and over again before we sent it. There could be areas where correction could be made. While re-reading check for grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, incorrect syntax. A clean, error-free CV increases readability and demonstrates professionalism. Recruit a trusted friend, family member or colleague to review your resume. A fresh set of eyes often catches mistakes you may have missed.