There is a lot of competition in today’s networking job market and your CV needs to immediately stand out. The attention spans are at an all-time short, with many agencies spending only 6 seconds on your CV to see if it is good enough for further consideration.

At Hamilton Barnes we see CV’s cross our desks on a daily base and know how a good CV looks like. therefore, we created a checklist to help you on your way when writing your CV.

It might take some time to get it right, but it really will be worth it in the long run.

Start with a short summary
To capture the recruiters’ attention, start your CV with a short professional run through that states your years of experience in networks, job history and career achievements.

Don’t make your CV too long
In the network engineering world, things change quickly. Technology you used 10 years ago is most likely very outdated right now. Writing down what you did in 1995 is not going to be that important for the job you are applying for in 2016. For earlier jobs just list your title, company name, the dates and that’s it.

Your CV should be a powerful sales pitch, which provides an employer with all the right information they need to invite you to an interview to learn more. It’s shouldn’t be your life story.

Have a strong written work history
For the most recent jobs, give more detail about the roles, and make sure you write strong to the point descriptions. Write about your accomplishments in your previous jobs instead of just writing down your duties.

Anything marketable about you should be in the top third part of your CV.

Use action verbs
Be proud of what you have achieved in your career by using action verbs. Examples of action verbs are “managed”, “executed” or “developed”. Although always be honest and don’t exaggerate.

Use keywords
Recruiters and HR will enter certain keywords into i.e. LinkedIn or a job board in order to find the people with the skills that align with the role. When applying for a job, take out keywords from the job posting. If you don’t have these keywords in your CV the programme most likely will not select you and you will miss out on an opportunity.

Adjust your CV for the job
As written above, make sure your CV caters to the job that you are applying to. Don’t send the same version of your CV out for every single job. You don’t have to completely change your CV, just make sure you make small changes to match the job.

Ditch the objective statement
Don’t write about what a company can do for you. Instead, write what your skills can do to help the company meet their goals.

Have a skills section
As a tech professional your skills are essential to getting the job. Dedicate a section in your CV to your skills and make sure you write down the ones that are relevant to the job you are applying for.

This also makes it easier for search engines to find you.

Use certifications
Don’t list all your certs. List the ones that are most relevant to the job that you are applying for.

Be concise and make it readable
Writing a proper CV isn’t a quick task, it actually takes a lot of time. Don’t waste all that hard work by making the following 3 mistakes:
Typos
Multiple fonts
No whitespaces

Always spell check, only use 1 or 2 different fonts, whitespaces and bullets. This makes it easier to read over your CV for recruiters. And that is the whole point of it, you want your CV to be read.

Modernize your CV
Ideally, your CV should be no more than two pages. If you need more space, use active links to your LinkedIn profile or any other social media accounts that can be of purpose for recruiters.

Don’t get too technical
Technical terms that are commonly used on the work floor may be like a foreign language to recruiters or hiring managers. Make your CV universally understood by using a mix of industry recognized terminology and explain anything that might be confusing.

Achievements
If there is anything you are particularly proud of and it’s short, feel free to include this at the end of your CV.

Something to keep in mind
Getting it right, might take some time but when it comes to finding your dream job, laziness is never an option.