Day 20 - Curriculum Vitae

Today lecture was about curriculum vitae. It is one way that a person can brand and market himself. In today’s lecture, Mr Eranjan explained different aspects of a CV. Following are some main points discussed during today’s lecture.

What is a curriculum vita?

A curriculum vita is a sales document that highlights his/her skills (cognitive, motor, and affective), experiences, and achievements in such a way that the reader is motivated to meet him/her.

Mr Eranjan further explained that,

·  In this sales document, person who delivers become the product and it should compete against other candidates.

· CV must present in a professional manner, which should indicate that he/her is the perfect candidate for the job.

· The right skills, experience, behavior and attitude should be included according to employer’s interest.

·  The challenge in CV writing is to be more appealing and attractive than the rest.

After that Mr Eranjan instructed students to identify 10 attributes in a professional. There were many attributes discussed during lecture and following are some of them,

·        Good communication skills.

·        Punctual.

·        Time management.

·        Responsible.

·        Flexible.

·        Positive thinking.

·        Loyalty.

·        Self-motivated.

·        Good listener.

·        Courteous.

·        Credible…. Etc...

Following are contents that should include in a professional CV,

·        Personal data.

·        Career Objective.

·        Education (Within the period of last five years).

·        Work Experience(In a company or volunteering services)

·        Professional affiliations.

·        Leadership, Honors, Achievements.

·        References.

10 Rules to a Great CV

1)     Do not play resume roulette.

2)     Skip the Summary.

3)     Sell not Tell.

·        Eliminate all self-serving descriptions

                e.g. – strategic thinker, excellent leader

·        Focus on Facts –

               eg -headed a sales team of 12 people to raise revenue by Rs 2m.

4)     Mind your language.

·        Don’t use jargon

               eg – Received Taiki Amoto Award

               eg - Implemented ABCD system

·        Don’t use “I”.

5)     Nothing personal.

·        Keep your personal details short

                     - Name and address in small fonts.

                     - Age, gender, marital status irrelevant.

                     - Avoid listing all your hobbies/ extracurricular activities.

                     - Use hobbies only to supplement the job.

6)     Drop the irrelevant affiliations.

   Affiliations and memberships can be controversial and create an unintended/ unwanted  consequence.

7)     Keep it real.

·        Skip the history lesson (focus on a 5 year period)

·        Don’t be dishonest instead be creative. 

8)     Include a photo.

·        Eliminate doubts.

·        Better chances at the interview.

·        Serious, well dressed, not a crowded background – professional passport size photo is best.

9)     Write a Cover Letter.

·        Short and sweet.

·        Personal name of the Manager.

·        Re-emphasize your contact details. 

10) Don’t forget the basics.

·        Use good paper (conqueror – cream).

·        Word Process.

·        Spell checked.

·        Easy to read not verbose.

·        1 – 2 page (max).

After explaining 10 rules for a great CV, Mr Eranjan concluded a session.

Reflection of today's lecture

Today lesson gave me basic knowledge about how to write a professional CV that will compete against many other CV’s. As many CV’s compete together, it’s really important to make our own CV’s according to things I learned in today’s lecture. I felt that this subject is step by step preparing us for a professional career. And CV is one of important thing when somebody applies for a job. As it represent and market he/her to employers, it should be in perfect manner so you could compete with thousands and fulfil your career objectives.