Curriculum vitae

Introduction

From Latin "the way your life has run"

A CV. is a succinct up to date record of you and your professional life

Need to be prospective

Function

To get a job you must "sell yourself" to the prospective employer

To get the job you must first get an interview

Get yourself in the "must see" group

To provide a structure for the interview

There are four ways an employer can gain pre - interview information about you;

* informal visits

* telephone conversations

* the application form

* your curriculum vitae

Think - do you appear to be;

* competent

* intelligent

* well organised

General points

The way you present yourself must be truthful

However you must not under represent yourself

Examine yourself with sober judgement

Inclusion of a CV with an application form is usually a good idea whether asked for or not

Need to record dates, details etc. of working life

You have the right to remain silent

The more you say the more likely you are to incriminate yourself

No lies

Presentation

To pick out yours from a pile

Presentation - vital

Keep it brief

Spelling

Grammar

Use short sentences

Overall layout, visually attractive

Ragged right

White plain A4, heavy duty paper

Be positive using active words, eg. maintained, prevented, provided, revamped, rectified

Indicate you are pro - active

A few do not points

Include a reference

Include a photograph?

Talk about salary early if at all

Use "I"/jargon/abbreviations

Contents

Personal information

* name

* home address

* telephone number (work and home)

* date of birth

* marital status

Professional Qualifications

Basic nursing qualifications, dates and PIN number

Post basic nursing qualifications

Other relevant qualifications

Brief mention of school certificates, details depend on stage in career.

Relevant non - nursing qualifications

Present and previous posts

Start with a career summary 20 -30 words

S skills

A attitudes

K knowledge

E experience

Present post, title grade and brief resume of responsibilities

Previous post in order most recent first

The reverse chronological rule

Blocks of experience, eg. Aug 88 - Sept 89 various agency positions in General Hospitals

Go back to basic training

Use clear career titles

Include some details about previous posts, as required

Your achievements, which are FAB,

F features

A analysis

B benefits

Words like, managed, improved, directed

Don't give reasons for leaving

Other relevant information

This may include anything you think may aid your application

Eg. publications, speaking at conferences, membership of RCN and subgroups,

No jokes, eg. "discos, discos and more discos", "keeping up with the school fees".

No gimmicks

Give impression of good health, eg. refer to past sporting activity

Outside interests

You as an individual, be unique

Relevant non work experience and interests, related to work where relevant

Give the interviewer something to ask about other than work

Sell yourself as a person, people are interested in people

Is it interesting? eg. Reading - the English novel prior to 1950, modern autobiographies after 1950

Television, television - especially drama Family, enjoy my young children

What does it say about you?

Squash - athletic, competitive, physically fit, sociable

Chess - competitive, intelligent, good forward thinker

Woodwork - planning, practical skills, three dimensional thinker

Be prepared to expand.

Referees

Two normally given

Usually one is current employer

Another senior person who can comment on your professionalism

Coping with bias/prejudice

Age - put on the last page

Marital status

Race/name

Gender

Feel free to leave things out

Principles

Conciseness

Objectivity

Truthfulness

Avoid excessive modesty

Focus on achievements

Typed presentation, presentation vital.

Individual tailoring to post, avoid the "topsy curve"

Word processors will save a lot of time

Exercise

List your major achievements over the past two working years

What aspects of your job are you particularly good at?

List the interests you would include for an E grade on your area of interest

What facts about yourself would you leave out for the same E grade post?

Block your previous work experience, including dates

Your notes

References

Baker J. Preparing a curriculum vitae. Nursing Times. 85(24):56-8, 1989 Jun 14-20.

Eggert M. The perfect CV. Century business, 1992

Fish J. How to compile a curriculum vitae. British Journal of Nursing. 1(3):151-3, 1992 May 28-Jun 10.

Fuller E. Preparation of a curriculum vitae. Journal of Professional Nursing. 2(4):201, 266, 1986 Jul-Aug.

Gay JT. Edgil AE. Is your curriculum vitae or resume working for you?. Imprint. 32(5):8-13, 1985 Dec-1986 Jan.

Harvey C. A curriculum vitae: making your best impression.

Orthopaedic Nursing. 12(6):55-8, 1993 Nov-Dec.

Hawthorn P. Please send CV... curriculum vitae. Nursing Mirror. 159(5):31-2, 1984 Aug 15.

Lamb S. The curriculum vitae and the resume: contrasts, similarities, and applications. Journal of Neurosurgical Nursing. 16(2):109-16, 1984 Apr.

Lilly A. The curriculum vitae -- how well do we fare?.

Australian Nurses Journal. 21(9):24, 1992 Apr.

Townsend CAH. A good CV will help your career take off... curriculum vitae. RN. 55(2):17-8, 20, 1992 Feb.