How to present your employment history in your CV
The employment history section is one of the most important within your CV and shouldn’t just be a list of places you have worked. Use the opportunity to sell yourself by highlighting achievements and skills from time spent at a previous employer that will be relevant to the role you are applying for.
Format – Use a simple font i.e. Arial and an acceptable ‘reading size’ i.e. 10 or 12 and only use underlining or bold to highlight key words. Start with the most recent job and finish with the earliest. Show starting and finishing dates (though due to age discrimination laws these are not obligatory as they could give an indication of age). Create a ‘heading for each role’ with the position, employer name and location (no need to show the full address which will take up valuable space in your CV).
Content – The detail of each role should be short and concise, start with a short paragraph, summarising the company industry and an outline of your role. Individual responsibilities and achievements can be listed in bullet format for ease of reading.
Length – The whole CV should be a maximum of 2 A4 pages; a the rule of thumb is to give details of your last 10 years employment and any roles beyond that list with dates, company name and position held.
Accuracy - It is important to be as honest and accurate as possible, as details can be checked and discrepancies could lead to embarrassment. If you do have ‘time gaps’ it is advisable to include the detail within this section, use the same format i.e. dates and give a brief summary of the reason i.e. maternity, sickness, unemployment or traveling. Graduates who have taken a gap year after university will sometimes incorporate temporary jobs and the life skills they learnt.
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