Info on CVs

Thoie

I rarely put my marital status on CVs, but other people seem to think I should - what's the general consensus? I think that these days it means nothing, as saying you're single doesn't mean that you don't have a boyfriend and children at home.

Someone also asked me why I don't have my IQ on my CV!!
Despite the fact that I have no idea where you'd get an "official" IQ test (I doubt that online quizzes count), I think it would be a horrendous thing to list. What do the rest of you think? What information do you always include on a CV? For me it's the following:

Name,
Contact details,
Work experience (companies, dates, title and a paragraph on what I did there),
Qualifications (degree, relevant things that I have bits of paper to prove),
Other information (driver's license, language abilities etc).

peanuthead

There are two things that bug the hell out of me on CVs and thats putting your marital status down, and having a photo of yourself on it.

I dont think that either are needed. I dont think they need to know your marital status, why should that matter, unless they are the type of company who prefer not to employ people with families, because for some reason, they are considered 'less dedicated'.

I also dont see why you should have a picture of yourself on the CV. If your interview is good enough you will stick out in the employers mind for that reason, rather than your face looking at him everytime he picks up your CV.

OP: My CV contains the following

Name
Contact details
Education
Relevant Work Experience
Work Experience
Interests
Other qualifications
References.
Signature.

Climate Expert

Pictures? IQ? Photos?

Are you being serious?

My award winning CV starts with contact details (no DOB., no CV on the top)
Education
Awards and honours
Work Experience
Relevant skills and experience
Relevant interests

1 page, done in latex. No messing.

Thoie

I'd never even consider putting a photo on a CV - unless I was applying for a job as a model

Define work experience versus relevant work experience?
I only put down the "real" jobs I've had. I don't put down the 3 months holiday work I had as a student, as it has no bearing on my career. Do you think I should include those jobs as well?

Why interests? I used put that down when I was younger, but at this age and stage of my career I really don't think my employer gives a damn about what I do at home. For the record, most of my spare time is spent exercising, experimental cooking, reading, eating out and playing computer games - none of these relate to my job, and none of them interfere with work in any way.

References - do you put these down first up? I usually just make a note saying "References available on request." That way I can give my referees a heads up that someone might contact them in the coming weeks, rather than just letting them get a call out of the blue.

Climate Expert

Thoie wrote: »

I'd never even consider putting a photo on a CV - unless I was applying for a job as a model

Define work experience versus relevant work experience?
I only put down the "real" jobs I've had. I don't put down the 3 months holiday work I had as a student, as it has no bearing on my career. Do you think I should include those jobs as well?

Why interests? I used put that down when I was younger, but at this age and stage of my career I really don't think my employer gives a damn about what I do at home. For the record, most of my spare time is spent exercising, experimental cooking, reading, eating out and playing computer games - none of these relate to my job, and none of them interfere with work in any way.

References - do you put these down first up? I usually just make a note saying "References available on request." That way I can give my referees a heads up that someone might contact them in the coming weeks, rather than just letting them get a call out of the blue.

You seem to have the right idea then. Don't listen to whatever other clowns say. Read up on CV advice from professional recruiters.
If you don't want to put your hobbies down then don't. Make it your CV.

ArseBurger

It's common practice on the continent to have your photo, DOB, and marital status on your CV.

Thoie

Climate Expert wrote: »

Pictures? IQ? Photos?

Are you being serious?

My award winning CV starts with contact details (no DOB., no CV on the top)
Education
Awards and honours
Work Experience
Relevant skills and experience
Relevant interests

1 page, done in latex. No messing.

LaTeX rather than latex presumably? (Link NSFW) I did a double take there

And yes, it is a serious question. As above, my layout would be fairly similar to yours (though without the interests and awards) - I also don't include a DOB, as it's irrelevant.

But "serious" professionals have suggested IQ and marital status to me. I think they're nuts, but just want to check that I'm not missing some kind of revolution in CVs where these things are normal.

peanuthead

Okay, say for example you are applying for a teaching position. Relevant work experience would be teaching work experience. Other work experience would be waiter work, warehouse work etc...

Em... depending on the nature of the job, interests can be important. But I agree that, say you are going for an office job, they dont care that you like to read in your spare time.

No, I would always ask two people to be your referees. Preferably one academic and one from an employer, but it doesnt really matter.

Write the names, position, company name, address and contact number of each referee.

It looks less like you have nothing to hide, and it saves them trying to chase up references off you.

I always ask my employers for a written reference too, you never know when you might need them.

peanuthead

ArseBurger wrote: »

It's common practice on the continent to have your photo, DOB, and marital status on your CV.

Yes it is, it has always confused me though. I think it looks really strange.

Climate Expert

Thoie wrote: »

LaTeX rather than latex presumably? (Link NSFW) I did a double take there

And yes, it is a serious question. As above, my layout would be fairly similar to yours (though without the interests and awards) - I also don't include a DOB, as it's irrelevant.

But "serious" professionals have suggested IQ and marital status to me. I think they're nuts, but just want to check that I'm not missing some kind of revolution in CVs where these things are normal.

No get your cv embossed on some stretched latex.

Marital status is first of all a legal minefield with all sorts of discrimination likekly. Any employer would rather you not mention it. If they want to know you're IQ then they will use their own pyschometric testing and not be relying on your word.

Reading the above its clear that every job and career require a different CV so once you've tailored yours then it should be grand.

Thoie

Climate Expert wrote: »

No get your cv embossed on some stretched latex.

That would actually be kind of cool.

"My forward planning involves making my CV waterproof, so that when you spill that cup of coffee (yes, that one there) on my CV in the next 5 minutes, it'll just wash off!"

leeroybrown

My general rule for this is not to avoid including superfluous information in a CV unless you think that it will be advantageous. For example, if you're applying for a job that requires an awkward relocation or long unsociable hours then 'marital status: single' might help answer a question the interviewers can't really ask. I certainly wouldn't include my IQ on a CV. Most people I know would probably think twice about someone who felt the need to include it on their CV.

Serafijn

Thoie wrote: »

Define work experience versus relevant work experience?

Relevant experience would be jobs in the same field/industry/technology etc. Other experience might be extra work such as teaching English on the side or work in a different area. I would just list work experience chronologically though, emphasising the relevant parts of each job. If it's out of order it will look messy.

Thoie wrote: »

Why interests?

Some people might have strong outside interests that might actually be of benefit to the role, or demonstrate some aspect of their character. Eg. you might apply for a job in the games industry, and whilst you've never worked in the industry you own every console out there, have played every major game to completion and keep up to date with all the latest news etc. If it's in no way relevant, like being in the local chess club, then don't bother including it!

Thoie wrote: »

References - do you put these down first up?

I wouldn't include any contact details, and in fact don't mention anything about them on my CV. It's pretty much expected that you will be asked to provide references so it goes without saying really.

About having your CV done up in LaTeX - I wouldn't generally advise this, employers like to keep it simple and get CVs in .doc or .pdf format

Climate Expert

Serafijn wrote: »

About having your CV done up in LaTeX - I wouldn't generally advise this, employers like to keep it simple and get CVs in .doc or .pdf format

LaTeX outputs PDFs. You don't just hand them a .tex file and tell them to install all the packages to view it. lol.

Although I did have trouble with one employer that would only accept .doc but you can do a conversion easy enough.

Serafijn

Ah fair enough.

Not accepting a .pdf is weird...

Kinetic^

I'd been in with a few recruitment agencies lately. Marital status and home ownership status where 2 that came up a lot on the forms they ask you to fill out.

Thoie

Kinetic^ wrote: »

I'd been in with a few recruitment agencies lately. Marital status and home ownership status where 2 that came up a lot on the forms they ask you to fill out.

I'd politely leave those blank - afaik it's illegal for your marital status to be considered when applying for a job (anyone know different?), and whether I own my own home is none of their business. If they want me to relocate, then that's something they should discuss with me upfront. There are many other reasons besides home ownership that someone might not want to relocate.

Kinetic^

Thoie wrote: »

I'd politely leave those blank - afaik it's illegal for your marital status to be considered when applying for a job (anyone know different?), and whether I own my own home is none of their business. If they want me to relocate, then that's something they should discuss with me upfront. There are many other reasons besides home ownership that someone might not want to relocate.

Yeah I agree, they were blank. The thing is, when you hand the form back they read down thourgh it with you but they just skipped over those.

Eoin

Serafijn wrote: »

Ah fair enough.

Not accepting a .pdf is weird...

No, it's not. Agencies may want to put their own header on and remove the contact details, and HR people may want to make notes on the CV or be able to copy and paste from it, which isn't always possible with the way a PDF is saved. I'm sure that's not the case for LaTeX, but I'd say it happens enough to justify asking for .doc or .rtf only.

The Hill Billy

I don't even put my date of birth on CVs anymore for fear of the possibility of identity theft. Its bad enough that you are giving people your name, address, phone & email details in addition to all the companies that you work for & the college you attended, etc, etc.


Just because you're not paranoid, doesn't mean that they're not after you.

Thoie

Hill Billy wrote: »

I don't even put my date of birth on CVs anymore for fear of the possibility of identity theft. Its bad enough that you are giving people your name, address, phone & email details in addition to all the companies that you work for & the college you attended, etc, etc.


Just because you're not paranoid, doesn't mean that they're not after you.

I don't put my date of birth down, as it can act as a hindrance. A lot of the jobs I apply for really want 50 year old men, though they're not allowed say this. I'm neither 50, nor a man. My first name kind of gives away my gender, so I don't see any reason to give them another reason not to interview me by telling them my age