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REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job - Jobs/Vacancies (2) - Nairaland

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Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by missKiffy(f): 12:10pm On May 18, 2015
It stopped at 7, anyway nice write up, the only part I disagree is leaving out your primary school, some employer might ask you 'didn't you attend primary sch'
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by Toks2008(m): 12:16pm On May 18, 2015
Writing married as your marital status as a lady even if you are as this might discourage many prospective employers from employing you especially if the boss is a male and you don't really trust your merit as a criterion for getting the job.
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by naijainfogalery: 12:16pm On May 18, 2015
type the application in the body of the email so that once the recruiter opens the email they can see your introduction
missKiffy:

Pls I would like to ask, should one type the application in the body of the email and attach the cv or attach the application and cv
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by Johniyke2flex(m): 12:17pm On May 18, 2015
Thanks OP! Will subscribe to the jobberman cv career service asap. It's only N7900 nd the promo closes today. Lemmi see the kyn witch wey go make me no get invite before the month runs out.


Peace!!!
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by bakynes(m): 12:27pm On May 18, 2015
missKiffy:
It stopped at 7, anyway nice write up, the only part I disagree is leaving out your primary school, some employer might ask you 'didn't you attend primary sch'
You don't need primary school Education in your CV except they specifically asked for it. Primary school Education is a basic education.

1 Like

Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by Adyrin(m): 12:38pm On May 18, 2015
Pls how do you send a mail with coverletter?
Is it the body of the mail that's the letter and then the CV attached to the mail?
naijainfogalery:
Another one is when sending your CV, always write an application letter to back it up, I will give you a scenerio, i once help a recruiter to sort out CV, after the vacancy closed, we already have over 900 emails sitting in his inbox, he was overwhelmed and asked me to help him out, so would you expect me to download and read 900 CVs , Never lai lai , i just scan through the email, i only downloaded Cvs of people that wrote a little introduction about themselves that interest me.

So always write a short info about you when sending a CV
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by naijainfogalery: 12:44pm On May 18, 2015
It should be in the body because if you put it in an attachment it will cause the recruiter to download which may be an issue when there are so many people that apply, but if it is in body of the email, it is the first thing the recruiter sees so it gives you a leverage
Adyrin:
Pls how do you send a mail with coverletter?
Is it the body of the mail that's the letter and then the CV attached to the mail?
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by CVWizards(m): 1:15pm On May 18, 2015
Sorry about that. I posted all 10. It's best knows to the mods why they deleted the other part.
missKiffy:
It stopped at 7, anyway nice write up, the only part I disagree is leaving out your primary school, some employer might ask you 'didn't you attend primary sch'
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by menshealth1234: 1:44pm On May 18, 2015

Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by missKiffy(f): 1:44pm On May 18, 2015
CVWizards:
Sorry about that. I posted all 10. It's best knows to the mods why they deleted the other part.
Ok, can you pls give me the heading of the last 3
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by whytepawn1(m): 1:53pm On May 18, 2015
missKiffy:
It stopped at 7, anyway nice write up, the only part I disagree is leaving out your primary school, some employer might ask you 'didn't you attend primary sch'
you seem not to understand what the OP mean by that statement. he isn't referring to the primary school one attended. he is infact talking about the fact that some people might have taken up a teaching job in a school: sometimes such details won't really be necessary in a CV.
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by CVWizards(m): 1:53pm On May 18, 2015
You'll find the complete article at: www.cvwizards.com.ng/our-blog
missKiffy:

Ok, can you pls give me the heading of the last 3
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by prof22(m): 2:37pm On May 18, 2015
3 skills that secures a good paying job with Multi national companies as a graduate irrespective of your class.

#1. ICT certfication
#2. Bi-lingua
#3. Professional certification

Grab an ICT Skill, Learn a foreign language and write a professional exam and you are good to go !
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by onatisi(m): 3:00pm On May 18, 2015
The best and only way to improve ur cv is to improve urself by improving ur skills and education. Noone will employ someone who has the best cv format but has minimal skills for maximum productivity and output.

1 Like 2 Shares

Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by icesoul: 3:42pm On May 18, 2015
Good 1 i like it.
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by Ojisik(m): 3:44pm On May 18, 2015
naijainfogalery:
Another one is when sending your CV, always write an application letter to back it up, I will give you a scenerio, i once help a recruiter to sort out CV, after the vacancy closed, we already have over 900 emails sitting in his inbox, he was overwhelmed and asked me to help him out, so would you expect me to download and read 900 CVs , Never lai lai , i just scan through the email, i only downloaded Cvs of people that wrote a little introduction about themselves that interest me.

So always write a short info about you when sending a CV
Sir,do you mean a write up in the body of the e-mail before attaching the CV or a cover letter attachment?
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by Akiika: 4:18pm On May 18, 2015
"
3. Adding irrelevant details

Only few things annoy hiring managers than seeing irrelevant details on an applicant's CV. So, to boost your chances of being selected for the job, include only information that is relevant to the position and cut out whatever is not.

For example, if you're applying for a Mechanical Engineer position, you don't need to add that you once taught in a primary school for a few months after graduation; that's not relevant to the job. Similarly, nobody is interested in your primary school or the church you attend; so cut out stuffs like that from your CV.

Aside making your CV overly long, irrelevant information tends to mask out the more important details that could have caught the hiring manager's attention."


Your example of irrelevance is actually a plus in developed world (especially when it involves kids), it shows your philanthropic and humane side. Volunteering and community development is a plus. Sometimes, these even gets you the job more than your skill. If you don't even have those in your college applications here, you may not get any admission....even with your high SAT scores. But Nigeria is Banana republic where everyone is only concerned about himself.
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by Eccentrica(f): 4:42pm On May 18, 2015
Learn and read more about CV writting from www.shadedreflect.com, go to the HR Talk column, you will find interesting and educative topics. The column is handled by a professional, the Human Resource Manager oc Fumman Nigeria.
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by neonet(m): 4:54pm On May 18, 2015
Click on the link below and add us up on facebook to get more Info about us

https://www.facebook.com/emmanuel.onuzurike

Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by AreaFada2: 5:10pm On May 18, 2015
Nice dear
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by peleson: 6:16pm On May 18, 2015
Correcto
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by voque: 8:28pm On May 18, 2015
MrKIZITO:
Learn how to write a prefect cv yourself from here http://www.edumacro.com/how-write-curriculum-vitae/
Even you, yourself need improvement on your spelling and grammar.
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by vickrino(m): 8:55pm On May 18, 2015
Nice tips for job seekers.
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by Manchelsea(m): 8:57pm On May 18, 2015
CVWizards:
Only few things could be more frustrating than submitting your CV for several job openings and not getting invited for a single interview. If that's what you're facing presently, then you're not alone. There are thousands of Nigerian job seekers out there whose CVs end up in hiring managers' trash bins.

But do you know why your CV hasn't won you a single interview invitation? No, it's not bad luck. And it's not because you don't have the "connections". It's most likely because you're making some silly mistakes in your CV, and as a result, you're losing your chances to other applicants who are smart enough to avoid such mistakes.

Now, what are those mistakes that could send your CV into the trash bin of Nigerian hiring managers? Here are the ten commonest ones:

1. Making your CV too long

The ideal length of a CV is two pages at most, although it could be longer for those with a huge work experience. So, if you're a young graduate with zero to few years of experience, for no reason should your CV exceed two pages.

Remember that hiring managers have to go through hundreds to thousands of CVs while screening applicants for a position, and they have limited time to make their selection. So, rather than spend extra time on looking through a lengthy CV, they would simply toss it aside because they favour CVs that show with a single glance all the relevant details they're looking for.

2. Making grammatical and spelling errors

Having grammar and spelling errors on your CV sends a lot of negative signals about you. First, that you didn't attend good schools. Second, that you don't pay attention to detail. Third, that you're careless or negligent. And it could go on and on.

So, to avoid giving a bad account of yourself, take your time to edit out all errors in your CV—grammar, spelling, and even punctuation. To be absolutely sure, ask other people to also help you check it. Keeping your CV free of errors is very important. Do you expect a hiring manager to favour an error-laden CV over one that is error-free?

3. Adding irrelevant details

Only few things annoy hiring managers than seeing irrelevant details on an applicant's CV. So, to boost your chances of being selected for the job, include only information that is relevant to the position and cut out whatever is not.

For example, if you're applying for a Mechanical Engineer position, you don't need to add that you once taught in a primary school for a few months after graduation; that's not relevant to the job. Similarly, nobody is interested in your primary school or the church you attend; so cut out stuffs like that from your CV.

Aside making your CV overly long, irrelevant information tends to mask out the more important details that could have caught the hiring manager's attention.

4. Making empty, vague claims

While it's important to list some accomplishments you've recorded with your skills, you should avoid using vague words that say a lot but actually mean nothing.

For example, don't just write "improved sales". Rather, write "grew revenue by 8% by attracting 16 new clients in 2014". Similarly, rather than writing "attended to customer needs", write "responded promptly to customer inquiries via email and phone, and promptly forwarded complaints to the relevant department".

By being specific, you make your claims more concrete and convincing. And that will boost your chances of getting an interview invitation.

5. Poor formatting

Just like there's what they call "love at first sight", there's also "hatred at first sight". And poor CV formatting is one of those mistakes that cause hiring managers to hate a CV at first sight. And it's a no brainer that nobody wastes his time assessing something that annoys him.

Make your CV appealing to hiring managers by using clean formatting. While there are no CV formatting rules etched in stone, stick with one that clearly separates the sections and places the most important points first. Use bulleted lists and keep your sentences as short as possible.

6. Leaving out your contact details

The best way to shoot yourself in the foot when applying for a job is to submit a CV that either leaves out your contact details or includes outdated contact details, such as an old line you lost and didn't bother retrieving.

With this mistake, you've blocked out every possible way you can be reached by the employer. And you sure won't forgive yourself if you later discover that a multinational company badly wanted to hire you, but couldn't reach you because the phone line on your CV is no longer active.

So, it's more than important to ensure that your CV contains your active phone line and email address.

7. Having unexplained employment gaps

While hiring managers understand that gaps of few years could be sometimes inevitable, they don't condone wide gaps that span four, five, six, or more years. This is
please let me send send you my CV through your email so you can help me reconstruct it to a standard.
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by softrise: 9:09pm On May 18, 2015
ayodiamond:



You are a learner, 3 and 7 contradicts itself
Excuse me!
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by dbest01: 12:05am On May 19, 2015
Thanks. I'll keep this in mind.
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by Adyrin(m): 4:55pm On May 19, 2015
Thank you so very much!
You just cleared my doubt!
God bless thee real good!
naijainfogalery:
It should be in the body because if you put it in an attachment it will cause the recruiter to download which may be an issue when there are so many people that apply, but if it is in body of the email, it is the first thing the recruiter sees so it gives you a leverage
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by SoftlyZ: 11:45am On May 20, 2015
ayodiamond:




You are a learner, 3 and 7 contradicts itself

No, it does not. if you taught in a school for 6 months like she said, it's irrelevant to an engineering job. But if there us a huge gap like: worked in shell (2000), worked in total (2005)... What happened between 2000 & 2005, were you dead or dying? Makes your potential employers start guessing and trust me, they don't have time to ponder about you with lots of applications to go through.
Re: REVEALED: 10 CV Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job by CVWizards(m): 5:26pm On May 24, 2015
Johniyke2flex:
Thanks OP! Will subscribe to the jobberman cv career service asap. It's only N7900 nd the promo closes today. Lemmi see the kyn witch wey go make me no get invite before the month runs out.


Peace!!!

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