The Great British CV

How to write a Great British CV.

The introduction of the Graduate Route, allowing international Tier 4 students graduating from summer 2021 with an undergraduate or masters degree to work for up to two years in the UK without sponsorship (three years for PHD graduates) is truly fantastic news and a step in the right direction for ensuring international students have easier access to the UK graduate labour market, get a return on their investment and gain some valuable graduate UK work experience. About time I say!

Although the Graduate Route (temporarily) removes the visa barrier, there are still an array of challenges international graduates face when attempting to secure UK graduate roles. Understanding UK recruitment practices, adapting to UK workplace practices, cross cultural communication, and grasping the UK centric (and individualistic) approach to careers. Moreover, as there is a lot of diversity within the international student community, the challenges faced are unique to the individual, and dependent on the student’s cultural and social background. For example, Chinese students will face different challenges and barriers compared to Nigerian students because they have grown up in completely different cultural contexts, which informs their social conditioning. The common thing all international students do face is how to approach CVs in the UK. So if you are an international Tier 4 student or graduate reading this, the first hurdle is to ensure you have a Great British CV. Follow my GREAT 8 tips to get you started!

1. Sections!

The main sections of a UK CV include:

Be mindful of what information you put where. EDUCATION and WORK EXPERIENCE are the most important sections for demonstrating your academic credentials, applied learning and professional experience. Other sections, such as EXTRA CURRICULAR, VOLUNTEERING and SKILLS are also really significant for highlighting what you have done alongside your academic studies. You want to make it as easy as possible for employers and recruiters to find the criteria and information they require so if you have a lot of work experience, you can alter the sections to have a RELEVANT EXPERIENCE section and then OTHER WORK EXPERIENCE. Definitely include work experience from your home country. This does count and is relevant! The PERSONAL DETAILS section should only include, name, email, mobile number, UK address and Linkedin URL. Do not include your nationality, age, marital status, or a photo as these things will see your CV get instantly dismissed in the UK.

2. Your PERSONAL PROFILE section should cover:

Your current situation
Your top professional skills, personal attributes and a very brief overview of your work experience
What kind of role you are looking for, why and what you have to contribute to a company.

Don’t forget to emphasise your international background in your personal profile, including languages you speak and international work experience as this is highly valued by UK employers who are keen to diversify their workforce.

Research the skills and attributes required for the industry you want to get into, and use the buzz (key) words listed in job advert throughout your CV. The Prospects website is a good place to research skills required of certain industries. Read more about the top ten skills employers look for on Target jobs.

Outlining your skills and experience in a clear and concise way on your CV is essential. There is a BIG difference between describing what you did in previous jobs and evidencing what you did. Keep it simple and make bullet points, which quantify your impact and contribution. For example:

I served customers. (Describing!)
I adapted my communication style and applied my bilingual skills in Urdu and English when handling queries and complaints from customers from diverse backgrounds. (Evidencing- when and how you used communication skills).

Do not downplay your international experience and background as diversity is highly sought after and valued in the UK. Employers want graduates who are resilient, flexible, and can adapt their communication style to interact with people from different backgrounds, which are all qualities often possessed by international students who have had to face many challenges, adversity and adapt when moving to the UK.

No CV templates please! They don’t show any authenticity or originality and it’s obvious when someone has used a template! Font size should be arial, size 12, no colours, tables, borders or photo as these don’t add anything to your experience and can often just distract!

Stay away from cliches, such as, motivated, enthusiastic, determined, passionate, I can work well by myself and as part of a team. And the all time favourite, 'I am an asset to any organisation'.

Last but not least, ALWAYS get someone to proofread your CV and give some feedback and do not send it to employers until you are completely happy with it. If you really are not confident with approaching your CV, seek professional advice. When you consider the return for investment a strong CV could get you, it is very worth the time, effort and investment.

Of course, there are many more tips for CVs but the Great 8 should be enough to get you started. If you decide to use any of the tips, please let me know how you get on.

Thanks for reading.

Ciao for now!

Bianca