Forgot how bad job searching was :(
- Thread starter Delvis
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Soldato
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Not a BT application by any chance is it?
Nope
Just a public sector IT job, that I really want 
I should find out tomorrow (or today) whether or not I have a 6 month contract for an Apprentice Software Developer, did a two week work trial and he said he'd accept me if I could get onto the 'Future Jobs Fund' which are a bunch of idiots where I live, but I have done everything on my end and should find out tomorrow if I have the job.
5 months out of work and hoping this will be my career.
5 months out of work and hoping this will be my career.
Interview day today, went ok I think.
Annoyingly the role isn't specifically a technical role, but it is the direction I want to be taking, but worried I came across as too technical.
Had to take a test which was actually quite fun, got a decent score in that for whatever it's worth.
Now just got to wait
Annoyingly the role isn't specifically a technical role, but it is the direction I want to be taking, but worried I came across as too technical.
Had to take a test which was actually quite fun, got a decent score in that for whatever it's worth.
Now just got to wait
Had another interview last week. Was in Sheffield which is a bit of a trek from Leeds but I don't mind really. Was pretty nervous about it but the guy interviewing was really cool and kept cracking jokes. He mentioned a second interview so I'm hoping to hear about that.
It will be over before you know it! I really don't like them so I like to give my self a nice treat afterwards. Even if it's just a beer to tell yourself "well done"
It will be over before you know it! I really don't like them so I like to give my self a nice treat afterwards. Even if it's just a beer to tell yourself "well done"
Had another interview last week. Was in Sheffield which is a bit of a trek from Leeds but I don't mind really. Was pretty nervous about it but the guy interviewing was really cool and kept cracking jokes. He mentioned a second interview so I'm hoping to hear about that.
It will be over before you know it! I really don't like them so I like to give my self a nice treat afterwards. Even if it's just a beer to tell yourself "well done"
Good luck with that second interview fingers croseed for you.
As for the treat suggestion was thinking that anyway, boneless box from kfc afterwards >.>.
Here is a question, how long should a CV be ...
I've spent a while working and re-working mine now as part of applying for jobs for after graduation next summer, but looking at it again it is just too long.
The problem is, how do I get all the intricate details of what I've done for my Masters project into the CV. I want to be able to go beyond simply "created a mathematical model of a car suspension system", but actually give some real details as this demonstrates my interests and abilities and is relevant (somewhat) to the sort of jobs I'm applying for
Currently though this section is at 350 words, which is just silly.
Equally the profile section is a good 250 words, as I actually try to describe a few things..
Should I just go for more brief statements/bullet points and accept that I cannot give the whole story in the CV?
I am generally VERY good at being brief and getting the point across in very few words, but I tend to always stick to fully formed paragraphs when doing this, rather than going down to brief sentences and lists
Having to write a whole spiel about relevant stuff at Uni is such a pain though, never had to put in this much effort into any part time work I've done before, even for large companies
I've spent a while working and re-working mine now as part of applying for jobs for after graduation next summer, but looking at it again it is just too long.
The problem is, how do I get all the intricate details of what I've done for my Masters project into the CV. I want to be able to go beyond simply "created a mathematical model of a car suspension system", but actually give some real details as this demonstrates my interests and abilities and is relevant (somewhat) to the sort of jobs I'm applying for
Currently though this section is at 350 words, which is just silly.
Equally the profile section is a good 250 words, as I actually try to describe a few things..
Should I just go for more brief statements/bullet points and accept that I cannot give the whole story in the CV?
I am generally VERY good at being brief and getting the point across in very few words, but I tend to always stick to fully formed paragraphs when doing this, rather than going down to brief sentences and lists
Having to write a whole spiel about relevant stuff at Uni is such a pain though, never had to put in this much effort into any part time work I've done before, even for large companies
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Don't go beyond "created a mathematical model of a car suspension system", if it's interesting and relevant, it'll give the interviewer something to ask you about.
Your CV isn't the whole story, it can't be in a maximum of 2 pages of A4 (one if you have little/no work experience).
If you post up what you have, myself (or some other kindly soul) will have a go at compressing/bullet-pointing your sections, so that people reading the CV can quickly see what skills you have.
There's a few things that immediately put me off a CV:
1. A wall of text
2. Some awful "talented, motivated team-player will give 110%" personal statement
3. A shopping list of skills/abilities
4. Non-relevant/interesting interests "I liek going to see flims and eating food."
Your CV isn't the whole story, it can't be in a maximum of 2 pages of A4 (one if you have little/no work experience).
If you post up what you have, myself (or some other kindly soul) will have a go at compressing/bullet-pointing your sections, so that people reading the CV can quickly see what skills you have.
There's a few things that immediately put me off a CV:
1. A wall of text
2. Some awful "talented, motivated team-player will give 110%" personal statement
3. A shopping list of skills/abilities
4. Non-relevant/interesting interests "I liek going to see flims and eating food."
As Mr B says, 2 pages max. I like to think of a CV as covering the basics such as GCSEs etc. then covering your core strengths and experience concisely. You don't need to go into detail, you're aiming for the interview invite where you can tell them everything in more detail.
For example I only put my dissertation title in my CV (undergrad) - then in interviews I would talk for 5 minutes about it when asked about it.
Happy to give feedback if wanted.
For example I only put my dissertation title in my CV (undergrad) - then in interviews I would talk for 5 minutes about it when asked about it.
Happy to give feedback if wanted.
See, the reason I put in more information originally was because a number of the online application forms (the ones that don't want you to submit a CV, but instead fill in a never ending stream of questions online) would want upto 250 words or so about everything, so I figured if some companies are interested in having that much info it would make sense to include the same level of info in the general CV
I guess I'll rework it again this morning
Mr B, regarding a shopping list of skills/abilities ... you think I should not bother mentioning all the different things that the engineering uni course has covered? I would figure that since I'm applying for engineering jobs it would be useful for the company to know what sort of stuff I've actually been introduced to as part of the uni course.
I simply listed all the major subject areas currently, but it is 10 things (with one of them being a further list of all the CAD / Simulation things done).
I may leave my profile alone though, as while it is on the long side, it does not do any of the of the silly "i'm an awesome team player blah blah" stuff, but simply gives info about my 2 passions (engineering & computers) and then ties it all together saying how I used both for my dissertation work, and finishes with a short bit about team work as shown by the previous work and other things.
I guess I'll rework it again this morning
Mr B, regarding a shopping list of skills/abilities ... you think I should not bother mentioning all the different things that the engineering uni course has covered? I would figure that since I'm applying for engineering jobs it would be useful for the company to know what sort of stuff I've actually been introduced to as part of the uni course.
I simply listed all the major subject areas currently, but it is 10 things (with one of them being a further list of all the CAD / Simulation things done).
I may leave my profile alone though, as while it is on the long side, it does not do any of the of the silly "i'm an awesome team player blah blah" stuff, but simply gives info about my 2 passions (engineering & computers) and then ties it all together saying how I used both for my dissertation work, and finishes with a short bit about team work as shown by the previous work and other things.
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Permabanned
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cba to read this thread - but I can tell you agencies are useless.
They spam my work email, they phone our support helpdesk daily, and they won't stop when I ask them. They're now spam-blacklisted.
They spam my work email, they phone our support helpdesk daily, and they won't stop when I ask them. They're now spam-blacklisted.
Whoever is reading your CV isn't interested in skills that aren't directly applicable to the role you are applying for.
The "shopping list" I am referring to is what I usually see on IT related CVs, and goes like this:
- C# 5 Years
- ASP.Net 4 Years
- IIS 6.0 5 Years
...that sort of thing...
When you'd be much better off putting it into context (but not too much context to make it a wall of text). Mention the relevant things that you have done, but add some context to them. Again, if you are having trouble striking the balance between a list and an essay, post an example and we'll help sort it out (a bit anyway).
Remember, a CV isn't an application form, and an application form isn't a CV. They are different things and serve different purposes.
The "shopping list" I am referring to is what I usually see on IT related CVs, and goes like this:
- C# 5 Years
- ASP.Net 4 Years
- IIS 6.0 5 Years
...that sort of thing...
When you'd be much better off putting it into context (but not too much context to make it a wall of text). Mention the relevant things that you have done, but add some context to them. Again, if you are having trouble striking the balance between a list and an essay, post an example and we'll help sort it out (a bit anyway).
Remember, a CV isn't an application form, and an application form isn't a CV. They are different things and serve different purposes.
Ok, I'm currently at this point with the slightly re-worked Uni section
Plus then a few lines about my Masters project that I have yet to finish/sort out writing
Now, my main gripe is that it is all "the course covers x,y,z" rather than "I learnt/did x,y,z", which is why I ended up writing a decent sized bit of text more about the engines module (saying what I actually am doing as part of the engine design) and also why the description of the masters project was long as again I wanted to get across what I'm actually doing
But any feedback is welcome, I don't really want to drop the list of subject areas covered as I feel that given the fact it is a first proper job out of Uni application they actually have an important role to play on the CV currently (while in the future you would not perhaps list them as you have a track record of work in your industry).
Plus then a few lines about my Masters project that I have yet to finish/sort out writing
Now, my main gripe is that it is all "the course covers x,y,z" rather than "I learnt/did x,y,z", which is why I ended up writing a decent sized bit of text more about the engines module (saying what I actually am doing as part of the engine design) and also why the description of the masters project was long as again I wanted to get across what I'm actually doing
But any feedback is welcome, I don't really want to drop the list of subject areas covered as I feel that given the fact it is a first proper job out of Uni application they actually have an important role to play on the CV currently (while in the future you would not perhaps list them as you have a track record of work in your industry).
Soldato
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- 1 Jun 2010
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- London
All to satify employer's requirements which are unrealistic in the first place anyway. The whole job market has become commercialised and a business. Long gone are old days people, long gone when it was much easier to get a job as told by my dad and uncle who are both in their 60s
.
Ok, I'm currently at this point with the slightly re-worked Uni section
Lots of random capital letters? Material Science / Several Business based.. ?