To draft a simple curriculum vitae, begin with a header that includes your name and contact details. The body of the document will begin with a synopsis that is designed to set you apart from other applicants. Next, you will list your skills. The final two sections will be devoted to your education and work experience.
A simple curriculum vitae begins with a header. If you have access to a word-processing program, you should be able to find several templates, and you can choose the one that suits your needs. If not, there is no need to worry because the header is easy. It is placed within the top margin. Your name should be bold and larger than the other details, which will consist of your address, email address, and telephone numbers. Depending on the potential employer, you may want to list certain social media IDs there too.
The first section of the body of a simple curriculum vitae is the summary. This may also be referred to as the profile or synopsis. Here, you will summarize who you are and what you have done academically and professionally. You may include some personal characteristics and achievements if they are likely to have an impact on the employment decision. If you have skills, abilities, or knowledge that make you a more attractive candidate but they are not included elsewhere, you may want to disclose them here.
The next part of your simple curriculum vitae should be a skills section, which is where you will outline what you are capable of doing for a potential employer. Although this document may be drafted in a manner that makes it suitable for applying for several types of positions, it may not be suitable for all positions. This is one area that may need to be adjusted. You want to outline skills that are relevant to the position that you are applying for. A law firm looking for a paralegal is probably not interested in your cash-handling abilities, for example.
The third section could either be your educational experience or your professional experience. If you have been out of the workforce for a long time or you are a recent graduate, you may want to put education first. On the contrary, if you have an extensive work history, you will put that first. In each of these sections, you will provide the most recent information first and proceed adding additional information in a reverse chronological order.
For work experience, you will include the name of the employer, dates of service, and the position held in bold. Then, in normal text, you will list the main duties that you performed. These will be separated by bullet points and should be expressed using active verbs. In your education section, you will list the institution attended and the dates of attendance in bold. Your area of study and the resulting degrees, certificates, and awards should be listed in plain text below.
