Creating a stand-out CV

Support your child get noticed by prospective employers and help them to create a standout CV. 

Start by watching the video below together. This shows them all the ingredients they will need to create their very own standout CV.

Now your child understands what it takes to make their CV stand out, they can have a go at the activity below to create and improve their own CV.

You can either complete this with your child (you don’t need to be an expert just follow the pointers), or they can use the worksheets provided independently.

Top tip: encourage your child to include core transferable skills on their CV, often referred to as essential or soft skills, they include skills like creativity, listening and speaking (communication), adaptability and problem solving.

They can be developed at any stage of education, extra curricula activities, volunteering and part-time jobs, and can be applied in any industry or job, even in future roles which may not exist yet. Employers are particularly keen on candidates who demonstrated core transferable skills. 

Core transferable skills are vital in improving young people’s work-readiness and can help in a wide variety of life settings. 

Building a brilliant CV

• To begin get your child to use the CV Builder interactive tool. If your child already has a CV, they can also use the CV Tips tool to discover ways to improve it.
• Encourage your child move through each section of the tool, filling in details about their personal statement, education, work experience, achievements, skills and interests.
• Each section includes tips for completing the different elements. Ask them to think about examples where they have displayed key skills.
• Once they’ve finished using the tool, they can download a Word document version of the CV they’ve built so they can save it and edit it as needed when applying for different roles.