Time Waster
Veteran
Possibly too late to this thread but as someone who got into a rut from uni until turning 50ish when I got a job for almost doublee my previous job (which was just about above minimum wage what with no pay increase for maybe 8 years and the min wage increasing to meet mine). I think I could help with the CV / job application thing if I give my experience.
I had low confidence but two degrees and a lot of self taught knowledge and experience in what I did (or pretended to do in the SME I worked in that didn't do things right). I applied to do something similar in a very big organisation that had to do these things right so I really had superficial experience. Hence low confidence and I was 100% certain I would not get in.
So I applied for a job at that company when it came up with something suitable. Got rejection letter. Then 6 months later I saw another job so decided to do a better job. FIrst off I read the job advert and associated documents. I read job spec foocussing on the different categories such as essential and desired skills. Read those bits well as you need to put experience or training in there to cover each and every one of them. Essential definitely but if you are weak on one or perhaps two of the desired ones then yuou might be ok.
CV needs to cover those points, but that is not the whole of it. Covering letter is the selling document. But that still isn't the whole of it. What got me in was the way I mirrored the company language. What is this? Well you go onto their website and look up thee "about us" section and then anything else such as DE&I section on their website if a large organisation (Diversity, equality and Inclusion). What did you get out of those sections? Any sense of what the company sees as important to itself? In my case it sounded hot on inclusion, colleagues and getting the most out of people. These things you can kind of mirror in either your covering letter or covering letter and CV. It is very important to make yourself sound like you are already a colleague there if that makes sense. You want to sound like you already fit in as there are so many applying for the job who can do it not just you!!
So as to the strructure of the CV 2 pages max unless highly technical and lots of specific training needed for the job say coding / programming I guess or trade quals. One page is possibly good too but most do two pages. I did that. Formatting? IMHO space between important points helps to emphasise them. As above put things in that help you sound like you fit in as well as having the training, experience or education needed. Get your information right. Get it clean looking with space as mentioned above. Pick a clear and professional font and use size, bold and other formatting to make it look professionally made.
Cover letter was always my weak point and many people llike I used to do treat them as an introduction to the CV. I think this is kind of wrong. It is the first selling document. Everyone pretty well knows that applicants will put in what is needed for the job in the CV (if they have understood the needs of the job). The covering letter is a more free document where you can sell thee key points of you that are strong for winning the job. What are yourkey selling points? Put them in there or perhaps more signpost them in you CV and reinforce them in the covering letter. If that makes sense.
Then when you have an invitation to interview that is when the fun comes in. If you get through it all and get the job offer which you accept, iif it is a big company you go into onboarding. There will be a tream separate to the reecruitment team for that IF it is a very big company.
Good luck with your application(s).
I had low confidence but two degrees and a lot of self taught knowledge and experience in what I did (or pretended to do in the SME I worked in that didn't do things right). I applied to do something similar in a very big organisation that had to do these things right so I really had superficial experience. Hence low confidence and I was 100% certain I would not get in.
So I applied for a job at that company when it came up with something suitable. Got rejection letter. Then 6 months later I saw another job so decided to do a better job. FIrst off I read the job advert and associated documents. I read job spec foocussing on the different categories such as essential and desired skills. Read those bits well as you need to put experience or training in there to cover each and every one of them. Essential definitely but if you are weak on one or perhaps two of the desired ones then yuou might be ok.
CV needs to cover those points, but that is not the whole of it. Covering letter is the selling document. But that still isn't the whole of it. What got me in was the way I mirrored the company language. What is this? Well you go onto their website and look up thee "about us" section and then anything else such as DE&I section on their website if a large organisation (Diversity, equality and Inclusion). What did you get out of those sections? Any sense of what the company sees as important to itself? In my case it sounded hot on inclusion, colleagues and getting the most out of people. These things you can kind of mirror in either your covering letter or covering letter and CV. It is very important to make yourself sound like you are already a colleague there if that makes sense. You want to sound like you already fit in as there are so many applying for the job who can do it not just you!!
So as to the strructure of the CV 2 pages max unless highly technical and lots of specific training needed for the job say coding / programming I guess or trade quals. One page is possibly good too but most do two pages. I did that. Formatting? IMHO space between important points helps to emphasise them. As above put things in that help you sound like you fit in as well as having the training, experience or education needed. Get your information right. Get it clean looking with space as mentioned above. Pick a clear and professional font and use size, bold and other formatting to make it look professionally made.
Cover letter was always my weak point and many people llike I used to do treat them as an introduction to the CV. I think this is kind of wrong. It is the first selling document. Everyone pretty well knows that applicants will put in what is needed for the job in the CV (if they have understood the needs of the job). The covering letter is a more free document where you can sell thee key points of you that are strong for winning the job. What are yourkey selling points? Put them in there or perhaps more signpost them in you CV and reinforce them in the covering letter. If that makes sense.
Then when you have an invitation to interview that is when the fun comes in. If you get through it all and get the job offer which you accept, iif it is a big company you go into onboarding. There will be a tream separate to the reecruitment team for that IF it is a very big company.
Good luck with your application(s).
