Candidate Space

Drawing up your CV

1. When structuring your CV, keep in mind that they’re typically reviewed in only two minutes.
2. Your CV is a marketing tool meant to pique a prospective employer’s interest enough for them to contact TEMS to schedule an interview to see you.

Unique selling points

1. Know your career objective. Your CV will come across more professionally if the content is structured around your career objectives.
2. Use short, bulleted sentences, rather than lengthy paragraphs. The reader should be able to quickly scan through your résumé, and be able to absorb most of the information.
3. When listing your skills or summarizing your experience, start each bulleted sentence with a verb like ‘prepared’, ‘developed’ or ‘presented’, for more impact.
4. Match the competencies in your CV to the key requirements in the advertised position.
5. Place your strengths that are most suited to the job, at the top, where they are more likely to be read.
6. Sell yourself clearly and concisely through your CV. Use appropriate buzzwords and jargon that show your familiarity with the terminology in your field.
7. Hinge your career history on those duties that support your objective: to be hired. Do not add negative or irrelevant personal information.
8. If you were self-employed, give yourself an appropriate title and be prepared to provide credible references of people/companies for whom you worked. Valid referees can include volunteer positions, or unpaid work done for friends.

Presentation

1. Use a font size of 10 points or bigger, and 100% page size.
2. Don’t use uppercase, it is very difficult to read.
3. Use professional language and check grammar and spelling.
4. Consider placing a copy of your CV on a website for immediacy, in case of an unexpected request for your CV.
5. A cover letter is an important accompaniment to your CV. It gives the reader more insight into who you are, stating facts like your skills, background and experience; and interests and preferences in terms of location, setting, industry and type of work.

Don’t overlook these pointers:

1. Make sure that there are no periods that are unaccounted for under your experience.
2. State in your CV the name and job title of all your bosses – past and present.
3. Prioritise coherence over volume when drawing up your CV, so that the reader can scan seamlessly through it.
4. When requesting professional references, ask for alternative contact information, in case the referee changes jobs. Letters are preferable.
5. Rather exclude information that doesn’t relate specifically to the job for which you are applying, e.g. religion, affiliations (other than those of a professional nature).

E-mail your completed CV to [email protected]

Submitting your CV

Think carefully about your career objectives. What motivates you? What skills do you have? How do they match the companies’ requirements that you hope to work for? What additional skills would you need to be eligible for your dream job?

Make sure the cover letter that accompanies your CV explains clearly what you’re interested in, e.g. location, setting, industry, and type of work. It must also briefly outline your skills, background and experience.

Don’t refrain from applying for positions that seem to be out of your league. Because they involve taking a calculated risk, they often hold great growth opportunities and challenges.

Accepting contract assignments could get you placed sooner. It’s also a good way to ‘get your foot in the door’ in your company of choice. Agencies often have short or long-term assignments available. So, keep an eye on the newspaper!

While you’re unemployed, consider doing a course to expand your skills set. This could come in handy when applying for a position that requires more than just your current skills.

Applying for a job through TEMS

To apply for any of our vacant jobs, please email your CV to us in MS Word format. Choose the applicable address on the contact us page, on our website. It’s important that you supply the following information in the subject line of your email:

1. reference number
2.  job title
3. your name.

Cover letter

This letter needs to give us a brief outline of you/TEMS/img/interview-tips-inforgraphic.jpgur experience and skills, to emphasize your compatibility with the job in question. Please remember to include your current and alternative contact details as well as your location and salary requirements. Do send us your CV for our records, even if we don’t have a suitable position advertised.

We want to help the A-Players -­the people who care about the details. The enthusiastic, positive and ambitious professionals who can take global responsibility into their stride. Whether you’re interested in a contract, interim, permanent or executive role, contact a member of our team today on +44(0) 20-85144307 or [email protected]

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