Not getting an interview?

[mulderpf]

For the past week I've been looking at a large number of CV's (previously I've had the good fortune of someone else screening the CV's first and we only had to interview one candidate in the end any way).

I must say, it is incredible how many Tier 1 visa holders and their dependants there are out there and what is even more amazing is how little care people take in making up a good CV. I'm not talking one or two CV's here - I'd say just yesterday I threw out 6 or 7 CV's because the applicant couldn't be bothered to put some effort into a job application (don't even want to know what they would be like in the actual job).

Some things I've seen:

* Bad copy/paste job where part of a job description for one company was pasted under a completely unrelated job
* Bad copy/paste job where the writer forgot to remove the hyperlinks which was on the website they plagiarised their text from
* One applicant put the wrong product under the wrong company, a quick internet search revealed that (no knowledge of the systems he claims to have worked on??)
* Another applicant worked for a company whose website clearly states that they are in Chennai, India. Every single client he worked for were all in India too, however, his CV states that he was in the UK. Might be true, but usually when things don't make sense, they are not true (Judge Judy).
* And then I have seen one where the applicant claims to have started working at a company in 2005, however, the company's website clearly says it was started in 2007. (The position requires 5 years experience).
* Spelling mistakes are just everywhere (you'd think that someone, before applying for a job has a few minutes to run a spell check!)
* Text speak - even worse than spelling mistakes. Using txt spk in ur cv will not get u anywhere in the business world!
* Claiming to have worked on technology that doesn't exist anymore or is unlikely to be used (e.g. currently testing website compatibility for Netscape Navigator in 2011).

I am just flabbergasted at the number of mistakes people make when they apply for jobs. When you apply for a job, make sure your CV is perfect.

I have limited time available to do interviews - I personally still make a point of reading each and every CV, but the ones with stupid mistakes are the ones to get the boot. Am I going to waste a valuable hour (when I have 20 candidates to interview) on someone who couldn't even bother running a spell check or copy/pasted his CV so fast without reading through it once over? No. Why should I waste time reading through a CV and giving the applicant the time of day, when clearly they didn't even bother to read through it.

So, if you are wondering why you are not getting any interviews arranged, look at your CV from a different perspective (or in the case of some, at least just have a look at your CV). Your CV (and possibly cover letter) is the only thing that is between your potential employer and an interview.

Just saying...I'm shocked...

[pilot]

...and i am happy that i can count that somebody really make attention to CVs and details on it, because i spent almost two days working on mine
i was hoping it was not wasting of time
now my chances are bigger

[rajesh9pl]

For a moment I thought you are not getting interview calls

Good post, will help many new applicants.

[shrinjoy]

Can you proof-read my CV? I am willing to take any help I can get Desperately seeking work in UK..

[ScopeD]

What is more frustrating is that most candidates do not seem to understand the concept of value addition. If one is to be hired, they need to prove to me that they will be a very useful asset in adding value to the organisation, and a well written cv is a very good starting point. Put yourself in the shoes of the hirer. Or lets use an immigration lawyer as an example. If a lawyer fails to convince me that they have what it takes to handle my case and fight it with the UKBA, why would I let such a lawyer handle my affairs? they can show me all their degrees and qualifications, but if they fail to prove a basic understanding of key immigration issues in their marketing literature, and if they fail to communicate clearly, then i would never consider ringing them to find out more about them.