3 Reasons Why Your CV Might Still Raise Eyebrows

You are incredibly qualified for the position and your CV is perfect. You’ve got great formatting, quantified bullet points, and experience that suits the role. You are all set to complete your application.

What could go wrong? Well, hopefully nothing but it’s important to do a quick sweep and ensure that your CV does not have any red flags that may cause to be disregarded by an employer.

Unexplained Gaps

No matter how incredible your job history is, if you have gaps that you suspect a recruiter or employer may wonder about, assume that they will. And then strategize accordingly. If you have a gap in your career chronology, consider briefly explaining it right in the CV, rather than hoping no one will notice or care.

Cliché introductions/titles

Forcing pointless clichés into an introduction is a complete turn-off for many employers. So, you’re a “hard-working”, “detail-orientated” “team player”, with a “strong work ethic” who is looking for a “new challenge”.

Such statements have no impact. A bespoke introduction should mention the industries and roles you have excelled in and what skills you would bring to your potential new job.

Locations that make no sense

Say you live in Nairobi and you want to go live in Kisumu or Mombasa. And so you start applying for jobs in Kisumu and Mombasa. But you’ve got this Nairobi address on your CV, which probably either confuses or surprises the people on the receiving end.

“Why on earth is someone from Nairobi applying for our job?” they might think, “Does he/she expect us to pay relocation costs?” “Does she/he know anyone here?” “What if they don’t like it here, and quit?”

These are precisely the kinds of things that go through the minds of the employers when out-of-towners apply for their jobs without any sort of explanation as to why. Most times, priority is given to local residents.

You have to give them a reason to consider you.  Make it clear right out of the gates why you’re targeting roles in these locations (or, better yet, that the move is in progress). You can do so right in the cover letter, or you can establish a local address as you near the moving date, so you can put it on your CV and make it clear that you are a candidate with local ties.

Ultimately,

The best job application is the one that makes it obvious to the employer or recruiter how and why you make perfect sense for the role or roles you’re pursuing. 

Looking to get invited for more interviews? You need a professional CV that markets you suitably, let an expert help you stand out!

N.B: Looking For A New Job? Find Your Next Job With Us. Click Here To Register Your CV. It's Free.