For many students, applying for an internship or placement year in your second year, or for a graduate scheme/job in your final year, is the first time that you are applying for positions directly related to your course and long-term career ambitions. Until then, you either might not have needed a CV or used a very basic CV to apply for more casual roles to help you fund your studies. With competition for work placements and graduate roles increasing, your CV will need updating to meet the standards expected by these employers. But don’t worry – you can easily transform a basic CV into a great placement or graduate CV! Follow the simple steps below, and download the two ‘Before’ and ‘After’ versions of our example CVs to help illustrate the suggested changes.

CV length and structure
For applications for casual part-time work, a short CV of one side of A4 in length is usually fine to provide a summary of your previous work experience and/or skills. When applying for placements and graduate roles, expanding your CV to two sides of A4 gives you the extra space needed to sell your knowledge and skills effectively to employers.

An effective CV enables the reader to identify the most important details quickly, so list the most relevant information for each vacancy prominently on the first page of your CV. Use bold font to help headings and key information stand out.

Include a targeted introduction
If you have mostly worked in retail or hospitality roles, the introduction on your current CV might be quite informal and focused on your experience of duties like cash handling, stocking shelves, or serving customers. Changing the personal profile to concentrate instead on the entry requirements for the vacancy gives your CV a much better focus on your long-term career ambitions. Highlight relevant skills, experience, knowledge and interests in relation to the role, and use key words from the job advert to illustrate that you have matched yourself to their requirements. Including the company name and job title further personalises this section.

Expand on your degree studies
When you apply for casual work, most employers will have little interest in what you are learning on your degree, as it is unlikely to relate to a job in a call centre, shop or bar. That’s why it is only briefly mentioned towards the end of the example CVs for part-time jobs. For placement and graduate applications, this is likely to be different, as many students target opportunities that link directly to their studies.

Move your education section to a prominent position on your CV, and include additional information about your degree, such as relevant modules and practical elements of your course (laboratory or studio sessions, projects/case studies, design/portfolio work) that helped develop knowledge and practical skills you would use in the role. Site visits or guest lectures that have strengthened your insight into your chosen profession or industry are also useful to mention.

Highlight relevant work experience
If you have been proactive to gain some initial work experience relevant for the role or sector, make sure you shout about it! Split this from any additional, less immediately relevant, work experience and list it on the first page of your CV. It doesn’t matter if this experience was unpaid. What matters is that you provide a good description of your role, using relevant language and focusing on any overlapping or similar duties between your experience and the vacancy you’re applying for. Don’t forget to reflect on what you have learnt! For example, work shadowing in a laboratory will have given you a better insight into adhering to health and safety requirements or the handling of hazardous substances. Working alongside a manufacturing engineer will have improved your understanding of how they work with production staff on reducing waste or improving efficiency.

If you don’t have any relevant work experience yet, don’t worry! You can show your motivation towards a career in your chosen sector in other ways, for example by including relevant professional interests.

Check part two of our step-by-step guide, which will cover evidencing your skills and leadership potential, highlighting relevant interests and tailoring your CV.