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Top CV tips for the international graduate

Exams are finally over, so, your thoughts are turning towards employment. Before you jump straight into your job hunt, there are a few things to consider. We’re here to help you build a CV that really sells your unique talents and gets you that dream job, so let’s get started…

What type of CV can you write?

• A chronological CV will highlight your employment history in a reverse chronological order. This shows employers how your previous roles have given you appropriate experience.
• The functional CV is great if you have just left university, you can highlight your skills rather than relevant jobs.
• A mixture of the two is also a good way of making a CV unique to your strengths and what the role expects.
• If you need a starting point, try GO-CV!, just one of the tools Gradlink offers to help international students to create a CV and share it with international employers using the site.

 

Tailor your CV

• A good CV is not a one size fits all. What is the company looking for? If they want someone who has a flair for writing, for example, give details of how you wrote for your university’s newspaper or your own blog, if you have one.
• Put your USPs at the top if they show your suitability. So, if you are applying for an IT role and have completed a placement with Microsoft, that’s where you should start.
• If there isn’t a natural place to put this information, then start off with a personal statement pulling together your key achievements to really impress employers.
• Check spelling and grammar throughout and ask your university careers team to look over your CV before sending it out.
• Try to get everything onto one side of A4 if possible, but check the guidelines for your chosen country and industry. For example, Law CVs in particular have a very specific layout.

 

What type of language?

• Positive words help to sell you better. Active verbs such as “I negotiated” will present you as being able to do certain tasks, not just talk about them.  A great tool is the action verb slot machine which can generate words for you.

• Detail your experience rather than listing it. Explain your selling points so that employers know how you achieved these actions, and link your examples with tangible, ideally financial, results.

 

What skills do you have?

• What are your best skills? Employers are not just looking for what you can do but how you did it. Always use measurable selling points such as, “my communication skills have grown while at university, enabling me to present to over 50 students at an international student event”.
• Sell your international skills! Are you multilingual? Explain how you utilised this by writing your thesis in another language, for example. You may also have a wealth of cultural awareness and knowledge of working internationally that makes you stand out from the graduate crowd.
• Have you been a volunteer, part of a university society or can you use specialist software?  Think of all areas of your life and how they give you transferable skills that you can include.
• Many international employers look for UK-educated graduates, so use this as one of your USPs. Don’t just sell yourself, what about your university? Some UK universities may not be as well known in other countries, so explain why you chose them. Perhaps they ranked highly above other institutions, or they have a prestigious Business school or renowned academics teaching there? Including information like this might help you gain the edge over the competition.

 

Want to connect with top international employers like Microsoft, Deloitte, Ford and more? It only take a few minutes to put your details into our free tool, GO-CV! on Gradlink UK. Try it today!