Graduates - Highlighting Your Skills on Your CV

May 25, 2015
Newsletter Article

A CV is probably one of the most important aspects of your job search. You may be a great person, driven, motivated and adequately skilled to perform a job role, however, if this is not reflected in you resume then you will find it difficult to fulfil your potential.

This next article will look once again at your CV. A CV is probably one of the most important aspects of your job search. You may be a great person, driven, motivated and adequately skilled to perform a job role, however, if this is not reflected in you resume then you will find it difficult to fulfil your potential. One way to present your CV in an attractive manner is to portray the skills you have learned throughout uni and your work experience. So often people brush over these abilities and their CV suffers because of this. Remember that your qualifications and experience are only a part of what you can bring to a job or placement. Your skills are a key aspect of you and they should be highlighted in your CV. They include the abilities and competencies which you have developed to date and which, importantly, can be transferred into a business environment. The lists below will help you transcribe your experiences to skills that employer’s value.

College Work	Skills Gained
Presenting a Term Paper	Presenting Skills Communication Skills
Writing up Case Studies and Reports	Report Writing Skills Problem-solving Skills IT skills Presentation Skills
Working to a Essay Deadline	Time Management Planning Ahead Ability to Prioritise Organisation ability

Hobbies	Skills Gained
Member of Sports Team	Planning how to Succeed Setting Objectives Being Committed Team Work ( a major element in most work environments)
Travelling overseas with friends	Planning & Negotiating Budgeting Getting on with others travelling with you Broadened Horizons and greater overall perspective
Organising an Event, such as a Fundraiser, Charity Event or Ball	Being Innovative Attracting Support Preparing Publicity Making a Profit

Work Experience (e.g. Restaurant Work, Clerical Work or Promotional Work)	Work Skills Gained
Taking Orders or Messages. Answering Phones	Developing Customer Relations Persuasive Skills
Delivering Orders to Kitchen. Relaying messages. Meeting targets.	Communication Skills Writing Clearly Email Communication Working with others
Serving Food, Filing, Running Errands for Bosses.	Being Organised Listening to People Taking Orders

Use the above lists as a template to how your experience can be translated into attractive skills and abilities. These will improve your CV and increase the likelihood that an employer will notice your resume. Graduates often have bountiful skills that go unmentioned in a CV, by using these guidelines you can portray these skills and bolster the attractiveness of your CV.

Remember to check out the graduate opportunities that exist on AgCareers.com.

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