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Questions about writing a good CV for work applications?

I want to know if a CV should stand on one page or more because I cant fit all the required information on a single A4 page.Can someone direct me to good websites about creating a good CV

Public Comments

1. I am a fan of the functional style or the hybrid. I used to be a recruiter and I looked at lots of resumes. Try using a summary of your skills at the top. It is best if it fits on one page but if you are older and have had a lot of experience sometimes two pages is fine.
2. So, you have a blank word processor window open in front of you. You have decided to write your CV. What do you do?! It can be a daunting process, and make no mistake, it will take some time. But it is time very well spent - this is what you are going to use to 'sell' yourself in the majority of jobs that you go for, in order to convince them that they need to interview you... Read on... (a) Personal details This is information such as your address, name, marital status, nationality, date of birth. All the essential information that they need to know. If you have more than one address, given them along with the times that you can be contacted at both. Include phone numbers and email addresses if you have them. Remember that you should not write 'curriculum vitae' across the top of your CV - they know what a CV is! Rather you should have your name across the top of the CV. Give the names of the institutions you have attended as the heading, and the exam results you have got under those headings. Remember to write, e.g. 'Leeds University', rather than just 'Leeds'. Include awards and prizes that you have achieved during your education in this section. Did you achieve a prize for outstanding performance at GCSE? If so, say so. Remember to say what year you took the exams in. With GCSEs, you often don't need to list all the subjects, but simply say that you have, for instance, 11 GCSEs, 10 at Grade C and above, or whatever is relevant for you. As well as listing the jobs you have done, starting at the top of the list with the most recent job that you have done, you should say what the role involved - job title alone is very general and not particularly useful. Try and show how you developed the skills necessary for the new job in this section. Be specific, therefore and give examples of what you have done and what you have achieved. Emphasise parts of work experience most relevant to the employer's specific interests with regard to your capability as a potential employee. This section, which includes hobbies, is your chance to show that you have a diverse and balanced life, full of interesting things. Whilst you may enjoy reading, it is not a good idea to list too many passive parts of your life here; so if you really enjoy sitting in front of the TV and watching films, then don't say this. Include 'positive', active things that you do - for instance sports that you play. If you have travelled, then include this here and make it sound interesting. If you spent a few months last summer going round Australia laying on beaches, then at least make it sound good: 'this Summer I achieved one of my goals, which was to travel independently around Australia, seeing it's many sights and experiencing that very unique Australian culture'. Again, you should try and give information relevant to the job. Indicate to what level you have done something. So don't just say 'swimming', but 'several times a week I practice my swimming at the local club', or substitute 'I like playing tennis' to 'I have been an avid tennis fan and as such have played for ten years, including a successful period in the county squad'. You may also be required to give referees at this stage, if you are unsure then phone up to check. Many employers do not require referees at this stage; if you are asked for them, then give their full contact detials, and say what relationship they have with you - old music teacher? Old headmaster? If you are at university, then make sure that you give one academic and one work experience referee where practicable, so that the company can have two different viewpoints on you when it comes to deciding whether to offer you that job or not. Also make sure that you ask the referee's permission to be used as a referee - it is rather rude just to list them, and they are sure not to be overkeen to do you justice when a form arrives on their desk unsolicited asking for information on your relationship with that invidivual, and requesting that they give you a glowing reference! So, those are the areas that should be discussed in the CV. you should aim for a good, clear layout. Try not to write in long sentences, but keep this short, concise and to the point. There is no space for rambling. Avoid fancy fonts and layouts, something simple will do. Highlight headings in bold or capitals. Sometimes if you really think a word is important, then use bold. But don't use italic or underlining. Make sure that tables are laid out correctly. Make sure that all time in your recent history is accounted for somewhere or other - any 'gaps' will appear suspicious; if there is no account for what you did from 1997-2000, for instance, then they will most probably smell a rat. As already mentioned, arrange information in reverse chronological order, so that most recent (and make sure they are most impressive) details about you come first. Even if you have shown the same skills in each placement, then make sure that the ones you consider most relevant and most important for the jobs are the ones that you highlight in your most recent placement, that way they will stand out and it will look like you have developed them recently which will definitely be a good point in the eyes of whoever reads the CV. Make sure that the CV is readable - do not go smaller than 10 point text. If you need to, then consider going over to a second page or cutting something out. Never go under 10 point. Make sure that headings are not too large. They need to be prominent above the text but not dwarf them, nor indeed fill up too much space. Remember that the space below a heading should be as large as the space between each paragraph. Use consistent styles of headings, and size of headings throughout. It looks messy if for one section you have a size 18 arial heading, then elsewhere a size 14 point times roman, for instance. Consistency is king. When you bracket, bracket on both sides (z) not z); as you can see (z) is much clearer. If you are using bullet points, use a familiar form throughout, not small circles at one stage, arrows at another and hyphens at another. Indent consistently. If you have an area of dense text which you cannot avoid, then try to bullet point it, or indent sufficiently so as to try and break it up a little and make it more readable. Layout is very important. A messy CV is unlikely to get read or cause a good impression, no matter how good the content of the CV.