1. Contact details & header
Put your full name, job title, phone number, professional email, city, and a LinkedIn or portfolio link at the very top. Skip your full address, date of birth, and photo unless your country or industry expects one.
CV Writing Guide
How to write a professional CV
A clear, recruiter-tested walkthrough of every CV section, from your header to a clean, ATS-friendly export. Follow these six steps and you'll have an interview-ready CV in under an hour.
Step-by-step guide
2. Professional summary
Write 2 to 4 sentences that sum up who you are, your strongest skills, and what you want. This is the first thing a recruiter reads, so lead with measurable wins ("5 years in retail management, grew store revenue 18%").
3. Work experience
List roles newest-first. For each, add the job title, company, dates, and 3 to 5 bullet points. Start every bullet with an action verb and include numbers wherever you can, because results beat responsibilities.
4. Education
Include your degree or qualification, institution, and year. Recent graduates can place this above work experience and add relevant modules, projects, or grades. Experienced professionals keep it short.
5. Skills
Mix hard skills (software, languages, certifications) with a few soft skills. Match the wording to the job advert so both recruiters and automated screening systems recognise them instantly.
6. Make it ATS-friendly
Most employers screen CVs with software (an ATS) before a human sees them. Use standard section headings, a clean single-column-friendly layout, and real text, not text trapped inside images, so your CV is parsed correctly.
Not sure which layout suits your field? Browse our CV templates to find the right format for your industry. For real-world inspiration, explore CV examples by industry and see how professionals in your field present their experience.
Do's and Don'ts
Do
- Tailor your CV to each job advert using its keywords
- Quantify achievements with numbers and percentages
- Keep it to 1 to 2 pages with plenty of white space
- Proofread carefully, because typos cost interviews
- Save and send as a PDF so formatting never breaks
Don't
- Don't use one generic CV for every application
- Don't write long paragraphs, use short bullets instead
- Don't include irrelevant or very old roles
- Don't lie or exaggerate, it surfaces in interviews
- Don't bury key skills at the very bottom
Let AI write the hard parts
Stuck on your professional summary or how to phrase a bullet point? The CV Meistras AI assistant drafts several options from a few details about your role, so you can pick the wording that sounds like you and refine from there.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How long should a CV be?+
For most people one to two pages is ideal. Recent graduates and those early in their careers should aim for one page; senior professionals with extensive relevant experience can use two.
What's the difference between a CV and a resume?+
In the UK, Europe and much of the world, 'CV' is the everyday term for the one or two page document you send with a job application. In the US a 'resume' means the same short document, while 'CV' refers to a longer academic record. CV Meistras builds the short, application-ready version.
Should I include a photo on my CV?+
It depends on where you're applying. In many European countries a small professional headshot is common, while in the UK, US, and Ireland it's usually left off to avoid bias. CV Meistras lets you toggle a photo on or off per template.
How do I make my CV pass an ATS?+
Use standard section headings (Experience, Education, Skills), keep the layout clean, include keywords from the job advert, and export as a text-based PDF. Every CV Meistras template is built to stay readable by applicant tracking systems.
Can I write my CV for free?+
Yes. You can build, edit, and preview your full CV with CV Meistras for free, and use the AI writing assistant to draft your summary and bullet points before you export.
Ready to build your CV?
Put this guide into practice with a modern, ATS-friendly template and AI writing help, free to start.