It’s been months since you started your job search and you haven’t had much luck with existing applications so far? Or you’re just starting to pave your way career-wise and want to upgrade your CV-writing skills to land your first job successfully? Whatever the reason is, you’re on the right way here. Even though experts say that the labour market in Britain has been cooling down recently, it still requires extra effort to be noticed and chosen by British recruiters. The very first step is creating a professional CV.
It might be hard, but definitely not impossible! With the help of our best CV templates, your chances of being noticed substantially improve. Make yourself comfortable and let’s dive into a magical world of effective CV creation!

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Elevate Your Job Search with Expertly Crafted CVs

As we’ve mentioned, the British job market is loosening indeed: there were 989,000 vacancies in August 2023, which was the first time since 2021 that vacancies were under 1 million. However, while loosening, it’s tightening at the same time. Recruitment is slowing down: compared with 2022, vacancies are down by around 30%.

These rates can hardly be surprising considering the challenging economic environment we’re currently in, shrinking birth rates, and the rise in early retirees. These conditions put recruiters under big pressure: businesses want to have fewer employees but the ones who are more skillful. Recruiters, in turn, have to be more picky, screen more candidates, give more rejections, and overall apply tougher lending criteria. A well-crafted, professional CV is one of such criteria, and here is why.

The Importance of a Well-Designed CV

It’s not a secret that recruiters and HR managers are extremely busy folks. To help them with the mountains of applications, ATS or Applicant Tracking Systems was created. It’s a so-called CV scanner that picks those CVs that make the best match with the job requirements. The idea is great, and we all know how well AI can assist us with our work routine tasks. However, every cloud has a silver lining, ATS software included: it doesn’t recognise poorly designed CVs. This is why you might be getting no reply for your applications: recruiters simply don’t see your CV as ATS didn’t consider it relevant.

‘How to make my CV well-designed and relevant?’, you may ask. We’ve collected some simple but workable tips on how to create a perfect CV and also prepared several templates that are bound to help you create a job-winning CV and land your dream job! Let’s get started.

Discover Our Range of Free CV Templates

It’s not that often that you can find decent free CV templates. Here, we’ve come up with three different CV templates that include a traditional CV template, a CV template for a modern profession, and a UK CV template tailored for a managerial position. All our CV templates are up-to-date and professional. At the same time, they are very simple to recreate, as we provide real CV examples to get inspiration from. We’re sure you’ll find the right CV template for yourself!

Classic Templates for Timeless Elegance

The qualities that make a classic CV template the best CV template comprise being clear, straightforward, and easy to navigate. You’ll never miscalculate choosing a classic CV template for your document in terms of design too: a mixture of bold and standard weight lettering and capitalisation add emphasis but don’t distract the reader’s attention. Here is our free classic CV template filling.

Free CV template 1

Thomas Luster
0115 496 0855
thluster@gmail.com

Personal statement

As a passionate and dedicated English teacher, I am committed to developing a love for the English language in my students. My Master’s degree in Philology combined with 5 years of practical experience in the classroom help me create engaging and interactive lessons by applying various teaching techniques. I do believe I can inspire and guide the students of the Happy Speakers School on their way to becoming confident and articulate communicators and achieving their learning goals and dreams.

Employment history

Teacher of English

Speak to Peak, London

September 2018–Present

Improved student engagement and participation by incorporating more multimedia resources and interactive activities in the classroom;

Introduced more extended and constructive feedback to give students a better understanding of their areas for improvement and further action plans;

Students under my guidance demonstrated on average 20% increase in their performance at the end of the academic year;

Founded Drama club to provide students with extra opportunities to further develop their language skills outside of the classroom.

Education

Lancaster University, June 2018

Language and Linguistics MA

Skills

Communication: Finding an individual approach to every student;

Feedback: Providing constructive feedback to motivate but not discourage;

Organisation: By being always prepared for classes in advance, I also set an example for my students;

Conflict Management: Finding solutions to resolve conflicts between students in a healthy way;

Public Speaking: A confident speaker with my own secrets to attract and keep students’ attention.

Certificates

Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (CELTA), awarded by Cambridge Assessment English

Modern Designs for Cutting-Edge Professions

Do you want to go a bit aside from the classics and make your CV stand out from other candidates? Use a colourful block on the left of the document where you put the information you’d like the reader to notice first. It’s not basic anymore but still easy to navigate. However, be careful: choose colours that won’t set the reader’s teeth on edge. Have a look at our free modern template filling for cutting-edge professions.

Free CV template 2

Name
Telephone number
Professional email address
Social media profiles links

Personal Statement
As an experienced Machine Learning Engineer with a proven track record of developing innovative solutions for machine learning algorithms, I am looking forward to applying my expertise to drive impactful projects towards success in such a forward-thinking company as New Tech Solutions.

Professional Experience

Machine Learning Engineer, Company, Years of service

Implemented a real-time fraud detection model that helped to reduce fraudulent transactions by 30%;

Together with cross-functional teams, deployed a natural language processing chatbot that has enhanced customer support efficiency by 45%;

Developed instructions and algorithms for 40 newly installed hardware to convert production from manual to 100% computer-controlled;

Identified and resolved issues of network performance degradation and, therefore, increased system availability from 55% to 98%.

Skills

Technical

Deep Learning (Advanced)

Statistical Analysis

Algorithms

Neural Network Architectures

Natural Language Processing

Add any other relevant skills

Soft Skills

Communication skills: Can clearly communicate the project goals, timelines, and expectations to cross-functional teams and stakeholders;

Problem-solving skills: Think critically and creatively about issues regardless of the circumstances they arise in;

Time management. Effectively juggle such responsibilities as performing research, organising and leading projects, and designing and testing software.

Teamwork. Effectively collaborate with other teams and contribute to a supportive work environment.

Education

University Name, year of graduation

Specialisation, Degree

Certifications/Publications/Awards

Add if applicable

Programming languages

Add if applicable

Tailored CVs for Specialized Careers

If you aim at a managerial role, your CV has to exude confidence, and it’s not only about what your CV looks like. You should present information in it so that you don’t underscore your professionalism. Here is our CV layout variant for a managerial position to impress recruiters of even the pickiest kind!

Free CV template 3

Name
Telephone number
Professional email address
LinkedIn profile link

Personal Statement

A Senior Manager who is committed to driving organizational growth and strives for operational excellence. My strategic vision and dynamic leadership style have brought companies to new heights of profitability and prosperity. I am excited to apply my knowledge and skills to contribute to Smart Sights’ sustainable growth despite how challenging the market conditions are.

Work Experience (include as many relevant jobs as needed)

Senior Sales Manager, 2019-Present

Company name, location

Addressed the declining sales performance by implementing a brand new strategy of customer communication that led to achieving annual sales target within the first 8 months;

Based on the deep analysis of competitors, developed strategies to counteract their efforts that have resulted in a 14% increase in market share;

Developed, led, and mentored a team of 100 sales professionals;

Introduced a new concept of team-building activities, thus improving engagement and fostering a more collaborative work environment. It resulted in a 20% boost in overall productivity.

Skills

Hard

Developing and implementing sales strategies

Analysing the market and researching competitors

Customer relationship management

Budget management and financial analysis

Soft

Communication and negotiation skills

Time management and organisation skills

Adaptability

Problem-solving

Risk management

Leadership and mentoring

Education

University Name, year of graduation

Specialisation, Degree

Awards/Licenses/Certificates

ICDL Professional
ICDL Workforce

Tips and Guidance from Seasoned Professionals

Finally, having searched the Internet, we’ve come up with some more valuable pieces of advice from real CV pros for your convenience.

Expert Advice on CV Writing

Accomplishments are king: While the majority of inexperienced job seekers will write long lists of responsibilities they had, be different: reveal your accomplishments. To make it even more effective, define the keywords in the job description and include them in your text. This skills-based CV writing trick will help you get noticed by the notorious resume screening software.
Feel free to articulate your value: Recognising your worth is not only a sign of your healthy self-esteem. It also indicates that you clearly understand how exactly your presence can contribute and add value to the company.
Focus on recent achievements: Industries, trends, and approaches are developing at lightning speed. For this reason, employers will be more interested in learning about your recent achievements. Why? Firstly, they tend to reflect your up-to-date skills and knowledge. Secondly, they demonstrate your ability to adapt to a fast-paced world and ever-evolving professional landscape.
Make it professional and personal at the same time: Employers seek professionals, however, a professional whose personality matches the team or company’s passions, values, and culture automatically becomes an asset. Let your unique personality shine through your qualifications and professionalism. It will demonstrate that not only are you a capable professional but also one who can contribute positively to the team dynamics and work environment on the whole.
Use data-driven statements to prove your accomplishments: A CV can catch an employer’s attention only if the information inside looks legitimate. Use numbers to prove that your success stories are real cases from your professional past, for instance: boosted inversion by …%, the overall exam score of my students is …, or increased brand recognition by …%.
Frame it around the role and the company you are aiming at: An employer is looking for a new employee to solve some problems. Use your CV as a tool to prove your ability to do it. If your CV doesn’t state it clearly enough, the employer will hardly make any guesses. They will just put your CV in the ‘trash bin’ pile and move on. Therefore, making your CV customized is crucial, including only those skills and accomplishments that are relevant to the role.
Keep your social media neat: Employers do watch their candidates’ LinkedIn, Instagram, and TikTok accounts. Of course, it’s your personal space, and you can do whatever you want there. However, just keep in mind that the wrong content, especially if your social media profiles are supposed to represent you as a professional, may well turn things on their head.

Tailoring Your CV for UK Job Market Success

And here are some ideas on how to build your CV in such a way that it meets particularly the UK job market requirements.

Such personal data as birth date, marital status, or nationality may be too personal. According to the Equality Act 2010, employees are under strong protection from discrimination in the workplace. This fact makes discussing such points as age, gender, or nationality within the interviewing process inappropriate. There is no need to include them.
For the same reason, including your photo in your CV is a no-go. The exception is when an employer requests it. Read the job advertisement carefully or do some research about the company to introduce your candidacy in the best light possible.
If you are applying for UK jobs, it’s vital to stick to British spelling and punctuation rules throughout the document. Mixing American and British English spelling rules is the worst. If you aren’t completely sure about it, we highly recommend using spelling checker tools.
Your letter has to be of proper length as well. As a rule of thumb, it’s one page for freshly graduated or junior employees, two pages is just a standard length, and up to three pages for mid to executive-level employees with lots of relevant experience. CVs for academic positions may well be even longer, provided that a candidate has an impressive list of academic achievements, awards, hours, or publications. Anyway, the priority is to make the document as informative and comprehensive as possible so that you can avoid selling yourself short.
Writing your career objective (a career objective of any candidate is obviously to receive the job offer) has gone to oblivion, so don’t make a mistake by applying outdated trends to your CV. Write a professional summary instead: an overview of your expertise and the value you can bring to the company in the role you’re applying for.
Adding your interests and hobbies section makes more sense than you may think when crafting a CV for the UK job market. Your hobbies can tell a lot about both your personality and professional self. For instance, such sports as running or swimming may be indicative of tenacity and perseverance; drawing or photography about your creativity; extreme sports about your enthusiasm and openness to taking risks. This may serve as an additional layer of depth to your CV and provide opportunities for finding common ground during the interview.
You may find mastering the CV-writing craft to be too time-consuming, however, it’s not an excuse to neglect it. Just resort to an online CV builder. Various CV-building websites offer a wide range of free CV templates, including a creative CV template or a modern CV template, and you don’t have to bother with the CV structure: you just add relevant information, and the program gives you a well-structured document available for free download.

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