How Can You Maximise the Visual Impact of a CV?
Our brains are hardwired to process visual content in the “blink” of an eye. Some research has suggested that we process visuals 60,000 times faster than text. The visual impact of a CV will be processed by any hiring manager.
Yet, in the job search world, convention still rules. Infographic CVs are rare, so traditional CVs are still jam-packed with text. The words you choose could make or break your chances, but so could the visual “look” of your CV.
A hiring manager will form an impression of your candidature the moment they open the CV. They will likely have read hundreds of CVs over their career, and they will associate successful candidates with visually effective career documents. The first job of a CV is to impress enough to secure an interview, but it is at the interview itself that the visuals come into play. Some hiring managers might print directly from the ATS, but most thoughtful bosses will think to print the original.
The visual impact of your CV matters more than you think.
Most candidates will send their CV in PDF format unless employers requested a Word document. Many use specialist CV builders (ensure they are ATS friendly). The most important aspect of professional CV design is to allow enough white space for the brain to take a “break” between each section.
Firstly, you shouldn’t underestimate the role of white space in a CV. Enough white space offers mental breathing space, so think about the size of the margins, line spacing, font sizes and styles. There is no standard here, but here are a few suggestions.
Fonts and styles
…. Use popular fonts: Calibri, Helvetica, Georgia, Arial, Garamond
…. Typical font size is 12, but you can go one bigger or smaller depending on the font
…. The margins of the document should be similar to the 2.54mm Word standard
…. Use bigger font sizes and bold styling for the main CV headings
…. Keep page transitions clean (try not to split a role over two pages)
…. Organise the header section so that there isn’t too much white space
…. Keep paragraphs short (3-4 lines). Mix up the sentence lengths.
As the section above demonstrates, bullet points are effective in relaying concise information in a visually clear manner. They are perfect for listing accomplishments, but there should still be a mix of free-flowing text and bullets. Your CV needs to “sound” as human as possible.
The order of your CV sections also matters in terms of visuals:
Hiring managers expect to see a 4–5-line summary of your experience at the top of the document. This can include a career objective for career changers, but this should encapsulate the core messages of your application. Some candidates have a core skills section before the work experience, while others want to get into the experience section immediately. Education typically comes last. There is no need to include details of references. A hobbies section is rare.
Visual impact of a CV structure
While this is the standard structure of a CV, there are three distinct format options:
Reverse-chronological CV. The reverse-chronological CV lists a candidate’s work experience in order – starting with the most recent roles. Their relevant accomplishments are then detailed for each position. This is the most common (and generally recommended) format as employers are interested in the most recent experiences, but there are other valid options.
Functional CV. While the functional CV should still include a list of positions with dates and employers, the bulk of the document focuses on individual skills from multiple positions (with accompanying achievements). This format is helpful if you are looking to change careers or if you have limited work experience and wish to highlight your potential fit.
Combination CV. Some job seekers write a more extended skills-based section at the beginning of the CV after the summary, with each position detailed in reverse-chronological style afterwards. This hybrid variant is not typical but may be used as an alternative if a candidate wishes to highlight a particular skill set that may be lost in a typical CV.
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This blog is shared with Job Seeker Duetists.
Written by former recruitment ghostwriter Paul Drury (not AI).
