Our branch teams read thousands of CVs every year across our 18 Northern Ireland offices. The same handful of problems cost good candidates interviews, and they are all fixable in an afternoon.
Keep it to two pages
Two pages is the standard most Northern Ireland employers expect. Anything longer and the detail that matters gets buried. If you have twenty years of experience, summarise the older roles in one line each and give the space to the last five years.
Lead with a short personal statement
Three or four lines at the top: who you are, what you do, and what you are looking for. Name the sector and the type of contract. "Experienced healthcare assistant with NISCC registration, seeking permanent day shifts within 20 miles of Ballymena" tells a recruiter more than a paragraph of adjectives.
Tailor the CV to the advert
Read the job description and mirror its language. If the advert asks for stock control, forklift experience and shift flexibility, those three things should be visible in your first half page. Most employers now sift with keyword searches, so the words used in the advert matter.
Show results, not duties
Instead of "responsible for stock", write "managed stock for a 40,000 sq ft warehouse with weekly cycle counts". Numbers, sites, team sizes and volumes give an employer something concrete to picture.
Get the practical detail right
- Include a mobile number and an email address you check daily.
- List your driving licence category and whether you have your own transport, which matters for rural roles across Northern Ireland.
- State relevant checks and registrations: AccessNI clearance, NISCC registration, CSR or SafePass cards, or a current CPC.
- Give qualification levels, not just names. See our guide to what Level 2, 3 and 4 actually mean.
Explain gaps briefly and move on
Career breaks are normal. A single line, "Career break for caring responsibilities, 2023 to 2024", removes the question mark. Do not leave a recruiter guessing, and do not over-explain.
Common mistakes we see every week
- A generic CV sent to every advert.
- No dates, or dates that do not add up.
- Photos, graphics and unusual fonts that break applicant tracking systems.
- References listed in full when "references available on request" is enough.
- Typos in the first three lines, which is where they are most likely to be noticed.
Before you send it
Read it aloud, then ask someone else to read it. Save it as a PDF named with your own name, for example "Sarah-Kelly-CV.pdf".
Get a free CV review. Register with us or drop into your nearest branch and a member of our team will go through your CV with you, then match you to live roles. Start with the Career Centre, browse current vacancies or find your local branch.