The 10 worst CV crimes, ranked in order of gravity
Your CV is the first place the majority of recruiters and hiring managers learn of your existence – but it turns out many people still commit heinous crimes on their resumes.
Now research by job site CV-Library has identified the worst mistakes putting recruiters off CVs. Not surprisingly, the gravest CV error is spelling mistakes, which 71 per cent of those in charge of hiring in businesses said had put them off.
And although the old adage encourages people to "reach for the stars", that's not necessarily true when it comes to applying for a job: 63 per cent of organisations said they had been put off by candidates who are "massively under-qualified for the role" (although we can't fault their ambition).
Clinching the third spot was "lists of unrelated skills", which 40 per cent said was offputting.
Read more: Your CV has a bigger problem than over-use of buzzwords
| Crime | Gravity | |
| 1. | Spelling mistakes | 71% |
| 2. | Being massively under-qualified for the role | 63% |
| 3. | Lists of unrelated skills | 40% |
| 4. | Too many jobs over a short period of time | 23% |
| 5. | A CV that's more than two pages long | 16% |
| 6. | A picture | 14.2 |
| 7. | Too many buzzwords | 13% |
| 8. | A CV that is "too creative" | 13% |
| 9. | No cover letter | 7% |
| 10. | No social media presence | 2% |
Last year a survey by CV writing service StandoutCV listed the verbs employers want to see on your resume – with 92 per cent saying the word "managed" was the most crucial, because it shows recruiters a candidate has control over their responsibilities and is able to drive results.
Some 65 per cent said they approved of candidates who used the word "negotiated" on their CV – while "delivered", "improved" and "reduced" were all listed among the top words recruiters were looking for.
Read more: Your CV is probably missing this killer piece of information