Minimalist CV example

If you want to land a top job, you must start by writing an interview-winning CV. And a minimalist design is perfect for grabbing the attention of busy hiring managers.

So, we have created an example Minimalist CV to inspire you, along with detailed guidance on how to create your own professional CV, that will hook recruiters and get you hired.

 

Guide contents

  • Minimalist CV example
  • Structuring and formatting your CV
  • Writing your CV profile
  • Detailing work experience
  • Your education
  • Skills required for your Minimalist CV

 

 

Minimalist CV example

Minimalist CV 1

Minimalist CV 2

 

This is a good example of a Minimalist CV which is professionally formatted, and structured in a way that allows recruiters to easily find and digest the key information.

Take some time to look at this CV and refer to it throughout the writing of your own CV for best results.

 

 

Minimalist CV structure and format

If you focus purely on the written content of your CV but ignore the style and layout, your efforts could end up wasted.

No matter how suitable you are for the role, no recruiter wants to spend time squinting and trying to navigate a badly designed and disorganised CV.

Instead, make sure to organise your content into a simple structure and spend some time formatting it for ease of reading – it will ensure every recruiter and hiring manager can read your CV with ease.

 

CV structure

 

Formatting Tips

  • Length: Two sides of A4 makes for the perfect CV length, though one page is okay for less experienced applicants. This forces you to make sure that every single sentence adds value to your CV and ensures you avoid waffle.
  • Readability: Columns, lists, bullet points, bold text and subtle colour can all help to aid the readability of your CV. Your overarching goal should be to make the content as easy to read and navigate as possible, whilst also aiming to make your key skills and achievements stand out.
  • Design: The saying ‘less is more’ couldn’t be more applicable to CVs. Readability is key, so avoid overly complicated designs and graphics. A subtle colour palette and easy-to-read font is all you need!
  • Avoid photos: It’s tempting to add a profile photo or images to your CV, especially if you’re struggling to fill up the page – but it’s best avoided! They won’t add any value to your application and, as are not a requirement the UK, so recruiters do not expect it, or want to see it.

 

CV builder

 

Structuring your CV

For easy reading, write your CV to the following CV structure:

  • Contact details – Make it easy for recruiters to get in touch with you by listing your contact details at the top of your CV.
  • Profile – A short and snappy summary of your experience and skills, showcasing what makes you a good fit for the position.
  • Work experience / career history – Note down all your work history, with your current position first, then working backwards.
  • Education – A short list of your academic background and professional/vocational qualifications.
  • Interest and hobbies – This is an optional section, which you can use to highlight any relevant hobbies or interests.

Now I’ll guide you through exactly what you should include in each CV section.

 

 

CV Contact Details

Contact details

 

Kick-start your CV with your contact details, so recruiters can get in touch easily.
Here’s what you should include:

  • Mobile number
  • Email address – Make sure it’s professional, with no silly nicknames.
  • Location – Your town or city is sufficient, rather than a full address.
  • LinkedIn profile or portfolio URL – Ensure they’ve been updated and are looking slick and professional.

Quick tip: Avoid listing your date of birth, marital status or other irrelevant details – they’re unnecessary at this stage.

 

 

Minimalist CV Profile

Recruiters and hiring managers are busy, so it’s essential to catch their attention from the get-go.

A strong introductory profile (or personal statement, for junior candidates) at the top of the CV is the first thing they’ll read, so it’s a great chance to make an impression.

It should be a short but punchy summary of your key skills, relevant experience and accomplishments.

Ultimately, it should explain why you’re a great fit for the role you’re applying for and inspire recruiters to read the rest of your CV.

 

CV profile

 

Tips for creating an impactful CV profile:

  • Keep it brief: Aim for a short, snappy paragraph of 3-5 lines. This is just enough room to showcase why you’d make the perfect hire, without going into excessive detail and overwhelming busy recruiters.
  • Tailor it: The biggest CV mistake? A generic, mass-produced document which is sent out to tens of employers. If you want to land an interview, you need to tailor your CV profile (and your application as a whole) to the specific roles you’re applying for. So, before you start writing, remember to read over those job descriptions and make a list of the skills, knowledge and experience the employers are looking for.
  • Don’t add an objective: Want to talk about your career goals and objectives? While the profile may seem like a good space to do so, they’re actually much better suited to your cover letter.
  • Avoid cliches: If there’s one thing that’ll annoy a recruiter, it’s a clichè-packed CV. Focus on showcasing your hard skills, experience and the results you’ve gained in previous roles, which will impress recruiters far more.

 

What to include in your Minimalist CV profile?

  • Summary of experience: Start with a brief summary of your relevant experience so far. How many years experience do you have? What type of companies have you worked for? What industries/sectors have you worked in? What are your specialisms?
  • Relevant skills: Employers need to know what skills you can bring to their organisation, and ideally they want to see skills that match their job vacancy. So, research your target roles thoroughly and add the most important skills to your profile.
  • Essential qualifications: If the jobs you are applying to require candidates to have certain qualifications, then you must add them in your profile to ensure they are seen by hiring managers.

Quick tip: Even the best of writers can overlook typos and spelling mistakes. Use our quick-and-easy CV Builder to add pre-written content that has been created by recruitment experts, and proofread by our team.

 

Core skills section

Next, you should create a bullet pointed list of your core skills, formatted into 2-3 columns.

Here, you should focus on including the most important skills or knowledge listed in the job advertisement.

This will instantly prove that you’re an ideal candidate, even if a recruiter only has time to briefly scan your CV.

 

CV core skills

 

CV builder

 

Work experience/Career history

Now that recruiters have a good overview of your skills and abilities, you need to jump into the detail of your career history.

Give them a more thorough insight into what you can do by creating a detailed list of your relevant experience.

Start with your current role, and work backwards through all the relevant positions you’ve held.
This could be freelance, contract or voluntary work too; as long as it’s related to the role you’re applying for.

 
Work experience
 

Structuring your roles

Lengthy, unbroken chunks of text is a recruiters worst nightmare, but your work experience section can easily end up looking like that if you are not careful.

To avoid this, use my tried-and-tested 3-step structure, as illustrated below:

 
Role descriptions
 

Outline

Begin with a summary of your role, detailing what the purpose of your job was, who you reported to and what size of team you were part of (or led).

 

Key responsibilities

Follow with a snappy list of bullet points, detailing your daily duties and responsibilities.

Tailor it to the role you’re applying for by mentioning how you put the target employer’s desired hard skills and knowledge to use in this role.

 

Key achievements

To finish off each role and prove the impact you made, list 1-3 stand out achievements, results or accomplishments.

This could be anything which had a positive outcome for the company you worked for, or perhaps a client/customer.
Where applicable, quantify your examples with facts and figures.

 

 

Education

Next up, you should list your education and qualifications.

This can include your formal qualifications (a degree, A-Levels and GCSEs), as well as sector-specific qualifications and/or training.

While school leavers and recent grads should include a lot of detail here to make up for the lack of work experience, experienced candidates may benefit from a shorter education section, as your work experience section will be more important to recruiters.

 

 

Interests and hobbies

This section is entirely optional, so you’ll have to use your own judgement to figure out if it’s worth including.

If your hobbies and interests could make you appear more suitable for your dream job, then they are definitely worth adding.

Interests which are related to the industry, or hobbies like sports teams or volunteering, which display valuable transferable skills might be worth including.

 

CV builder

 

Writing your Minimalist CV

A strong, compelling CV is essential to get noticed and land interviews with the best employers.

To ensure your CV stands out from the competition, make sure to tailor it to your target role and pack it with sector-specific skills and results.

Remember to triple-check for spelling and grammar errors before hitting send.

Good luck with the job search!