Does my CV qualify?

[BoeingOnFinal]

A thread starter on this forum seemed to get a lot of help on his CV, so I wanted to do the same thing. I did not want to hijack his thread, so a new one was made.

I hope that posting this will help others as well as myself.

What do you think of my CV? Is the layout OK? Is the information presented relevant, and is there something missing?

Name of persons, references, schools and work places has been removed for my own safety. :ok:

http://img22.imageshack.us/img22/9774/johndoecv.jpg

[pilotho]

Do you have any achievements outside of aviation?

What kind of duties did you have in your previous jobs? What skills did you need?

Do you speak any other languages?

What kind of interests do you have outside of aviation?

The rest of the stuff seems pretty good.

[Flintstone]

BOF

That's perfect and exactly the sort of thing I described in the other thread. I can skim read that very quickly and decide which pile to put you in. The only thing I would add is a note 'Willing to relocate', assuming you are of course.

Hobbies and interests are nice if you can squeeze them in but to be perfectly blunt at the first stage of selection/filtering nobody really cares. Sad I know but true.

Good luck.

[BoeingOnFinal]

Thank you for the replies. To add more info, should I add another heading like "info" or "other"? I really want to fit everything into one page, which I think is essential. So should I drop something?
Some of the references aren't related to the profession or a previous job, is it then necessary to include?

If I where to add hobbies and activities, are card games (poker), chess and football worth mentioning or are some of those frown upon? (i.e. if poker means gambling and football can cause injuries). I think most of these activities are positive, because they include analytical skills and abilities, and football is a team sport. But they might cause misconception.

I can skim read that very quickly and decide which pile to put you in.And with just a few more years of experience I might even be put in the right pile :ok:

Also: regarding printing CVs, do you really care of the quality of the paper the CV is printed on?

[First.officer]

Boeing, quality of paper is very important i think - should be freshly minted, high denomination bank notes - £50's are preferrable for all UK applications and obviously should be at least 10 pages long ! :E

[Token Bird]

If I were you I'd ditch the italics and the colons, perhaps use bold to highlight the job titles etc.... Centre the titles of each section.

[buzzc152]

Boeing, I think you've got it exactly right. Concise and to the point.

I used to sift through CV's in my old ob...... you wouldn't believe some of them we used to get (I will never forget the 32 page CV......I'm not kidding, 32 pages!!)

Another poster has made a joke about paper quality, but there is a serious point in it. Buy a pack of good quality, thick (posibly textured) paper to print on. I used to put my CV on a slightly cream/off white coloured paper to make it stand out.

Bon chance.

edited to say ; don't forget to include your date of birth/age and availability.

[PPRuNeUser0215]

If you want to save some space and add more info, you could put down your flying experience in a different way.

Something like

Total time: 429 hours PIC: 283 hours Multi Engine: 29 hours

I can't quite represent it here but you get the idea, I hope.

Flintstone mentioned the "willingness to relocate", you may be able find some space for your notice period too (immediately ???).


Still in the "space saving" mode and depending on how much you are valuing the info you want to add (IR, medical dates...), you can replace all the references by "available on request" or similar as it is often the case that you get the interview, pass it and then are asked for references.
Of course if somebody is recommending you or you know someone in the company quite well, it can be of much greater relevance...

Only ideas though... It has to be clear, concise and relevant (which yours is, mine would be a "variant" of yours).
Also you will find that your CV tends to evolve with the perspective you have on the day... Or the company you are targeting.

Good luck.:cool:

[redsnail]

It's pretty good as is, however, is the FNPT a simulator? I would not put that in aircraft types. It could viewed as "padding" which is not good.

If your IR has lapsed, note that but otherwise no need for validity dates etc.

Do not overlook good quality paper. :)

ATPL exam results? Well, you either passed and got them or you didn't. Just say you have them and leave it at that.

Save space for "interests" but keep it simple.
You need to have something to talk about at the interview. :ok:

[mad_jock]

Personally I would try and find a different job title than Social Worker. Youth Protection Worker??

In know its not very PC but I can think of a few people as soon as they spotted that job, your CV would be in the bin and 10 mins of swearing would ensue.

I know in Scandinavia that a social worker is a completely different kettle of fish compared to reputation of the ones in the UK. If your applying to the UK a change of job title might do you some favours.

And personally I always include the highest level of education I obtained. Not grades or anything like that just what you did as your last year in full time education.

I would echo redsnail and say that the other interests are important because that section is the only part which is going to be different to all the other sub 1000hour pilots.

[BoeingOnFinal]

Thank you for all you inputs, I've learned a lot. I've rendered a new sample of the CV, is it an improved version?

Changes: Removed the italic and the border. Put hours and achievements on the same line to save space. Added willing to relocate.

I would echo redsnail and say that the other interests are important because that section is the only part which is going to be different to all the other sub 1000hour pilots.

If I were to add that, would the aforementioned interests suffice?

http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/1033/johndoecv2.jpg

[Piltdown Man]

Smaller the better. Make sure they can find your mobile number and if your are available immediately, say so. I can remember years ago sorting through pilot applications and I could not help but think that many of the hopefuls had gone a bit OTT. Multi-page bound bound tomes printed in colour were not uncommon - but a total waste of money and effort. It not the colour of the bullet that does the damage, it's where it hits. And that's the bit I can't help you with. Best of luck.

PM

[PPRuNeUser0215]

I would space the "horizontal" hours a bit more so it hilights it. PM me and I will send me my CV so you can have a look at it. Not quite yours but an idea to check against what you have in mind.

Plus if in PM you tell me where you are, we might meet up for some "friendly" (which I can be) talks.

[Qbix]

I would remove general information from your CV. It may not sound nice to everybody.

[Halfwayback]

I think it contains just the right amount of apposite information in a good, easy-to-read format. Far better than some that crossed my desk!:ok:

HWB

[kenparry]

I disagree with qbix - you need to say those good things such as first-time passes. It distinguishes you from those who needed multiple attempts, and lifts you up the pile. Also do add when you are available - one day your CV might hit the top of the pile when the reader has a course to fill next week.

Also, specify the authority which issued your licence. JAA or FAA has a major influence on who will employ you.

[PPRuNeUser0215]

I guess with all the responses above, it shows that a CV remains something personal.

In my own experience on both sides of the recruitment fence, I have never been asked or never asked how many attempts it took somebody to pass his IR or written exams.
Got the licence ? Yes/No. Meet the company requirements ? Yes/No. Passed the company tech quizz ? Yes/No. Did well enough in the sim ? Yes/No. Nice enough person so the interview went well ? Yes/No.
That is not to say that it isn't the case that some people do not ask for 1st passes but I have not faced this. So based on that I couldn't care less. Personal experience for a personal CV...
But if you have space on your single side CV to fill (most people struggle to make it fit nicely on single page), then why not putting it. In my eyes it is a low priority so I would only put it if I have already put the essentials (discussed in posts above).

Now is to say that you should never put it on ? No, of course. If you know of a particular company who advertises its preference for 1st passes (not many do) then hey, it has to be shown on your CV. And of course if you feel strongly about it... The only thing, you are not the only one with a 1st pass so by how much it improves your chances in real life ? I am not sure.


Remember, you are pilots, applying for pilot job. This is what's important. Playground activities when you were 12 (or 17 unless you are 18 and have NO experience in whatever) do not bring anything valuable, yet often they seem to take a large amount of space on the page.
Concise and relevant info... Again.

Good point about the Licencing authority... Some bizjets company ask for both JAA and FAA (I guess they fly G teg and N reg aircrafts or they prefer the JAA syllabus but fly N reg planes, etc...). Others ask specifically for a JAA licence (most European operators) or FAA (some local authority make it easier to validate your licence -should you need to expat yourself in these harsh times-.).
Entirely relevant so has to be in your CV with other important bits.

[Akrapovic]

Re: LICENCES

I'd amend this to read 'Licences / Ratings' - SEP. MEP and FI are not licences, they're ratings. MCC is neither a licence or a rating.

Also, there's no such licence as a Frozen ATPL - in my previous airline we had a number of low houred guys call up saying they had a Frozen ATPL - it's just sloppy - be honest, you've got a CPL/IR.

As for glass cockpit experience, I'm not sure if this is a new thing creeping into CVs these days, but is it really necessary?

Might be worth putting your age \ DOB on there too. No one knows how old you are!

Otherwise it's a bit bland - I'd find something else to make you stand out - personal achievements, hobbies / sports, team-working activities etc. Show them you have a life outside of flying perhaps . . . .

[BoeingOnFinal]

Again, thank you for all your help. I've tried my best to accommodate changes that fit your tips, so here is a new try:

I've added: d.o.b, availability, rating in the head-line and course/theory behind MCC/ATPL.

Obviously I can't please everyone, but I think your help has improved my CV to a good enough standard so it will not be binned right away. And I thank you all for that :D

http://img696.imageshack.us/img696/9462/cvjohndoe.jpg

[galleypower]

Quite a good resume. Congratulations. I would certainly look at it if I would be a recruiter. Usually CVs are too long, contain typos and list unnecessary things.
The challenge is to be able to put it on one page! A good example you can also find here (http://www.flightwork.com/resources/downloads.html).

[African Drunk]

I will probably be the only one who says this but please put something interesting down. We get so mant CV's and when going through them we like to know something more than the generic CV. Today we have been going through the 600 we recieved last month.

One low hour pilot went in the "keep pile" as he stated he had worked as a pilots assistance and he had learnt the value of putting the correct papers and coffee on board. It made him different, made us laught and showed he had understood a important part of biz jet flying.