I often have people contact me looking for personalised CV or interview technique advice. As a rule, I like to be a helpful person and I am particularly keen to encourage graduates to pursue a career in PR, but it takes a tremendous amount of time to offer personalised advice to each request. On average, it takes around an hour to give constructive criticism on a CV, or to interview someone and give them detailed feedback.
As I am freelance, every hour I give away for free means I am not earning money from a client; whether that be my main client, the Taylor Bennett Foundation, or any of the recruitment, training, speaking or writing projects I take on. I have a family to support and a mortgage to pay, so as much as I love helping with career guidance, I need to pay the bills too.
So in the spirit of being helpful, here are a few resources you should check out for CV and interview advice:
In the first instance you should read my book How To Get A Job In PR. There are some helpful sections on CVs and interviews which are relevant not only for graduates looking for their first job, but also for seasoned professionals who may need to brush up that side of things. Although I was focussed on helping PR professionals into jobs, both sections have general advice which would be useful no matter which industry you work in. The interview section covers difficult questions, preparing for interviews, what you should ask the interviewer and interview dress codes. The CV section has really detailed chapters and gives guidance on both content and layout. I don’t cover that here on my blog, but I do have some advice on job hopping and hobbies on CVs (also in the book) so the next thing you should do is check out some of my blog posts which cover interviews and CVs:
How to prepare for a PR job interview
The secret to a great interview
Video CVs – are they they future?
What to write in the ‘hobbies’ section of your CV
How to explain job hopping and gaps on your CV
How to describe your job on your CV
If, after reading the book and all those posts, you still want personalised feedback then I can offer that for the following fees:
CV Feedback
– Emailed feedback on CV with detailed constructive criticism on both content and layout, and another final check with comments after you have made any necessary changes to your CV. £65.
Interview technique feedback
– One hour face-to-face interview with feedback on the spot and a detailed follow up written report. £120.
– Half an hour telephone inteview with initial feedback on the spot and a detailed follow up written report. £80.
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