Use this worksheet to turn a blank page into a CV draft. It focuses on gathering and writing your own evidence. For conventions such as section order, personal details and UK presentation, use the UK CV format guide.
Start with a real vacancy if you have one. Follow its instructions about application forms, required documents and length. A CV cannot replace a form the employer explicitly requests.
1. Make an evidence list before choosing a design
Copy these prompts into a document. Short notes are enough at this stage.
ROLE OR TYPE OF WORK I AM TARGETING:
THREE IMPORTANT REQUIREMENTS FROM THE VACANCY:
1.
2.
3.
WHERE I HAVE DEMONSTRATED EACH REQUIREMENT:
- Situation or project:
- What I personally did:
- Outcome I can explain:
EMPLOYMENT, STUDY, VOLUNTEERING OR PERSONAL PROJECTS:
- Role / activity:
- Organisation, where relevant:
- Accurate dates:
- Relevant responsibilities and examples:
QUALIFICATIONS AND TRAINING:
- Exact qualification and status:
- Institution / provider:
- Completion date, or expected date if still studying:
Do not invent work experience to fill an empty section. A student project, caring responsibility or volunteering activity can offer relevant evidence when you describe it accurately. See the work-experience CV guide for an early-career starting point.
Build a CV that actually gets interviews
Start from your current CV — or from scratch — with step-by-step guidance so you do not get stuck.
Free. No blank page. No templates to wrestle with.
2. Turn one note into a useful bullet
A practical pattern is action + context + outcome, where the outcome can be described honestly. You do not need a percentage in every bullet.
Rough note: “Helped organise society events.”
More specific fictional example: “Coordinated room bookings and joining instructions for three student society events, keeping the committee informed when arrangements changed.”
The revised version explains what the person did. Use a number only if it is accurate. If your work was part of a team effort, separate your contribution from the team's result.
Try the same process with three of your notes:
| Rough note | Detail to recover | Drafting prompt |
|---|---|---|
| Helped customers | Type of enquiry and action taken | Responded to… and recorded… |
| Worked on a project | Your responsibility and deliverable | Built / prepared / researched… for… |
| Improved a process | What changed and how you know | Revised… after identifying… |
For more worked structures, use the resume bullet-point guide.
3. Assemble a simple first draft
YOUR NAME
[City or region] | [Email] | [Phone] | [Relevant portfolio link]
PROFILE — optional
[Your current background] with experience in [relevant work].
[One specific strength supported by your experience].
EXPERIENCE
[Role or activity] | [Organisation] | [Dates]
- [Relevant action, context and outcome]
- [Second example showing another requirement]
EDUCATION AND TRAINING
[Qualification and status] | [Provider] | [Date]
RELEVANT SKILLS
[Skill] — [brief evidence or context]
Move education above experience if it provides your strongest relevant evidence. Remove prompts and empty sections before submitting. The student summary examples and resume skills guide can help when those sections feel vague.
4. Write the profile last
Once the evidence is on the page, decide whether a short profile will add useful context. Do not use it to repeat broad claims such as “hard-working team player”.
A fictional starting point:
Business graduate with experience coordinating student events and handling customer enquiries in a weekend retail role. Brings careful record-keeping and clear written communication to an entry-level operations position.
Replace every detail with your own background. If the profile adds nothing useful, omit it and give the space to stronger evidence.
5. Compare the draft with the vacancy
Read each important requirement and point to the evidence in your CV. A missing match is a prompt to check your experience, not to add a skill you do not have.
- Can a reader tell what work you actually did?
- Are the dates, qualification names and completion statuses accurate?
- Have you used the employer's terminology where it truthfully describes your experience?
- Are any claims too broad to explain at interview?
- Have you removed confidential details and unnecessary personal information?
If you need a document layout, use the editable Google Docs CV template. You can also build and edit your CV in CV Anywhere.
6. Check the actual file you will send
Download the requested format, reopen it and inspect every page. Check headings, line breaks, dates, links and whether text can be selected. Give the file a clear name and check that you attached the intended version.
A polished draft is a starting point for a specific application. Save the vacancy and the version you used so you can prepare for an interview from the same evidence.