CV layout/presentation is a much-discussed topic that will have you running in a dozen different directions if you listened to every bit of advice dished out by every crew agent you spoke to. That said there are some clear no no’s to avoid and also some fairly obvious YES’s (but many have fallen victim to not doing these!)
This isn’t rocket science but judging by a fair few of your CVs that we see, you would think writing a good CV was akin to writing a dissertation in Physics!
Let’s be honest, January and February are not busy times for Yachts recruiting ‘green’ crew. We have had well over 250 green yachties register with us since the New Year and had a grand total of 7 jobs that will consider crew with no experience – Which is actually higher than the last 2 months of 2018 of which we had 0 jobs for candidates with no experience. Maths isn’t my strong point but even I know that the odds are not in your favour for landing that dream role. This is why I’m writing this blog, because it’s so important that your CV ‘sells’ you to your true potential and makes you stand out from the crowd for all the right reasons.
So how do you project all of your worldly experience into 2 pages and make it stand out?
Make your CV clear and concise!
The layout of your CV in my opinion is the most important part. That rule that an interviewer will have made up their mind within the first few minutes of an interview is even more relevant for your CV; a simple YES or NO will probably be made in seconds.
Don’t use text boxes! These more often than not get altered, so by the time I am looking at it on my lap top, it’s a mess! I don’t have time to be editing CVs to make them legible to a client either!
Also make sure your CV is in a Word document, PDF’s can be difficult to receive as an agent because we would want to be able to edit them with ease.
A well-spaced out, logical lay out is much better and at a glance I should be able to see the following with ease:
Name | DOB | Nationality | Visa details | Location | Availability
Yachting experience (most recent first)
Yacht name | Size of vessel | Position onboard | Dates (accurate Month & year)
Interests – please only genuine ones! I once had a Stew called out on her love of piano and singing and she got asked to perform on a grand piano in the Main Salon during her interview. Fortunately, it was true, but it would have been hideously embarrassing had it not been.
Reference details
Your photo
Where do we start with this one…
Now a selfie is not appropriate, neither is a picture of you on a night out or with your shirt off! (Genuinely found one of those this week… he was a chef in case you’re wondering)
The background is less important too. Find a plain wall at home, put on a plain t shirt/shirt/polo and get your friend/parent/next door neighbour to take a smiley picture of you! If you’re female: CV photo’s look better if the candidate has their hair up, wears natural make up with no ‘pout’. If you’re male, make sure you are cleanly shaved with smart hair. Unfortunately, most of us aren’t gifted with being hugely photogenic however a smiley disposition will go a long way to having a prospective employer read your CV.
Details, details, details!
Yachting is all about DETAIL!! Please get your CV proof read by any one that will spare you 5 minutes to do so.
Make sure your phone number is correct, your email address is perfect, and you have spell checked every word! Especially keep an eye out for any words you may have typed in capital letters.
We had a candidate recently tell us all about her morning shift at the hotel she worked in… only she omitted the letter ‘f’ in the word ‘shift’… We laughed (a lot) in the office but on a more serious note, it certainly wasn’t the impression she was hoping to have on us and I expect she was also mortified!
There is plenty of room for new crew in this industry and we welcome you with open arms but PLEASE don’t make silly mistakes!
Good luck to everyone joining 2019! We’re looking forward to working with some of you in the coming Summer season.
