Does your CV shine?

Rob
Hello, I’m Rob. Welcome to 6 Minute English. With me in the studio today isNeil. Hello, Neil!

Neil
Hello there, Rob!

Rob
Now I bet you have an impressive CV, Neil. CV is short for curriculum vitae – that’s a Latin expression we use for thedocument in which people list their work history, education, interests andabilities. In other parts of the English-speaking world it’s called a resume.Now, Neil, I know you are a very good teacher and producer, but does your CVactually shine?

Neil
Well, I hope it’s good enough to impress hiring managers. But it’s a challengeto prove on a piece of paper or online document that you’re really better thanthe other people who are competing for the same position.

Rob
Today we’re talking about CVs and you’ll learn some words related to thistopic, which will especially interest jobseekers – that’s what we call people looking for work.

Neil
Yes, and jobseekers have to worry about having an impressive CV so they getthat call for a job interview.

Rob
Yes, the CV is just the beginning. And, as you mentioned job interviews, I’llask you a question all about this. According to a recent survey, managersdecide quite quickly if they’re going to really consider giving a candidate ajob or not. So, when you go for a job interview how long do you have, onaverage, to make a good enough impression for an employer to hire you? Do youhave…

a) Less than 3 minutes

b) Less than 5 minutes

c) Less than 10 minutes

Neil
Well, I think it’s probably quite short so I’m going to go for: (b) 5 minutes.

Rob
Well, you’ll have the correct answer – the result of this survey – at the endof the programme. But people have done all sorts of unusual things to reach theinterview level. One of them is Briton Daniel Conway, who went from posingshirtless in the street with the phrase “employ me” written on hischest to uploading a video on social media asking to be hired.

Neil
Ah, this video went viral– it meansbecame popular very quickly. In it his daughter appears next to the phrase”give my dad a job”.

Rob
Yes. Daniel Conway tells us about his experience looking for work. Which worddoes he use when he says he wanted to be noticed?

Daniel Conway, former jobseeker
I just thought as a young naive kid that I would kind of walk into a job,but the truth is, you know, there are a lot of good people out there who gotjust as great skills and I realised at that point that you’ve got to stand out and getyour strengths across.

Neil
He uses the phrasal verb to stand out – it means to be more visible than othersin a group so that he can be noticed.

Rob
Dan Conway uses another phrasal verb: get your strengths across – to get something across means to make somethingclear. In this case he wants the employer to understand how good he is as apotential employee, his strengths and his good qualities.

Neil
And did he get a job?

Rob
Well, yes, he did. And I’m glad to say that after four years this 29-year-oldman got a job marketing vitamins!

Neil
Well, we can say that he was good at marketing himself.

Rob
Yes, we can. Well, he was bold and courageous in his attempts to catchpotential employers’ attention. He showed a quality described by career coachCorinne Mills. Listen to what she says and tell me: what is the qualityjobseekers have to show for sure.

Corinne Mills, MD – Personal Career Management
You’ve got to be confident! I mean, if you are not confident about your skillsand abilities, then why should an employer have faith in you? So, don’t be modest. This is your opportunity to really show yourskills and experience and what a great performer you’re gonna be in the job.

Neil
The career coach says you’ve got to be confident! It means self-assured,believe in your capacity to do things. And sometimes we feel that it isn’t niceto say “I’m very good at this” or “I’m wonderful at that”but she advises you not to be modest.

Rob
Exactly. Modest means humble, moderate when talking about your abilities.

Neil
You know, Rob, I’ve got some top tips for people writing their CV.

Rob
OK, well, let’s have them.

Neil
Yes. Here is the first one: you have to be concise – it means brief, give the information in a fewwords. Maybe you could write a brief profile at the top and keep the CV to justtwo pages.

Rob
Thank you. That’s a good bit of advice. And I think you should give evidence ofsuccess in previous jobs. If a presentation you did helped you to get a clientyou should include it there. And be accurate, in other words, be precise and tell the truth.Don’t invent things.

Neil
And you should also remember to check your spelling and grammar!

Rob
Yes, that’s very important! Well, we wish everybody success when writing andsending out their CV, and we hope they are called for a job interview, in whichthey have a very short period of time to leave a good impression…

Neil
Indeed! So how long after all is this period of time, according to your survey?Did I get the answer to the question you asked at the beginning of theprogramme right?

Rob
Well, I asked you: how long do you have on average to make a good enoughimpression for an employer to hire you? Do you have less than 3 minutes, lessthan 5 minutes or less than 10 minutes?

Neil
And I said less than 5 minutes.

Rob
And you’re wrong. The correct answer is actually less than 10 minutes, so you’dhave a little bit longer. Jobseekers have on average just six minutes and 25seconds during the first meeting to impress potential employers. That’saccording to a new study from the website monster.co.uk. And we’re almost outof time. So let’s remember some of the words we said today, Neil.

Neil
CV (curriculum vitae)

viral

to stand out

get your strengths across

confident

modest

concise

accurate

Rob
Thank you. Well, that is it for today. Do log on to www.bbclearningenglish.com to find more 6 Minute English programmes. Untilnext time. Goodbye!

Neil
Bye!

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