Look on your CV as the first step of a marketing campaign to a prospective employer. It's your advert and should be:

• when an employer requests one. If an employer asks you to complete an application form - NEVER send a CV in its place.
• if you are making speculative applications for any type of work - permanent or temporary.
• if the ad says, send full details to...

• Always send a covering letter with a CV.
  

• academic qualifications
• accomplishments
• experience
• then, pick out the highlights. Remember, don't underestimate yourself
• check all the dates of school/university attendance
• check dates details of academic and other qualifications

• Two pages at the most. Selectors rarely give CVs more than two minutes on their initial trawl
• If you are a postgrad, you may wish to add an appendix detailing any research or publications. Don't include this in the body of your CV - it will make it too long

• presentation is really important - your CV needs to get its message over quickly
• it should be word processed on good quality paper - photocopying paper is usually a bit thin, but there is no need to go for thick vellum!
• most people stick to white paper - if you do choose a colour, think pastels.
• think about the layout - it needs to be clear and balanced
• keep paragraphs short
• use bullet points
• font size of 10-12 - smaller is difficult to read, larger looks like a primary school project!
• typeface - is a matter of personal taste. In general non-seraphed face (like this - Arial or Univers) is quite modern, easy to read and no-nonsense. Times New Roman is a little more formal and old fashioned, whilst Comic Sans MS is a bit casual! Try not to get carried away - and once you've chosen a font - stick to it!
• lots of underlining and italics can be distracting- use bold instead for headings

• Personal Details
• Education
• Employment or Work Experience
• Responsibilities (and achievements)
• Interests (and achievements)
• Other Skills/ Additional Skills
• Referees

• Don't include marital state/health
• Only put gender if you have an unfamiliar first name
• Nationality is not always necessary

• Degree subject and class
• A levels / AS levels or equivalent - with grades
• GCSEs- not necessary to list individual subjects and grades

• Primary school details
• University and school address
• Minor qualifications - list these elsewhere
• A level or GCSE examining boards

• You can include all employment/ work experience, paid or unpaid, but you may find it useful to divide it into 'related' and 'other', if appropriate
• Describe the duties and skills needed, even for basic jobs
• Expand on the skills developed

• always ask permission
• the ideal is one from university, one employer
• check addresses
• give postcodes, phone numbers and e-mail addresses
  

• Concentrate on the last three years (approx.), don't give too much space to school
• Expand on skills developed
• Include student membership of committees, organising social events, anything in the wider community
  

• explain what was involved in taking part in the drama production - teamwork, reliability, time management
• or captaining the cricket team - you need skills in communication, diplomacy, negotiation, motivation ,strategy and planning ,teamwork
• emphasise achievements. If one of your interests is music, and you represented your county - blow your own trumpet!
  

• driving licence
• languages - to what level
• computing skills - programs, spreadsheets
• Duke of Edinburgh Award
• speech and drama
• music
• sporting/coaching qualifications
  

• Not really necessary to alter it for individual employers - your covering letter is the place to highlight things
• Can be useful to change it for different types of employer
• Sometimes worth it if you are applying for a job that needs particular skills or interests - advertising, or graphic design jobs for example
  

• often inserted between name and personal details
• it summarises experience, skills and ambitions
• can be useful for those in mid career
• for example:
  Highly motivated and committed to a career in the public sector. A good team worker with well developed communication skills, gained through enthusiastic participation in student and community organisations. Varied work experience, including a spell with local authority playschemes.
• try to avoid anything that sounds like a personal mission statement

• try to anticipate any problems you may face as a mature student within your CV
• explain reasons for returning to education, or changing your career
• don't leave any gaps - if you have taken time out to have a family, include this time
• put a positive spin on any experience you may have - for example, if you have been at home raising a family emphasise skill such as:
  * time management - juggling child care with study or part time work; dealing with several problems at once, rarely without interruption
  * negotiation skills - vital in child rearing

• CV format varies from country to country - you must adapt to your market.