Write a good CV- Finland

 

A CV, or curriculum vitae, is your calling card when looking for a job, sets you apart from other job seekers, and remains one of the most important things in the entire job search process. In this article, we share tips from professionals to help you build a CV that stands out and contains everything a recruiter needs.

You can also use our free CV template, you can find it here !

What is a good CV?

Language skills, work experience, volunteer work, hobbies, tools, degrees... what all should be listed on a CV? On the page you will also find a CV template, tips for building CVs at different stages, and concrete tips directly from a recruiter.

A strong CV should clearly highlight your most relevant qualifications and experience in a concise, easy-to-read format. Key sections to include are:

1. Contact Information: Your name, phone number, email, and LinkedIn or professional website (if applicable).

2. Professional Summary or Objective: A brief statement that summarizes your career highlights and goals, tailored to the specific job you're applying for.

3. Work Experience: List your relevant work history in reverse chronological order. Include the job title, company name, location, and dates of employment. For each role, highlight key responsibilities and achievements, focusing on how you added value.

4. Education: Include your degrees, institutions, and graduation dates. You may also include certifications or relevant coursework.

5. Skills: Highlight technical and soft skills that are relevant to the job, such as language skills, software tools, or leadership abilities.

6. Volunteer Experience: If applicable, include unpaid work or volunteer roles that demonstrate your commitment, teamwork, or other valuable traits.

7. Hobbies and Interests: This section is optional but can be useful for showing personality and cultural fit. Choose hobbies that demonstrate skills or qualities relevant to the job.

8. Certifications & Tools: List any additional qualifications or tools you are proficient in, such as software programs, technical certifications, or industry-specific knowledge.

A good CV is built for the position you are applying for.

A strong CV is tailored to the job you're applying for. Keep it short, clear, and concise—employers don't want to read your entire life story. Your CV should highlight the most relevant information for the position, rather than listing every job or degree you've ever had. If you have extensive work experience, focus less on early jobs or positions in unrelated fields. Similarly, if you're already in higher education or have a degree, you don't need to elaborate on your high school studies.

Typically, a CV should be no more than two pages, with one page being ideal for most situations. It should serve as a quick reference for employers to gauge your skills and potential. A good CV doesn’t need flashy visuals, fancy designs, or a colorful layout—what matters is clearly highlighting the skills and qualifications that are most relevant to the job. You can emphasize important details using italics or bold text. This also shows that you've understood the requirements of the job and can present the most important information effectively.

What is the most important thing in a CV?

Focus all your attention on the readability of your CV. Remember that the recruiter does not know you, he cannot read between the lines and he cannot make assumptions. Therefore, all relevant information should be found in the CV, and the most important things (e.g. relevant work experience, knowledge of a specific system or the right educational background) should be found in the CV within seconds.

Start updating your CV with the basics

When applying for a job, read the job posting carefully and consider whether you have the right education and work experience. Also consider the location of the job and the length of the employment relationship, and realistically assess whether you can commit to the terms. Then, tailor your CV to meet the requirements of the position: go through the list of requirements in the job posting and make sure that they are reflected in your CV.

With or without a picture?

Your appearance doesn't determine your ability to perform in a job, so in most cases, including a photo on your CV isn't necessary. In fact, for many international applications outside of Finland, adding a photo might even hurt your chances and lead to an automatic rejection.

However, if you’re applying for a role where a photo is required like a presenter or model position it’s important to keep a few things in mind. The photo should be of good quality and, like the rest of your CV, project a professional and serious image. A simple 'headshot' is usually best where you’re facing the camera, looking natural and confident. While it doesn’t need to be a passport-style photo, it’s still a good idea to dress neatly. But don’t worry, it doesn’t need to be overly formal unless the job specifically calls for it.

CV template - this is an example CV

There is no one right way to build a good CV. Some of us want to invest in the visual look and put our creativity into play, while others find a simple, black and white CV to be the most suitable for them. Both are good CVs , as long as (as mentioned) the readability remains excellent.

Even if you don't decorate your CV with colors and visual elements, it is still worth paying attention to the text formatting. Bold and Italic formatting and sufficient line spacing are easy ways to improve the readability of your CV.
Our template is intentionally loose, so that longer work experiences, or for example, special requirements of some fields, can still fit on the front page . 

All fields and headings are editable and the file works in both Word and Google Docs. However, always remember to send your CV in PDF format!

Tip: give your CV to someone you know to look at for 30 seconds, then take it away from them and ask them to tell you who you are professionally. If they can name the most relevant things after just 30 seconds of looking at it, the readability is good. If, on the other hand, they can't say what you've studied or what your most important skills are, your CV may still need some polishing.

It's also worth asking recruiters for feedback on your CV, e.g. during a job interview or at a recruitment fair!

Tips for sample CV elements

Chronological order: When listing your work experience and education, use reverse chronological order, meaning list your most recent experience/education first and your most relevant experience last. Remember, you don't need to list every job you've had in your life.

Work experience: Open 1-3 work experiences that are relevant to the position you are applying for in more detail, while maintaining a reverse chronological order (most recent first). We recommend the following structure for work experiences whose title does not tell everything, and whose accumulated experience would likely be useful for the position you are applying for:

• Duration of employment
• Company name
• Title
• A few sentences about your most important responsibilities and achievements/what you       accomplished that you would like to highlight.
• If the task included a variety of relevant areas, list them with a few dashes.

Focus on expressing information concisely, i.e. in a way that highlights key keywords (skills, abilities, experience) and minimizes the number of filler words.

Education: Consider whether your secondary education is still relevant - often a high school education does not add value if you are already studying at a university. On the other hand, for example, a computer science education from a vocational school can be very relevant if you are applying for an IT job in addition to your studies. You do not need to indicate your grade point average (GPA) for university studies unless specifically requested. Instead, the stage of your studies (number of credits or weeks completed) can be useful information

Image / quote: As we mentioned earlier on this page, an image is often unnecessary in a CV. In our image-free template, we replaced the image with a quote from a feedback that our fictional applicant received from a colleague. This kind of quote is a great way to make your CV stand out from the crowd, and in addition, feedback from others is a great addition to your work and study experiences to show what kind of employee you are. However, the feedback should always be completely authentic and quoted verbatim.

TIP! If you don't have any suitable feedback to quote, you can ask for a short written description of yourself while inquiring about the willingness of your previous colleagues or superiors to act as a recommender.

Contact information: Your phone number, email, and official name should be clear and easy to find. Gender, marital status, family information, religion, date of birth, or even municipality of residence are not necessary on a CV.

A LinkedIn account should not be required as part of the application process from a non-discrimination perspective. If you want to link your LinkedIn profile to your CV, remember to update the information there as well and match what you have stated in your CV. It is worth considering that everything you offer access to during the application process is permissible to take into account in the recruitment decision.

Introduction: In this field, you can summarize your skills in a few sentences and, when it is relevant to the position you are applying for, tell us things about yourself that do not fit in the other fields. You can also replace the text, or part of it, with the quote mentioned in the previous paragraph from the feedback you received.

Available: This information makes the recruiter's life easier if you can provide it in advance. It is especially worth mentioning "Release date" if your current position is fixed-term, or if your employment contract includes a notice period. The date should take into account any breathing space you may have before starting a new job, which you undoubtedly deserve.

In addition to the above, "Immediately" and "flexible" or "Negotiable" are also suitable for this field.

Qualifications and skills: The certificates you have obtained, professional qualifications and the systems you have used fluently are the third important pillar of your CV - alongside work experience and education. It is very sector-specific what kind of qualifications are valued, but here too it would be of primary importance to mention the areas of expertise required in the job advertisement. You can mark the level of system competence in the same way as language competence, i.e. on a scale of satisfactory-good-excellent.

Language skills: The most important thing when reporting language skills is honesty, as embellishment is easy to get caught. The generally accepted scale for reporting skills is poor-satisfactory-good-excellent, although poor language skills should not be listed at all on a CV. In addition, mentioning your mother tongue is common, but we recommend avoiding this. The reason for this is that mentioning your mother tongue easily leads to conclusions about nationality, which is not a relevant criterion in assessing a job applicant. It is worth reserving the "excellent" level for the language (or languages) that you speak so fluently that you can easily cope in a work environment surrounded by native speakers.

Other experience: Here you can list positions of trust, side jobs and hobbies in which you have gained expertise relevant to the position you are applying for. In addition to working as the treasurer of the association mentioned in the CV template example, you can gain leadership experience from a variety of positions, such as scouting, coaching and military service.

CV language

A simple rule to follow when deciding on the language for your CV is to match it to the language of the job advertisement. If the ad is in English, your CV should be in English as well. If the ad is in Finnish, both Finnish and English CVs are usually acceptable, unless the employer specifies otherwise.

Recommenders

You can include the names, titles, and organizations of your recommenders directly on your CV. If you're not ready to list them, simply add a note like "Contact details of recommenders upon request." When applying, check the job advertisement to see if the employer has already asked for recommender contact details elsewhere. And always remember to ask for permission from your recommenders before using them!

Typically, 1-2 recommenders are enough. If you have more or your CV is getting crowded, you can opt for "Recommendations upon request" to save space.

CVs in different life situations

Student CV

You likely have more experience than you think! Have you worked as a cashier, waiter, or market stall attendant? These roles provide valuable customer service experience that many employers appreciate. Have you been a tutor or involved in a sports club or student organization? These experiences demonstrate leadership, teamwork, and organizational skills, all of which are highly valued. Include any part-time jobs, summer jobs, or volunteer work on your CV as they all show your ability to develop new skills and gain experience. Employers look for motivation and a willingness to learn, so be sure to highlight this with concrete examples!

If you haven't chosen a major yet, briefly share your interests and what you’re passionate about. At the end of your CV, you can also mention what kind of employee you are and why you believe you're a great fit for the position. Sometimes, genuine interest can make up for a lack of experience!

Fresh Graduate CV

As a recent graduate, you’re likely looking for a full-time job. Focus on the skills and experiences that are most relevant to the position you're applying for. Include any summer jobs, volunteer work, hobbies, or projects from your studies that have helped you develop useful skills.

In your education section, mention your major, minors, and any other relevant courses or certifications. Highlight any work experience in your field, if you have it, and make sure your CV clearly reflects your skills and capabilities. Employers appreciate when you can directly connect your education and hands-on experiences to the role you're seeking.

CV with Some Experience

At this stage, your early jobs, like your first summer job, no longer need to be included unless they are directly relevant. Focus on your education and the skills and experience you've gained in your field. Include detailed information about your previous positions, including the job duration and key responsibilities. If you're still employed, be sure to note that as well.

If there are any gaps in your work history (e.g., maternity leave, sabbatical), it's helpful to briefly explain the reasons for them. Focus on providing in-depth details about your recent work experience, especially any responsibilities or achievements that directly align with the job you're applying for. Keep your descriptions concise, ensuring they highlight your qualifications without overwhelming the reader.

Tips for different sectors

It is worth considering the different requirements in terms of skills and daily work for each sector.
We have compiled the most important things that you should highlight in your CV :

IT Sector

+ Completed projects and your role in them
+ Programming languages ​​(relevant to the task)
+ Systems you are fluent in
+ Certifications you have completed
+ Working methods you have experience with or certifications

Technical field

+ Work experience, projects
+ (Relevant) leisure activities
+ Certifications / qualifications related to systems and work environment

Commercial Sector

+ Completed university degrees
+ Financial and budgeting skills
+ Projects and your role in them
+ Social skills, such as leadership experience, presentation experience or networking