How Long Should Your CV Be?

According to industry standards, the recommended length for a CV is 2 A4 pages. With the average job attracting hundreds of applications, most recruiters and employers scan CVs for the essentials, rather than read them. Long CVs with blocks of text tend to irritate recruiters. If you send a CV that is too long, you run a high risk of not making it through to the first round. Therefore, as a rule, the shorter the CV, the better!

How long can your CV be?

The ideal CV length for the UK is typically between one and two pages of A4. While employers in some countries favour a longer CV, other countries, such as the USA, prefer a one-page resume. In the UK, employers tend to be open to different CV lengths depending on circumstances. However, the general rule is to be concise and aim for a length of up to two pages. 

The perfect length for your CV depends on the industry you work in and the amount of work experience you have:

If you have little work experience

A one-page CV is usually sufficient for recent graduates or new entrants to the labour market. It’s logical that someone with little to no work experience will need less space than someone with more than 10 years’ experience. For an entry-level or junior CV, you might wish to focus on your qualifications and skills (particularly soft skills) over your work experience, placing these above work experience in the order of sections.

A CV of one A4 sheet is also not uncommon in the retail industry. You shouldn’t feel pressured to make your CV stretch to two pages. In fact, sometimes less is more.

If you have a lot of experience

If you have a lot of experience, you’re more likely to need two pages. This will give you the chance to list your relevant work experience and highlight key achievements in your career, as well as examples of when you’ve used skills required for the role. However, you don’t need to cram in every job you’ve ever had or every course you’ve taken. The same applies as with all other CVs: read through the job description and only add relevant information.

If you’re applying for an academic position

Unlike other CVs, an academic CV is not usually restricted to two pages. In fact, academic CVs can be between three and five pages long. This is because, for academic applications, employers will want detailed information about your contribution to the academic discourse. This means including an exhaustive list of your qualifications, work experience, teaching experience, publications, research, awards and fellowships, professional memberships and conference presentations. Only with all this information can academic institutions assess your credentials and standing within your discipline.

Which sections do you need to include in your CV?

Contact details

Include your name, address, e-mail address and phone number. You may also want to include your LinkedIn URL and the link to your website portfolio if you have one.

Education

Add company names, job titles, start and end dates as well your responsibilities and achievements in each role.

Skills summary

Include a mix of hard skills (technical knowledge) and soft skills (personal traits) and provide examples of each.

Internships

In the same way as in your work experience section, include company names, start and end dates, all duties, responsibilities, and achievements. However, there’s no need to list tasks such as fetching coffee or photocopying.

Training/courses/professional affiliations

Include any professional development courses you’ve taken and/or your professional affiliations.

Hobbies and interests / extracurricular activities

If you’ve taken part in any activity that demonstrates a particular skill relevant to the vacancy, include it here. For example, if you’re applying for a managerial role, you could mention how you coached the local football team.

Which sections are optional?

The following sections can be left off your CV:

Photos

Unless you’re applying for job in the modelling or acting industry, avoid including a photo to prevent possible discrimination.

Extensive academic information

Unless you’ve recently left education or your qualifications are particularly relevant to the position, there’s no need to go into detail about the courses or modules you’ve studied as part of your degree or course.

References

If you’re in the UK or Ireland, you don’t need to include references in your CV, unless specifically requested or when you’re applying for an academic position. In New Zealand and South Africa, however, references on your CV are generally expected.

What factors can affect CV length?

There are various factors to consider when deciding how long a CV should be. CV length guidelines and best practice depend on your experience level, industry norms, local customs and the seniority of the role. Here are some tips on factors that might affect your CV length:

Where you’re applying for a job

If you’re applying for UK jobs, a CV length of between one and two pages is ideal, but this can differ significantly if you’re applying to work in another country. For example, US employers tend to prefer a concise, one-page resume that’s brief and to-the-point. Most of Europe follows the UK model of a one-to-two page CV. However, there are countries, such as Australia and New Zealand, where longer CVs are expected. In these countries, it’s not unusual to submit a CV of three or four pages.

Your experience level

If you’re just starting out in your career, you shouldn’t feel pressured to write a long and impressive CV detailing vast amounts of experience. When applying for entry-level jobs, employers won’t expect candidates to have much relevant work experience. In fact, they’re more likely to be interested in whether you have the right soft and transferable skills for success.

As such, aim to produce a concise CV that clearly showcases your key skills and qualifications. If you have any relevant work experience from previous roles, even if they were part-time, casual or voluntary positions, you can also include this. However, for junior and entry-level positions, a CV length of one side of A4 paper should be sufficient to showcase your skills and qualities.

Industry norms

Different industry sectors and professions might require different CV lengths, so consider this before submitting your CV. As a general rule, more established, formal and traditional professions require a longer CV, while more modern, less-formal industries typically favour shorter, more concise CVs. For creative roles, CVs tend to be shorter as you’ll be expected to submit a portfolio with examples of your work. This makes a long, detailed CV less critical.

Some industries where you might require a longer CV include:

• Academia
• Medicine
• Law
• Engineering
• Government/politics
• Science
• Education

Some industries and professions where shorter CVs are expected (or a short CV accompanied by a portfolio), include:

• Marketing
• Technology/IT
• Design
• Retail
• Sales
• Hospitality
• Administrative roles

The seniority of the role

The seniority of the role you’re applying for is likely to dictate the length of your CV. Although this is closely linked to your experience level, it doesn’t always mean the same thing. Junior roles tend to require shorter, less-detailed CVs. On the other hand, if you’re applying for a senior position, employers will want to see your credentials, and the impact you’ve made in previous roles. 

Most CVs don’t need to go back beyond 10 to 15 years of your career timeline. However, if you’re applying for a senior leadership role, you may wish to detail your employment history in more detail to explain why you’re qualified for such an elevated position. Indeed, for a director or C-level executive position, you might wish to submit a CV longer than two pages.

What if your CV is too long?

If your CV is too long, what can you do to make it shorter? Here are some tips:

Prioritise the most relevant information

This goes without saying, but your CV will be much shorter if you only include relevant experience. It’s also likely to have a much greater impact. Your aim is to sell yourself for a particular role, not describe in detail your entire career history.

Work experience from more than 15 years ago can usually be omitted or bundled under one heading, because it’s unlikely this  information will still be as relevant as your more recent experience.

Get to the point

Your CV is meant to showcase your skills, experience and achievements, which means you should avoid including unnecessary information such as: your childcare arrangements, your salary (expectations), your commuting arrangements or anything else that adds no value to your CV.

Avoid repetition

You only need to prove each skill once on your CV. If you mention something in your skills section that you’ve already covered in your work experience, you’re wasting valuable space in your CV. Be economical and use your single best example in the appropriate section to showcase each essential skill, achievement or experience listed in the job description.

Leave out anything negative

Does the role require a driving licence, but you don’t have one? Perhaps, you don’t have a particular skill that the employer is looking for. Rather than mentioning this in your CV, leave this information out and focus on the positive. You can also provide an explanation for your lack of a requirement in an interview or a cover letter.

Use bullet points

Write in the first person, but feel free to leave out the ‘I’ pronoun when listing points. The same goes for articles such as ‘a’, ‘an’, ‘the’ etc.

Another tip is to write in bullet points rather than short sentences to avoid long blocks of text.

Use clear formatting

You can often gain space by rearranging the information and improving the layout of your CV.

For example, in your header, add your contact details on a single line rather than using a separate line for each element. However, don't cram too much information on one page because that will make your CV look cluttered and illegible!

You could also reduce the white space between the different sections by adding one blank line instead of two. Alternatively, add a space of 6 or 12 points before or after each paragraph, rather than pressing enter to leave a full line between them. Review your line spacing and keep it between a minimum of 1.15 and a maximum of 1.4.

Finally, consider decreasing margins to 0.75 inches.

Use a smaller font

Use a smaller font to save space, but be sure not to overdo it. Your CV, of course, needs to be legible. Fonts such as Arial, Verdana or Calibri are most easy to read at 10 to 12 points. Avoid using font sizes smaller than 10 points, as this can reduce the readability and accessibility of your CV. Different fonts can appear larger and smaller within this size range, so see which works best for your CV.

What impression does your CV give?

Whether your CV is one, two or three pages long, the most important thing is that it makes a good impression. It must be clear, legible and easy to scan. Use one of our resume templates to ensure a professional presentation of your skills and work experience.

As it’s easy to develop ‘tunnel vision’ when it comes to your own writing, so why not ask a friend or a family member to look over your CV? Is it clear or have you included too much information? Perhaps, you need to hone in on your skills and experience a bit more?

A friend or a family member is also more likely to spot any spelling or grammatical mistakes which you may have overlooked.