REAL GRADUATE RECRUITERS REACT TO REAL GRADUATE CVs: The sales applicant
As part of an exciting new exercise in graduate CV improvement, a selection of graduate recruiters in investment banks have agreed to comment on the CVs of some of the students visiting our site.
This week's CV is from an anonymous student applying for broking and sales roles in investment banks. The graduate recruiters who've commented are Sally Whitman at Credit Suisse, Lyle Andrews at UBS, and Karen Martin at RBS. Most of their comments are at the end of the CV below. However, some comments from Lyle Andrews are also interspersed in the text in italics.
Feel free to comment at the bottom of this page on your reaction to the CV, and to the recruiters' suggestions.
Personal Profile
Hard working, outgoing and hugely determined I commit myself to any challenge. I believe my ability to communicate is one of my greatest strengths and want a career which will allow me to use this ability to its full potential. Having always had a passion for teamwork, I am looking to spend my future within a team which strives for excellence in whatever it does.
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: I would argue that this section does not add a lot to the application. You should either try to provide evidence for your qualities like teamwork through your CV - or use this part to be more specific about what sort of role you are looking for. If the writer is applying to a certain type of role in a specific firm then the resume would need to express that.]
Education
2008-2012 Loughborough University: Banking, Finance and Management BSc Hons
Predicted 2:1
Modules Include: Financial Accounting, Macro Economics, Micro Economics, Business Modelling, Management Accounting, Corporate Finance, Financial Economics & Systems and Management Economics.
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: This is fine as most firms require a 2:1. His coursework is also relevant so that's a plus.]
2007-2008 Thames Valley University, Slough (Part-time)
Chartered Management Institute: Certificate in Management Level 3.
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: Additional business qualifications are always nice- the more targeted the better.]
2002-2007 School
A Levels: Economics(A), Biology(A), History(B) (340 UCAS Points).
GCSEs: 9 As & A*s.
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: 2 As and a B will satisfy most financial firms, especially since these the As are in more quantitative subjects. Good GCSE results and this student is correct that you don't need to spell out all the GCSE subjects- which is a must for A-levels.]
Relevant Employment
07/2010-07/2011 Corporate Restructuring
Trading Team Placement
As part of my sandwich degree, I am working for one of the UK's leading corporate restructuring firms. This has developed my ability to manage multiple client cases with very volatile workloads. My capacity to quickly understand new situations and take on board new knowledge has been a vital part of my work.
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: He should give details on what he did and what role he had rather than what he learned. This kind of sandwich course is a real differentiator as it show a track record in the financial services but it's important to be descriptive about the actual work content. Also it helps to use bullets rather than prose in this type of format..]
Summer 2009 Investment Manager
Work Experience Intern
I was shown how to analyse investments and build buyout models drawing on my analytical and MS Excel skills. It developed my economic and financial knowledge, and was an excellent industry insight.
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: The first sentence is very useful (although the construction "I was shown..." implies he didn't actually learn how to perform these tasks?), the second doesn't add much. A recruiter will want to see concrete examples of what the applicant can do and has done rather than a statement saying what type of knowledge he gained.]
09/2007 - 08/2008 B2B Communications and Events Management Company
Working in this fast paced sales team helped me to further develop my communication & interpersonal skills, highlighting my ability to work and think quickly whilst under pressure. I understand the sales targets I achieved are still the highest of any YINI student the company has employed.
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: The last sentence is good but shouldn't be so wishy-washy- it should say that he had the sales figures of any student the company had ever employed. The first sentences don't describe the role or achievements at all so need to be changed.]
2007-2009 Events management company
(Part-time) Crew Member
Two very physically demanding jobs, for which I regularly worked 12 hour shifts through the night. As I became more experienced I headed my own small team and worked individually with clients.
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: Needs more description as to what this work involved other than that it was physical and involved long hours..]
Interests & Activities
-Finance and Financial Markets have always interested me and I have pursued this interest in a number of ways including being actively involved in the stock market, attending university presentations and reading a variety of relevant publications (most enjoyably of which was Alice Schroeder's "The Snowball Effect").
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: I don't know what being 'actively involved in the stock market' means- be more specific. Were you trading? If so how do you do? What is your investment strategy? ]
-Sport and physical activities have always been a passion. From playing as many sports as I could at school, I have focused on improving my squash, representing Loughborough and my local club whilst also getting increasingly into long distance running.
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: Did you have any achievements of note here?]
Achievements & Positions of Responsibility
-Adrenalin Tunnel Sky Diving Instructor.
-Coach at Energizer Tennis, which is a small business I set up with my older brother.
-Gold & Silver Duke of Edinburgh Awards.
-Squash Club Kit Secretary (2009-2010) & Men's Team BUCS Captain.
-Head of House & School Prefect (2007-2008).
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: All in all this is a nice, varied list that shows lots of interesting achievements and you should describe them a little more- and maybe use them for your responses to the application questions.. ]
Skills
-IT: MS Office, Oracle Database Management (Siebel), IPS.
-Languages: GCSE Spanish, GCSE French (I am currently re-teaching myself French).
-Full Driving Licence (clean).
[Lyle Andrews from UBS says: If you're stating a GCSE qualification then add the grade achieved, otherwise state your functional level- intermediate, or conversational. I don't think that many financial companies would be really interested in your driving licence, I would cut it.]
GRADUATE RECRUITERS' REACT:
Sally Whitman, head of EMEA campus recruitment, Credit Suisse:
Academics and experience definitely appear appropriate. He has a good
academic background and the work experience which he has undertaken
clearly demonstrates that he has an interest in Financial Services, this
indicates to anyone reviewing the CV that he is relatively focussed and
also proactive by gaining relevant internships.
He has definitely highlighted some very relevant points on his CV,
particularly the 'Achievements and Positions of Responsibility' section
which shows not only that he has diverse interests outside of his
academic life but that in these activities he has held leadership
positions. These positions also potentially indicate strong skills such
as collaboration and teamwork by coaching others at tennis and skydiving
and being part of a Duke of Edinburgh award. Although obviously any
interviewer will probe more deeply on these to make sure that these
competencies were indeed displayed!
Under 'Interests & Activities' I would say he needs to be more specific
eg if sport and physical activities have always been important give some
examples. At what level did he represent Loughborough and local club
and what has he achieved through long distance running? Similarly for
his interest in the Financial Markets, this statement isn't really
saying anything concrete - if he is actively involved in the stock
market then he needs to be more specific. If this is on here as a
reference to something insignificant then best to leave it off the CV
all together since the interviewer is likely to pick up on something
like this and look for more depth and examples.
Karen Martin, group graduate resourcing manager at RBS:
When looking at this candidates CV, the first impression of the Personal Summary is that the punctuation and grammar is not really of the standard that our Banking programme would expect. The candidate needs to remember that first impressions really count.
Languages are often a differentiator, although they are lost somewhat in this CV, it would be good to understand if the candidate is able to converse in French and Spanish.
It may also be an interesting point to emphasise the business that the candidate set up more clearly. What key skills have they developed? How successful has the business been?
What is clear however is the information provided about the candidate's Finance and Management degree with the relevant modules highlighted. Additionally extra-curricular activities are relevant to varying degrees, and are indicative of positive traits.
Finally the candidates work experiences, do not always detail the organisation in which they worked, which leads the reader to question as to why they have not added in the detail.
Lyle Andrews, EMEA head of graduate recruiting at UBS
As an initial comment, many of the larger financial firms in London including UBS do not accept CVs but the below comments are equally valid for application forms as well.
All in all this is a good CV but could use some tidying up:
- First, he should focus on actual achievements and skills gained rather than trying to generalize too much. Saying you developed communication skills is not as impactful as saying you had to make a weekly presentation to management or speak to clients on the phone.
- Secondly, there are some great extracurriculars and achievements at the bottom of the CV that he should emphasize more because they demonstrate very good qualities and are quite notable. I don't generally see applications from Sky Diving Instructors!
- Finally- think about what the reader is looking for and try to customize your CV so that that information is easy to get at. Use bullets and be brief. Use proof points and actual examples to illustrate. Show rather than tell.
