When you are searching for your next Accountancy Job, your CV is one of many that will find itself into a recruiters hands, so it is vital that it is well-presented and has the correct structure to it. If you start with general hobbies, put your accountancy roles at the end and have contact details mid-way through, you will not give off a good first impression.

To begin with, prepare a list of all your competences, skills and experiences that you can think of, including specifically those relating to your Accountancy Career and experiences. Try to pinpoint those points that make you stand out from others.

A CV's structure is fairly standard and should begin with the most relevant information. Try to follow the following format:

Personal Details: including Name, Date of birth, Contact details, Nationality etc

Work Experience: with the most recent job first, write down in order those companies you have previously worked for. If you have many years experience, write down all the accountancy jobs you have done, highlighting all your skills and abilities that are most relevant to the new accountancy role you are going for. If you have only some minor work experience, then ensure you mention this ? in this case make sure you state any Accountancy work that you have been involved in. After writing the company name, state your role, the dates you worked there, and a brief description of your tasks, responsibilities and achievements. ?Try to tailor this section to the accountancy role you are going for as much as possible.?

Achievements: think about what achievements you have made and list those most recent, especially those that may have occurred whilst working in a previous Accountancy role. Employers will deduce a lot about you from what you decide to be important.

Education and Qualifications: with your most recent qualification first, list the full degree/qualification, where you studied and what you achieved. Focus on GSCE and above and ensure you mention any professional accountancy qualifications you have e.g. ACCA, CIMA, ACA etc

Extra-Curricular Activities: keep this relatively short and mention your interests and hobbies. Think about memberships of sports teams/drama societies. Try to keep it purposeful.

General Skills: mention if you have a driving licence, what courses you have attended, foreign languages and IT skills at the end. This is less relevant to your work experience, qualifications and education so put it at the end.

References: you do not need to mention references but you can however write ?Reference available on request? and the employers can then contact you if they need them.

Once you have the structure and decided on the content, you also need to think about the presentation. Good CV's are logical, clear and concise, so by keeping to the structure described above, you will make it easy for the reader to see your highlighted information and match it to the criteria they are looking for. It will show them that you are also capable of pulling out the most important aspects required for the Accountancy Job you are applying to.