Settling in the UK and tips for your Resume

We recently assisted a family migrate to the UK – they have moved to the Manchester area. They had reservations about the move over to England in the current economic climate - news reports on the web or on tv and in print media, were not very encouraging. Unemployment levels are the highest they’ve been for many years and many people have been retrenched in recent months from companies with a long track record of above average business performance.

We are very pleased to report that our clients have managed to secure good positions – and within a few weeks of arriving in Blightey. They have integrated easily into society, made friends and are now concentrating on their new jobs and building a life for themselves in England. This is very encouraging news for us, as migration agents.

We are often asked to advise on the job market in the UK and what a particular applicant’s chances are of securing gainful employment. In most cases, we do extensive job research on behalf of our clients, we also rework CV’s and Resumes to appeal to a UK employer. We do the same thing for people going to Australia and Canada. It is vitally important that new migrants understand the importance of the Internet with regards securing job interviews and marketing their skills. Make sure that your Resume is polished and well put together. Our client secured an interview purely on the Resume that she posted onto Gumtree.

Here are some tips to help with the compilation of your Resume:

• · Keep your personal information to a minimum, concentrate on the basic facts – your age, date of birth, gender, place of birth. Put a good, clear, colour photo of yourself (head and shoulders) on your CV – make sure you are smiling but not grinning like an idiot!
• · Contact information should be clear and easily visible on the document – your telephone numbers (landline and cellular), email address, postal/residential address
• · If you have already obtained a visa entitling you to live and work in the UK, you need to include the details in a prominent place on your Resume.
• · Make sure to list your current and previous work history in a clear manner – i.e.

Set the information out in chunks, clearly titled:

Dates of engagement (month/year from/to)

Company and your position

Brief two line description of your key role and duties.

You do not have to give lengthy reasons why you left a company.

• · Briefly mention your education history – in tabulated format – do not go into reams and reams of detail about short courses that you have done.
• · Set aside a short section to highlight your personal interests, hobbies and personal goals.
• · Highlight your strengths (and weaknesses!) in a short tabulated section – again, don’t go into lengthy paragraphs outlining how wonderful you are. You should come across as humble, enthusiastic and ready for change in your Resume.
• · If you have personal referees who can be contacted for reference purposes, then provide their names, contact telephone/email addresses, where appropriate. Or state that ‘referees are available on request’.

Remember that a Resume is a short-form version of your CV, it should be 2 pages maximum.