How to write a winning CV

Employers can spend as little as 30 seconds looking at your CV, so you need to make shortlisting easy for them.

Make sure you stand out from the crowd and showcase your unique selling points, by following these top tips. If you are unsure how to start or need a bit of feedback, check out the range of resources available on mycareer.

Resources available on mycareer:

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Unlock your career potential with the University of Bristol’s recruiter in residence series

Navigating your career path can be a daunting experience, but the University of Bristol’s recruiter in residence series makes it easier. This opportunity invites employers to campus, offering you the chance to meet and engage directly with the people who could shape your professional future.

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Welcome to your Careers Service

Welcome (or welcome back!) to the University of Bristol. We are your Careers Service. We are here to support you in preparing for your next steps during or after you finish your studies. It’s never too early to start!   

Whether it’s help in getting a part-time job, finding internships and graduate roles, writing CVs and applications, or deciding what you want to do after your degree, we’re here for you.     

First things first, you are going to hear us talking about mycareer a lot this year. mycareer is your portal to resources, vacancies, events, appointments and more. You can set up a profile in there that will tailor content just for you. 

Log in, complete your profile and off you go! 

The front entrance of the Careers Service at 5 Tyndall Avenue.
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Want a career that makes a difference?

Earlier this year we hosted an alumni panel event with Niranjali Amerasinghe, Jenny Cook and Nyika Suttie, whose jobs all focus on making a tangible difference.

Their role titles are:  

  • Niranjali Amerasinghe – Executive Director (Action Aid USA).
  • Jenny Cook – Technical Advisor for Strategic Partnerships and Gender Inclusion and Diversity (PIARC World Road Association).
  • Nyika Suttie – Student Culture and Inclusion Training Officer (University of Bath).
Photos of Niranjali, Jenny and Nyika.
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Challenges of tomorrow – festivals and events

Glastonbury festival at night

Events are a major element of the UK economy, with an estimated £3.3 billion revenue in 2023.

We ran the “Challenges of tomorrow – festivals & events” panel to give students an insight into how to get into this exciting sector, with expert input from Pauline Bourdon, Stevie Lee-Bennett and Charlie Wall.

Here is a quick introduction to our panellists, their backgrounds, and current roles:

Pauline Bourdon

Pauline Bourdon is a Director at Soliphilia (a green touring & sustainability consultancy), a lecturer in event sustainability at BIMM Bristol, a sustainability consultant with UNSW Cardiff, and the Head of Sustainability & Social Cohesion at Team Love – an event production company producing 6 festivals a year including Love Saves the Day in Bristol, Silver Hayes at Glastonbury Festival and Waterworks, London.

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Mentoring matters – your chance to open doors and create opportunities

With just one week to go, Bristol Mentors is still open for applications for home UK students returning for study in 2024/25.

Bristol Mentors provides successful student applicants with an alumni mentor working in the sector/industry they are aiming to break into.

Mentorship can be an enriching experience and our student mentees are always happy to tell us more about the range of benefits they have gained whilst on the programme.


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How to get into… working for regulatory bodies 

In February, the Careers Service hosted a panel of University of Bristol alumni who now work for regulatory bodies in the UK. 

But what is a regulatory body? 

Regulatory bodies are organisations established by governments or other authorities to oversee and regulate specific industries or sectors. Their primary role is to create and enforce rules, standards, and guidelines aimed at ensuring safety, fairness, transparency, and efficiency within their respective sectors. This is an interesting line of work, and one which students might not know a huge amount about.    

The panel that kindly spoke for us all work for regulatory bodies and shared what it is like to work in this area, along with the journey they took to get to where they are now in their careers. 

The panel were: 

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Reflecting on the Universities Business Challenge

On 1 March this year, two teams consisting of members from the University of Bristol Business School and School of Economics, were delighted to attend the semi-finals of the Universities Business Challenge held in London. 

One team of five students, and one of four, made the journey to London after their work in the first round of the competition was recognised as being worthy of a semi-final place. 

Universities Business Challenge Worldwide logo
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How to get work experience (even if you don’t have experience)

At this time of year, you might be thinking about how to make the most of your summer break. It can be an ideal time to get work experience before the next academic year begins.

Work experience not only looks good on your CV or LinkedIn profile, it can also help you: 

  • Gain a competitive edge when applying for graduate jobs or further study. It can also be a requirement for some careers. 
  • Develop skills and confidence, gain insights, and build your professional network
  • Decide whether a career area is right for you

But where to start? It may feel like many internship deadlines have passed. Or perhaps you want to know: “how am I supposed to get experience without previous experience?” It can feel like employers ask for lots of skills and experiences to apply for their internships. 

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Looking beyond the arts and sciences divide with interdisciplinary work

Elena graduated from Bristol in 2022 with a degree in English Literature and is now a Communications Consultant at Bright Carbon.

We caught up with Elena about looking beyond the arts and sciences divide with interdisciplinary work.

“It can feel as though there‘s a massive gap between an arts career and a science career, and once you pick a side, you’re stranded there.

The popularity of Sylvia Plath’s fig tree analogy shows just how many people feel like the choices they make close off all other potential futures. I definitely felt this when I was choosing my degree.

There was a sense of finality – that this was my specialism and other routes were now closed. After a lot of back and forth and deliberation, I chose ‘arts’ and studied Art Foundation and then English Literature at University – and I thought that was the end of that for other subjects.

“But, once I started my job search, I realised pretty quickly that the door to other disciplines never really closes.”

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