How to make a CV

A CV is one or two pages that answer three questions: who you are, what you have done, and how to reach you. You do not need an account, a designer, or a library of paid templates. You need facts, a calm layout, and a file you can download.

Three steps

1. Put your details in — name, city, phone, work or education, skills.
2. Pick a look. The words stay the same when you switch.
3. Download a PDF. There is no watermark and no sign-in.

That is the whole product. Create a CV when you are ready, or start from a sample if a blank page is slowing you down.

What to write first

Start with the heading: full name, city, phone, email. A professional title is optional — “Store supervisor” helps, “Hardworking individual” does not. Then add either work or education, whichever is stronger. Fill skills last. You can leave the summary empty and come back.

If you have held jobs, write them newest first. One or two lines of context, then bullets with a result. If you have not, read how to write a first-job CV.

How long it should be

One page is enough for a first job and for most people with under ten years of work. Two pages are fine when the second page is still useful. Three pages are almost never read. Do not shrink the type to cheat.

Language and paper

Write the CV in the language the employer will read. An Arabic posting in Cairo wants Arabic; a US online form wants English. Mixing both on one page makes both harder. Paper is A4 almost everywhere except the United States, which still uses Letter. CVs in Egypt and the Gulf and the US sample show the difference.

When you are stuck

Open a sample CV, start a new copy, and replace every line with yours. The sample is a fictional person. It is not your CV until you change it.