Write a CV that gets shortlisted
2 min read · Updated 11 Oct 2026
Recruiters spend well under a minute on a fresh graduate's CV. Your job is to make the important things impossible to miss.
Keep it to one page
As a student or fresh graduate, one page is enough. Use a clean layout, one font, and clear headings. Save and send it as a PDF named like Ali-Raza-CV-Mechanical.pdf.
The order that works
- Name and contact: phone, professional email, LinkedIn, GitHub or portfolio if you have one. No photo is needed unless the employer asks for it.
- Education: degree, institute, expected graduation, CGPA if it helps you.
- Final-year project: one or two lines on the problem and your result.
- Experience and internships: most recent first.
- Projects: two to four that match the job.
- Skills: tools you can actually use, such as MATLAB, AutoCAD, Python, Excel, SPSS, QuickBooks or Adobe Illustrator, depending on your programme.
- Achievements and certifications.
The bullet formula
Write each bullet as action + task + result:
- Weak: Responsible for maintenance work.
- Strong: Logged vibration data on 6 pumps and flagged 2 bearing faults before failure, saving an estimated two days of downtime.
Numbers make bullets credible: size, time saved, accuracy, cost, number of units.
Tailor it for each application
Read the job description, underline the skills it asks for, and make sure those exact words appear in your CV where they are true. Many companies filter CVs automatically before a person sees them.
Common reasons CVs are rejected
- Spelling mistakes and inconsistent formatting.
- An "objective" paragraph that says nothing specific.
- Listing every course you took instead of the projects you built.
- Skills you cannot defend in an interview.
Before you send it
Ask a senior, a teacher or a friend in industry to read it for two minutes and tell you what they remember. If they cannot name your strongest project, move it higher.