Creating a CV

Creating a professional CV

Like in any profession, a nanny's CV may very well be the first point of contact (s)he has with a potential employer and it will almost certainly be the main thing that a potential employer reviews before making a decision on a new nanny. This means that a CV must be informative, factual, well presented and memorable. Working hard on your CV will likely increase your chances of landing a great nanny position.

Informative

A CV is a short record of your qualifications for a particular position. Most CVs include a recent photo, sections on an individual's education and/or qualifications, interests or hobbies, employment history, voluntary history (if there is one and if it is relevant) and related skills. Nannies may also choose to include a short personal statement, or the equivalent of a one to three sentence introduction to themselves as a candidate, at the beginning of the document.  Contact information for the nanny and referees should also be included in the CV.  

Factual

Without exception CVs should be factual and include nothing that has been made up or did not actually occur. For example, there should be no jobs listed that the nanny did not actually work. There should be no embellishments to jobs, and there should be no information that has been manipulated. Giving false qualifications and false references is absolutely unforgivable. Not only is lying on a CV unfair to a potential employer, but it also marks a candidate as untrustworthy when the lies are discovered - not something that any nanny wants to be labelled.

Well Presented

A CV is usually only one to three pages long and begins with the candidate's contact details followed by a personal statement (if desired), then academic or vocational qualifications, then employment history, then related skills, then any professional memberships and finally the contact details of references. This information is usually presented chronologically within each section so the most recent experiences are detailed first. CVs are usually presented on good quality white or cream paper, contain no borders and few graphics and have been thoroughly proofread and checked for spelling. They contain no special fonts, colours or formatting. They should also not take up a great amount of file space or be hard to download since you may need to send your CV as an email attachment.

Memorable

Making a CV memorable is difficult. Avoid trying to catch an employer's attention with worthless details like scented paper or illustrations. Instead, concentrate on making yourself into a candidate that can not be forgotten. This means detailing special skills (for example, being remembered as the candidate who speaks four languages), experiences (the candidate who worked in Europe and Asia) and/or unique qualifications (the candidate who holds both Montessori and childcare credentials). Remember, a CV is just a tool that you use to make potentials employers remember you - it is not of any value as an end in itself.

Creating a good CV as a nanny is not difficult, but it does take careful work and consideration. Paying attention to details such as the information that you present, getting all of your facts straight, presenting it all in a professional format and creating a memorable picture of yourself is not easy to do on a CV, but it is not impossible either.

Remember first impressions count!!!