UK CV format and examples: how to write a CV for UK jobs

For most private-sector jobs, yes: what the UK calls a CV (curriculum vitae) is what the US, Canada and India call a résumé — a targeted summary of your experience, usually two pages. The word “résumé” is rarely used in UK job adverts, so call your document a CV and name the file accordingly (for example `Priya-Sharma-CV.pdf`).

The exception is academia and some medical roles, where an “academic CV” is longer and lists publications, grants, conferences and teaching. If you are applying for a lecturer or research post, follow that format instead.

Use a reverse-chronological layout — most recent job first — with clear standard headings. UK recruiters often skim a CV in under a minute on screen, so the first half of page one has to show who you are and why you fit.

Because UK employers are expected to recruit without regard to personal characteristics, and most prefer not to receive information that could be seen to influence a decision. The Equality Act 2010 protects characteristics including age, sex, race, religion or belief, disability, and marriage or civil partnership. A CV that shows your photo, age or marital status hands the employer exactly the information they try not to use — so many recruiters ignore it, and some screen it out to avoid any appearance of bias.

• Photo: leave it off unless the role is acting or modelling.
• Date of birth / age: leave out; your career dates are enough.
• Marital status, children, religion: leave out.
• Nationality and passport number: leave out; a right-to-work line answers the real question.
• Full home address: town and postcode area is enough.

Write three or four lines that say who you are professionally, what you are strongest at, and what role you want — aimed at the specific job. Avoid adjectives you cannot prove (“dynamic”, “passionate”) and avoid first person.

British spelling signals attention to detail to a UK reader. Set your editor to English (UK) and check common pairs: organise / organize, analyse / analyze, colour / color, programme (a scheme) / program (software), licence (noun) / license (verb), centre / center.

Right to work: UK employers must check that every new hire has the right to work in the UK, so recruiters want to know early whether you need sponsorship. One line under your contact details settles it:

• “Right to work: British citizen” or “Settled status — full right to work in the UK”.
• “Graduate visa — full right to work until [month year]”.
• “Will require Skilled Worker visa sponsorship”.

References: you do not need to list referees on a UK CV. “References available on request” is optional and many recruiters see it as wasted space — the employer will ask for referees at offer stage.

Large UK employers, graduate schemes and recruitment agencies usually receive CVs through an applicant tracking system (ATS), which parses your CV into fields and lets recruiters search by job title, skill or qualification. Agency recruiters also search job-board CV databases by keyword.

1. 1

   Match the advert’s words

   If the advert says “stakeholder management” and “Power BI”, use those exact terms where they are true for you.

2. 2

   Use standard headings

   “Work experience”, not “My journey”. Parsers look for familiar section names.

3. 3

   Put dates on the right of each job

   Month and year (“Mar 2022 – present”) so gaps and tenure are clear.

4. 4

   Quantify where you can

   Team size, budget, volume, time saved — real numbers only.

5. 5

   Check the file

   Run the PDF through the free ATS score checker against the job description to see which keywords are missing.

Copy this structure and replace the brackets. It fits on two A4 pages for most people with up to ten years’ experience.

[Full name]
[Town, postcode area] · [mobile] · [email] · [LinkedIn URL]
Right to work: [status]

PERSONAL STATEMENT
[3–4 lines: who you are, core strengths, target role]

WORK EXPERIENCE
[Job title] — [Employer], [City]          [Mon YYYY – present]
• [Action verb + what you did + result]
• [Action verb + what you did + result]
• [Action verb + what you did + result]

[Previous job title] — [Employer], [City]   [Mon YYYY – Mon YYYY]
• …

EDUCATION
[Degree, classification or equivalent] — [University], [Year]

SKILLS
[Technical skills] · [Tools] · [Languages]

CERTIFICATIONS / TRAINING (optional)
[Name, issuer, year]

• Visa status first: state clearly whether you need Skilled Worker sponsorship. Recruiters filter on this before reading further.
• Grades: UK readers don’t know CGPA scales. Write “CGPA 8.2/10” rather than a bare number, or give your percentage with the scale. If an employer asks for a UK equivalent, a statement of comparability from UK ENIC is the recognised route — don’t self-convert to “First” or “2:1”.
• Notice period: many Indian roles carry 60–90-day notice periods, longer than is typical in the UK. Mention it in your cover letter or when asked, not on the CV.
• Time zones: India is 4.5 hours ahead of the UK in summer (BST) and 5.5 hours in winter (GMT). Offer interview slots in UK time.
• Drop India-only details: father’s name, date of birth, photo, declaration and signature lines don’t belong on a UK CV.
• Explain employers briefly: add a few words for companies a UK reader may not know (“Indian fintech, 2,000 staff”) — only if accurate.

Each example below follows the UK format above — personal statement, reverse-chronological experience and A4 layout — with role-specific skills and bullet ideas.

• 10 Lpa Jobs→
• 20 Lpa Jobs→
• Accountant→
• Accountant Graduate→
• Accountant Graduate→
• Accountant in Bangalore→
• Accountant in Chennai→
• Accountant in Delhi→
• Accountant in Gurgaon→
• Accountant in Hyderabad→
• Accountant in Mumbai→
• Accountant in Noida→
• Accountant in Pune→
• Accounting Analyst→
• Accounting Associate→
• Accounting Consultant→
• Accounting Coordinator→
• Accounting Director→
• Accounting Executive→
• Accounting Manager→
• Accounting Officer→
• Accounting Specialist→
• AI Administrator→
• AI Analyst→
• AI Architect→
• AI Consultant→
• AI Developer→
• AI Engineer→

Looking for another country? Browse résumé formats by role or the US, Canada and Australia guides.