Applying for jobs

CV Checker - 24-7 online CV review tool

CV Checker is a virtual CV checking platform that provides customised feedback on your CV - wherever you are and whenever you want it.

 

CV Checker provides Birmingham Business School postgraduates with access to instant and personalised feedback online and customised suggestions for CV improvement.

CV Checker incorporates rich historical data, employment outcomes, robust knowledge sources and recruiters’ criteria along with University of Birmingham specific customisations to provide automated feedback and suggestions. Using machine learning, predictive analytics and artificial intelligence, CV Checker identifies core competencies reflected in student profiles, and helps you optimise your skills.

Getting Started with CV Checker:

• Sign up with CV Checker
• Upload your CV to the platform. (you have up to 10 uploads for the year)
• Receive instant feedback and customised suggestions for improvement
• Incorporate the feedback to your CV and re-upload

** Get started with our User Guide (PDF - 223KB).

Once you have improved your CV using Vmock, book an appointment with Careers In Business to tailor and customise your CV to suit individual applications.  Alternatively, you can email your CV to careersinbusiness@bham.ac.uk to receive e-guidance on your CV.

**Please not although using CV Checker isn't required to book a face-to-face appointment, it is highly recommended**

There are 3 steps to developing an outstanding CV as a Birmingham Business School postgraduate student.

1. Follow our CV guidance to create your CV using our video and CV Guide.  We’ve also developed frequently asked questions to answer common queries you may have.
2. Upload your CV into our customised CV Checker.  CV Checker is a unique CV platform which provides you with access to instant and personalised feedback online and customized suggestions for CV improvement. 
   
3. Once you have improved your CV using the CV Checker, we highly recommend either booking an appointment or email your CV to receive e-guidance, careersinbusiness@bham.ac.uk 

CV Guidance

CV Guide:

Download our CV guide which contains sample CVs including a one page CV:

Careers in Business CV Guide

A two page CV is standard for the UK, however; if you are aiming for a job in an Investment Bank or consulting firm, then a one page CV is frequently preferred.

Whereas a CV is a factual document designed to demonstrate that you have the skills, knowledge and experience matching the job description, a covering letter is a motivational document showing why you’re interested in the role and company and stating why you make a good candidate for the position.

It should answer the following:
Why you want to do the job, why you want to work for that company and why you make a good candidate for the role.

Sample covering letter.pdf

Once you have written your covering letter, book an appointment with Careers In Business to tailor and customise your covering letter to suit the role you are applying for.  Alternatively, you can email your covering letter to careersinbusiness@bham.ac.uk to receive e-guidance on your letter.  Please ensure that you also attach the job description or link to the specific job you are applying for.

Most large companies will have an application tracking system which will enable you to apply directly for roles that they are advertising through their careers/vacancies pages.  It’s typical for you to have to register your details first and create a password – make sure you save this so that you can access your application again in future.  You may then get a set of drop down menus and be asked to complete sections about your Education and Experience.  If the menus provided don’t apply to your experience, there is often an “Other” tab that you can select.  If you have any problems with completing sections; email a screen capture to us at careersinbusiness@bham.ac.uk

Tips

1. Most companies will provide details about their application process; read this first so that you understand what kind of documents and information are required – you might not need your CV, for example.
2. Follow any instructions given; if you are invited to upload a CV and covering letter then do this but make sure you’ve removed graphics, tables, boxes as some systems can’t read this.
3. Keep a record of who you’ve applied to; it’s very easy to lose track of online applications and remember you might not be able to access the job description once the application deadline has expired so save this in case you get invited to interview.

Open or text-based questions

Some forms will include questions such as Why have you applied for this position?  Why do you want to work for us?  Describe a time you worked as part of a team...and so on.  It’s typical to be given a word limit for your answer; make sure that you make use of this as short answers won’t demonstrate much effort.  For career and company motivation questions you really need to show that you’ve taken time to examine their website and read key reports (e.g. their annual report) and used additional sources of information (e.g. industry magazines).  Ideally you’ve spoken to their representatives at a careers fair or you’ve reached out to alumni working there through LinkedIn.  Once you’ve gathered this information you then need to sit down and think about which factors link to you.  A common mistake that a lot of students make is to just repeat what they’ve read on the company’s website.  Remember the recruiter knows what the company does and what it’s like to work there; what they want to know is what interests you and what motivated you to apply.  For competency based questions (Describe a time that….) use:

• Situation – briefly describe the situation
• Task – if applicable, outline your objective/aim
• Action – using active language e.g. I managed, organised, resolved – detail what you did
• Result – finish with the outcome

Once you have written your draft application, book an appointment with Careers In Business and one of our career advisers can review your application before you submit it.

These are very commonly used in the UK especially for graduate management trainee schemes.  Typical tests include:

Verbal/Numerical Reasoning.  It’s useful to practice these in advance using sites such as Assessment Day and on test providers’ own websites e.g. SHL, Cubiks, Kenexa, Saville Consulting.   We also have books you can borrow from our team – email us at careersinbusiness@bham.ac.uk for details.

Personality Questionnaires.  There are no right and wrong answers in personality questionnaires as they are designed to measure your behaviour, and are related to your preference rather than ability. You should not try to ‘second guess’ what the employer is looking for – select the answers which most closely reflect how you would typically act or respond.

Situational Judgement Tests.  During this type of test you’ll be presented with a range of scenarios that mirror the kinds of situations you might experience in that particular job.  It is useful to familiarise yourself with these kinds of tests – we recommend Assessment Day . It is also useful to understand the skills and competencies you’re being hired against as that will give you an indication of the behaviours that the company expects of its employees.  It is typical to be asked to judge effective and ineffective responses to a given situation.  It is likely that ineffective responses are those that do not move the situation forward/resolve the problem, make the situation worse or require unethical action. 

 

The Profiling for Success online self-assessment tools are available to University of Birmingham students and graduates.

We have a number of practice psychometric tests for those who are applying or preparing to apply for internship or graduate roles as well as tools aimed at those who are trying to decide what career options they would like to pursue.

Registering and accessing tests

If you are a current student, you can access the tests by registering for an account with Profiling for Success using your University of Birmingham in the following format: [username]@bham.ac.uk, e.g. ABC123@bham.ac.uk

Once you are logged in you’ll be presented with three navigation options – please select ‘Take Tests’.

Graduate access

If you are a graduate, you can access the tests by registering for an account as directed above, using your alumni email.

Types of tests available

Aptitude Tests

Aptitude tests are a common component of the recruitment process for graduate roles.  We recommend trying the tutorial versions of these tests first, as they serve as an introduction to the format of the tests. Once you're ready, you can move on to practice tests, which more closely mimic real test conditions.

Tests available in this section include:

• Abstract, Numerical and Verbal Reasoning (tutorial and practice tests)
• Situational Judgement (tutorial test)

Personality Questionnaires 

Personality questionnaires can help you to better understand your preferences and interests, and can help you to clarify your career interests and goals.

Tests available in this section include:

• Type Dynamics Indicator – understand your personality type
• Values Based Indicator of Motivation – learn more about your values and how they motivate you
• Learning Styles Indicator – discover your preferred style of learning

 

Team Focus, the organisation behind Profiling for Success, have created this video to tell you how to register for and use the service. (Video transcript)