How To Write a Skills Based CV: Template and Examples
See when to use a skills based CV and how to write it for the UK job market. Learn from the free skills based CV examples and download a functional CV template.
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As an investment banker, you’re familiar with many aspects of doing business in an investment bank or boutique. You often work across departments and business functions. Acquisitions, IPOs, M&As, accounting, legal, PR, the list goes on. Why then is it so difficult to coble together a decent CV?
Your job requires you to be a great communicator and as a communicator, you rightly feel the need to know your audience before you can persuade them. The problem is that the HR and hiring side of things is probably quite foreign to you at your current job, let alone the companies to which you’re applying.
This article has done the prep work for you. It’ll show you the data-driven approach that’s proven itself effective with HR gatekeepers. Read on for an example of a truly effective UK investment banking CV as well as plenty of advice and examples to help get yours to at least the same level.
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Sean Wood
T: 077 1397 3967
E: sean.wood.t@lcmail.co.uk
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/seantwood
Personal statement
Dynamic, plug-and-play investment banker with 5+ years of experience in both bank and boutique contexts and encompassing a wide variety of capital-raising as well as advisory activities. Currently engaged in raising a total of £35 million in capital for two companies with unique technologies in the diabetes space. Eager to leverage analytical skills, procedural scrupulousness and extensive professional network in helping Golberg Zacks raise capital for and advise its clients.
Work experience
Investment Banker
Norbert Daniel, London
August 2018—present
Investment Banker
Risqit Bank, London
June 2015—July 2018
Education
MSc Investment Banking, 2015
Queen Mary University of London, Mile End
BSc (Hons) Mathematics and Finance (2:1), 2010–2014
City University of London, London
(Including one-year placement with Beaman Brothers, London)
Skills
Hobbies
Languages
Now you know what to put in a CV. Here's how to lay out a professional CV and write your CV document step by step.
What should a good CV look like? It should definitely start with a captivating personal statement. Like a firm handshake and proffered business card, your personal statement constitutes a first impression of you as a banker. A good CV personal profile does three things:
You’ll be writing a new personal statement for each new job application. To streamline the process, simply answer the questions below using a total of 3–4 sentences and 50–150 words:
If you're a fresher writing your first CV, mind that your application might be parsed by an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) before a human being ever sets eyes on it. This is just one more reason why you should be sure to mention the position you’re applying for as well as the company name. Use keywords from the job advert as well, but don’t overdo it.
Your personal statement starts your CV, but it’s best to write it last. You’ll be able to do a much better job once you have your job descriptions and skills list prepared (and that's why it's also called a CV summary).
Dynamic, plug-and-play investment banker with 5+ years of experience in both bank and boutique contexts and encompassing a wide variety of capital-raising as well as advisory activities. Currently engaged in raising a total of £35 million in capital for two companies with unique technologies in the diabetes space. Eager to leverage analytical skills, procedural scrupulousness and extensive professional network in helping Golberg Zacks raise capital for and advise its clients.
A strong CV summary will convince the recruiter you’re the perfect candidate. Save time and choose a ready-made personal statement written by career experts and adjust it to your needs in the LiveCareer CV builder.
Use a chronological format for your CV work experience section. This means starting from your most recent position and working your way back from there. This is what hiring managers are most used to and it’ll be more easily parsed by an ATS.
Use the following template to create a subheading for each job description:
[Job Title]
[Company Name, Location]
[Dates of Employment]
Populate each job description with achievements rather than duties. List up to six achievements in bullet-point form under each subheading. Quantify every bullet point. Use accomplishment statements to help structure and quantify your bullet points. Consider using something like the STAR method.
If you’re applying for an investment banking internship or an entry-level position without any experience, focus on showing transferable skills by listing any placement and volunteer work you’ve done. Add your work experience section after your education section and consider if a student or graduate CV wouldn’t be a more effective approach.
Investment Banker
Norbert Daniel, London
August 2018—present
Investment Banker
Risqit Bank, London
June 2015—July 2018
For a perfect CV, stick with reverse-chronological order for your education section. For your university degrees, list the name and class of your degree, the years you attended (with an expected graduation date if you’re still studying), and the name of the institution and its location.
As it is rather unlikely to get an investment banker job without a higher degree, you can skip adding your high school education. But if you lack work experience, you may want to add bullet points here to highlight your achievements or areas of excellence while studying (extracurricular activities for example).
MSc Investment Banking, 2015
Queen Mary University of London, Mile End
BSc (Hons) Mathematics and Finance (2:1), 2010–2014
City University of London, London
(Including one-year placement with Beaman Brothers, London)
The data-driven approach to your investment banking CV continues into your skills section. You’ll end up with a list of 5–10 hard and soft skills that’ll really set you apart from the competition and make recruiters sit up and take notice.
Set your CV aside for the moment and open a new document. List as many of your investment banking skills as you can. Aim for a good mix of soft, hard and IT skills. Once you’re done, add a sentence to each skill that describes how and when you’ve demonstrated that skill.
If you can’t come up with such a sentence, then that skill doesn’t make the cut. Your master list will include only skills that you can readily back up with concrete examples. Copy across 5–10 skills into your CV that match the requirements in the advert. Do this for every application, but keep the same master list.
Don’t miss out on the opportunity to paint as full a portrait of yourself as an investment banking professional as possible—include extra sections in your CV to fill in the blank spots. This is the place to add any extra qualifications (ACA, CFA, etc.), achievements, awards, hobbies or interests.
Do you speak any languages other than English? Include a languages section if you do. Speaking a foreign language is still relatively uncommon in the UK and is a great way to stand out. It’s an especially well-received attribute in investment banking, not only because of the cognitive benefits it brings.
Save space for more relevant sections and don't list references on your CV. Recruiters know they can ask for them.
Hobbies
Languages
Your investment banking job application will have two main parts: your investment banking CV and a cover letter. Most employers still expect that you’ll send your CV with a cover letter. You should definitely do so unless you’ve been explicitly asked not to.
The good news is that you’re easily halfway there to having your investment banking cover letter written if you’ve already prepared your job descriptions and skills for your investment banking CV. Like much of your CV, you should write a new cover letter for each job application, or know which sections to swap out.
Your cover letter should follow the standard British business letter format and include the following parts:
How long should your cover letter be? Over half an A4 page long but no longer than one A4 page, about 200–350 words in total. It should also be well-balanced in terms of its proportions:
Follow these basic CV formatting rules:
When it comes to CV design, it's better to avoid creative CV templates. Modern CV templates are acceptable as long as they're not too extravagant. Investment banking is a conservative industry so a basic CV template or Word CV template will do. View a list of free CV templates to pick one that suits you best.
Proofread and spellcheck your investment banking CV and cover letter. Get a second pair of eyes on both documents if at all possible. Always look at model CVs for inspiration and accuracy.
And one last CV tip: follow up if you haven’t heard back after a week. A quick phone call or email is all it takes to put your mind at ease and can only put you in a positive light.
You don’t have to be a CV writing expert. In the LiveCareer CV builder you’ll find ready-made content for every industry and position, which you can then add with a single click.
I hope this article has helped you end up with an investment banking CV you can be proud of. Is there anything I’ve mentioned here that you’d like more information about? Do you have any experiences or advice to share? Leave your comments, questions and feedback below. Good luck!
Our editorial team has reviewed this article for compliance with Livecareer’s editorial guidelines. It’s to ensure that our expert advice and recommendations are consistent across all our career guides and align with current CV and cover letter writing standards and trends. We’re trusted by over 10 million job seekers, supporting them on their way to finding their dream job. Each article is preceded by research and scrutiny to ensure our content responds to current market trends and demand.
About the author
Since 2013, the LiveCareer UK team has shared the best advice to help you advance your career. Experts from our UK editorial team have written more than one hundred guides on how to write the perfect CV or cover letter.
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See when to use a skills based CV and how to write it for the UK job market. Learn from the free skills based CV examples and download a functional CV template.
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