Key Achievements to Put on CVs: Examples + Full Guide

Key achievements on a CV can set you apart from other applicants. While many candidates list job duties, those who fill their CVs with accomplishments show real impact.

You possess far more achievements than you realise. This guide provides examples of key achievements to put on a CV to help you exceed recruiters’ expectations.

In this guide, you’ll see:

• How to find achievements to put on a CV.
• Where to put key achievements on a CV.
• 20+ examples of CV achievements for different job titles.

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What are the key achievements in a CV?

In CVs, key achievements are accomplishments that prove your skills, abilities, and impact in your past roles or projects. They demonstrate your effectiveness and dedication to meet or exceed expectations at work or school.

Examples of key achievements that make a strong CV include:

• Meeting or exceeding company targets
• Contributing to good customer service
• Implementing successful projects or initiatives
• Receiving awards or recognition
• Increasing revenue or sales for the company
• Identifying and solving complex problems
• Saving a significant amount of money
• Improving processes or efficiency

Why should you include achievements on a CV?

While every candidate can list job duties, not everyone can show what they achieved. That’s why including accomplishments in a CV is so important. Achievements add depth and credibility to your CV by showing the real results you've delivered. They help employers understand the value you bring and why you deserve to move forward in the hiring process.

Here are the key reasons to put achievements on your CV:

• They help you distinguish yourself from other candidates by showcasing unique successes.
• Accomplishments quantify your impact with numbers, making your claims more credible.
• They show how you solve problems and contribute to company growth.
• CV achievements support your key skills (both hard skills and soft skills) and experiences with real-world evidence.
• They help recruiters scan your CV quickly and spot your top strengths.
• Accomplishments build a compelling narrative that holds the reader’s attention.
• They show ambition and a track record of going above and beyond.
• Key achievements enhance your chances of passing ATS filters that search for specific keywords and results.

How to find achievements to put on CVs?

Not sure what counts as an achievement? You’re not alone. Many people overlook their accomplishments because they’re too close to the work to see the results. But if you’ve solved a problem, improved something, or helped someone succeed, you’ve likely achieved more than you think.

To uncover your key achievements, start by reflecting on your past roles, projects, and activities. Ask yourself questions like:

• What problems did I solve, and what changed as a result?
• Did I ever receive praise, awards, or positive feedback?
• Have I saved time, cut costs, or boosted revenue?
• Did I help improve a process, system, or workflow?
• Was I involved in launching or delivering a successful project or initiative?
• Did I train, mentor, or support others in a meaningful way?
• Was I given more responsibility or trusted with key tasks?
• Did I achieve or surpass targets, KPIs, or personal goals?

Remember, your goal is to move beyond merely listing duties and focus on the outcomes of your work. Once you’ve compiled a few strong examples, you can transform them into concise, results-oriented statements that demonstrate to employers exactly why you’re worth hiring.

How to describe CV achievements (+ examples)

The most important thing to remember when writing a perfect CV is not to write a tedious laundry list of duties. Recruiters know what your everyday tasks look like. They are more interested in what you achieved in previous positions. Though accomplishments depend on your industry, there is a way to turn each job duty into an achievement regardless of what you do professionally. 

Here’s how to highlight achievements in a CV:

• Use action verbs at the beginning of the sentence: for example, start each description with “increased,” “developed,” or “designed”.
• Quantify the results of your actions: add numbers, percentages, values, and statistics to show your impact.
• Be specific in your descriptions: avoid generalised and vague claims.
• Use the PAR (Problem, Action, Result)or STAR (Situation, Task, Achievement, Result) formula to impress recruiters.
• Utilise the skills-based CV format if you’re a student, recent graduate, freelancer, or career change: this will put your key achievements at the forefront.

Look at these key achievements examples that show what the result should look like:

Where to put achievements in a CV?

Below, you’ll see the CV sections that can be packed with key achievement examples that go beyond awards and accolades.

CV profile

A CV personal profile is your CV’s opening paragraph. It’s where you introduce yourself to the recruiter. Considering how little time a recruiter spends reading a CV, it’s good to catch their attention straight away with an impressive CV achievement in this part of your document.

Here’s a CV personal statement example:

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.

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Job descriptions

CV achievements should constitute the bulk of the content within your work experience section. Build each accomplishment around a strong verb in the active voice. Use ‘negotiated contracts’ rather than ‘contracts were negotiated.’ 

You should have up to six achievements for each job description, and 5–9 for more complex and involved roles. List your job descriptions in reverse chronological order. 

You can use the following template:

If you struggle to give at least three achievements per job description, list your duties. Then, make them into achievements by noting the scale at which you did things. For example, ‘helped customers find products’ might become ‘helped 15+ customers a day find the products they were looking for’.

Here’s a sample job description from a software developer CV:

Try to fully or partially quantify every single achievement. If you don’t have enough work experience, consider writing a student CV or a graduate CV instead, as both offer ways around this.

Education section

If you’re writing a CV with no experience or a school-leaver CV, you may often lack job-related accomplishments to put on a CV. Here’s where the education section of the CV comes in handy. You can enrich it with honours, publications, awards, and relevant extra-curricular activities. They’re your achievements, too.

Here’s a sample:

Additional CV sections

A great CV includes not only traditional sections, but also emphasises additional information to convince recruiters and further distinguish candidates from their competitors. Below is proof that you can find achievements in nearly every section of your CV (except for your skills and your CV header) 

Here’s how to show achievements in the additional CV sections:

20 Key achievements examples for a CV (different industries)

In this chapter, you'll find 20 examples of CV achievements tailored to different industries. Each one was taken straight from the work experience sections and CV statements. Use these

examples of the accomplishments as inspiration to craft your own powerful statements that catch a hiring manager’s eye.

1. Marketing manager CV achievement example:

2. Sales representative CV achievement example:

3. Software developer CV achievement example:

4. Project manager CV achievement example:

5. Customer service advisor CV achievement example:

6. Accountant CV achievement example:

7. Human Resources manager CV achievement example:

8. Data analyst CV achievement example:

9. Operations manager CV achievement example:

10. Teacher CV achievement example:

11. Graphic designer CV achievement example:

12. Recruitment consultant CV achievement example:

13. Warehouse operative CV achievement example:

14. Digital marketing specialist CV achievement example:

15. Nurse CV achievement example:
    
    

16. Business analyst CV achievement example:

17. Admin CV achievement example:

18. Labourer CV achievement example:

19. Retail manager CV achievement example:

20. Legal CV achievement example:

See a CV example that perfectly uses all the exemplary achievements:

Sample CV featuring key achievements

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.

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And that’s it. Now that you’ve learned everything there is to know about putting achievements on a CV, there’s only one thing left for me to do. I wish you good luck with your CV and with your future job interviews. You got this.

Want more? View dedicated CV writing guides with key achievements examples to get inspired:

• Architecture CV
• Bartender CV
• Computer science CV
• Football CV
• Hospitality CV
• HR CV
• IT CV
• Medical CV
• Office manager CV
• Personal trainer CV
• PhD CV
• Shop assistant CV

How we review the content at LiveCareer 

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.

Sources

• UC Davis: Guidelines for Accomplishment Statements
• IEMA Jobs: Does your CV pass the 7-second test?