How to make sure your CV passes the 6 second test

A study conducted back in 2012 found that recruiters, on average take only 6 seconds to review a CV and to decide whether or not to proceed with an application. Now this may or may not be accurate, and some further studies claim to debunk this theory, however I tend to think that it is closer to the truth than we would like to think.Therefore it is critical to make sure that key information stands out when a CV is being scanned before a fit/no-fit decision is made.In my experience key information offshore employers are looking for at this stage is:Current firm and dates of employment.Previous firms and dates of employment.Practice area(s) / areas of expertise using keywords.Admission dates and jurisdictions.Academic institutions, qualifications and dates attended.We will typically include some of this information in an executive summary at the top of the page or in any covering letter sent with a CV.There are some basic CV tips that will help us to help you better:Use a clear format. Less is more when it comes to formatting CVs. Professionally written CVs are often more successful simply because they are easier to read. Reduce the amount of clutter and use an easily readable font.Avoid big blocks of text. They simply do not get read. Keep sentences short, use bullet points and try to find the balance between text and white space. Too much text is hard to read and too much white space will look sparse.Be consistent. Lawyers are sticklers for finer details. Make sure you are consistent with things like date format, margins, bullet point alignment etc.Thankfully once we make it past this first hurdle the hiring and relocation process takes much longer than 6 seconds. Interviews, island visits, immigration and relocating can take closer to 6 months in a lot of cases, Highbury Consulting will be able to guide you at every step along the way.Your journey begins here.