A CV contains in brief all information about you that is relevant for the job: personal information, education, work experience etc. The CV shows what qualifications and experiences you have that make you an ideal candidate for the position.
Structure and Content
- Personal Information
name, address, phone number, email, nationality, date of birth
- Summary of Qualifications (where appropriate)
- Work Experiences (current experiences first)
period of time, company name and address, position, brief description of your responsibilities and achievements
- Education and Training (current experiences first)
period of time, name of institution, qualifications
- Further Information
other skills (e.g. foreign language skills), additional information that may support your objective and qualifications
- Simple Past (past responsibilities and achievements)
- Present Perfect (experiences)
- Simple Present (present responsibilities)
Put work experiences before education/training. Employers often just skim CVs, so it's better to put important things first. For the same reasons you may even want to include a summary of qualifications at the beginning of your CV.
Marital status and place of birth are irrelevant for applications in the UK or USA. Neither should you give information on your primary or secondary school education if you already have plenty of work experience.
CV or Resume?
Sometimes the terms CV (Curriculum Vitae) and resume are synonymous, although people in the UK normally use the term CV, not resume. In the USA, a resume (1-2 pages) is not as long and detailed as a CV, which is usually required when applying for a position in an academic field.