Skip to main content

How white space can revolutionise your CV

Written by: Neville Rose
Published on: 21 Dec 2015

Building Service Engineer CVs

It is always good to keep your CV as short as it can be; two pages is usually about the ideal length. However, to keep to two pages, many job seekers reduce the font size and try cramming in as much of the previous CV as possible. Needless to say this defeats the object of keeping it to two pages. The resulting CV looks untidy and makes for a tough read. Remember, white space is an essential part of your CV and in this article we’ll talk about the reasons why.

A balanced CV

White space creates a perfect counter balance to the text in your CV. Your words need space to be seen and appreciated; they need to mean something and white space helps this to happen. White space helps the reader to relax and appreciate what you have written. It helps the reader to engage with your words and your story.

White space highlights your headings

The best way to get your headings to stand out is not to switch them to bold, make them bigger or underline them; it is actually to surround them with an appropriate amount of white space. White space makes it much easier for the eye to focus on something. It acts to draw the reader in giving your headings more impact.

Easy navigation

As your headings will be easier to find, your CV becomes much easier to read. Remember different recruiters are looking for different qualities and attributes therefore it is very important to make sure finding their way around your CV is as easy as possible. If you can achieve this you’re much more likely to get an interview.

How many words?

Try to keep the CV to 2 pages and a CV of this size should contain between 700 and 800 words. Too few words and your CV may begin to look lightweight, too many and you are seriously going to put readers off. Around 750 words will give your reader just enough information to whet their appetite.

The best fonts and sizes to use

This is much more important that you might think. You should avoid curved fonts like Times New Roman as these typefaces aren’t always easy to read and can look a bit dated. It is best to use a contemporary looking fonts like Arial, Tahoma or Calibri. The point size should be 11 or 12.

Using white space well can make a dramatic difference to the readability of a CV. You have less than 30 seconds to make an impact and therefore it is vital to make sure the reader can get what they need quickly.

This article is written by CV Writers, the official CV writing partner to CIBSE Jobs. CV Writers also publish Perfect CV, a professional CV writing toolkit that includes a CV template, video guides and a CV checking service.