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CV Templates - How to Write a CV, Tips, Ideas and Examples

Submit a CV that makes you the first choice with our guide and template, exclusively for New Zealanders
Updated 29 September 2026
​When it comes to changing jobs, your CV is the most important tool to make it happen. It’s the difference between landing lots of job interviews and rejection after rejection, or not hearing back at all!

​The best CV explains why you’re suitable for a particular job, and our guide outlines step-by-step how to write an excellent CV. 

The most important element of your CV is that sells you for the job you're applying for. The contents of your CV, specifically job history and skills, need to be 100% relevant to the job you're applying for.

What is a CV?

Your CV, (the abbreviation for curriculum vitae) is ultimately a marketing document used to sell yourself to potential employers. Your CV’s focus is to tell the prospective employer about you, your work history, your skills and abilities, and work achievements.

Its purpose is to make it clear to the reader why you are the most suitable person for the job. A CV is always required when applying for a job. Some positions also require a cover letter and/or a completed application form. This guide focuses on crafting the best CV for your next job application.
Our guide covers:
  1. What to include in your CV
  2. ​Formatting, design and spacing guidelines
  3. Checklist: Four Golden Rules of CVs

Download our proven New Zealand CV templates

Want to use a traditional, standard and minimally-formatted CV? Download our CV template here.

​What to include in your CV

New Zealand employers generally see a range of CVs in terms of structure and format. This guide outlines what we consider to be the best structure and format for a CV, which you can tailor to your unique skills, work experiences and talent.

Five sections you must include on your CV

Name, professional title and contact details

  • Your CV starts with your name and details. Don’t write ‘CV’ or ‘Curriculum Vitae’ as it’s a waste of space. Your name is the title of the CV.
  • Your contact details are limited to email and phone. Don’t write your address, it’s not needed. Just state your location, i.e. Tauranga or North Shore, Auckland. If your Linkedin profile is up to date, you can include it (make sure to hyperlink it). 
  • Here is our suggested format of how your name, professional title and contact details might look:
First Name + Surname | Professional Title (i.e. Marketing Manager or Senior Web Developer)
Location: Town/City
Phone: Insert number
Email: [email protected]
Linkedin: Insert an external link

Example:
Christopher Walsh | Marketing Manager
Location: Auckland
Phone: 021 511 000
Email: [email protected]
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-walsh-moneyhub

Personal statement – written specifically for the job you’re applying for

A personal statement is arguably one of the most important elements of your CV. It serves to explain your career objectives and professional intentions, and demonstrates to potential employers who you are. 

The format is simple - it’s a short paragraph that sits below your name and contact details with the sole purpose of explaining what you’re about.For every job you apply for, re-writing your personal statement is essential.

Your personal statement should be a maximum of three to four sentences, succinct and purposeful, covering:
  1. Who you are – state your profession and/or degree or qualification
  2. What you can offer the employer – state your top skills and strengths, backed up by evidence.
  3. What your career goals are – convince the reader that you’re a professional worth investing time and money in.
 
1. ‘Who you are’ examples:
  • A recent BCOM/LLB graduate from the University of Otago seeking an entry-level position in…
  • A highly-skilled civil engineer looking to resume a position in…
  • An ambitious marketing manager looking to progress into…
 
2. ‘What you can offer the employer’ examples:
  • During my degree and working part-time, I have developed strong multi-tasking and time management skills due to balancing the demands of research, presentations and shift work. As a result, I am also able to work under pressure.
  • Through utilising my communication skills when working in senior management roles in major New Zealand companies, I have developed successful working relationships and resultantly, an advantageous professional network.
 
3. ‘What your career goals are’ examples:
  • I am looking to be part of a challenging, fast-paced environment within banking and finance to utilise my accounting expertise and develop my technical skillset further
  • I am looking to further a career with a progressive FMCG company where I can bring unique skills and experience after returning from working in the industry overseas.
  • I am looking to secure a challenging role in a top-tier local law firm where I can bring my wealth of experience to clients of all sizes and means.

Is a personal statement essential in a CV?
We think so. Studies have reported that hiring managers spend around 10 seconds looking at each CV – a personal statement gives a reason to read on. But make sure you keep to the point.

Key skills

Skills are the biggest asset you have, and employers want to know your strengths beyond your work experience. To present the most robust CV, look at the job advert to determine what skills the employer is looking for. If they mention tools, software or anything specific, make sure you incorporate it into your skills.

The best number of skills to list is around five. They need to be both ‘soft’ (i.e. personal qualities) and ‘hard’ (i.e. technical). 

Examples from top-rated CVs:
  • Excellent interpersonal skills, demonstrated by communication with clients, colleagues and non-technical professionals on a daily basis.
  • Expert knowledge of a variety of programming languages, including Java, Python, Javascript, Ruby, SQL and PHP.
  • Outstanding software planning, testing and troubleshooting skills
  • Knowledge of Salesforce, Asana, Basecamp and other project management tools
  • Ability to work without supervision and also as a dedicated member of a technical team

Experience and employment history

This section details your employment history, specifically your work experience which must be listed in reverse chronological order. This means your current and/or most relevant job is listed first.

​You’ll need to state your job title, employer name, the dates you worked and a line that summarises the role. You’ll then bullet point your key responsibilities, skills and achievements. Importantly, each point must be enhanced with powerful verbs, facts and figures to demonstrate your impact.
 
Choosing the responsibilities most relevant to the job you’re applying for ensures your CV talks to the hiring manager. You can delete positions from more than 10 years ago, as these are not relevant.

When completing this section, be sure to:
  • Provide key achievements within a role and try to highlight the skills used to obtain your goal
  • Try to avoid soft terms like “high energy” and aim for skills used within the role – such as “programming using C++”
  • Provide enough information to entice your potential employers to call you
  • Always keep examples relevant to the role you are applying for
  • Try to avoid cliché phrases that don’t differentiate you as a candidate
  • Try not to waffle if you feel like you don’t have much to write in this area. Succinct to the point CVs will be preferred as they are quick to read and won’t be generic.
 
Formatting and layout examples from real CVs:
September 2017 – January 2022 | Marketing Manager - Four Seasons Clothing, Auckland
​Key responsibilities:
  • Managing a budget of $500,000 a year, with a target ROI of 1.5x of direct spend
  • Managed a staff of two, as well as taking responsibility for the company's human resources needs
  • Provided weekly reporting that focused primarily on dollar results, rather than words and conjecture.

Key achievements/projects:
  • Achieved a 2.5X ROI in 2016 for Facebook spend, and a 2.2X ROI on Instagram spend.
  • Developed and presented case study to move marketing spend to online-only, which was approved by the CEO and board of directors.
  • Campaigned for, and created the position of Digital Marketing Specialist, to anticipate opportunities and promote the company's rapidly growing eCommerce sales channel. 
  • Built a community of bloggers, influencers and media properties to work with directly, avoiding agency fees.

Education and qualifications

Like your employment experience section, your education should be listed in reverse chronological order. Include the name of the institutions and the dates you were there, followed by the qualifications you achieved. It’s not usual to list the grades you achieved in New Zealand unless your education is NCEA subjects.

Suggested layout: Institution name | Dates attended (from – to) | Degree(s) or qualifications

Examples:
University of Otago | 2004 – 2008 | LLB & BCOM
University of Auckland | 2001 - 2004 | BA (Hons)
Long Bay College | Year 13 School Leaver, 2019 | Merits - English, Japanese & Art. Excellence - Spanish & Geography 

Download our proven New Zealand CV templates, freshly updated for 2022 and 2023

Want to use a traditional, standard and minimally-formatted CV? Download our CV template here.

Additional sections (optional, but recommended if relevant)

​There are a number of optional sections that can enhance your CV and highlights your hobbies, interests and references. 

Hobbies and interests

If you want to show your personality, listing hobbies and interests can help to boost your CV. However, be careful not to include generic hobbies like ‘reading’ or ‘exercising’. You’re best to include interests and hobbies that relate to the job.

For example, if the position is with an environmental-focused company, mentioning an interest in renewable energy and climate change activism would support your application.

References

References don’t need to be specified. Instead, if you have space, add “References - available on request”. If you don’t have space, you can leave it. Employers will ask for references as part of the job application process.

CV Template formatting, design and spacing guidelines

CV templates are the best way to guarantee perfect layout, and we believe formatting and presentation are as important as the content. Your CV visualises who you are and how you work to a prospective employer – if it has errors, looks messy or waffles on, your chances of success are limited.
 
Here are some formatting and spacing essentials to include when finalising your CV.
  1. A clear file name: Don't complicate it, save it, for example, as Christopher_Walsh_CV_2022.DOCX. You should also save it as a PDF which makes it easier to open on the recipient(s)’ devices. You can do this when you prompt to print the document, selecting 'Print to PDF' or similar.
  2. A professional email address and voicemail recording: [email protected], for example, is going to win over [email protected]. If your mobile voicemail isn't professional, re-record it with a simple sentence requesting callers leave a message for you to phone them back.
  3. 100% truth: Don't make things up. If you studied Japanese back in high school, you're not fluent in Japanese. Don't risk being found out.
  4. Logical layout, easy to read formatting: Make it an easy read, and don't reduce the spacing to cram it all in.
  5. Length: The standard length of a CV in New Zealand is one or two pages. In rare instances, three pages may be more appropriate depending on your work history. We believe 90% of CVs can easily be two pages or less.
  6. Headings: Introduce each section with a big, bold heading for easy reading.
  7. Font type: Most employers will review your CV on their computer or phone, so a clear font always wins. The best choices are Calibri or Arial for both headings and text. The text should be size 11 or 12 point font, and headings between 14 and 18 point font. 
  8. Keep margins reasonable: Around 2.5cm is best; reducing them to less than 2cm makes your CV look overwhelming and suggests you can’t manage information. 
  9. Check it more than twice: Use free app Grammarly and make sure it reads well. Make sure the dates are correct (i.e. don’t conflict), and you’ve listed correct contact details.

What not to include in your CV

There are a few details to leave off a CV. Here are the major ones:
  1. A photo: In many countries, a headshot is typical, but this is not the case in New Zealand.
  2. Age and date of birth: The only dates to include are your those of your current and previous (relevant) jobs. It’s illegal to be asked your age at a job interview or by a recruiter.
  3. Marital status: Don’t list it, and just like your age, it’s illegal to ask about it during the recruitment process.

Checklist: Four Golden Rules of CVs

Putting together a CV should not be tiresome. Remember, ‘less is more’ and getting to the top of the pile and being called for an interview is easy with the right approach. The summary below highlights five must-dos to maximise your job application success.
  1. Be specific. Stand out from the crowd and write your CV to match the job. List the job experience and skills that are relevant so that you are the most suitable person for the job.
  2. Keep it simple. The hiring process is exhausting for companies; make it easy for them by presenting a beautifully formatted and clean CV. Simple is always going to beat messy and complicated.
  3. Update it every time. Sending off an old CV is unprofessional; your CV must speak to the job you’re applying for.
  4. Use a template. A CV template means you can focus on expressing yourself without worrying about designing the document. A CV template guides you to include the most important elements and present a professional CV without the stress of formatting. For more templates, we suggest using Canva.
Next Steps – Job Success and Higher Income
Make your CV the strongest it can be for every job application and you’re sure to find a job more quickly. A professional, relevant and tailored CV gives you the best chance of success 

Download our proven New Zealand CV templates

Want to use a traditional, standard and minimally-formatted CV? Download our CV template here.
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