Which format is better for a UK CV: bullet points or paragraphs?

Posted by trixtp@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 40 comments

Hi all, having a bit of a debate with my partner and we’re curious what people in the UK job market think.

When it comes to writing a CV, is it better to structure your experience in full paragraphs or use bullet points?

I’ve always been under the impression that bullet points are the standard now because they’re easier to scan and highlight key achievements. My partner argues that properly written paragraphs come across as more professional and detailed.

We’re both talking about typical UK roles (not academic CVs).

So, what do recruiters or hiring managers actually prefer in the UK? And if you’ve had success with one format over the other, it’d be great to hear.

Cheers!

[-]

aXiss95@reddit

Bullet points for me please. I have maybe 30 seconds to decide if it goes in the 'no' or the 'maybe' pile.

Also for the love of God spell check it. You wouldn't believe the amount of mistakes on CV's.

Good luck with the applications 👍

[-]

AnonymousTimewaster@reddit

As a hiring manager I very much second the spell check point. Straight in the bin if there's serious grammar errors these days when you not only have sophisticated spell checkers but also AI.

[-]

RockAndHardPlace81@reddit

I find yourr lack of commas disturrrbing

[-]

TSC-99@reddit

There are *

[-]

Icy_Mixture1482@reddit

CVs*

[-]

mailywhale@reddit

Normally this would be a roll-the-eyes comment but it’s more than justified here

[-]

ginbandit@reddit

Yes on the spell check! Our HR told us that the first 'filter' for the hundreds of graduate CVs we get is the spell check.

[-]

Realistic-River-1941@reddit

I wonder if that means people get binned for using British English, because HR haven't changed the setting?

[-]

spoo4brains@reddit

I would have thought lack of spell checking is an easy way to filter them.

[-]

ctrlaltdelaney@reddit

Bullets for humans to scan and orientate themselves on the page. Paragraphs for detail (and these days the AI that gets to it first). A mix of both is probably the way to go.

Importantly, don’t use extra columns or fancy layouts because they confuse the scanning tools used by a lot of businesses these days.

[-]

Winston_Carbuncle@reddit

AI doesn't scan CVs. The only automation is weighted key word search.

[-]

BuildingArmor@reddit

That's quite a bold sweeping statement to make on behalf of every employer in the country.

[-]

Winston_Carbuncle@reddit

Okay in the vast majority of cases. I have worked in the industry for over a decade at director level

[-]

miowiamagrapegod@reddit

the industry

Which industry?

[-]

KeyJunket1175@reddit

Ten years ago it was people hiding keywords in white text on their pdf CVs to trigger keywords filters, now it's a different technology and people optimise for LLMs.

[-]

Winston_Carbuncle@reddit

Point me to an ATS they truly uses AI and not a key word match

[-]

CoffeeKeyDog@reddit

Metaview

[-]

zephyrmox@reddit

AI has changed in the past 12months dude.

[-]

Winston_Carbuncle@reddit

Point me to an ATS they truly uses AI and not a key word match

[-]

CoffeeKeyDog@reddit

Look at what Metaview are doing.

[-]

mailywhale@reddit

In what industry?

[-]

Ballbag94@reddit

I use a mixture and had good success as recently as 9 months ago

A paragraph or two for a personal statement, then bulletpoints for key skills and employment history

[-]

Helen_923Jobs@reddit

I work in recruitment - my advice would be that any CV has to be easy to read. I know some organisations put CVs through AI systems etc - but if a human looks at it, make it easy for them to see how great you are, and why you'd be a good fit for the job! Also - general rule is not to go over 2 sides.

[-]

mailywhale@reddit

I think this depends on your industry. Most people here are saying bullet points but that wouldn’t be bizarre in my line of work

[-]

trixtp@reddit (OP)

That’s interesting, what sort of industry is your line of work?

[-]

mailywhale@reddit

I’m an engineer, and I’d expect a CV to be a series of paragraphs briefly explaining the projects I’d worked on and what my role had been

[-]

Mountain-Orchid-140@reddit

I manage engineers (and I guess used to be one).

I don't have time to read a whole ass paragraph about each project you worked on.

Bullet points of what you delivered and why it mattered to the business please.

We can have a nice long chat about the technical details of any relevant projects at interview.

[-]

Fair_Condition_1460@reddit

👆

[-]

ActionBirbie@reddit

Bullet points. Make it as easy s possible to digest quickly. Assume the person in HR looking at it has the attention span of a goldfish, and you can't go too far wrong.

[-]

Thats_my_nirnroot@reddit

Paragraph for the introduction, and the headers and bullets points for the eat of it..

No recruiter wants to read through multiple paragraphs to get the highlights..

Bullet point help display the key information that's needed.

[-]

skibbin@reddit

Odds are AI is the only thing that will read it. So paste it in to AI and ask the AI to format it in a way that is most easily read by AI.

Humans may have some preference in format, but it won't be a deal breaker. Format it in a way AI can't parse and you're never getting to a human

[-]

Vequihellin@reddit

As someone who manages an ATS, I can tell you that AI filtering tools will be impacting on how your cv is presented to the hiring manager, what 'score' or 'matching %' your application is given, and in some cases whether you make it through any automated sifting processes. I personally don't believe it is even about 'bullet points vs prose' anymore, it'll be about whether your cv is optimised for automated review. Meaning that you should make sure your cv includes key words and phrases from the JD and that you are concisely summarising experiences, skills, and qualifications in an explicit way.

[-]

Adzx93@reddit

Bullet points to quickly showcase your skill set and duties. You can go into more details during the interview.

Bullet points also look clean compared to line after line of sentences.

[-]

Opening_Nose_2347@reddit

Brief and to the point, use bullet points and concise statements. Avoid repetitive phrases and don't refer to yourself apart from in the profile.

Profile can be as a prose paragraph but again needs to be very concise and avoiding all repetition.

[-]

When replying to submission/post please make genuine efforts to answer the question given. Please no jokes, judgements, etc. If a post is marked 'Serious Answers Only' you may receive a ban for violating this rule.
Don't be a dick to each other. If getting heated, just block and move on.
This is a strictly no-politics subreddit!

Please help us by reporting comments that break these rules.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.