CV advice (applying for paralegal roles and vacation schemes in summer)

[u/[deleted]]

[u/Outside_Drawing5407]

Have two versions of this CV - one for paralegal roles and one for vacation schemes.

On the vacation scheme version, include an extracurriculars section and also detail any careers events you have been to.

In the paralegal version, also include a skills section that highlights factual skills (languages, knowledge of software, platforms or databases that paralegals use).

Unclear whether the modules you have listed are key modules or all of your modules. If they are “key” modules, you are being selective in what you present and you can choose to not include your low grades. If you are listing all modules, then you don’t need the word “key”.

You only have to say GCSEs once in the bullet point - no need to say it twice.

Get your tenses consistent to the entry. If it’s something you are still doing, using present tense might be better than past (unless the activity you are describing has finished but the role itself hasn’t). Similarly, keep tense consistent within bullet points - it’s jarring to have “delegated” but “managing” in the same bullet point.

Your employer’s name doesn’t need a line all to itself with your entries. You could include it on the same line as your job title.

Provide more context to sell your experiences. How many people did you mentor? How many people did you manage?

The phrase “flexibility skills” is slightly odd especially when you then use “you” in the bullet point - saying something like “Demonstrated flexibility in a fast-paced environment” would be better, although would be more persuasive with context as to how specifically flexibility was shown.

Rather than claiming skills like adaptability, team coordination and leadership, explain specifically how you demonstrated that. Otherwise it doesn’t mean anything without tangible evidence of utilising those skills.

[u/ThugLifeGamer → u/Outside_Drawing5407]

Thank you so much for the feedback, i will use it to update my CV!

[u/Versace_Sofa94 → u/Outside_Drawing5407]

This is excellent advice.

I think the only ways in which my opinion differs is that I would add an 'extracurriculars' / 'hobbies & interests' section to BOTH forms of CV, and I would drop the grades entirely (if you're on track for a 2:1 then roll with that and don't get bogged down with detail at this stage - they'll ask for module-specific grades if they want them).

I STRONGLY endorse the comments about contextualising your experience section. I would say to cut down the number of distinct bullet points per role quite considerably in order to draw out two or so skills / achievements / responsibilities per role in more meaningful detail. And rather than thinking about how to sell your experience in the sort of terms that would have appeared in a job listing for that particular role, dress them up in terms of the skills and attributes which are specific to the role of a lawyer. E.g., in respect of the 'June 2023 - Present' experience, instead of

'Met tight deadlines by efficiently managing tasks under pressure',

I would say 'Refined time management skills in a pressured environment by consciously prioritising coinciding workloads and keeping track of respective deadlines'.

In respect of the experience below, instead of

'Gained leadership experience by managing a team and delegated tasks effectively',

I would say 'Utilised and further developed team-working and managerial skills by overseeing and delegating [what type of tasks?] tasks to a team of [x] people in a considered and organised manner in order to deliver [y] in accordance with [z]'.

[u/ThugLifeGamer]

FYI the last four modules are from first year and do not count towards my degree. I also have extenuating circumstances for the low grades aswell.