Summary:
To stand out in Kenya’s job market, your CV must make an impact in just a few seconds. This guide covers how to write a CV in Kenya to highlight your top skills, employment experience, and signature achievements. Key sections include personal info, summary, employment history, skills, and education, all tailored to each job.
Want to write a CV like a pro? Keep reading.
Perfecting the Art of CV Writing in Kenya: A Comprehensive Guide for Job Seekers
“In the field of observation, chance favours only the prepared mind.“
– Louis Pasteur.
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Recruiters can reject job applications in a minute—sometimes even less. We aren’t making this up. On average, recruiters only spend a few seconds reviewing a CV. That’s not a lot of time. This is the harsh reality of the job market.
Consider this:
When choosing a restaurant, we often base our decision on the atmosphere, structure, or cleanliness. And that’s even if we haven’t tried the food yet. Its appearance gives us a sense of what the dining experience might be like.
NOTE: These decisions take a few seconds and are made based on first impressions. The hiring process is no different. Recruiters go through thousands of applications in a week despite their busy schedules. One look at a resume and they know if it’s worth their time or not.
You need to be attractive to a prospective employer and recruiter. The magic is in your CV. Yes, having a cover letter helps but good CVs are the golden tickets to your dream job.
So, this is how to write a CV in Kenya effectively:
- Dig more into understanding ‘Why was this vacancy available?’ If possible, connect with the advertiser or employees through LinkedIn to find out.
- Ask yourself, ‘How can I present my CV to convince the recruiter that I am the best person to help them solve their challenges?’
- Optimise your CV by naturally adding job description keywords to your summary, bullet points, and skills sections. So that it can pass the scrutiny of Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) used by companies to filter CVs based on set criteria.
- Then, sell yourself through these standard CV sections:
- Contact Information and a Headline: To show who you are professionally.
- Summary: To capture your years of experience and signature achievements.
- Work Experience: To demonstrate that you have done the job before and achieved results for other organisations.
- Skills: Including relevant soft, technical, and software abilities.
- Education: To show you have the academic and intellectual training needed professionally.
- Other (optional): Relevant headings such as honours, certifications, interests, professional associations, etc.
You can find a more detailed explanation of these headings under ‘How to Write Your CV: Tips and Tricks for Success‘. Once you understand these key details and apply my guidance, your CV will stand out and be nearly impossible for recruiters and employers to ignore.
A professional CV can set you apart from other candidates. Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered.
In this article, I will offer valuable tips on writing a CV in Kenya that’ll make employers come knocking.
Let’s get into it.
Key Takeaways
Tailoring your CV, optimising your summary, and highlighting your experience, accomplishments, and abilities will keep your CV from being rejected in 8-15 seconds.
Have an understanding of the basics of good CVs including formatting and structure. Use a CV template to make yours attractive.
To fully optimise your CV, use action words, quantify your accomplishments, read the job description, and include relevant keywords, This ensures your CV gets past the Applicant Tracking System.
Use free apps such as Grammarly or Hemingway to ensure your CV is free from typos and grammatical errors.
Use CVJury’s intuitive CV builder to write a professional CV like a pro.
Understanding the Basics of a CV
Your CV is your ticket to bagging interviews and understanding its basics helps you create one that opens doors of opportunities.
What is a CV?
A CV, or Curriculum Vitae, is a detailed document that outlines your professional and academic history.
It is used to showcase your qualifications, know-how, and experience to potential employers.
A well-written CV is essential for job seekers in Kenya to stand out in today’s competitive job markets.
Pro Tip
Although people use them interchangeably, a CV is different from a resume. You’re probably wondering, “How is a resume different from a CV?”
A Resume is concise and focuses more on your qualifications, skills, and work experience. Its length is shorter, around 1 to 2 pages.
A CV, however, details the full history of your academic and professional achievements or credentials, making its length more flexible. It is more comprehensive and often used for academic, government, and international organisations’ jobs.
Choosing the Right CV Format
Writing a good CV is all about using the right format. Without it, your CV won’t cut it to catch the eyes of hiring managers.
CV Formats in Kenya
In Kenya, the best CV format is one that is clear, concise, and easy to read.
Use a professional font like Arial, Arial Narrow, Avenir, Book Antiqua, Calibri, Cambria, Century Sans, Constantia, Garamond, Geneva, Georama, Georgia, or Gill Sans. Helvetica, Karla, Lato, Merriweather, Montserrat, Open Sans, Oswald, Poppins, Raleway, Roboto, Tahoma, Trebuchet MS, Ubuntu, Verdana are the others. Ensure your formatting is consistent throughout the document.
Use headings and subheadings to make your CV easy to read.
You will often find the following CV formats:
Chronological CV Format:
This is the most widely used type of CV format. It lists your work history, including part-time jobs and educational achievements, in reverse order, starting with the most recent.
It’s ideal for those who have a consistent and massive employment history and multiple skills to showcase. E.g.,
Functional CV Format:
Often called a skills-based CV, this format focuses more on your competencies than on your previous job titles. It’s helpful for people who have had breaks in their careers but have continually enhanced their skills.
It’s also good for those who may not have the exact job titles but possess relevant industry experience and skills. Eg.,
Need help writing your CV in Kenya? Check out our app below:
Combination CV (hybrid CV):
This CV merges the elements of both chronological and functional CVs. It gives equal attention to highlighting your skills and past work experiences.
Non-traditional CV:
Common in creative fields such as graphic design, music, photography, or fine arts, this type of CV might include:
a. Online Portfolio:
You create samples of your creative work and upload them online for potential employers to review. Your samples should showcase your unique style and creativity.
b. Video CV:
Ideal for roles like video editing, where you can show your skills and versatility through a video-format resume.
c. Web Pages:
Especially suited for software developers and programmers, this format allows you to demonstrate your expertise by developing impressive digital products.
We’ve covered the main types of CVs and resumes, highlighting their unique features and uses. Let’s move on to understand the key elements of an effective CV.
How to Write Your CV: Tips and Tricks for Success
Writing a CV can be tricky and sometimes confusing, but with the right tips, you’ll make yours perfect in no time.
Essential Sections
There are compulsory and optional sections in a CV. Here are the essential or standard sections:
Personal Information (Biodata):
This section provides key details about you, including your name, contact information, and professional title. It serves as an introduction, giving potential employers a quick snapshot of who you are and how they can contact you.
Pro Tip
1. Name:
Include your full name. Your middle names are not necessary as long as your first and last names are present.
Use a larger font size for your name so that it is easy to notice.
Add a professional title or targeted job role title to show your area of specialisation. For example;
GRACE MWANGI
FINANCIAL SERVICE TRAINEE
2. Contact details:
This includes your email address and phone number. This makes it possible for the recruiter to reach out to you. Your contact details must be active and belong to you.
In addition, use a professional email address. e.g., firstname.lastname@email.com is more professional than slayqueenxoxo@email.com.
3. Location:
This helps hiring managers know if you are a local or if a commute or relocation cost is necessary.
List your full address or just your city and state.
Specify if you are willing to relocate. You can write “Open to Relocation” or “Willing to Relocate” in brackets (after your location address).
Sometimes you can add a photograph. Do not, however, include your marital status, age, political affiliation(s), or religion in your CV. Unless the job advertiser has clearly requested those details.
Professional Summary:
This is a note or statement summarising your professional history, career objectives, and key qualifications. Think of it as a sales pitch about yourself. This section should also be tailored to the company and the role you are applying for.
Pro Tip
Highlight only your most relevant skills and experiences.
Keep it simple by calling it either ‘Summary’ or ‘Profile.’
Review the job description and research the target company before drafting a (brief) summary. This will help you know the best way to tailor your CV.
The first sentence of your professional summary must grab the attention of a potential employer.
The body of your summary should be about the soft skills gained throughout your work life and from industrial placement.
State how interested you are in the role and passion you have in the field. This is more convincing to an employer.
By all means, avoid making your summary generic. Phrases such as “hardworking individual” or “goal-oriented” will make you sound like other candidates.
5 Alternative Formats to Present Your CV Summary
Work Experience:
Your work experience section is one of the most important sections of your CV. It is a snapshot of your professional experience, industry, specific skills, and achievements.
This section shows the recruiter that you have the necessary experience for the role available. Your employment history should be able to communicate:
Your career growth or advancement
The valuable experience you’ve gained, and
How you have benefited your past employers.
Pro Tip
Your work experience must be related to the role you are applying for. Let’s say for instance the employer is hiring for a customer service role and they make it clear that experience in customer service is important. You shouldn’t apply if you do not have experience in the field. Unless the employer is open to training you if you’re from other industries.
List your previous employments in reverse chronological order. Start with your most recent work experience and work your way backward.
Highlight your achievements and the impacts you made in your previous roles.
Things to include in your employment history:
1. Job Title or Position:
This is one of the first things hiring managers will notice. Your title tells hiring managers exactly what roles you played at different companies.
List your exact job title(s) at previous companies at the top of each entry just as it appeared at your workplace. This helps people quickly understand your responsibilities at a glance. So, use the official title you held to avoid confusion.
2. Company name:
Providing the names and locations of your previous companies should come next. Make sure they’re spelled correctly.
Talk about what they do (especially if the company isn’t popular) for context. This helps employers know exactly where you gained your experience and makes it easier for them to verify your background.
3. Dates of Employment:
Include the start and end dates for the jobs you’ve held. Be specific with the month and year. This will give employers a clear sense of how long you worked at each position.
If you’re still in the role, you can say “Present” instead of an end date. The popular format to write employment dates is mm/yyyy (e.g., 07/20XX, Jul 20XX, or even 07/24).
4. Responsibilities and Achievements:
This section is very important in your CV. This is where you show the stuff you’re made of.
Don’t present your responsibilities as just tasks. Instead, highlight the results achieved from them.
Your accomplishments are about the standout moments or tangible impact you made in your previous roles. So, mention the accomplishments you’re proud of.
You can talk about how you increased sales within X period of months, how you improved methods, or something along these lines. Quantify your accomplishments with metrics.
A useful format for your bullets is:
“Accomplished X, using (or by or through) doing Y, that resulted in Z”
Note: ‘Accomplished’ is merely an example, it can be replaced by any other similar power words. ‘By doing’, can also have other variants (similar phrases or words), e.g.,
- through
- by means of
- via
- using
- with the help of
- employing
- with
- through the use of
- by way of
- through the implementation of
- implementing
- exploiting
- taking advantage of
‘Resulted in’, you can also use other words or phrases, e.g.,
- leading to
- causing
- producing
- generating
- yielding
- bringing about
- culminating in
- contributing to
- translating to
- delivering
- transpiring in
- giving rise to
- forming
- occasioning
For example:
Optimised job seekers’ strategies in self-marketing, networking, and relationship-building through personalised guidance on Skype, leading to quicker job placements.
Reduced hospital mortality rates from 19% to 5% by educating nurses on new protocols, saving 25 more lives over the past three years compared to previous records.
7 Different Formats to Present Your CV Work Experience:
Education
The education section provides information about your academic background and knowledge. Consider your education section as the engine of your CV when you have little to no work experience.
Pro Tip
List your educational qualifications in reverse chronological order. i.e. from the highest qualification down to the lowest.
Your degrees and diplomas should be separated from short courses using distinctive subheadings.
Detail your academic qualifications including the names of institutions, dates attended, and degrees earned.
List specific academic achievements like being the best-graduating student, or winner at a very popular competition.
Add additional certifications, GPAs, training, and relevant coursework.
You can list leadership in clubs and societies under this section.
Relevant Skills:
Highlight relevant skills, including technical and soft skills, that relate to the job.
Check the job description for the key skills the company wants and (if you have them) list them at the top.
Demonstrate your transferrable skills.
Highlight your proficiency with certain tools. For example, if you are familiar with tools for graphic design but the role needs experience with one of the tools like CorelDRAW, list that tool first. For instance:
GRAPHIC DESIGN SKILLS
CorelDRAW, Sketch, Figma
Adobe XD | InVision | Canva | Affinity Designer
Certifications and Awards:
Mention any additional certifications or awards you’ve earned that may boost your candidacy.
These can help set you apart and show employers that you’re dedicated to improving yourself or have been recognised for your accomplishments.
Ensure they’re relevant to the job you’re applying for.
References:
You don’t need to list your references directly on your CV. Instead, some people simply state “Available upon request” [not something we encourage].
Only provide references if it’s requested by the employer.
This gives you flexibility to provide references when needed and ensures you maintain their privacy until the right time.
Optional CV Sections
These are CV sections that you can either decide to add or not depending on your needs. For example:
Accomplishment Highlights
Achievement Highlights
Career Highlights
Career Overview
Experience Highlights
Honours And Awards
Professional Associations
Professional Affiliations
Association Memberships
Publications
Public Speaking
Certifications
Interests
Languages
Software
Volunteer Works
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Hacks for Writing a Good CV or Resume
Here are some simple hacks to help you write a CV that grabs attention and lands more interviews.
Use Action Verbs and Quantify (Where Possible) Achievements
Start each bullet point with strong action verbs (with over 150 examples). For example:
Driving Change
Converted
Clarified
Streamlined
Revamped
Rehabilitated
Integrated
Acting as an Ambassador
Amplified
Delivered
Boosted
Expanded
Achieved
Generated
Leading by Example
Chaired
Coordinated
Leveraged
Orchestrated
Produced
Resolved
Saving Company Time or Money
Decreased
Lessened
Diagnosed
Deducted
Yielded
Conserved
Experience with Finance
Calculated
Evaluated
Minimised
Audited
Lowered
Classified
Technical Experience
Deployed
Engineered
Automated
Discovered
Launched
Networked
Expressing Your Communication Skills
Documented
Conveyed
Instructed
Presented
Campaigned
Collaborated
Showing Creative Experience
Conceptualised
Curated
Designed
Proofread
Visualised
Researched
Where possible, quantify your achievements (e.g., “Increased sales by X%”).
You can also show achievement without using numbers.
Use keywords from the job description to highlight your relevant skills and experience.
Ensure your CV is free from typos and grammatical errors. Use free apps such as Grammarly or Hemingway to catch spelling and grammar errors and check the readability of your documents. They’ll suggest what to improve.
Use a professional CV template and tone throughout.
Keep your CV concise and focused, with clear headings and bullet points.
Do not use past tense for your current tasks.
Special Cases
When writing a CV in Kenya, knowing how to handle special cases like having limited or no experience can make all the difference in landing the interview, and the job.
How to Write a CV in Kenya (With No Experience)
As a student with no employment history, your CV won’t look like the CV of someone with an employment history.
Focus on your academic achievements, extracurricular activities, and any volunteer work. Your Volunteer work can look like this;
VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES
Event Coordinator, Kenya Red Cross Society Annual Charity Walk | 20XX–20XX
Fundraising Chair, Food for Education Society | 20XX–20XX
Outreach Leader, Save the Ocean Foundation | 20XX–20XX
Secretary, Community Garden Initiative, Austin | 20XX–20XX
Highlight your relevant coursework, skills, and any practical experiences.
Use a professional font and the right CV template.
Your CV format should look like this:
Header: Your name, contact information, and location.
Summary: Outline your career goals and why you are interested in the position.
Education: Emphasise your academic qualifications, relevant coursework, and any projects or research.
Skills: Your soft, technical, and software skills.
Extracurricular Activities: Include any clubs, sports, or organisations you are part of and that are relevant.
Volunteer Work: Including paid or unpaid.
Crafting a CV With Career Gaps
Turn your gaps into talking points.
Explain what you did during each of those gaps and frame the gaps as periods of growth and learning.
Talk about courses, freelance work, or projects you tackled.
Be honest and positive about your experiences during these times.
CV Samples and Examples
Referencing CV samples and examples will help you understand how to present yourself in the best way for job hunting in Kenya. Below are our best CV examples:
Modern CV Templates
Modern CV templates combine top content with stylish designs, making them perfect for jobs in industries that value both creativity and professionalism.
Characteristics:
Combines traditional information with modern, clean designs.
Uses bullet points for easy reading.
Deploys subtle, strategic use of colours.
Industries:
Ideal for industries like marketing, tech, digital media, fashion, etc. These templates are great for job titles like Marketing Specialist, Graphic Designer, Software Developer, Social Media Manager, and Fashion Buyer, where a modern yet professional look is important.
Modern CV Template Examples from CVJury App
Creative CV Templates
Creative CVs use unique layouts, bold colours, and artistic elements, making them stand out in industries that value innovation and originality.
Characteristics:
Features vibrant colours, creative fonts, and unique layouts.
May include visuals like graphics, charts, or infographics.
Designed to be eye-catching and memorable.
Industries:
Popular in creative fields such as design, advertising, IT, and arts. Ideal for job titles like Graphic Designer, Art Director, Web Developer, Event Planner, Fashion Designer, and Digital Marketing Specialist, where creativity is a key asset.
Creative CV Template Examples (CVJury App)
Traditional or Conservative CV Templates
Traditional CVs or resumes follow a classic, formal layout that works best in industries that prioritise professionalism and maintain structure or tradition.
Characteristics:
Uses a simple, clean design with a black-and-white colour scheme.
Relies on standard fonts like Arial, Calibri, or Times New Roman.
Focuses on professionalism and clarity.
Industries:
Favoured in fields such as law, accounting, government, and healthcare. Suitable for job titles like Accountant, Lawyer, Government Administrator, Doctor, and Financial Analyst, where the roles highly value formality and structure.
Traditional CV Template Examples from CVJury:
Senior or Premium CV Templates
Senior or premium CVs and resumes use bright, eye-catching designs and headlines to showcase leadership experience and career flagship accomplishments, tailored for top-level professionals and managers.
Design Characteristics:
Highlights leadership roles and significant accomplishments.
Uses modern, elegant designs with bold fonts and strategic colour usage.
Emphasises career highlights, awards, and innovations.
Tailored for Specific Sectors:
Best suited for senior positions in design, tech, advertising, multimedia industries, etc. Perfect for job titles like Creative Director, Chief Technology Officer, Senior Marketing Manager, Head of Digital Strategy, Executive Producer, and others where showcasing expertise, leadership, and innovation is key.
Premium CV Template Examples by CVJury
Tailoring Your CV to the Job
Customise your CV for each job application.
Use a professional CV template to create a well-structured CV.
Look at good resumes or CV samples and examples to get inspiration and ideas for your CV.
Having A solid CV Is Winning In A Competitive Job Market
Congratulations! You’ve come this far.
Writing a CV in Kenya is all about understanding the local job market and then tailoring your document to meet employers’ expectations.
We know you’ve heard this a million times and still, you haven’t seen any results. Being rejected by many companies can be a hard pill to swallow. But, maybe it’s time to stop in your tracks and head back to the drawing board.
Yes, you’ve been able to craft your CV from scratch and you put in a lot of work too. That’s no small feat. You have come farther than you were yesterday. “Tulia, unakam ni msee”, that is, “Relax, you’re doing great!”
But know this:
Your CV is more than a mere document. It’s your story, your skills, and your potential all on one page and against the world. You just have to get it right and believe us, you’ll rise above the noise and doors will open.
If you’ve read the tips outlined in this article, you only need to implement them and your experience will never be the same.
With this article, you have the power to change the narrative of your job-hunting for the better. You won’t just land interviews, recruiters will come knocking.
This is the whole point of your hard work. It doesn’t matter if you started today or five years ago. You have the power to take charge of your CV and the time to do it is now.
As we say in Kenya, “Kanyaga“. Cheers!
Further References:
7 signs a job interview went well, according to an HR executive with over 35 years of experience
https://deltaprofits.com/how-to-write-a-resume-the-ultimate-guide/
- Overcoming barriers to finding your first job as a graduate.
Wendy S. Enelow and Louise M. Kursmark (2000). Expert Resumes & LinkedIn Profiles for Managers and Executives. Emerald Career Publishing, USA.
