How long should a contractor CV be?

There’s a lot of debate and conjecture when it comes to the length of a contractor CV. Matt Craven, personal branding and winning work expert from The CV & Interview Advisors sheds some light on this thorny issue.

Urban myths

Whether you’re a job-seeker or independent consultant, many people think their CV should be no more than two pages. This two-page rule gets bandied about on a regular basis, yet those ‘in the know’ consider it to be somewhat of an urban myth.

Don’t get me wrong, if your CV fits nicely onto two pages then by all means, two is for you. But for most experienced tech contractors, it would almost be a feat of engineering to capture all your relevant experience and selling points on just two sides of A4.

The research

A few Januarys ago, there was a survey done by a national newspaper -- a few thousand job seekers and several hundred recruiters were surveyed to ascertain their views on CV length.

Interestingly, 83% of job-seekers thought their CV needed to be two pages and, interestingly, 74% of recruiters disagreed.

Of course, that leaves 26% of your potential target audience thinking a CV should be on the thrifty side! But we’ll assume these recruiters were at the more ‘non-specialised’ end of the jobs market.

Which style of CV?

Perhaps the first question to ask yourself as a contractor heading into 2024 ought to be “Which style of CV do I need?”

The answer may hinge upon your chosen IR35 status. An inside IR35 contractor will almost certainly have a chronological CV, whereas an outside IR35 contractor might have both a chronological and case study-style CV.

A case study-style CV will often fit nicely onto two pages, yet a chronological CV might need up to four pages to capture your relevant experience.

Most contractors will also be targeting roles through their network, and in these scenarios, a one-page ‘biography’ is often more appropriate.

Common sense

Much comes down to common sense with CV length.

Your CV should be as long as it needs to be to capture your relevant experience and selling points. Someone starting their career will obviously have a shorter CV than a seasoned contractor with 25 years of high-profile assignments under their belt.

It would be strange to think that everyone’s CV should be the same length when there is a clear disparity in experience levels.

My advice would be to focus more on selling yourself adequately, than scrimping on word count.

Yardstick

If we are looking for some general rules on CV length, there’s a reasonable consensus that a permanent job-seeker CV should max out at three pages, focusing on the last ten years; and a contractor CV no more than four pages, focusing on the last six years. Anything pre-dating ten or six years can be tucked away in an ‘Earlier Career’ section as a series of one-liners.

Most CVs that we create for our clients (who are typically senior professionals and executives, including contractors) are three pages in length. Four pages is a touch on the lengthy side but sometimes necessary for experienced contractors and interim managers.

Front loading

In many ways, the length of your CV is irrelevant if you have front-loaded your CV with your key selling points.

If page one communicates what you are (and be specific), presents a value proposition; promotes your key selling points, and backs that up with evidence (ideally using mini-case studies), then the length of your CV will be secondary.

Get page one right and a recruiter or client should be wanting to meet you before they even realise pages three or four exist!

CV help is at hand

If you would like one of my team at The CV & Interview Advisors to provide a detailed and confidential 1-2-1 review of your CV, you can find out more on this page: https://cvandinterviewadvisors.co.uk/partners/contractor-uk

ContractorUK has partnered with the UK's leading authority on contractor CVs to provide a FREE review of your CV and LinkedIn profile. Contact The CV & Interview Advisors and one of their team will get back to you to discuss if your CV and LinkedIn profile matches up with industry best practice.