If you are looking to find a new oil and gas job, then updating your CV is probably a good idea. We have put together a CV guide that is tailored to oil and gas consultants and should help your CV get the attention it deserves from hiring managers and oil and gas recruitment agencies.

Before we start, it is worth pointing out that there is no definitive format for writing a CV, but there are certain points that all CVs should contain, and some big mistakes that should be avoided:

Design and Structure

Presentation is key, when you consider there might be hundreds of applicants for a job, your CV must stand out. Layout and structure need to be clear and concise, use bullet points to highlight each achievement you have made, and to show where you can add value to a company.

Length

Two pages is a good length for a CV, three pages is considered excessive. If you have pages of text related to all the previous tasks you have performed, then we would suggest maintaining a short CV (that you initially send) and the longer version can be given out when people want more information.

Standard Info

Do – Include an email address and phone number (you would be amazed how many people don’t)
Do – Include your education, training courses, certificates, awards.
Do – Include membership to any official groups or chartership bodies.
Do – Include a personal biography.

DON’T – Include your full address. There is no need, everything is done via email these days. Country and city are helpful, but nobody needs to know exactly where you live unless you intend on inviting them round for tea.

DON’T – Include information on your marital status and family – we aren’t allowed to consider it when hiring for positions, so it shouldn’t be there.

Tell Us What You Achieved

If you worked on a FEED for 12 months and produced 62 deliverables, it doesn’t show why you should be hired over the next person who applies. You need to say what quantitative results you achieved – Decreased review cycles, Increased quality of safety discussions, Saved TIC through value engineering, etc. This will make you stand out from the others.

Key Skills

For oil and gas jobs, particularly engineering specialist roles, we need to know what your key skills are so make these clear on your CV. Highlight software you can use, development types you are familiar with and what roles you can perform on a project.

Project Experience

O&G recruitment agencies will hire a familiar face if possible, so the best way to get noticed is by having a good track record of projects under your belt. Lots of our positions are filled by people with direct experience of an area or facility, so we need to know what you have worked on in the past. Make sure all your oil and gas projects are noted, even if these are only included as a brief list.

Make it Robot Proof

Applicant Tracking Systems supposedly sift through a CV and find the best candidates for a job based on key word search. This use of technology is limited, as it assumes everyone writes their CV’s identically (we don’t use ATS Technology, we use our brains in matching candidates to projects). Nevertheless, if you are applying to oil and gas jobs outside of TalEng (we forgive you) it is worth checking your CV contains the correct top skills and competencies that an oil and gas recruitment agency would look for (job positions, software skills, management experience, etc). Otherwise your CV gets removed without being looked at by a human.

Source- TalEngPro