By Nadim Baig
Nadim Baig has a wealth of recruitment experience spanning over a decade within the legal sector. He specialises in the recruitment of permanent and locum legal professionals in the South West and South Wales, Thames Valley region, North and West Wales, the Midlands and the North West.
Here at Bewley Recruitment we understand that searching for that perfect role can often be a difficult and daunting task, particularly when you are aiming to successfully market yourself to potential employers, and stand out from the many others who are trying to do the same.
With this in mind, we have created a CV and Interview preparation guide to assist you along the way.
CV Guide
Present a clear and concise CV containing relevant information laid out in a logical manner
Remember that the reader will tend to scan the document at first and will want to find the important information easily and quickly.
At the head of the CV give your personal details including full name, address, telephone numbers and email. Below this should be inserted your academic achievements, where they were obtained and the grades achieved. Follow this with experience gained at work in the legal profession with the latest/current employment first, name of employer, position(s) held, duties and responsibilities.
It is important that you give the reader a clear impression of the range and variety of work that you have handled and an insight into your actual legal experience. You will appreciate that people doing similar sorts of jobs for similar lengths of time may well have handled very different cases in very different circumstances and so their actual experience will not be the same.
Identify achievements and successes in each role and give an indication of the types of client you dealt with. Be positive in tone.
If you have been involved in marketing, business development and promotional activities these should be recorded since they are often of great interest to a prospective employer.
If there are any gaps in employment give a brief explanation in the appropriate place.
As a guide, we suggest a CV should be 2 - 4 pages long.
Interview Guide
An interview is an occasion when your personal presentational skills are as important as your knowledge and experience.
Make sure that you arrive punctually, that you are smart and well turned out.
You must prepare carefully and well. Research the firm. Bewley Legal Recruitment will provide basic information about the firm, provide maps to the location and give the names of the people with whom the interview will take place. However, you, the candidate, must make yourself familiar with their size, profile and reputation so that you are clear in your own mind as to how you view the firm. Much information can be gained from the traditional directories or by using the internet. Put yourself in a position to ask and answer questions about the firm and how it works. Review and know your C.V. and be able to discuss it confidently.
Think about questions that you may be asked to establish your technical knowledge relevant to the position for which you are being interviewed. Be prepared also to answer technical questions of a general rather than specific nature.
At the interview itself, try to be at ease. Remember that the interviewer needs to fill the vacancy successfully and so should be prepared to answer your questions and provide information. Take time to think about the question before answering. Try to be concise. If possible and appropriate, try to illustrate your answer with a related and successful instance in your experience.
You must be completely honest.
At the end of the interview, establish the next stage and the timescale.
About Bewley Recruitment
Established for 20 years, Bewley has never sought to be
the biggest recruitment company, instead we have focused on delivering
excellent service whilst assuring confidentiality throughout. As a result we
are proud to be one of the most respected legal recruiters.
We serve candidates and clients in the South West and South Wales, Thames Valley
region, North and West Wales, the Midlands and the North West. Our ethos is that by investing
time in getting to know our candidates and clients, we can make the best
introductions.
For further information, please visit our new website www.bewleyrecruitment.com
