A good CV example is not copied: it shows how to word things. For each job, you will find here what a recruiter looks for first, and sentences to adapt to your own career.
The people and careers are made up. LYZY's templates follow the same layout, and you fill them in online.
The example that gets through an ATS
Many companies sort CVs with software, an ATS, before a recruiter reads them. A CV that gets through almost always has the same shape:
- A single reading column, with no tables.
- Classic section titles: Profile, Experience, Education, Skills, Languages.
- The title of the job you are aiming for at the very top, with the words of the job offer.
- Text rather than images: no logo, no skills shown as bars or stars.
- A PDF created from a template, rather than a scanned document.
Awa Diop, senior accountant
+221 77 000 00 00 · awa.diop@email.com · Dakar
Profile: Accountant with six years of experience in a firm and in-house. Full bookkeeping for SMEs, tax and social security returns, monthly and annual closing with Sage.
Examples by job
For each job: the title to put at the top of the CV, a summary, the key skills and one line of experience that shows a result.
Title: Full stack web developer (React, Node.js)
Summary: Web developer for three years, I build management applications for SMEs, from the client's need to going live.
Key skills: JavaScript, React, Node.js, SQL, Git, REST APIs.
Experience: Built an appointment booking application used by several clinics, with mobile payment built in.
Title: Field sales representative, retail distribution
Summary: Sales representative for five years, I grow a portfolio of shops and wholesalers in the Dakar region.
Key skills: prospecting, negotiation, order follow-up, debt collection, driving licence.
Experience: Grew the portfolio from 60 to 110 outlets in two years, with collections tracked every week.
Title: Accountant, firm and in-house
Summary: Qualified accountant, I keep the books of SMEs from data entry to the balance sheet, under the SYSCOHADA standard.
Key skills: SYSCOHADA, Sage, Excel, tax and social security returns, bank reconciliations.
Experience: Cut the monthly close from ten to six working days with automated reconciliation sheets.
The audit and accounting CV template
Title: State registered nurse
Summary: State registered nurse with four years of experience in general medicine and emergency care, attentive to patient safety and to families.
Key skills: clinical care, emergency handling, patient records, health education, teamwork.
Experience: Cared for about twenty patients per shift in a medical ward, working with doctors and families.
Title: Heavy goods vehicle driver, C licence
Summary: Driver for eight years, I deliver in town and on the country's main roads, accident free and on time.
Key skills: C licence, defensive driving, routine vehicle maintenance, loading and securing, knowledge of the country's roads.
Experience: Daily deliveries between Dakar, Thiès and Kaolack, with a vehicle check before every departure.
The transport and logistics CV template
Title: Mathematics teacher, middle and high school
Summary: Mathematics teacher for six years, I prepare my students for the BFEM and the baccalaureate with active methods.
Key skills: lesson planning, assessment, classroom management, tutoring, digital tools.
Experience: Prepared year 9 classes for the BFEM, with revision sessions every Saturday morning.
Title: Administrative and executive assistant
Summary: Administrative assistant for four years, I organise the diary, mail and files of a management team, with discretion.
Key skills: Word, Excel, filing, reception, writing letters, organising meetings.
Experience: Set up digital filing for contracts, which the team now finds in seconds.
Examples by level
Put your education first, with the diploma you are preparing and the year you expect to finish.
Count your internships, your dissertation, your school projects and your work in associations as experience.
Summary: Third year management student, I am looking for a two month internship in management control starting in July.
One page is enough. Start with a profile that names the job you are aiming for.
Detail the internship closest to the job, with what you produced there.
Summary: Recent logistics graduate, trained in stock management during a six month internship, I am looking for a first job as a logistics assistant.
The student and first job CV template
Experience comes before education.
Detail the last ten years, and sum up older jobs in one line.
Summary: Site manager with nine years of experience in construction, I lead teams of fifteen workers and meet deadlines.
Two pages at most, opened by a profile that sums up your results.
Put forward the teams you led, the budgets you managed and the results you achieved.
Summary: Chief financial officer, fifteen years of experience including six leading a team of twelve, I led the SYSCOHADA compliance of a retail group.
The sections of a CV
- The header: name, title of the job you are aiming for, phone, email and city.
- The profile: two or three sentences.
- Experience, from the most recent to the oldest.
- Education.
- Skills.
- Languages, with your level.
- Interests, if they say something about you.
The order depends on your level: a student puts education before experience, an experienced profile does the opposite.
Photo, personal details, references: what is done here
- A photo is common in Senegal, and many recruiters expect one: recent, facing the camera, on a plain background.
- Age or date of birth and nationality often appear under the name. Marital status is optional.
- References matter: many employers call a former manager. Name one or two people with their consent, or write "References available on request".
- National languages, such as Wolof, Pulaar or Serer, belong next to French and English.
For a job abroad or in an international company, check the habits of that country: in many English speaking countries, the photo and personal details are left out.
Adapting your CV to a job offer
- Use the exact job title in your own title.
- Put the skills the job offer asks for first, if you have them.
- Pick the experiences that match the duties, and detail them.
- Keep one version of your CV for each type of job.
On LYZY, every job offer has a "Tailor my resume to this job" button. It generates a version of your CV adapted to the offer, with the proposed changes, and your original CV stays untouched. You can try it for free.