Some of the differences are given here:
Keeping it concise: The contents must be mentioned in a short, crispy and abridged manner. In other words, you need to keep it small in size. Generally, the recruiters view dozens of applications at once and they really don’t appreciate long and lengthy sentences. According to research, every resume gets no more than 40 seconds which is like way too less. So your CV/resume has to strike the right cords with the recruiters.
Generally in business resumes, you find a lot of content which is not suitable in legal CVs.
Chronology matters: Generally speaking in CV drafting, the “golden rules” must be remembered and those are:
Three-year rule for chronology;
Reverse chronology order.
In case your experience as a lawyer is more than 3 years, then spell out your work experience first and your educational qualification later on. In this case, greater emphasis should be laid upon your work experience and how relevant is your previous job to the job under application.
Furthermore, as per the reverse chronology order, list out your most recent experiences first and so on and so forth. For example, if you graduate in 2016 and you completed your latest project in 2019, then the project of 2019 should be mentioned first and thereafter your educational qualification must be mentioned.
Please shorten it
In business CVs, even if such rules are ignored then they are found acceptable as the focus of such CVs is on a requisite set of skills whereas in Law, weightage is given to the experience a candidate holds.
Use strategic and action words: For your CV / Resume to stand out from the crowd, you must use words like ‘contribute’ and ‘strong hold over a particular field of law’. Such use of language gives out a positive vibe out of your application and the recruiters feel more confident about interviewing such a candidate in whose CV such words reflect.
Tailor your resume for each job: Your resume is akin to a live document. Customize your resume/ for every job you apply to and your skillset must be enumerated in such a manner that it suits to the needs of your job under application.
Use your publications and hobbies relevant to your job under application: Listing out the publications, which are relevant to the practice areas of the firm. Hobbies reflect that a candidate is a well-rounded person. It must be remembered that your hobbies must be aligned to the job under application.
At WOLR, we offer holistic and all round services for Resume drafting and help you develop and engaging application for yourself and for your desired job. Confused about how to draft a PERFECT Resume? Contact WOLR today !
-Yash Shah
