In recent years more banks have started to ask students to submit a CV in place of (or sometimes as well as) an application form. Here, three graduate recruitment professionals offer advice on how to approach the written application.

CVs

Length

Ideally one page, but never more than two.

Contact details

Put your name in a bigger font at the top (in the page header) to help it stand out, and your contact details underneath in a smaller font.

Email address

Don’t try to be clever with your email address – boywonder2011@hotmail.com will make a bad impression.

Education

Make sure this section is on the first page, and put your educational qualifications in reverse chronological order, i.e. most recent first.

Dates

Don’t put the dates on the left – the reader’s eye will fall on the left-hand side first when skimreading; instead, put the qualification or job title (i.e. what you’ve actually done/achieved) on the left, the uni where you studied, and then the date, so

BA Business & Law, Imperial College London, Sep 08 – Jun 11.

Achievements

This is the new trend with CVs, replacing the emphasis on skills. The idea is not just to list your duties for every job that you did, but also to describe what you achieved,  first for your employer by way of business results, and second for yourself in terms of skills and development.

Hobbies / Extracurricular activities

Keep them relevant, i.e. loaded with employability skills such as leadership, teamwork, initiative. If you’ve climbed Mount Everest, this shows planning, grit and stamina. If you’ve set up an investment club at university, this demonstrates an early interest in finance.

Applications

No shortcuts

“We often come across applications with answers that have been cut and pasted, and candidates sometimes even forget to change the name of the bank they have applied to, which doesn’t reflect well,” says Natalia Garland, head of global graduate marketing and infrastructure at BNP Paribas.

Use of space

Fill it. Try to use up the word count allowed for each answer – answers that are too short can make it look like you haven’t really taken great care or time over the application. But of course, it also depends on what you put in the space.

“Be sensible,” advises Linda Jackson, MD of consultants Fairplace. “Do not devote more space to your victory on the pitch than to your summer working for a big bank, because it will send the wrong message about your priorities.”

Questions to expect

There will probably be a question on your motivation(s) for breaking into the industry, and for applying to a particular division or bank, along with questions on your industry knowledge. Then there are the inescapable ‘competency’ questions, for which you should use the S.T.A.R. formula to frame your answers (see separate article).

Cover letters

Their purpose

“People underestimate the importance of a cover letter,” says Sarah Harper, head of recruiting, EMEA and India at Goldman Sachs. “It is a useful mechanism to show your enthusiasm for the firm and the particular job you are applying for. It can really make a difference.”

Top and tail

Cover letters are still rather formal affairs, so never address it to the person’s first name. If you know the surname of the person you are writing to, write Dear Mr/ Ms X; then sign off with Yours sincerely; if you don’t know the surname of the person you are writing to, write Dear Sir/ Madam, and sign off Yours faithfully.

Tailoring

This means making sure you get the name of the person and company you’re writing to, address, job role and reference spot on, for a start. Then pull something from the job ad or job spec to show you know what they’re looking for, and tell them how you match it.

A word of thanks

Don’t forget to thank them at the end for considering your application.

Not forgetting email

Email etiquette — It’s best to treat this as an online cover letter, so keep it formal and no SMS speak.