Make sure that your CV is cleanly presented, some employers spend approximately 20 to 30 seconds scanning your CV so you need to ensure it is clutter-free and easy to read. The last thing a recruiter wants to do is to go hunting for the information that they are looking for so don't hide it amongst an array of elaborate graphics. It should be very easy to understand the chronology of your work history and what you did within each role along the way. It’s good to have a set format for each job you’ve done so that the employer knows exactly where to look at each point of your work history to get the right information. Also, make sure that you use the same font throughout your CV to stop it looking too disjointed.

Be absolutely clear about what you’ve achieved in your CV.  State what you did, when you did it and what results of doing it were.  Employers will skim through waffle, so put information in there which really shows them what you are capable of.   It’s tempting to write down what you have been ‘responsible’ for during your service life, whereas in reality people are more interested in tangible results. This is particularly important when you’re about to leave the military, because Civvies will sometimes not understand the magnitude of your fantastic achievements unless you spell them out clearly.  

Also, avoid using too many military specific abbreviations, as things which are obvious to you (e.g. NCO /SNCO etc.) may leave many Civvies scratching their heads. When you put together a CV it's often difficult remembering the projects you have been involved with and the achievements you have made. To avoid missing out important pieces of information, revisit your CV every month adding anything of importance, and cutting any information that is no longer required. 

Make sure that there’s no spelling mistakes and that you have worded everything correctly!  If you haven’t employers will see you as less than perfect, even before they assimilate the information that you’ve written about yourself. Use a spell checker but don’t rely on the tool to pick up all of your errors, give it to other people to read for you. You’ll be surprised at how easily you can miss a simple mistake yourself that someone will pick up instantly! As well as checking your spelling and grammar, make sure your employment dates match up and that you've provided the right phone number and email address. 

Check all your contact information to ensure it is correct. A wrong telephone number or e-mail address is a very quick way to halt your progress.  It sounds simple, but people often complete this information at the end of their CV writing process and sometimes don’t give it their full attention. Putting down the wrong contact details can stop your application before it even gets started properly.

Have more than one CV. You are likely to be applying for different types of roles when you leave the forces as you try to discover your niche. Make sure that your CV fits the job description that you are applying for. Try to get hold of a full job description whenever possible when applying for a new role and look at the terminology that’s being used.   If you think that you have the experience required to apply for the role, make sure that you describe that experience in a language that is similar to that used by the person who wrote the job description. That way they will understand quickly that you are a prime candidate for the role.

This is one of the most important section as it demonstrates to BAE Systems your commercial experience. Concentrate on your most recent jobs and those most relevant to the position. List your jobs in reverse, chronological order starting with your most recent. For each role state your responsibilities including all the technologies you utilised. Discuss the projects you have worked on. All of this will help the BAE Systems recruitment team to assess your skills against the position and it will ensure we do not misinterpret anything. 

It is just as important to include your Education, qualification and experience. Whilst BAE Systems do not use this as the sole selection criteria it is always beneficial to add this to your CV as it highlights your additional experience and will help further your application. 

Long paragraphs and sentences make a CV difficult to read quickly. Try to keep your sentences short and punchy. Use of bullet points to break up the text under section headings is often a good idea.

You are more likely to get through to interview by tailoring your CV to a specific role, therefore highlighting the most relevant experience. The best way to achieve this is to keep a CV template and modify it according to the target job. Never be tempted to exaggerate your skills or experience.