university of dundee presentation template

Tag: PowerPoint

2: style and consistency.

• Author By Laura-Jane Logue and Eve Laws

• Choosing a style for your content that reflects your topic and is suitable for your audience.
• Utilising a consistent visual style in order to create a familiar and user-friendly experience.

Developing the style of your content and learning resources should be considered in the planning stages. By style, we mean your choice of colour, font, layout, graphics, and anything that adds to the visual presentation of your content. The style of your content should reflect its purpose, suit your audience and can also reveal a little bit about you. The visual presentation of information can affect the way in which it is communicated and received by your audience. Would you use a different visual style if you were presenting to a much younger or older audience? Would your lectures be received differently if you used a different font, such as Comic Sans vs Calibri? We will take a closer look at the specifics of the colour, font, and layout design principles later in this series.

Establishing your Style

Whether it be presentation slides, an educational video or even lecture notes, you can establish your own style that your audience can recognise. Take a moment to consider if there is already an emerging style in your existing learning resources. Identify any consistent elements and take note of them. When planning new material, these elements can then be implemented, and you have begun to encourage a style in your work.

For example:

• Do you always use the same fonts?
• Do text boxes remain in a specific location in your presentation slides?
• Do your images flow from left to right or from top to bottom?

University of Dundee Branding

For marketers and those that communicate on the University’s behalf, please see the University brand guidelines – Brand guidelines | Brand | University of Dundee .  Academic staff may wish to use the University branding for external-facing content, such as conference material.

Consistency

Consistency is highlighted in the Dundee Module Baseline in order to improve student engagement and overall experience for online and blended learning. This can also be applied to the visual style of your content and learning resources. A simple, consistent theme can minimise visual intake, reducing cognitive load and encouraging knowledge transfer. Your material can become recognisable, and your audience can focus on the meaning of the content whether it be a complex theory or a set of instructions. In everyday life we thrive from consistency, and this is the same when it comes to communicating information.

Consistent Presentation Layouts

The examples above highlight two ways in which the placement of content can be used consistently in presentation slides. In example 1, the content of each slide follows the same placement as its predecessor. By keeping all elements in a fixed location, your audience will recognise this style and visual/textual information will become easy to follow.

A consistent layout does not have to be linear, as you can see in example 2. The header is located in the same position on each slide. However, the image location alternates from right to left maintaining this pattern throughout the entire presentation; this ensures consistency whilst keeping the layout visually interesting. The text boxes have distinctive curved corners to differentiate them in terms of content; this text box style is used throughout.

Consistent Presentation Themes

These examples showcase how a PowerPoint theme can be used consistently throughout presentation slides. As you can see in example 3, a simple and consistent style has been used throughout. The top and bottom margins, font and placement of colour established in the title slide remain the same. Although the title slide differs in layout, the placement of colour is consistent with blue on the left and light grey on the right.

In example 4, a similar theme is used in a consistent yet less rigid way. The same colour palette and font is used throughout, however the placement of colour and slide layout changes dependant on the content of the slide. For example, each slide with a single image has the same slide design. Note that although the header box changes in length, the header is placed in the same position on each slide.

Consistent Poster and Infographic Styles

Consistency is just as important when creating infographics, posters and other media-rich documents. In example 5, the title and subheading are easily identifiable, and their position encourages the eye to their location. The use of consistent shapes (in this case, the circles) links the textual information together. The size of the circles differ which creates some depth to the page. This type of design could be used for a poster which needs to be eye-catching with limited information presented.

Example 6 (adapted from a Canva template) also uses consistent styling throughout to communicate information with a similar bold, graphic style. There is a consistent style between the illustrations which suit the subject and complement the shapes used throughout. This infographic uses the same colour palette as previous examples we have looked at demonstrating how you can make use of your style across different types of content. Here example 5 and 6 could easily belong to the same module or set of resources. Although there are differences to the design, the same bold colours and graphic shapes are used, tying the two pieces of content together.

Accessibility

As with user interface design, consistency within the style of your content will improve usability for your audience. One of Jakob Nielsen’s 10 usability heuristics is to ‘maintain consistency and adhere to standards’. For example, consistent use of icons, logo placement and text formatting on a website makes it easier to use. Improving the usability of your content makes it more accessible to your audience. This concept applies to many types of design and can be kept in mind when designing your content.

We will take a closer look at the accessibility points surrounding elements of style such as colour and typefaces later in this series.  It is important to note the importance of creating content that is accessible as it is a legal requirement for the University. We recommend reading this guide on creating inclusive teaching materials for an overview of accessibility requirements and some practical help.

Further Reading

• Design principle: Consistency. The most known and most fragile design… | by Anton Nikolov | UX Collective (uxdesign.cc)
• Jamie & Lion: Cognitive Accessibility 101 – Part 1: What is Cognitive Accessibility (jkg3.com)
• Designing for the web: Neurodiversity | Creative Bloq
• 6 Principles Of Visual Accessibility Design – Usability Geek

Steppingstone Day 2: Consider your Style

To help you establish your own style it can be useful to examine other examples. After considering your usual style choices and identifying any areas of consistency, take a look at examples of content that is similar to what you would like to create. You may wish to do this as a peer review with one of your colleagues or take a look at an Open Educational Resource ( OER Commons ). What works well and what does not work so well? Is the style used consistently? How could you make this style work for you?

If you co-teach with others, you may wish to discuss your style choices with your colleagues. Do you think it is beneficial to keep a consistent style between content if it is delivered by different lecturers? Should the style be different? Does it matter? Please discuss your thoughts in the comments below.

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Record and present in PowerPoint

• For Students
• Submit an assignment

What is it?

PowerPoints are the go-to for most presentations. You will be able to access PowerPoint as part of the university’s Microsoft 365 subscription.

What does it do?

In addition to creating a static PowerPoint that is the background of a live presentation, you can also record audio and/or video into your PowerPoint.

Once you’ve done this, you can save the recording as a video file, and upload it to YuJa using our guide .

What should I know?

Step 1: From within your pre-created PowerPoint presentation, go to the  Slide Show  tab and select  Record Slide Show .

Step 2: In the top centre, there is a big record button, and settings for the microphone in the top right. You can use these settings to choose your microphone and camera inputs. Generally, we do not recommend using the laptop’s microphone, but rather that you use a headset.

Step 3: In top-right, there is an option for ‘turn camera on’ – this would put up a video of you in the bottom right-hand corner so students can see you as you walk through the presentation (this is important for lip reading). 

Step 4: When you are ready to start recording, click the Record button. You will get a 3…2…1 warning, and then it starts recording. 

Step 5: You can then click through your slides as usual using the arrows on each side. There is a pause button which you can use to pause recording when needed. You can use the pencil, highlighter, and eraser icon to mark on the PowerPoint as you record it. To restart your recording at any point by clicking on the large  X  in the top menu. 

Step 6: Once you are happy with your recording, click the small  x  to go back to the normal editing view. 

You can see that there is a recording attached to your slide if there is a speaker icon in the bottom right-hand corner. 

Step 7 : To export your video, go into  File , then go into  Export  and choose  Create a Video .

You have drop-down boxes to determine the quality of the video (we recommend you leave this as the FullHD setting). You can also configure the number of seconds spent on each slide (note: if you have recorded narration over your video, the recording will not move on until all speaking for this slide has completed, regardless of the timings set for each video). 

Step 8: Select  Create Video  and save your video to your desired location. 

Once you’ve got this, you can upload the video to YuJa !

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Creating Academic Posters Using PowerPoint

• Simon-Lewis Menzies (Participant)
• Leverhulme Research Centre for Forensic Science

Activity : Participating in or organising an event types › Participation in workshop, seminar, course

Description

Related content, infographic, data, visualisation, animation - new ways to illustrate your research, an introduction to statistical analysis using r, introduction to project planning for researchers (part 3): creating the plan, intermediate research statistics for research staff and postgraduate researchers, postgraduate researcher - research integrity mini conference, planning and structuring your thesis, welcome for pgr's, careers beyond your research - applying your skills outside academia, planning your professional research career - an introduction to the researcher development framework, advanced nvivo - qualitative data handling and analysis, drafting, editing, and proofreading skills, introduction to project planning for researchers (part 2): scoping the project, my thesis in 10 steps, opd - how to write clearer sentences & how to write faster, research integrity - pgr's, introduction to nvivo - qualitative data handling and analysis, advanced presentation skills for communication and public engagement, introduction to project planning for researchers (part 1): establishing foundations, introduction to project planning for researchers (part 4): planning for uncertainty, the complete researcher - making progress in your phd (year 2), unconscious bias - relevance and risk, research integrity - emodules, the complete researcher - phd launchpad (year 1), working productively at a distance.

PowerPoint Templates

Below are links to the official PowerPoint templates for the University. When creating a presentation, please use one of these templates.

Official Slide Deck – 1920×1080 Option 1A  (Blue/White)

Official Slide Deck – 1920×1080 Option 1B  (Blue/White/Yellow)

Official Slide Deck – 1920×1080 Option 2A  (Blue/White)

Official Slide Deck – 1920×1080 Option 2B  (Blue/White/Grey)

Official Slide Deck – 1024×768 Option 1A  (Blue/White)

Official Slide Deck – 1024×768 Option 1B  (Blue/White/Yellow)

Official Slide Deck – 1024×768 Option 2A  (Blue/White)

Official Slide Deck – 1024×768 Option 2B  (Blue/White/Grey)

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This resource is available to U of M faculty, staff, and departmental accounts.

These templates were designed to give you a jump-start on print design projects. Templates are compliant with graphic standards and are print-ready. Choose between identical Word and InDesign files. Templates include customizable headers, horizontal and vertical template files with U of M footers, color or black-and-white.

For Digital

The Word file for Digital includes predefined styles to make your document accessible for the web and includes instructions for converting to an accessible PDF.

For Presentations

Download includes PowerPoint presentation template files for SD and HD, along with a complete set of University logos for inserting into PowerPoint, if needed. Use the end slide with the system campus wordmark combination whenever possible.

Branded Google Slides Templates are also available for all campuses.

See Requirements and Guidelines for information about logo use.  

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• Discovery Research Portal - University of Dundee Theses Since September 2009, all PhD theses have been submitted in electronic format, and are available via Discovery (unless embargoed due to confidentiality).
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• ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Citation Index An index to the world's most comprehensive curated collection of multi-disciplinary dissertations and theses from around the world, offering over 5 million citations and 3 million full-text works from thousands of universities. You will need to sign into Web of Science using your University of Dundee login to search this index.
• Open Access Theses and Dissertations OATD.org aims to be the best possible resource for finding open access graduate theses and dissertations published around the world. Metadata (information about the theses) comes from over 1000 colleges, universities, and research institutions. OATD currently indexes over 2,500,000 theses and dissertations.
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How we tell our story matters

Our resources are designed to help DU storytellers, content producers and ambassadors who support the creation of marketing and communications materials (newsletters, flyers, posters, brochures, websites and more).  It empowers the DU community, enabling us to create clear and consistent messaging to accomplish our goals while remaining welcoming and useful to our audiences. A few things found in this guide to consider when crafting content on behalf of DU.

• Keep DU’s differentiators (UVPs) available to reference as we want to consistently highlight the positive attributes that separate us from others and matter most to our audiences.
• When sharing our story, be intentional; don’t compress what goes into your content.
• Consider your audience and what you want them to feel, utilizing these insights to weave in elements of DU’s distinct voice to create a lasting impression and inspire action.

Please feel free to reach out to [email protected] with any questions or support for special situations you may encounter

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PowerPoint Template

Use our templates to easily create visually dynamic University-branded PowerPoint presentations.

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Create PowerPoint presentations

Download the official Sussex PowerPoint template and instructions on how to use it.

Download a presentation template

We have two PowerPoint templates available: a standard version and a widescreen one.

These templates have been designed to meet web accessibility standards: find out more about creating accessible PowerPoint presentations .

Stick to the title and slide layouts provided in the templates.

• Download PowerPoint template – standard [PPTX 9.4MB]
• Download PowerPoint template – widescreen [PPTX 6.7MB]

University of Sussex Business School

See the Business School PowerPoint templates .

Use the supplied templates and do not change these in any way.

Attend a presentation course

There are courses available at Sussex to help strengthen your presentation skills.

Check the Technology Enhanced Learning web pages for details about workshops or webinars.

You can attend courses on how to use PowerPoint software . These are run by ITS at intervals depending on demand.

You might also be interested in:

• getting a branded email signature
• letterheads and business cards
• writing well .

Brand Manual

Powerpoint templates.

Branded templates allow faculty, staff, and students to create custom and professional presentations that incorporate essential elements of the university brand.

PowerPoint templates are available in both widescreen and standard formats and include multiple slide-layout options, brand fonts, accessibility ordering, and editable data assets.

Formal PowerPoint template

The formal PowerPoint template is a good option for official, executive level presentations.

PowerPoint accessibility tips

• Maintain the heading structure and list order in these templates. They are structured for screen-reading devices.
• Ensure that font size and color contrast is sufficient.
• Use alternative (ALT) text for photos and images.
• If you include text boxes that are not a part of the template-slide layout, make sure the order for screen readers remains intact.
• If you have embedded video, ensure that the video is captioned and that the player controls are accessible.
• If you have embedded audio, include a transcript.

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PowerPoint template

This template provides you with maximum flexibility so that your presentations communicate effectively with your audience, as well as being accessibility compliant.

Making sure your presentation is accessible

You should always use the predefined, branded University of Essex slide layout templates. These have been designed and structured to maximise accessibility.

If the slide layout is modified, or you create a custom layout, the structure and reading order of the content can't be guaranteed and users may experience accessibility barriers.

Find out more about  making your PowerPoint presentation accessible  (.docx)

Creating impact with your presentation

Find out how you can gain the maximum impact with your presentation with our guide to using PowerPoint template :

• Layout, colours and fonts
• Title slides
• Slide content
• Imagery and graphics

Getting started with the template

This PowerPoint file contains all the different template options. It’s made up of four content groups:

• Title/Divider slides
• Text/Media slides
• Media only slides (eg images, video, graph/data visualisation)

You can mix and match the slide templates in your presentation. 

• Standard PowerPoint template (.potx)
• Business PowerPoint template (.potx)
• EBS PowerPoint template (.potx)
• Essex Sport PowerPoint template (.potx)
• Open up the template
• Read the guidance slides and delete once read
• Select the Insert tab
• Select the New Slide button
• Select a slide layout, eg 'Title Slide – Picture Background’

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User-ready templates are available for download.

Keep template designs within brand standards. Unless noted on the template, do not alter colors, logos, typefaces, or other elements. If you have additional template requests, contact [email protected] .

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University PowerPoint template

University of huddersfield powerpoint presentations – instructions for use, to use to build new presentations:.

When you open the .pptx file attached you’ll see there are 2 slides on the left hand side. If you go to ‘Format – Slide Design’ a full set of slide options will appear on the right hand side panel. These slide options can be inserted as master slides, specific slides or all slides so easy to mix and match the various designs as required. If you then click on Format – Slide Layout there are various options for changing the slide to have bullet points, insert images etc.

To use for existing presentations:

Save the .pot file attached to your desktop or appropriate folder. Open the existing presentation. Click on Format – Slide design. On the bottom right hand side panel there will be an option to click on ‘Browse’ – find the .pptx file from where you’ve saved it and agree to copy the master slides into your presentation. You can then apply the required new slide design in to your existing presentation.

UOH312 corporate-ppt-template-ratio-2021

UOH312 corporate-ppt-2021

Undergraduate recruitment presentations

We have PowerPoint templates specifically developed for undergraduate recruitment such as outreach, Open Days and AVDs. Please contact your School Marketing Office for this template.

University brand

• Visual identity

• Presentations

Presentations are used to communicate important information to key stakeholders all over the world, so a professional, sophisticated style is essential. Consistency will reinforce our gravitas and authority.

The logo should feature consistently in the top left-hand corner of every page of a presentation. In the case of partnerships, the University logo can be used alogside other logos.

The background colour for slides is purple or white. An image as background is also possible. If using a white background, the full colour logo should be chosen; if using purple, the white logo will be more appropriate.

Download templates:

• PowerPoint template - white  (ppt document, 228Kb)
• PowerPoint template - purple  (ppt document, 200Kb)
• PowerPoint template - partnerships  (ppt document, 1MB)
• PowerPoint template - 16:9, white (ppt document, 734Kb)
• PowerPoint template - 16:9, purple  (ppt document, 450Kb)
• Keynote templates for Mac computers  (zip file, 550Kb)

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Updated on 7 March 2024

Advice on preparing or updating your CV.

Your CV (curriculum vitae) is often your first chance to make a good impression. It is a personal marketing tool which communicates your academic qualifications, work experience and skills to potential employers.

It should be relevant and tailored to the opportunity you are applying for. The main aim of your CV should be to highlight your strengths and suitability for the post in order to progress to the next stage of the recruitment process.

Before you start your CV

It is essential to research thoroughly what the employer will be looking for. Internet searches of job descriptions and company websites are a good place to start. You may wish to use an AI tool (such as ChatGPT) to help with your research. When using the internet or AI to help with your career research consider: 

• Give accurate and clear instructions/search terms. The more detailed and specific you can be, the more likely you are to find the returned information useful. 
• Check your sources: consider if you are searching for UK-based employment information, check how reliable your sources are, and try to cross reference if you can.
• Never plagiarise external sources. If you use information from external sources in your CV, application form or covering letter, acknowledge this and put it into your own words. 

Personal knowledge and experience are often the best sources of careers research. You could attend a careers fair or employer presentation on campus, or network with friends and your academics to find out more about typical employers you may be interested in. 

The next step is to focus on your experience, knowledge, skills, and attributes to tailor your CV to the requirements of the position.

One simple way of preparing the relevant information is to note down all the requirements of the post and then try to note down examples from your experience to demonstrate you match these requirements. 

AI tools can help you get started with identifying skills for a job and assist you in drafting examples to demonstrate your skills. But don’t be tempted to get AI to write a skills summary, or even your whole CV, for you. Employers will usually be able to spot generic AI generated CVs very easily and some employers ask you to make a declaration that you have not used AI in the application process. 

Remember to consider all aspects of your life in terms of what you have to offer. For example, spare time activities and family commitments will often offer valuable evidence of relevant skills.

What should go in your CV?

Therefore, it is essential to make an instant impact. You must demonstrate evidence of your achievements, skills, and qualities concisely and explicitly.

UK employers tell us that skills-based CVs work best. This means detailing the skills you possess that are relevant to that opportunity and clearly demonstrating where you have used and developed these.

The most effective CVs are highly tailored to suit the sector and roles to which you are applying. This may mean you need different versions for different roles.

Tailor your CV

In the UK, a standard CV is two pages. However, academic CVs can be much longer, and some industries welcome a more creative approach. Typically, you should include:

• personal contact details
• key skills (relevant to role) 
• education and qualifications
• work experience (paid and voluntary)
• additional skills, awards, and achievements 
• referees statement 

These headings are flexible. It’s your CV so don’t feel like you must include headings that aren’t appropriate to you. Create a personal CV. You may consider using templates or AI tools for initial drafts or inspiration, but always make sure your CV is your own work. Tailor your style and content to work effectively for you and your circumstances. 

Ensure you create a good first impression. A clear, professional layout usually works best. Be consistent in your style and use a professional font e.g. Arial, Verdana or Calibri. Take care with your spelling and grammar. Avoid large chunks of text and use bullet points and bold appropriately.

Some employers now use AI in the sifting process when recruiting, for example screening for key words. Read our Guide to AI in Recruitment to learn more about this. Consider: 

• Keywords - use job adverts, job descriptions and person specifications to help you identify key skills and key words. Use these within your CV where appropriate. 
• Layout – screen readers can struggle with inconsistent fonts, images and tables. You may want to avoid columns too. One reason for this is that they can often result in wasted space or de-emphasise the most important parts of you CV. Another reason is that screen readers tend to read from left to right, so your CV could end up incomprehensible! 
• Simply and standardise your language - an AI may be programme to scan for a certain job title as evidence of suitable experience so aim to use the most common form of a job title, e.g. use ‘Sales Assistant’ rather than ‘Crew Member’ 

The proportion of employers using AI in recruitment is still in the minority, and even where they are used, this is usually just in the initial sifting stage of recruitment so it is essential that you still write your CV with your human audience in mind. Authentic and tailored CVs with strong personalised evidence of your skills will make the best impression with recruiters. 

Space denotes importance on a CV. Give plenty of space to your key achievements and push less relevant things further down the page. For example, make sure your current degree is given plenty of space. Use reverse chronological order so that your most recent experiences come first.

Traditional, professional CVs in the UK don’t include photos or many images and use colour very sparingly. However, in more creative industries such things may be the norm – so do your research and find a format that works for you.

You’ll usually send your CV along with a  covering letter  or covering email. This is your opportunity to tailor your application directly to the opportunity you’ve applied for and highlight the most relevant aspects of your CV.

Watch our video  to find out about the most common CV mistakes and how to avoid them. 

Download an example CV

You can  download an example CV to see it should be laid out

In the UK, you will usually be expected to supply referees at some point during the recruitment process. Typically, CVs will end with the statement ‘Referees available on request’. However, occasionally you will be asked to supply these on your CV. If this is the case, ensure you ask your referees’ permission in advance and be mindful that you are sharing their personal contact details, so avoid uploading them to open access job boards etc. Be sure to choose someone who will support your application effectively. Always give your referee a copy of your CV and keep them informed about your career plans.

People use a variety of referees. Generally, one should be an academic reference and the other should be a work-related or personal referee.

• An academic referee should be your Adviser of Studies, a lecturer/tutor, or a supervisor.
• A work-related referee could be your most recent employer or internship supervisor. 
• A personal referee should ideally be someone who has known you for a long time, but not a family member.

Applying overseas

Depending on where you apply, you may find some of the conventions of UK CVs are not applicable. For example, in much of North America, a short one-page resume is required by most employers.

The Careers Service’s GoinGlobal is a great resource to help you get started with preparing or adapting your CV for use in the country to which you are applying.

Your existing networks (family, friends, staff from your previous university etc.) may also be able to help you when trying to figure out what works in the countries in which they live.

International students

Our International Students CV Guide can hep you prepare or update your CV for use in the UK 

Mature students

Creating a winning CV as a mature student may seem like a daunting task; perhaps it’s been a while since you refreshed your CV, or you’re wondering how to summarise a wide range of previous roles.  

Remember, you have one thing that many other students don’t: a wealth of experience - and that’s what employers value!  

Previous experience

In the UK, CVs are typically two pages. So how do you go about fitting in all that lovely past experience?  

Firstly, employers  will  want to know about your previous experience, so don’t be tempted to just leave it all off!  

But, as with creating a CV at any age or stage, what’s important is sharing  relevant  information:   

• Generally, your most up-to-date experiences will be of most interest to future employers. So perhaps that first Saturday job you had aged 14 can be removed from your CV now!   
• Space denotes importance on a CV. Give more space to higher-level and more directly relevant roles compared to lower-level jobs or roles which are less relevant to your current career path.   
• Put the emphasis on the most senior positions and do not repeat the same information for similar, but more junior, roles.  
• While it’s best to use reverse chronological order throughout your CV (so that the most recent experiences come first) you may need to think of creative ways to make this work for you as a mature student. If you’re changing career direction or are returning to employment after a break, you could use sub-categories within the ‘Experience’ section of your CV, allowing you to showcase the most relevant of your experience first, while still using the reverse chronological rule within each sub-category.

When starting out in a new field you may be looking at entry-level roles and be asking yourself, will an employer think I’m too old or overqualified for a position based on my CV?  

• Firstly, In the UK, Equality Legislation means that no employer should discriminate against you based on your age.   
• Employers tell us they value applications from more mature applicants because of the wealth of working and life experience you bring, as well as the positive impact on diverse working cultures and practices.  
• Present your experience and skills as the assets they are. Highlight the relevance of your skills to the job for which you are applying.  
• Employers want you to be explicit in demonstrating how your past experiences match the requirements for their job. Ensure you state how skills gained in previous fields are relevant to the job to which you are applying.     

Keep your CV to two pages

Still, struggling to keep your CV to two pages long?  

• Review the formatting and layout. Are you using the full width of the page throughout your CV? Scan for white space – that’s wasted space! Tweak the layout to make better use of the space available (while remembering to avoid your CV looking cramped or messy!)  
• Consider what’s essential. Your name and contact details are a must! As is your most recent education and relevant experiences. But consider whether everything else on your CV is really relevant to the opportunity to which you are applying. Check each piece of information on your CV conveys something new about yourself that a future employer needs to know.

Preparing a Creative CV

A creative CV typically breaks the rules of the traditional CV. It showcases the author’s creative strengths. 

Creative CVs may include illustrations, photos, or showcase use of a specific software. Creatives can also take chances with different formats. For example, they can produce videos instead of written documents to sell themselves to employers. 

Take a look at our Pinterest page for examples and check out the advice on the Prospects website .  

You can also view the websites of these illustrators who have created some great examples of web-based bios:

• Angela Kirkwood
• Anna Doherty
• Cara Rooney
• Lauren Morsley

Suitability

It depends on the industry, job, and hiring manager whether a creative twist on your CV would be welcome. It needs to be an individual choice on whether to submit a CV to an employer that breaks convention. Creative CVs are more common in areas such as: 

• graphic design
• illustration
• special effects (fx) or visual effects (vfx) 
• video editing
• web design  

Creative CVs can make you stand out and you want to make sure it’s for the right reasons. You should research the norms in your industry by looking online. You should also ask the advice of people in your network. 

Some employers will use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to read CVs. If this applies to you, your CV will need to be in a format readable by AI. 

Your CV is your main marketing tool. It needs to be professional, relevant and readable, no matter what style you decide to go for. It does not replace a portfolio. 

Use the Careers Service and talk to an adviser to discuss your ideas.  

What to include

A winning CV should reflect your biggest selling points. You may choose to represent some of these visually. However, there are some key things your creative CV should include: 

• personal contact details 
• personal Profile 
• education and qualifications 
• work experience (paid and voluntary) 
• skills and interests 
• referees 

Example CVs and Further Support

Ask our careers advisers for personalised advice on your CV through our Quick Query service, booked appointment, or through our CareersPortal . 

The information on this handout must not be copied, distributed, or shared without permission from the University of Dundee Careers Service.

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