A personal profile is a brief paragraph or bulleted list that opens your CV and highlights:
- who you are
- what you can offer employers
- your career goals
Here’s what a finalised CV will look like with a completed CV profile:
Get inspired by checking out our 24 CV profile examples below. We’ve arranged them by experience level and industry so you can easily find the one for you.
CV profile examples by experience level
Whether you’re new to the job market or a seasoned pro, find a CV personal profile that fits your situation below. All you’ll need to do is copy and paste it into your favourite CV template and alter the wording to describe your individual situation.
No work experience
Writing a CV with no work experience? This is a good example of what your personal profile could look like:
Mid-level candidate
If you’ve already got some work experience, this is how to write your CV introduction:
Current student
Here’s a job-winning CV opening statement that would work on a student CV:
Graduate
If you’re writing a CV as a recent graduate, this is a good example to follow:
School leaver
This candidate’s school leaver CV personal profile statement highlights their academic accomplishments:
Career change
If you hate your job, you’re probably thinking about switching industries. Highlight your transferable skills with a profile like this:
Returning to the workforce
After taking an extended break from work, explain why with an effective CV profile like this one:
Academic CV
Begin your academic CV strongly by introducing yourself and your educational qualifications:
CV profile examples for specific jobs
Below we have a selection of CV profiles by industry if you’re looking to impress employers in a particular sector.
Engineering
Take a look at this recently graduated engineer’s CV personal profile:
Retail
This personal profile statement from a retail worker’s CV highlights the applicant’s customer service expertise:
Teacher
Show schools that you’re a top educator with a compelling introduction:
Customer service
Here’s a customer service CV personal profile that showcases the applicant’s people skills and foreign language skills:
Accounting
Below is an example of an applicant’s profile statement for their accountant CV:
Marketing
Look at how this candidate started their CV for digital marketing and how they presented one of their previous roles:
Graphic designer
Here’s an example of how to start as CV for a graphic design role:
Architecture
Here’s a candidate’s architecture CV intro that describes their previous freelance duties and full-time roles:
Project manager
This personal profile from a CV for a project manager makes an impact on recruiters by listing the applicant’s previous well-known workplaces:
Footballer
A good footballer can demonstrate their skills with an opening like this:
Delivery driver
Show your commitment to delivery excellence with a strong CV profile:
Police officer
Highlight your public spirit and passion for public safety by introducing your profile as a police officer:
Cleaner
Let employers know you’re a skilled and thorough cleaner right from the start with your cleaner CV profile:
Teaching assistant
Make it clear you care about kids and their educational performance by writing an effective profile like this one:
Barista
Here’s how a barista might introduce themself on their CV:
Nurse
Start your nursing CV off strong with an introduction to your years of experience, medical speciality, and passion for patient care.
How to write a personal profile for your CV
Starting your CV with a personal profile is simple. Just follow these three steps:
- Open with your years of experience (ex. ‘2 years of experience as a front-line case worker’). If you’re writing your first CV, you can mention your degree name or qualification details here instead.
- Add a couple of accomplishments or skills: For example, if you increased customer satisfaction by 5% at your current job, mention that here. You can also list key skills from the job advert.
- Specify your career goals: State why you’re sending in your CV to that particular employer. For example, state you want to ‘help put a smile on customers’ faces in the Associate role at Greggs’.
And here’s the proper CV format for a personal profile:
- Keep your profile between 60 and 80 words — you don’t want to bore recruiting managers with long introductions, so try to keep your intro shortish.
- Tailor your CV profile to the employer: Employers dislike generic CVs, so to show genuine interest, carefully read the job description, incorporate keywords from it, and include the job title and company name in your personal profile to tailor your CV effectively.
- Avoid CV clichés: Words like ‘motivated’, ‘dynamic’, and ‘team-player’ have been used so much that they’re pretty much meaningless to most employers. Instead, pick a good CV buzzword that actually tells employers something about you.
Consider outside help to write your CV profile
It’s normal to find the idea of writing a strong CV profile overwhelming, but there’s help out there to do the hard work for you.
You don’t have to pay hundreds of pounds for CV services either — you can get an AI-powered CV maker to craft an effective application document for just a couple of quid.
Skip the writer’s block and make a CV in minutes with our AI software.
Frequently asked questions
Here are the answers to three common questions about creating an effective personal profile for your CV:
1. Does my CV need a personal profile?
Yes, your CV needs a personal profile.
A good CV profile ensures you stand out from other applicants. Because your profile summarises your experience, skills, and goals in an easy-to-read format, it makes hiring managers want to keep reading your CV.
2. How long should a personal profile be on a CV?
Between 60 and 80 words is the perfect length for a personal profile on a CV.
This gives you enough space to make an ‘elevator pitch’ for why employers should hire you, without being too long that you turn off the reader.
3. Can I use the same personal profile for multiple applications?
No, you can’t use the same personal profile for multiple applications.
CV profiles tailor your application to one specific job by highlighting parts of your experience and education that are particularly relevant.
If you use the same personal profile for different job applications, employers will be able to tell because parts of your statement won’t be relevant to the vacancy they’re trying to fill.
Worse still, sending an employer a generic personal profile suggests you haven’t put much thought or effort into your application.