CV Guide
How to structure your CV for alternative investment and finance roles.
This guide covers bullet-writing technique, how to order each section, formatting rules, and a full example CV you can use as a reference alongside the checklist.
The Golden Rule
Recruiters spend seconds on each CV. The strongest bullets follow a simple formula made famous by Google: each one states what you achieved, proves it with a number, and explains how you did it.
Accomplished [X] as measured by [Y], by doing [Z].
What changed because you were there. What did you build, improve, or deliver?
A number, percentage, value, rank, or timeframe that proves the scale of your impact.
The specific skill, method, or decision you used to get there.
Examples
Took part in a trading simulation and performed well.
Generated $1.2m in returns on a $20m multi-asset portfolio across three simulated quarters by allocating across equities, commodities, and fixed income in response to live macroeconomic events.
Helped students with their maths and economics work.
Raised average attainment by 18% across 19 tutees by mapping instructional hours to performance data and tailoring delivery to each learning style.
Quick checklist for every bullet
- Does it open with a strong action verb (Led, Built, Generated, Designed)?
- Is there at least one number proving the scale or result?
- Is the how clear, not just the what?
- Have you cut filler words such as responsible for, helped with, and various?
- Have you tailored at least one bullet to something specific about this firm or role?
How to Structure Your CV
Header
Name, phone, professional email, and LinkedIn. Clean and concise: no photos, no objective statements.
Education
University first. Include relevant modules and grades. A-levels below. Only include GCSEs if you have 9s/A*s worth highlighting.
Work Experience
Most recent first. Each role gets one to three XYZ bullets. Spring weeks and insight days count, list them here.
Extracurriculars
Societies, competitions, personal projects. Apply the XYZ formula here too. Leadership and impact matter more than the activity itself.
Skills & Interests
Technical skills, professional memberships, languages. Keep it factual and specific, and avoid vague claims.
Format
One page. Consistent font. No tables or text boxes (they break ATS parsing). Save as PDF (locks your formatting across all viewers). Margins at least 1.5cm. Font size no smaller than 9pt.
The CV, Annotated
Founder and President, KCL AISOC. BSc Political Economy, King's College London.
The CV below puts every rule from this guide into practice. The numbered notes call out what matters most — read them alongside the checklist above.
[Candidate Name]
[Location] • [Phone] • [Email] • [Profile]
Education
- Quantitative Methods (82%), Principles of Economics (75%), Fundamentals of Political Research (70%)
- Business (A*), Mathematics (A), Economics (A)
- UKMT Senior Challenge: Silver Award
The Grades
Strong module marks earn their place — lead with your best numbers. School-level awards such as UKMT still count in first year.
Work Experience
- Completed sessions on investment banking recruitment, CV and interview technique, and diversity in financial services
- Selected as the only KCL student at a Goldman Sachs hosted AmplifyME simulation reserved for Imperial College students
- Managed a $20m multi-asset global macro portfolio across three simulated quarters in 90 minutes, generating $1.2m in simulated returns by allocating across equities, commodities, and fixed income in response to live macroeconomic events
- Developed and presented a tax-driven growth strategy for a fictional client, proposing an Irish holding company restructure to reduce the effective corporate tax rate from 25% to 12.5%, unlocking an estimated £400k to £1m in annual tax savings
- Led the growth section of the group presentation, designing a reinvestment framework that channelled Ireland tax savings into UK university campus expansion, structured to maximise Full Expensing relief and compound the tax efficiency
- Selected as 1 of 40 candidates nationally to attend a fully funded 4-day Insight in the insurance industry, completing simulation rotations across four core service lines (client management, actuarial, brokerage, and underwriting)
- Developed core professional competencies through workshops in strategic thinking, resilience, and teamwork; visited Lloyd's of London to gain direct understanding of the world's leading specialist insurance market
What Counts Here
Spring weeks and one-day insights belong here, most recent first. Selection ratios — "only KCL student", "1 of 40 nationally" — are evidence before the work even starts.
- Mentored 19 students across Economics and Mathematics, delivering 6+ hours of weekly sessions while adapting sophisticated concepts to diverse learning styles to maximise exam performance
- Achieved an 18% average grade increase by manually calculating linear regressions to correlate instructional hours with student performance data
The Ordinary Job
An everyday job becomes evidence once quantified: 19 tutees, 6+ weekly hours, an 18% uplift. The XYZ formula applies to any role.
Extracurricular Activities
- Founded KCL Alternative Investments Society, recruiting the senior leadership team, developing the society's brand and social media presence to 360+ Instagram followers, attracting 60+ members pre-launch, and generating strong early engagement with over 95% of members interested in joining as associates ahead of the October 2026 launch
- Designed and developed an interactive casino simulation app in Python featuring a virtual banking system that allowed users to deposit and withdraw virtual currency
- Conducted 2 weeks of primary research; applied Python and SQL to build and deploy a fully functional banking simulation to 40+ users, integrating feedback to improve engagement and learning outcomes
- Conducted over 25 hours of independent research on how central banks use monetary policy tools to manage inflation around the 2% target and stabilise output
- Evaluated macroeconomic effects by analysing interest, exchange, credit, and asset price mechanisms; leveraged BoE and ECB data to assess modern financial stability risks, including the impact of persistent low rates
- Led a team through a multi-stage national mathematics competition, delegating tasks based on individual strengths, chairing regular progress meetings, and maintaining momentum under sustained time pressure
Built, Not Joined
Founding something — a society, an app, an essay entry — shows initiative no membership can. Keep every figure here consistent with your cover letter and application forms.
Skills & Interests
Technical Skills: Python (Intermediate), SQL (Beginner), Word, Excel, PowerPoint
Organisations: SEO London, upReach, Bright Network, 10,000 Black Interns
Languages: Arabic (Native) | English (Fluent)
Honest Skills
Honest levels — Intermediate, Beginner — read better than a bare list, because interviewers probe what you claim. Access schemes such as SEO London signal you seek out opportunity.
Download the Word Template
The template mirrors the example CV above, pre-filled with bracketed placeholder text and grey guidance notes throughout every section. Use this as your starting point — replace the placeholders with your own experience, then delete the grey notes.