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, so every bullet has to land on a single line. That limit does more work than any other rule here: it forces out the filler and leaves only the result. Inside that line, use the formula made famous by Google. State what you achieved, prove it with a number, explain 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.
One line, every time. If a bullet wraps onto a second line, cut words until it fits. XYZ decides what goes in. The line limit decides what survives.
Examples
Took part in a trading simulation and performed well.
Returned 6% ($1.2m) on a $20m multi-asset book across three simulated quarters.
Helped students with their maths and economics work.
Raised attainment 18% across 19 tutees by regressing session hours against results.
Quick checklist for every bullet
- Does it open with a strong action verb (Led, Built, Generated, Designed)?
- Does it fit on a single line?
- 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?
- Have you used a different action verb from every other bullet?
Struggling to get a bullet down to one line? Copy our prompt, paste it into Claude with your draft, and it will apply every rule on this page.
How to Structure Your CV
Header
- Name, city, phone, email and LinkedIn on one line
- No photo, no personal statement, no street address
- Make LinkedIn a live link and check where it points
- A copied template often still links to whoever made it
Education
- University first, with the degree and grade on the same line
- Abbreviate the degree if that is what makes it fit
- Modules with marks below, strongest mark first
- A Levels underneath, societies belong in extracurriculars
Work Experience
- Most recent first, full bullets for your strongest three or four roles
- List the rest on one line as Additional Insight Programmes
- Cap that line at four firms, strongest first
- Put selection ratios in the role header, never inside a bullet
Extracurriculars
- Societies, competitions and personal projects, same bullet rules
- What you built outranks what you joined
- Keep every figure identical to your application forms
- They get read side by side
Skills & Interests
- Technical skills with honest levels
- Languages, plus any access programme that selected you
- Interests specific enough that someone could ask about them
- Cut anything you would not defend in an interview
Format
- One page, one font, past tense throughout
- Never reuse an action verb
- No tables or text boxes, they break ATS parsing
- Margins 1.5cm minimum, nothing below 9pt, export to PDF
The CV, Annotated
A fictional worked example. Founder and President, University Investment Society. BSc Economics, University of 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.
Jordan Ellis
Central London, SE1 7QD • +44 7700 900142 • jordan.ellis@example.com • LinkedIn
Education
- Statistics for Economists (84%), Microeconomics (76%), Political Institutions (71%)
- Awarded a £4,000 regional education trust bursary and a £2,500 access scholarship
- Elected course representative for a cohort of 180, chosen from nine candidates
- Mathematics (A*), Economics (A), History (A), ranking in the top 10% of the college cohort
- Completed Further Mathematics AS alongside; Senior Mathematical Challenge: Gold Award
The Grades
Strong module marks earn their place. Lead with your best numbers. A First, funded bursaries and an elected rep role belong here too; school-level awards such as the Senior Mathematical Challenge still count in first year.
Work Experience
- Pitched a £310m carve-out of a regional logistics operator to five senior bankers in a team of four
- Benchmarked seven listed peers on EV/EBITDA, anchoring an £88m enterprise valuation
- Mapped £26m of proceeds across fleet renewal, depot expansion and working capital
- Pitched a £180m buyout of a listed dental group to a mock investment committee in a team of five
- Underwrote 2.8x MOIC on EBITDA growth from £22m to £41m, funded by £70m debt and £110m equity
- Timed entry off an 18% de-rating that left the asset below its own three-year average multiple
- Completed market entry, pricing and growth strategy cases under partner instruction
- Sized the UK market for a £400m urban EV charging rollout, proposing three revenue models
- Rotated through underwriting, broking and claims, pricing a mock commercial property book
- Presented a risk appetite recommendation to a panel of four underwriters on the final day
- Strategy Consulting Summer School, Corporate Bank Insight Day, Asset Manager Spring Programme
What Counts Here
Spring weeks, insight programmes and internships belong here, most recent first. Selection ratios, "1 of 4 selected", "1 of 12 accepted", "1 of 50 selected", are evidence before the work even starts. Group the minor insights onto one line rather than padding the section.
- Mentored 14 students across Economics and Mathematics, delivering 5+ hours of sessions weekly
- Drove a 15% average grade increase, tracking session hours against mock exam performance
The Ordinary Job
An everyday role becomes evidence once quantified: 14 tutees, 5+ weekly hours, a 15% uplift. The XYZ formula applies to any job.
Leadership
- Founded the society and grew membership to 60+, interviewing 18 candidates to build a committee
- Managed a nine-person committee spanning research, events, marketing and sponsorship
- Built a six-page society website, grew an Instagram following of 300+ and published weekly research notes
- Led a team of four through a national applied mathematics competition run over three rounds
Extra-Curricular Activities
- Returned 4% ($800k) on a $20m multi-asset book across three simulated quarters
- Placed 2nd of 30 participants, allocating across equities, fixed income and commodities
- Built a spending tracker in Python and SQL with category tagging and monthly reporting
- Deployed to 35+ users across two weeks of testing, iterating the build on their feedback
- Reached the finals on 20+ hours of research into housing supply and planning reform
- Concluded from ONS and Land Registry data that release rates outweighed demand measures
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, Languages & Interests
Technical Skills: Python (Intermediate), SQL, Excel, PowerPoint
Languages: French (Fluent) | English (Native)
Organisations: Example Access Programme, Example Mentoring Scheme, Example Student Network
Interests: Chess, long distance running, photography, urban economics
References available upon request
Honest Skills
Honest levels, Python (Intermediate) rather than a bare "Python", read better, because interviewers probe what you claim. Access schemes signal you seek out opportunity; a short interests line gives the conversation somewhere to go.
Download the Word Template
Two downloads. The example CV is a fictional profile, written to demonstrate every rule set out on this page. Read it to see the guidance applied end to end. The Word template mirrors that example, pre-filled with bracketed placeholder text and grey guidance notes throughout every section. Use the template as your starting point, replace the placeholders with your own experience, then delete the grey notes.