CV for an NHS job

NHS Jobs applications are filled in on structured pages, and the advert says if the employer wants a CV as well. It is still worth keeping one as the master record you copy from, and some employers ask for it, as the specialty training guidance for doctors does.

What the NHS Jobs form asks for

The NHS Jobs user guide, written in 2020, shows the shape of the application. You add academic qualifications, then any training relevant to the job, then your job history, entering the job title, the employer, key tasks, and start and finish dates. The next pages ask you to give evidence for each essential criterion, such as qualifications and experience, and then cover unspent convictions, cautions, fitness to practise questions and equality monitoring. The details change over time, so treat the guide as a picture of the form, and the advert as the final word.

Put another way, the form wants the same facts a CV holds, cut into boxes. If your CV already has accurate dates, titles and a few lines about the tasks in each job, filling in the form is quicker and your history matches on every application. The writing effort goes into the evidence against the criteria, which is the subject of How to write an NHS supporting statement. How to use the NHS Jobs website covers accounts and alerts.

What goes on an NHS CV

The National Careers Service lists the standard sections: contact details, an introduction, education, work history and optional references. Work history goes newest first, with employer, job title, dates and two or three lines on what you did, written with the STAR method. It says to leave out age, date of birth, marital status and nationality.

For a healthcare CV, add what the role needs:

• your professional registration, if the job is regulated, and the registration number
• training and courses that match the person specification, with dates
• placements and volunteering, if you have little paid work (the National Careers Service says to use them in that case)
• evidence of working with patients, families or colleagues, using examples you can describe in a sentence or two

Doctors have a longer format. NHS Health Careers lists GMC registration, qualifications, work history with achievements, CPD, audit, quality improvement and research, teaching, publications and three referees. It says to account for every year, use a UK English spellcheck and avoid underlining, colours and heavy effects.

Show the person specification and NHS values

NHS Health Careers says applications are likely to be scored by how closely you meet the selection criteria, so back each claim with a specific example. Use the wording of the essential criteria as headings in your own notes, then make sure the CV has an entry that supports each one. The same page advises showing that you understand the NHS values and linking them to your everyday work. A line such as “explained a care plan to a worried relative and checked they understood” shows a value without naming it. Values-based interviews cover how the panel tests the same examples later.

Gaps and short jobs

Dates should add up. The medical CV guidance says to state the start and end of each post and account for every year, to avoid unexplained gaps. That is good advice for any NHS CV. Add a line for time spent caring, studying, travelling or ill, and say what you did to keep your skills up if that is relevant. Explaining employment gaps on an application has suggested wording.

Layout and keeping it current

The National Careers Service suggests a clear font such as Arial, Times New Roman or Calibri at size 11 or more, consistent headings and bullet points, and a proofread by someone else. It gives no page limit. Tailor the introduction and the order of your examples to each advert, because NHS Health Careers advises following every instruction in the application and keeping to the space given.

Keep the CV up to date as you go, adding new training and removing what no longer helps. When you apply, copy the facts from it into the form, and write the criteria evidence fresh for each post. For general rules that apply to all public sector employers, see Writing a CV for public sector jobs.