How to write an Apprenticeship CV

Hands-on experience and practical skills are highly valued in the workplace today. This is one of the reasons why Apprenticeships are a great way to kickstart your career and build a strong foundation of skills and knowledge. 

The on-the-job training approach of an apprenticeship provides an effective platform to learn, gain experience, and sharpen skills on the go. 

Apprenticeships can be competitive to secure so making a good strong impression is very important. So, how do you get your foot in the door? The answer is a strong CV. 

A strong CV communicates to recruiters that you are the best candidate for the position and why, making them more likely to pick you. 

That said, how do you write a compelling Apprenticeship CV? 

First, understand Your Apprenticeship

To make your application as compelling as possible, you’ll have to craft a custom CV. This is a CV tailored to the specific company and position you’re applying to. It showcases your most relevant skills and experiences based on the advertised role.

You can only craft such a CV if you understand your apprenticeship. Thus, it's important to research the company or organisation you’re applying to. Make sure to pay attention to the requirements as this is what will tell you the skills you should be highlighting in your CV.

Structuring your Apprenticeship CV

A strong apprenticeship CV has a meticulous structure. It is well formatted, allowing recruiters to quickly navigate through its details and gauge your suitability for the position. So, how do you structure your CV? 

You start with your name, which sits at the very top of the CV. It acts as the title. Below, the document should be broken down into the following sections: 

Contact Details

Your contact details should be written immediately after your name. Include your phone number, email address, and location. Because this is information recruiters will use to contact you, make sure everything you provide is accurate. You should also avoid including unnecessary information. 

Personal Statement or Profile

The personal statement or profile section is where you get to properly introduce yourself to recruiters. It is a single paragraph that gives an overview of your CV. It will mention your skills, experience, education, passions, and any other information you think makes you the ideal candidate for the apprenticeship. 

Skills

The next section is where you showcase your skills. Remember the bit of research you conducted on the position? You want to apply it here. 

Your skills section should be tailored to the specific requirements of the apprenticeship. Include the relevant technical skills, like equipment operation, blueprint reading, concrete work, etc, and soft skills, like teamwork, communication, adaptability, time management, etc.

Education

Next, you want to mention your education qualifications. If you have them, cite your GCSEs, BTECs, A levels, T levels, professional certifications, and/or higher education qualifications. Previously completed apprenticeships also count as part of your education. 

Experience and Employment History

If you are currently working and/or have previous work experience, this is where you talk about it. Mention the places you’ve worked, how long you spent there, and your role. 

You also want to highlight all the ways that occupying these roles helped advance your skills and knowledge. And while at it, don’t forget to detail any outstanding achievement or task you managed to accomplish. 

Hobbies and Interests

This section is not mandatory. However, your hobbies and interests highlight certain aspects of your personality that may make recruiters consider you for an apprenticeship. So, if you don’t have previous work experience, including this section can work in your favour. 

For example, playing a team sport shows that you can work in a team, and if you’re a captain, you must have some outstanding leadership skills. These soft skills are things recruiters look for.

Making your CV stand out

There are certain things you can do to make your CV stand out. These are: 

• Tailor your CV to the specific apprenticeship
• Use language that communicates action
• Use a clean, easy-to-read format with consistent fonts and formatting
• Include volunteer work and extracurricular activities
• If you have previous work experience, don’t just list your responsibilities. Emphasise your achievements.

Perfected your CV? What next?

You have prepared a stand-out CV, highlighting your education, experience, skills, and achievements in an easy-to-read structure. Now, you’re ready to start applying for apprenticeships. 

At Travis Perkins, we are committed to supporting people in developing their careers. One way we do this is through our Apprenticeship programmes. 

Explore our Apprenticeship programmes today and find one that suits you and your skills.