CV and BiodataCV for the United Kingdom
In the UK the short job document is called a CV, not a resume, and it leaves out most of the personal details an Indian biodata begins with.
Source. National Careers Service (UK government), "How to write a CV", read on 12 November 2026: nationalcareers.service.gov.uk. This page summarises that official advice in our own words. It is careers advice, not law; employers differ, and the page may have changed since we read it.
What it is called
The National Careers Service, the UK government's careers advice service for England, describes a CV as "a summary of your skills, achievements and experience that you use to apply for jobs". So in Britain the word CV is used for what Indians and Americans would call a resume: a short summary for a job application, not the long academic record described on our what a CV is page. (Academic posts in the UK still use a full academic CV.)
Sections the official advice lists
- Contact details: your name, phone number, email address, and a link to a professional networking profile if you have one.
- Introduction: a few short lines under your contact details that sum up who you are and what you hope to do.
- Education history: names of qualifications, where you studied and the dates. It can come straight after the introduction if you are early in your career.
- Work history: work placements, volunteering and paid jobs, most recent first, each with employer, job title, dates and two to three lines on what you did.
- References.
If you have a lot of work experience, the advice is that you may put work history before education.
Personal details to leave out
The National Careers Service says plainly that you should not include your age, your date of birth, whether you are married, or your nationality. This is the biggest change for an applicant used to the Indian biodata. The page does not list a photograph among the contents of a CV.
References
The advice is that you should not put someone else's contact details on your CV. If someone has agreed to give you a reference, you can say that references are available on request.
Presentation
- Use a clear font such as Arial, Times New Roman or Calibri, in size 11 or bigger.
- Keep the same style throughout.
- Use headings and bullet points.
- Be clear and to the point.
- Ask someone else to check spelling and grammar.
Tailoring and gaps
The service advises tailoring the CV to each job by reading the advert, which usually gives the job description and essential criteria, and highlighting the skills asked for. It also notes that gaps between jobs are normal when life events happen, and that a first-time applicant can focus on skills learned through projects, work experience or volunteering, and may include interests that show skills such as leadership.
What this means for an Indian applicant
| Indian habit | For a UK CV |
|---|---|
| Date of birth, marital status, nationality, father's name | Leave out |
| Signed declaration at the end | Not part of the sections the official advice lists |
| Referees' names and phone numbers | Do not print them; say references are available on request |
| Percentages and Indian examination names | Give qualification names in full; a UK reader may not know Indian boards and grading |
| Calling it a resume | Call it a CV |
Use British spelling, write dates with the month in words, and give your phone number with the country code. Whether you have the right to work in the UK is a separate matter decided by immigration rules; check the official gov.uk pages for that, not a CV guide.
Building the document
For the short job CV described here, the builder on our neighbour site resume.shareyourgroup.com produces a suitable single-column page without a photo or personal particulars. Title the file "CV" when applying in the UK.
Questions people ask
Is it called a CV or a resume in the UK?
A CV. The UK National Careers Service uses "CV" for the short summary of skills and experience used to apply for jobs.
Should a UK CV include date of birth?
No. The National Careers Service advises leaving out age, date of birth, marital status and nationality.
Do I list referees on a UK CV?
The official advice is not to put another person's contact details on the CV; say that references are available on request.
Other countries
CV guides
General guidance. This page gives general suggestions, reviewed in November 2026. If an institution, employer or country gives its own form, format or instruction, follow that. Every person, institution and publication in our examples is invented. Nothing here is legal, immigration or professional advice.