Application Form versus the CV

Written by on 13th December, 2011

At the start of our hunt for a new designer, I decided against asking for CV’s, opting for the traditional application form. This had its challenges. We simply requested that they be handwritten and returned by post so we could see the style of handwriting and access the information, as we wanted it. If designers would keep their CV simple, no huge graphics, no fancy logos, just the information it would be much easier for us. The forms arrived thick and fast, with both neat handwriting and messy scribbles on lines at strange angles. Some had sections of paper stuck on with sellotape (one with a coffee stain!), some came typed – which defied the object really. When asked about why they wanted the job and what relevant skills they could bring, we had some with 4 page essays, some with one brief sentence! You can tell a lot from the envelope too – some had not written an address on an envelope before and didn’t know where to put it! Some had pretty stickers, some had masking tape, some were squashed into odd shaped envelopes. Thanks for all the application forms, the standards were good, some shone out from the rest – those were the clean, neat and easy to read ones that arrived in crisp envelopes clearly written. Thank you.