How to Write a CV

A well-structured CV is the foundation for a strong first impression. Most Swedish employers expect a CV that is clear, professional, and easy to read. Here are the most important parts:

Contact information is essential. Your name, phone number, email address, and city or region should be clearly visible at the top of the CV. You can also add a link to your LinkedIn profile or personal site if it's relevant to the role.

A personal profile or summary is a short text — 2–3 sentences — describing your most important qualifications and what you're looking for. A good profile often determines whether the employer keeps reading. Focus on what you can contribute, not only what you want.

Work experience is usually the most important section. List your previous jobs chronologically, most recent first. For each position, include the company name, your title, dates, and 3–4 bullets covering main responsibilities and achievements. Use action verbs like led, developed, implemented, and increased.

Education covers your highest completed qualifications. List the school or university, degree, year, and any relevant honors. You don't need every course, but relevant specializations can be valuable.

Skills should be a short list of your main competencies. Include both technical skills (programming languages, tools, software) and soft skills (leadership, communication, project management). Prioritize the ones most relevant to the role.

The classic CV structure is popular in Sweden for a reason: it works. Here is the order that performs best:

1. Heading with your name (H1 size)

2. Contact information (phone, email, city, LinkedIn)

3. Personal profile or summary (150–200 words)

4. Work experience (chronological, most recent first)

5. Education

6. Certifications and courses (if relevant)

7. Languages and proficiency levels

8. Skills and competencies

9. Other (volunteer work, projects, publications)

This structure is intuitive and helps employers quickly find the information they need. Swedish employers often expect this exact order, so don't deviate without good reason.

A clear structure saves the reader time. Use the same date format throughout (for example Jan 2020 – Dec 2023) and make sure every word is spelled correctly with clean grammar.

Formatting expectations are high. Use consistent fonts, appropriate sizes (11–12pt), adequate margins, and white space. A messy, hard-to-read CV gets skipped fast, no matter how good your experience is.

In Sweden, 1–2 pages is the gold standard for CV length. For most candidates one page is plenty; two pages are acceptable if you have extensive experience or special qualifications.

Less than five years of experience? One page is enough and often preferred. Focus on quality over quantity — include only the most relevant material.

Five to fifteen years of experience? Two pages are appropriate. You can give more detail about achievements and progression over time.

More than fifteen years? Two pages remain the norm. Be selective and focus on the most recent and most relevant work. Skip old positions that aren't relevant to the role you're applying for.

Why this length? Swedish employers and recruiters typically read a CV in 1–2 minutes, and the first scan is often shorter. You need to grab attention fast. Too much text buries important details; too little, and you don't show enough experience.

A more detailed CV may be needed for some academic positions or very senior roles, but even then 2–3 pages is the maximum recommended.

There are many traps that can kill a CV before it's even properly read. Here are the most common ones:

Photos: In Sweden, a photo on a CV is no longer standard and can work against you. Many companies have anti-discrimination policies and don't want to see a photo. The only exception is if you're an influencer, model, or actor.

Long text without structure: A CV should be easy to skim quickly. Use bullet points, not long paragraphs. Recruiters often spend just 30 seconds on a first pass — make it easy for them.

Vague job descriptions: ”Various tasks” says nothing. Be specific: ”Led a team of 5 people”, ”Implemented new processes that saved 20% in time”, ”Increased sales by 15%”.

Inconsistent formatting: One page with one font, the next with another. Use the same format throughout. The same applies to date formats, bullet style, and spacing.

A CV that isn't tailored: Copy-pasting the same CV to every application is a mistake. Tailor the CV to each role and put the most relevant experience and skills near the top.

Spelling and grammar mistakes: Often an automatic ”no.” Proofread thoroughly — it's frequently the first thing recruiters notice.

Outdated information: The job you had ten years ago doesn't need to be there. Focus on the most recent and relevant. A too-long CV can hide the best you have to offer.

Professionalism: Email addresses with nicknames, informal writing, or sensitive topics presented poorly can be problematic. Keep everything professional.

An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is automated software companies use to sort CVs. If your CV isn't ATS-friendly, it may never reach a human.

Headings matter. Use simple, clear headings like ”Work Experience” and ”Education” rather than ”What I Did” or ”My Journey”.

Avoid special formatting that can confuse the system: no text boxes, no unusual layouts, no images or charts. Keep it simple and use standard fonts.

Keywords are critical. Read job postings carefully and mirror the same words and phrases in your CV. If they're looking for ”Java” and you wrote ”JavaScript”, the system may miss you.

File format matters. PDF is usually safest in Sweden, but Word can also work. Always check the job posting's instructions.

Numbering and date formats should be consistent. ”Jan 2023” or ”01/2023” works better than mixing both styles.

Avoid fancy designs. A beautiful CV can look great to a human but is often unreadable to an ATS. Better to be plain and readable than cool and unreadable.

Swedish recruiters prioritize three things in a CV: readability, concrete results, and relevance to the role. These are recurring themes in Swedish labor-market surveys (for example, annual reports from Akavia and Manpower [VERIFY]):

Concrete results beat broad statements. ”Responsible for customer service” says little. ”Handled 500+ customer contacts per month with 95% satisfaction” shows scope, quality, and outcomes. Use numbers wherever possible — team size, percentage gains, time or money saved, revenue lift.

Progression is visible. Recruiters look for a thread through your career: more responsibility, broader skills, clearer specialization. Show how your roles build on each other rather than reading like a list of unrelated jobs.

Matching the posting isn't optional. Tailor the profile, surface the most relevant experiences first, and mirror the language the employer uses in the ad. ATS systems filter on those exact keywords, and human recruiters value clear matching too.

Consistency between CV and LinkedIn matters. Big differences in dates, titles, or scope raise questions and can cost you the interview.

A clean, readable layout is worth more than fancy design. Clear structure, plenty of white space, and simple fonts beat a busy CV that tries to impress with form.