Crafting an impeccable Researcher CV that launches your career is a challenging undertaking.
By: Iejaz Uddin – 10 April 2024
The most successful Researcher CV’s are the ones that clearly highlight the candidates ability to collect, record, analyse and interpret data. With this is mind, it’s vital that your CV shows you as someone who has the investigative skills needed to carry out original, high-level, and collaborative research.
Further to the above, given the sheer volume of applications each role receives, you’ve got to be able to do this whilst standing out from other candidates. One way to do this is by having a design that allows a recruiter to immediately gain an understanding of your expertise and experience. Thereby enabling them to quickly determine whether you are the right applicant for the vacancy.
This page will help you to write a concise and impactful CV that highlights your unique selling proposition. Follow its tips and instructions to create a job application that truly reflects your who you are and your potential.
Researcher CV templates
Jane Hardy
Address: London
Phone: 123 456 7890
E: jane.h@dayjob.com
PERSONAL SUMMARY
A energetic and talented researcher with a strong desire to build a career within the research industry. Passionate, self motivated individual with a drive to succeed, having excellent organizational skills. Highly efficient and methodical with a good eye for detail with a proactive approach to performance and data accuracy. Samantha is presently looking for a suitable researcher positions with a growing and fast moving organisation where she can fulfil her potential.
CAREER HISTORY
Market Research Company
RESEARCHER – May 2008 – Present
Working within a multi disciplinary team and playing a full role within an administrative and customer service environment, carrying out research through data mining, telephone interviews etc on a variety of research projects.
Duties:
- Involved in data analysis, proposal writing and questionnaire design.
- Carrying out surveys of households, individuals and private companies.
- Involved in working closely with clients and keeping hands-on with the projects.
- Writing and designing emails for marketing campaigns.
- Designing and developing research questionnaires and policy.
- Compiling information from a wide variety of sources and then interpreting and presenting this.
- Accurately monitoring, investigating and analyzing all statistical information.
- Professionally presenting information, reports and recommendations to a variety of audiences.
- Accurately record information on computer databases.
- Collating and analysing quality statistical data.
- Investigating and documenting key data and information at the request of senior researchers.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Research competencies:
- Having strong IT skills, along with proven administrative and organisational abilities.
- Can build effective working relationships with both work colleagues and clients.
- Having a understanding of branding and its importance to clients and the market place.
- Performing telephone and face to face research to agreed standards and specific briefs.
- Experience of applying for research funding grants.
- Keeping senior managers and researchers updated with progress of highlighting problems to them.
- Knowledge of qualitative and quantitative database management systems.
- Ability to identify and thoroughly investigate key issues.
- Extensive knowledge of MS Excel and various other statistical software.
- Experience of the fashion, luxury and lifestyle industries.
- Capability to convey the implications of research study clearly.
- Inputting data into a CRM system.
- High level of numeracy and accuracy in data inputting.
Personal:
- Possessing excellent communication skills, face to face, written and verbal.
- Experience of sales support.
- Having a positive personality as well as being confident and outgoing.
- Professional and friendly telephone manner.
- Willing to work early evenings and weekend.
- Comfortable with working in a target-driven environment and fast paced environment.
- Well spoken with excellent communication skills and able to build a rapport with people quickly.
KEY COMPETENCIES AND SKILLS
IT database skills
Research skills
Data analysis
Writing skill
Market research
B2B research
ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS
Evesham North University 2005 – 2008
BA (Hons) Business Studies
Coventry North College 2003 – 2005
A levels: Maths (C) English (C) Physics (B)
REFERENCES – Available on request.
How to write a Researcher CV
Many people think a CV is there to get them a job. They’re wrong. A CV is there to win you an interview and should always be written with that in mind.
A CV is essentially a marketing tool that is aimed at getting you noticed. The key to getting noticed is simplicity and relevancy.
For success its vital that you have one that impresses employers and gets them wanting to know more about you. It must be designed to demonstrate why you’d be a good fit for the role. This means mimicking what’s in the job description and then laying out this information in a logical order of importance.
Always lead with your strongest points by putting them at the top of everything you write.
Break up your CV
Make your CV more readable and ‘user friendly’ by having plenty of white space to separate sections. Further split up the CVs blocks of text by making each sections header a different size than the other CV content, by say two points. You can also make the headers bold, put them in italics, or change their text colour.
Researcher CV Structure
Success is not just down to what you write in a CV, it’s also about how you present it.
A well organised layout displays your credentials to a recruiter in a professional and easy to scan manner. It shows you as a disciplined and organised person. Additionally, it also helps you to prioritise your most important information first by placing it at the top, start and beginning of each section.
So, before you do anything, decide on the structure of your CV.
The key to successfully doing this is to ensure that every section of your CV is fully aimed at the vacancy you’re applying for. Read on to find out how to do this and much more.
CV Layout
A well written and perfectly laid out CV shows recruiters you’re the right person for the job. It does this by selling your skills, experience, and potential to them in an organised and professional manner.
A CV layout is basically the format on which it is built. To maximise its impact, it should use ample spacing, clear section headings and a logical order to keep things clearly catalogued.
A good structure is not just important for catching the recruiter’s eye, it’s also vital to getting past any Applicant Tracking System.
Below is a catalogue of the core sections of a CV layout in their designated order.
- Contact details
This information sits at the top of everything and is seen as the title of your CV. It should include your name, address, email, and phone number. It’s also acceptable to have your professional job title next to your name. There is no need to add your full postal address, just the town or city of residence will do.
2. Profile
Almost all CV’s start with a personal profile. It’s a short paragraph of a few sentences that introduces the candidate and gives a brief overview of their strongest points. To be extra effective it should focus on the role you are applying for and not be a generic statement.
3. Work experience
In this section you focus on your career history. Employers want to know about your most recent experience, so it’s advisable to start with your current or last-held job and work backwards.
4. Education
In the education field employers want to see the school, college, or university you attended. Along with the qualifications gained, grades achieved and dates attended.
5. Interest and hobbies
Including this is your CV really depends on the availability of space in it. That’s why not many people add this often-neglected section. If you do, then harness its full power by describing hobbies that shows you are a sociable person and team player.
Researcher Personal Summary
This is an opening statement that sums up who you are, what you can do and why they should hire you. It’s a key part of being able to differentiate yourself from other candidates. Do this by not only explaining who you are, but also emphasizing your future potential and career ambitions.
- Essentially use it to answer the interviewers “Why should I hire you?” question.
How you write your profile can be the difference between success or failure. Primarily, because it’s the first thing a prospective employer reads about you and can therefor set the tone for the rest of your CV.
A successful personal summary is one that is written for a specific job in mind. The best way to do this is to review the job description to identify the key skills and experience required for the position. Then including these prominently in your summary. It’s as simple as that.
Researcher work experience
Recruiters use your employment history to gain insights into your understanding and familiarity with their specific industry. They check your previous duties and responsibilities to see if they are similar to what they want you to do. If they are, you’re in, if they’re not, you’re out.
Concentrate on the present not the past
Give more space, time, and effort to your current or recent roles and not so much to ones over 10 years ago. That’s because employers are interested in the current you, not the old you.
For your present or most recent jobs you should include:
- Employer name
- Job title
- Dates you worked there.
- Describe your work duties through a maximum of 6 bullet points.
For previous roles more than 10 years old, simply list the:
- Employer name
- Job title
- The dates you worked there
List your achievements
Include three bullet points to list your best measurable achievements. Showcase these further by using figures to demonstrate what you did, how you did it and what the end result was.
Past and present tense
Remember to write the job duties of your current role in the present tense. Whereas the jobs duties of all your past roles should be written in the past tense. Although a small point, it can impress a recruiter with your attention to detail.
Researcher CV Skills
You can boost your chances even more by adding sought after hard and soft skill sections to put more distance between you and other equally qualified contenders. Then zoom in even more by giving the proficiency level for each skill.
In your CV show you can:
- Carry out office based online and field research to gather, appraise, and summarise information.
- Cultivate and build close relationships with external organisations to gather data.
- Keep up to date with the latest developments and trends in the field of research.
- Interview a target group and then accurately compile their responses for data analysis.
- Contribute to the publication of reports, articles, and data.
- Use the latest modern research tools and techniques to understand a current and future marketplace.
- Respond quickly to internal and external queries about research.
- Act as a source of advice and information to others.
- Manage your own research and administration activities to the required standards.
Areas to focus on when writing a Researcher CV:
- Experience of designing research studies using a range of the latest methodologies.
- Your ability to think creatively to solve complex technical research problems.
- How you can work with a team of other researchers on projects by planning research objectives and test parameters.
- Show your experience of presenting findings to peers at conferences or in published articles.
- Ability to work to tight deadlines.
- You are prepared to be the ‘go to’ person and first point of contact for all research-related enquiries.
- Able to supervise and mentor junior staff with regards to all aspects of research design and delivery.
Skills to put in a Researcher CV
Researching projects
- Leading and supervising research project with the aim of accomplishing specific objectives.
- Deciding on which research methods, variables, data collection techniques and analysis methods to use on a project.
- Formulating the topics that the research projects needs to focus on.
Data collection
- Gathering relevant data for the research project using various methodologies and sources.
- Designing bespoke surveys and preparing questionnaires to gather data.
Analysing data
- Able to organise, analyse and evaluate large amounts of complex quantitative data.
- Identifying and interpreting patterns, insights, solutions, and trends.
- Using statistical tools to make sense of the data that has been collected and come up with findings and conclusions.
Market Research
- Conducting accurate, effective, and collaborative research on a consistent basis.
- Interpreting any data that has been collected and drawing inferences and conclusions accordingly.
- Experience of asking, as well as answering, meaningful and impactful questions.
Report writing
- Collating and then writing up high quality research papers for submission to decision makers, stakeholders, or relevant publications.
- Able to clearly communicate material of a specialist or highly technical nature to professionals in their field.
- Generating reports from single or multiple systems.
Research methodologies
- In depth understanding of the latest research methodologies.
- Gathering data from the internet, books, published articles, surveys and interviews.
- Applying statistical analysis techniques to identify patterns and relationships in data.
Communication skills
- A natural communicator who is comfortable dealing with senior level professionals.
- Ability to present complex information clearly and effectively to both individuals and groups.
- Presenting findings and schedules in a professional manner to management and other stakeholders.
Personal skills
- Having an open-minded approach to a project and prepared to change opinions with new evidence and data.
- A willingness to learn new things and adapt to changing environments.
- Enjoy conducting experiments to unearth information and test existing hypotheses.
Education
Having an education reassures recruiters that you possess the formal knowledge needed to carry out your duties competently. In this way it can aid your job application, and should therefore be included in your CV.
Advantages of including it
It will give you the edge, in the event of a tie between you and other equally qualified candidates. Additionally, if it includes keywords of required skills (matching those in the job description), it can help you get past the dreaded Applicant Tracking Systems.
Where to put your Education section
Most people position it under the skills section and above the references. However, if you lack work experience and your educational background is your strongest selling point, then it should feature prominently at the top of your CV below the Personal profile.
How to list it
All the information should go beneath an ‘Education’ subheading. Here is an example of how it could look:
EDUCATION:
University name 2020 – 2023
Degree
College name 2018 – 2020
BTEC Vocational qualification
School name 2014 – 2018
GCSE’s
Maths(A) English (B) Science (C) Physics (D)
Hobbies and interests
Do not just answer the recruiters ‘What do you do in your spare time?’ question. Instead use your hobbies to sell yourself to a prospective recruiter. Do this by stressing the transferable skills you have gained and trying to relate these to the role you are applying for.
Below are some points to consider on whether it’s worth including these in your CV or not.
Research the recruiter
A good way to align your interest with the employer is to check out their company. Through their job advert, website, and social media accounts find out their culture and what they may do as individuals or as a group. See if their off-work activities align with yours, and if so, it may be worth mentioning them. For instance if they have a company 5 aside football team, and you also play for one, then you have a shared hobby that could interest them.
Fill in empty space on your CV
If you have a blank space at the end of your CV, then rather than leaving it empty, fill it up by explaining your hobbies. This is better than a wall of white space, which can signify to a recruiter that you have nothing to say about yourself.
Team sports
This demonstrates a candidate’s teamwork as well as communication and leadership skills. All ideal competencies for roles where you have to operate as part of a group.
Same hobby as the recruiter
Remember that you could strike lucky and have the same interests as the hiring manager. As humans are naturally drawn to those with similar tastes, your application will be more positively looked upon and it’ll be easier to bond with them in an interview.
More relevant research CV templates: