The NZ CV: what goes on it, and what to leave off

Start with what the employer actually needs

A New Zealand CV is a plain, honest summary of who you are and what you can do. Nothing fancy. Employers here read stacks of them, usually in a hurry, so clear beats clever every time. Unless you are applying for a design job, nobody is scoring your layout.

The good news is that NZ conventions are simple, and a lot of them are about what you take off rather than what you pile on.

What goes on an NZ CV

The core of it is short and predictable:

• Contact details: your name, phone number, email, and the town or suburb you live in. Add a LinkedIn link only if it is tidy and up to date.
• A short profile: two or three lines on who you are and what you are after. Keep it specific to the job.
• Key skills: a handful of things you can genuinely do, matched to what the ad asks for.
• Work history: most recent first, with month and year, the employer, your role, and a few bullet points on what you did and what changed because you were there.
• Education and tickets: qualifications, plus any licences or certificates that matter for the role (a full driver licence, a forklift ticket, a first aid certificate, a practising certificate).
• A single line: "Referees available on request."
• If you are new to the country, one short line confirming you have the right to work in NZ saves everyone a guessing game. Immigration New Zealand explains what counts.

What to leave off

This is where a lot of overseas CVs trip up. On a Kiwi CV you do not include:

• No photo. Standard practice here is no headshot.
• No date of birth or age.
• No full street address. Your suburb or city is plenty.
• No marital status, children, religion, ethnicity, or gender if you would rather not say.
• No IRD number, passport or licence numbers, or bank details. Those come later, through proper channels, never on a document you email around.

Why leaving those off actually helps you

It is not just fashion. NZ law makes it unlawful for an employer to discriminate on grounds like age, sex, marital status, religion, and ethnicity. When none of that is on the page, hiring managers judge you on the work, and a good employer would rather it was not there at all. Leaving it off protects you and keeps them out of trouble.

While you are cutting, lose the salary history, the reasons you left each job, the clip-art skill bars, and any grand objective like "seeking a challenging role in a dynamic team". And never put down something you cannot back up in the interview.

Length, format, and the honest bit

Two pages is the sweet spot for most people. One page is perfectly fine if you are early in your working life. If you are pushing past three, you are probably including things a reader does not need.

Save it as a PDF unless the ad asks for something else, so your formatting does not fall apart on someone else's computer. Use a normal, readable font, and name the file something sensible like Firstname-Lastname-CV.pdf, not cv-final-FINAL-2.pdf. And keep the whole thing true. If you claim you are fluent in te reo or confident with Xero, expect to be asked to prove it.

Referees on request

It is standard in NZ to write "Referees available on request" rather than listing names and phone numbers on the CV itself. That keeps your referees' details private, and it means you can warn them before an employer rings.

Line up two people, ideally a recent manager or supervisor. Ask their permission first, then give them a heads up once you reach the final stages so the call is not a surprise. A former team lead, supervisor, or client is what employers want. Your mate or your mum is not.

A quick running order

If in doubt, this order works:

• Name and contact details
• Short profile
• Key skills
• Work history (newest first)
• Education, licences and certificates
• "Referees available on request"