Biochemistry Graduate CV Example

A biochemistry graduate CV that includes all the necessary details and is tailored carefully to the job description puts you in a great position to pass the ATS screening stage, make a strong impression with the employer and reach the latter stages of the recruitment process. By tailoring your biochemistry graduate CV specifically for each job application, and providing strong examples of how you've used your skills to achieve positive outcomes for previous employers, you'll give yourself the best chance of making a strong first impression. In this article, we'll explain each step of the biochemistry graduate CV writing process in detail, equipping you with everything you'll need to know to produce a CV that impresses hiring managers. Read on to start the process of elevating your job applications to the next level.

Key sections for a biochemistry graduate CV

How you approach writing your biochemistry graduate CV will vary according to your experience, your level and the details outlined in the job description.

However, typically, CVs for biochemistry graduate roles will need to demonstrate your work experience and outline the value you've added for previous employers. In this scenario, a traditional, reverse-chronological CV format is almost always most effective.

CV Header

Kick off your biochemistry graduate CV with a header listing your name, email address, phone number and location. You don't typically need to include your full address. Incorporate design elements that set the tone and design language of your document. If you have a LinkedIn profile, consider adding a URL to this in your header, to help the reader easily find more information on your career and credentials.

When you're applying for jobs in the UK, it's generally not advisable to include a photo or more personal details than are strictly necessary, such as your age, gender, ethnicity or nationality. Including these can jeopardise the recruitment process by introducing bias, and can fall foul of the Equality Act 2010.

CV Summary or Objective

The first section below your CV header is typically your CV summary. This short paragraph outlines some of your key skills, achievements and experience, so employers can quickly get an impression of whether you have the right credentials for the biochemistry graduate job. A CV summary focuses on your key skills and achievements, while a CV objective provides an alternative approach, showcasing your career ambitions and how the role fits with these. This makes a CV objective ideal for entry-level candidates.

In your summary or objective, write up to three sentences outlining your key skills, unique personal qualities and career achievements or ambitions, taking care to always reflect the requirements listed in the job description.

An effective a biochemistry graduate CV summary will include brief reference to one or two of your strongest skills, ensuring they reflect the skills listed in the job description. It's important to make your skills and qualities feel unique to you, and show how you've used them to positive effect in your career to date. Here's an example of an effective biochemistry graduate CV summary, with evidence of your impact and neat, well-structured sentences:

Above is an example of a biochemistry graduate CV summary that doesn't follow best practice, with some subtle shortcomings and failings. Common mistakes that lead to a biochemistry graduate CV summary include a lack of quantifiable experience, vague statements or failing to tailor your summary to the job description. Long, rambling sentences that lack structure can also make your summary harder to read.

Work History

The work experience section of a CV is usually the most important part. This also applies to a biochemistry graduate CV in most cases, especially for more senior roles. Employers look for evidence of how you've developed and used your skills to good effect in your career to date, as an indication of your likely future performance. In this section, create a list of all your most relevant roles, going back up to 10 or 15 years if necessary. Include your job title, the name of the employer, its location and the dates you worked there. Include bullet points that explain how you put your skills to good use in each previous role.

Always take the time to tailor this section, including keywords and phrases that match the job description. This will help employers to judge how strong a fit you are for the role, and how you might apply your skills for the benefit of the organisation.

An effective work experience section for a biochemistry graduate CV typically includes only your most recent and relevant roles, and focuses on showing how you used your key skills in each role to make a positive impact for the employer. Use strong action verbs to highlight your impact, and tailor your bullet points to directly target the job description and show employers how and why you'll be a good fit for the role, with evidence of your performance to date in similar roles. See below for an example of a strong work experience section for a biochemistry graduate CV.

Take a look at a less strong biochemistry graduate CV work experience section above. A less effective biochemistry graduate CV work experience section could focus too much on irrelevant or out-of-date roles, or include generic information about your responsibilities that fails to show the impact you made. It might lack tailoring to the job description or fail to provide evidence to support the claims made in the bullet points.

Education

Your education section is the chance to list your most recent and highest qualifications, and anything that's relevant or required for the role.

A degree is typically a strict requirement for biochemistry graduate jobs, and as such, you'll want to showcase yours in your CV. If you have a Bachelor of Science with Honours in Biochemistry or another similar, relevant degree that confirms your eligibility for the position, include it in your biochemistry graduate CV. You might also wish to add other degrees or qualifications that highlight key skills, such as molecular cloning protocols or protein purification techniques.

When creating your biochemistry graduate CV education section, think about which qualifications are most relevant to the role, and list them in reverse-chronological order, starting with the most recent and working back from there. For each entry into your education section, add the qualification name and level, the institution or awarding body, its location and your dates of study or graduation. For extra emphasis on your education section, include bullet points showcasing projects you worked on, modules you studied, awards you won or societies you participated in, if they help you to prove you're a suitable candidate.

It may also be useful for you to add any specialist industry qualifications, certifications or licences that you might require for the role. If you choose to add these, remember also to add an expiration date, if the licence requires renewal in the future.

Publications and Projects

One way to gain an advantage in your biochemistry graduate CV is to add a section for key projects and publications, if you have any to showcase. These are particularly valuable for senior, academic and scientific roles. Include any major contributions you've made to the academic discourse or knowledge base in your specialist area. These could be journal articles, research papers, magazine articles or projects that received major funding, or were recognised by an industry body.

When listing publications, follow a standard citation format that's widely used in the sector. The most common citation style for UK CVs is the Harvard style, but you could use the APA (American Psychological Association), MHRA (Modern Humanities Research Association) or OSCOLA (Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities), if appropriate. Take a look below for an example of a biochemistry graduate CV publication, listed using the appropriate citation format:

Skills

In your CV skills section, include a combination of the key hard and soft skills you possess, that make you a suitable candidate for the position. Make sure your skills list reflects the requirements specified in the job description, and ensure you include a few skills that are unique to you, and help set you apart from the pack. For a biochemistry graduate CV, you'll want to focus on the most relevant skills for the role, including protein purification techniques and critical thinking, to catch the reader's attention and show you're qualified for the biochemistry graduate position.

Hard Skills

Hard skills, often referred to as 'technical skills' are the specialist skills required for completing the everyday duties of the role, such as the use of certain software or equipment, or specialist industry knowledge. You can develop these skills through study, training, on-the-job or through completing industry certifications. For biochemistry graduate jobs, essential hard skills might include kinetic data analysis and hplc proficiency. Review the job description, and include four or five key hard skills in your biochemistry graduate CV that show employers you're capable of completing the key duties of the role.

The best hard skills to include in a biochemistry graduate CV are typically listed as 'essential' or 'required' in the job description. Aim for a mix of the most desirable skills, together with those you have the highest proficiency in. For the best chance of success, you'll want your strongest skills to match closely with those most desired by the employer.

See below for a list of hard skills that are most suitable for a biochemistry graduate CV.

Soft Skills

Soft skills differ from hard skills because they tend to be more transferable and applicable to different roles. Soft skills are the personal strengths and qualities that define your style of working and determine how well you're likely to fit in with the team and wider organisation. As a result of rapid technological changes to modern ways of working, soft skills are becoming more and more valuable to employers. Soft skills can also be particularly useful for junior or entry-level roles where candidates haven't had the time or career experience to develop hard skills and notable achievements.

As with hard skills, review the job description to understand the best soft skills to mention in your biochemistry graduate CV. The best CV soft skills section includes specific skills that you can evidence with examples throughout your CV. Aim to add up to five soft and transferable skills to your biochemistry graduate CV, including a mix of the most essential skills from the job description, together with some skills that make you stand out as a unique and compelling candidate.

Here's a list of some of the key soft skills employers look for in biochemistry graduate candidates:

Certifications, Training and Licences

If you've invested your time and resources into gaining extra qualifications beyond the minimum requirements for the role, you could highlight these in al certifications section. While this section is optional, it can be a valuable way of differentiating yourself from other candidates and showing employers your dedication, motivation and commitment to professional development. Furthermore, if there are any necessary certifications or licences for the job, this CV section takes on even more importance. If you're applying for a technical role or a position that involves the use of specialist software or equipment, these might make it more necessary to include a section showcasing your training.

Here is a list of some key certifications and licences that can be particularly useful for biochemistry graduate applications:

Languages

Adding foreign language skills to your biochemistry graduate CV can be a valuable addition that reflects well on you as a candidate. Even if language skills aren't listed as a requirement in the job description, if you speak a foreign language, it can be beneficial to add it to your CV. In this section, include any foreign languages you speak to a standard that could be useful in the world of work, with an indication of your proficiency level.

The methods for indicating your foreign language skills on your CV include assigning a basic descriptive word, such as:

• English, Fluent
• Spanish, Intermediate

You might wish to use an internationally recognised standard for your language skills, such as the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). This divides your language skills into the following categories:

• A1: Beginner
• A2: Elementary
• B1: Intermediate
• B2: Upper intermediate
• C1: Advanced
• C2: Proficiency

Using the CEFR standard, you could list your language skills as follows:

• English, C2
• Spanish, A2

Additional Sections

In addition to the core sections of your CV, optional sections can be a useful way of providing you've got the necessary biochemistry graduate skills. Consider optional sections for your CV if you're looking fr ways to show you're right for the job, beyond your work experience. Optional sections are particularly valuable if you haven't had the chance to build up relevant work experience, for example, if you're applying for entry-level roles or you're changing careers to a new industry or role.

You can find more detailed advice on tailoring your CV in our career resources, where we cover proven ways to highlight your skills effectively.

Hobbies and Interests

If you participate in hobbies and activities that are related to the role, or use some of the same skill set, you could include them in a hobbies and interests section. In addition, hobbies and interests can be a useful way of showcasing your personality, helping to differentiate you from other candidates. However, it's important to only mention hobbies and interests that are relevant, or related to, the role you're applying for. If your hobbies don't help you to show skills required for the role, that are missing elsewhere in your CV, it's best to leave this section out.

Key Achievements

Listing your key career achievements in a distinct section can be an effective way of drawing attention to them. In this section, add any awards or recognition you've received for achievements, and any career milestones you've reached that show you're a strong candidate for the job.

Voluntary Roles

Another way of showing employers your skills and experience is through volunteer roles. If you're struggling to show you have the necessary credentials through your work experience, volunteering can provide valuable examples of how you've put your skills into action. Structure your volunteering section the same as your work experience section. Add your job title or the name of the volunteer role, the organisation, its location and the dates you volunteered. Also add some bullet points outlining your skills and experience in the role, as well as any key achievements.

References

In the UK, it's not normal for references to be requested as part of a CV, or at the early stages of an application. However, it's worth checking the job advert and being ready to supply them if necessary. Include two or three references, adding their name, job title, organisation and contact details. Always be sure to approach your referees and ask permission before including them in your biochemistry graduate CV. Alternatively, you may wish to simply indicate that you can provide references if and when necessary, with a line such as, 'references are available upon request'.

Best action words for a biochemistry graduate CV

Starting each of your work experience bullet points with strong action verbs is a great way to showcase your key skills and qualities, and demonstrate the impact they've had in your career to date. Start each bullet point with a verb linked to the skills required in the job description, to add focus to your work experience section and make it easy for the reader to identify your strengths. When adding action verbs to your work experience bullet points, just remember to always provide quantifiable evidence that shows the value you added for each employer. Use past tense for any action verbs that describe previous roles (for example, 'developed') and present tense for current roles (for example 'collaborating').

Biochemistry graduate CV example

Now that you're aware of the key steps to creating a winning biochemistry graduate CV, you can review a complete example to see how a final CV looks:

If you want to get a feel for how your CV will look once you finalise its design and layout, check out our CV examples for inspiration.

Guide to making your CV ATS compatible

Applicant tracking systems (ATS) are now commonly used by employers, to help them manage the recruitment process. One of the main functions of ATS software is the scanning and ranking of CVs according to their likely suitability for the role. By assuming this role in the recruitment process, ATS apps can reduce the amount of time employers need to spend reviewing CVs. With hundreds of applications for a single vacancy becoming increasingly commonplace, this increased efficiency is extremely valuable for employers.

Because ATS software is becoming more common in the recruitment process, it's important to make some concessions in your CV to give yourself the best chance of progressing beyond the initial screening. With that in mind, here are some tips on preparing your CV for ATS screening:

• Include keywords and phrases that match the job description, giving you the best chance of appearing as a strong fit for the role.
• Use standard CV headings that clearly identify each section, such as 'work experience', 'education' and 'skills'.
• Choose a simple, straightforward CV layout with clear, consistent formatting, that avoids text boxes, graphics or other special design elements, as these can make your CV harder to scan.
• Select a font that enhances the readability of your CV, including recognised serif and sans serif fonts between sizes 10 and 12 for body text, and 14 and 16 for headings.
• Use bullet points in place of full sentences and paragraphs, as these are easier for ATS apps to scan and parse, and help your keywords stand out.

There are lots of things to think about when crafting an effective, engaging biochemistry graduate CV, but ATS compatibility is something that's easy to overcome. Use one of our expert-designed, ATS-compatible CV templates and remove the stress from creating a CV that puts you in the frame for the role.

Key takeaways for an impactful biochemistry graduate CV

For the best chance of impressing employers with your biochemistry graduate CV, always tailor your CV for every application and include keywords and phrases that reflect the job description. Select a suitable CV format for your experience level, and show the reader how you've used skills relevant to the role, to create a positive impact in your career to date.

Finally, building your CV using Jobseeker's HR-approved CV templates can help to catch the eye of recruiters and hiring managers, making your application stand out and giving you the best chance of gaining your dream job.

References:

1. jobs.ac.uk, What is an Academic CV?
2. Jobseeker, HR Insights