CVlization

What I have learned as a university student looking for a job is that the three most important documents in a person’s life are the birth certificate, the passport, and the CV. The first two prove your existence, the third proves the worthiness of that existence.

Makes sense. You need a good CV to get into a good university, which you can put on your CV to get a good job, which will serve as proof of your expertise, which you can write on your CV, which you will use to apply for a higher position.

As a society, we abuse this application method daily, unable to see the meaning we molded into it. We turned a one-page document into the ultimate assessment of human merit. Creeping behind the corner of every accomplishment, the CV craze reshapes our values by praising appearance over substance.

 

This phenomenon is rooted in the engine of our actions – our motivation. What is supposed to be a summary of one’s experience and skills has become a primary goal for many, including me. I have thrown myself into empty endeavors, hoping to acquire oh-so-precious certificates, and wasted time writing generic announcements on LinkedIn about it. Not because I cared, but because the “How to Build a Perfect Resume” lecturer told me so.

For people around me, that seemed to be enough. They filled the CV template, felt temporary satisfaction, and occasionally even got a job. Once I asked a friend, who was very much into this CV “philosophy” of life, what kind of volunteering he was doing. The answer: “I dunno, something about dogs.”

Turning volunteering, which implies doing something out of goodwill, into part of our agenda to build a persuasive resume, is problematic. Except from being morally grey, this type of extrinsic motivation makes us superficial and obstructs the possibility of self-fulfillment.

 

There is more.

CV-motivated behavior can be unethical. A study done in the U.S. shows that 7 out of 10 workers confess to lying on their CVs. This includes manipulating education credentials, inflating accomplishments, embellishing responsibilities, etc. The line between lying and self-promotion is thin, especially when the format of the CV is based on self-presentation.

Although self-presentation is not inherently a bad thing, when it comes to CVs, it often prioritizes credentials over capability. A chief executive officer will draw more attention than a manager. A student from Harvard will be perceived as more apt than one from Sofia University. Moreover, candidates are encouraged to tailor their CVs according to the specific job position/employer, reinforcing reliance on personal branding rather than skills.

Crafting a compelling, yet concise statement does require competence. However, with the introduction of new technology such as AI assistants, it has lost its value. The majority of companies use applicant track systems (ATS), which scan candidates’ CVs for buzzwords and evaluate them. Therefore, in order to “stand out,” you need to pick the right word from the pool of pre-selected right words. AI tools do this and provide you with a polished and well-structured product. The efficiency of this process comes at the cost of personal approach and originality.

 

The CV has become a formality that aims to simplify professional experience into a one-page AI-generated slop. So why do we give it so much weight in defining us?

Some companies, such as Amazon, try to get a deeper insight into candidates’ abilities and personal strengths by turning to skill-based hiring. This includes structured interviews, mental ability tests, job-specific tasks, etc. Although this seems like a plausible alternative, I do not believe it will effectively eliminate the CV “ideology.”

 

We need to take a step back, look within, be aware.

Until society stops praising external validation and easy solutions, we will continue to exist within a downward spiral. By trying to create an impression with meaningless words and titles on our CVs, we merely reflect the shadow of our experiences. The motivation that drives us and the language we use to describe those experiences are what make us humans.

 

 

This article was originally written for JMC2050 Advanced Writing for Media.