difficult spell on a cv

[nineking]

Please Help!! what would anyone consider the best advice to render if some one had dropped out of university for financial and personal hardship reasons. should that period in university be omitted from a CV and if not. should one be candid and disclose the personal reasons during an interview. how can one make a good situation out of a bad one. Spin or Disclosure?

[Buenchico]

Here's my suggestion:

"In September, (year) I commenced a course in (subject) at (town/city) University. Unfortunately personal circumstances, leading to financial difficulties, forced me to leave the course in (month) of (year). While I regret that I was unable to complete my studies, I benefitted by my time at university through learning to strengthen my inter-personal and study skills".

Any use?

Chris

[Ethel]

It very much depends on the position you are applying for. It is useful to have at least two cvs!

If the degree would have been relevant to the job - express your regret at being forced to leave and your intention of pursuing it in the future. You could say that the course was fascinating and helped you to realise where your interests and ambitions lie.

If it is totally irrelevant to the position you can say that you realised that you had made the wrong choice and after careful consideration left to pursue your interests in other fields (preferably the position you are applying for).

Don't let this misfortune blight your future.

Good luck.

[nineking]

thankyou all very much. i have been racking my brains on how best to approach this. i still wellcome any more suggestions

[Miss Zippy]

Further to the above excellent suggestions, just to add that most employers are very suspicious of any �blanks� that appear in an individual�s CV so you should include your time spent at Uni no matter how brief. Many employers (especially those in highly regulated sectors such as law and finance) use agencies (such as Kroll) to carry out background checks on new employees and these checks will pick up on any career gaps etc etc so best to explain all upfront.

[PhilLew]

If the subject of the degree is not relevent to the post you are applying for then you could say that in the period in question you were at xxxxxxx university studying for a degree in xxxxxxxx.

If you don't mention whether or not you gaind the qualification and don't have it listed in the qualifications part of your CV then it's upto the employer to pick up on that and ask about it, if it's not relevant then they may not.

Don't try to make out you have the qualification, just mention that you were studying towards it.

If it comes up at the interview then you will have to expain your reasons for dropping out, but remember a CV is only to get you an interview, the interview is what gets you the job!

Good Luck

[joko]

i put 'experience of the BA....' then listed the course i left. the date makes it clear how long i was there.

that way they may not notice but they have no reason to suspect you have tried to mislead them.

if they ask, then tell them.

[bazaan]

how long does it take to get a background check to work as a teller at a bank