Freelance work is a side-hustle for some and a full-time job for others. Oftentimes, many freelancers decide to divert full-time to conventional employment. However, some freelancers may have problems listing the multiple projects and jobs they have done while others may try to convert their freelance work experiences into full-time job experiences because of the assumption that freelance work does not count as experience to many employers, but this is simply not true. Provided your freelance experience is relevant to the position you are applying for, hiring managers and recruiters regard it as experience. Freelance work also serves as a great filler for any gap in your employment history.
Some ways to include freelance work on your CV are:
You are advised to have a professional company name before including freelance work in your CV. Having a professional business name establishes the credibility of your multiple projects/jobs as you include them in the work experience section on your CV. Consider including a job title like freelance web designer with a write-up that explains concisely the type of work you did.
To properly include freelance work on your CV, you must ensure you lay enough emphasis on your talents and achievements by concisely highlighting your abilities and providing skills and qualifications relevant to the job position. Your relevant freelance experience - from your first to your most recent- with bullets, your greatest accomplishments, publications, exhibits and rewards during your time freelancing must be strategically highlighted to encompass the value/help you provided to your clients and their companies. It must be well-written and organised. To make it easily readable, you may also consider using bullets, headings and enough spacing.
The best thing about creating a video resume is its peculiarity. It is a great way to include freelance work on your CV and get the hiring manager’s attention. Many recruiters have referred to it as a pre-interview as it helps to put a face to the CV and understand with no hassle, the value the talent has to offer to the company. A video resume also gives you control, a chance to demonstrate your abilities on your terms and boost your confidence.
While creating a video resume, you must keep it interesting by adding visuals with great colours. A video more than 15 minutes long may be regarded as a waste of time by many recruiters so you must keep it brief. In the same vein, ensure you shoot your video resume in professional clothes with a professional background highlighting your freelancing skills and experiences that are just right for the job.
Here are some steps to take to create a great video resume for your freelance work experiences:
It is crucial that you craft every CV you send out to fit the requirements of the job and grab the attention of the hiring manager. This should be easy for you to do as freelancing has exposed you to an array of opportunities allowing you to include the work experience that pertains to the job you are applying to. Experts advise that you list these related work experiences in a reverse-chronological format especially if you freelanced for a small number of clients regularly. This way, your most recent job gets the most attention from the recruiter/hiring manager.
It should comprise:
An example is:
Joseph Tayo
Freelance Web Designer
978-822-2162
josephtayo@gmail.com
linkedin.com/in/tayo
twitter.com/tayo
An innovative thinker from Zayed University with a BSc. in Accounting and an interest in website designing and development with a clear and organised development process. Excited to join BF Codes as a website designer to create and devise innovative and unique website designs that simply captivates the users.
Experience
December 2020 - August 2021
Lead Website Designer at Kristl Designs
https://kristldesigns.com/
June 2020 - December 2020
Freelance Website Designer at Lola Construction
November 2019- June 2020
Freelance Website Designer at Web Design. Co
https://wbd.com/
Key Skills
Languages
Interests
Joseph, a freelance web designer, has no educational background in website designing so he chose the reverse-chronological format to help his work experience stand out. He also created a targeted resume that reflected only the skills required for this particular job. His consciousness in mentioning only projects that relate to the job in question will make the recruiter see him as an expert and professional giving him an edge over others with unrelated work experiences in their resumes.
Including freelance work on your CV allows for more versatility. However, it is imperative that you can properly describe these work experiences. Avoid placing focus and emphasis on unnecessary things. Instead, focus on how your abilities can help your recruiters. This means you should focus on crafting your CV in alliance with the needs of the company you want to join. A targeted resume shows the recruiters the exact information you want to know.
At Bayt.com our expert CV writing service offers CV templates to freelancers looking to switch to the conventional way of employment. In addition, Bayt.com has a team of professionally trained CV and consultants with a first-hand understanding of what hiring managers seek in talents when evaluating CVs with freelance work.
Contact Bayt.com writing service today to get exceptionally written CVs and cover letters.
