The golden rule is 'not more than two pages'. No matter how impressive your experience and achievements, a potential employer doesn't want to feel like he or she is reading a book about you.

Present the information clearly and succinctly, using an easy to read typeface and headings/subheadings - remember, if you say absolutely everything on your CV, then you will have nothing to expand upon in your interview.

Begin with your personal details along with a short personal profile (three or four lines) which acts as a snapshot of you, your achievements and your goals. This information should encourage people to read further so use positive, active words which stress your value to any organisation.

Next, present your career history, with your current/most recent role first. Short bullet-points will be fine for the majority of your duties, but if there is something particularly relevant to a role for which you applying, then it can be expanded to help it stand out.

Follow this with your academic history. If it is a long time since you have left education and you already have an impressive work history, then you do not need to list all of your qualifications, only those which are the most pertinent.

The final section should round out your personality with your interests.

Then, importantly, spell check your CV and read it carefully. There's nothing more certain to see your CV hit the 'no' pile than spelling mistakes.