How to Review a CV
Reviewing a CV starts with structure, not a score. Where to look first.
Structure before score
The first question in a CV review is not "what score?" It is "can I tell what this person does in 6 seconds?"
A score without diagnosis is meaningless. The point of a review is to find where the case is weak and why.
A well-structured CV reads in one scroll. You see where the person worked, what they did, and what happened — at a glance.
Three lenses
Review a CV through three distinct lenses. These are the same dimensions distil.work's Audit measures.
How to spot weak lines
These signals indicate a weak line:
Passive voice: "Was responsible for" — who acted and what happened is hidden.
No metrics: "Improved performance" — by how much? Without a number, there is no proof.
Vague scope: "Led a team" — how many people, for how long?
Generic verbs: "Managed", "handled", "supported" — replace with specific actions.
Review checklist
Check these 10 points when reviewing any CV:
- Is there a summary? Is it specific to this role?
- Does each job entry have 3–5 bullets?
- Does each bullet start with an action verb?
- Do at least half the bullets include a number?
- Is the most recent experience the most detailed?
- Are there any orphan sections — skills listed without proof?
- Is the CV 1–2 pages?
- Is the formatting consistent — dates, bullets, spacing?
- Does the language match the job description?
- Would you interview this person based on the first 6 seconds?
Self-review vs tool-assisted review
Self-review catches formatting and typos.
But weak evidence and unclear framing are hard to spot in your own CV. You are too close to your own experience.
Tools like distil.work automate the structural read, so you can focus on the story.