Why Most Graduate CVs Get Rejected
Tanzanian recruiters report that over 70% of graduate CVs they receive contain basic errors that lead to immediate rejection. The problem isn't lack of talent — it's lack of guidance. Universities focus on academic knowledge but rarely teach job application skills.
The good news: these mistakes are easy to fix once you know what they are.
The 8 Most Common Mistakes
**1. No professional summary** — Starting with "Objective: To find a challenging position" wastes prime CV space. Replace with a 2-3 sentence summary of your skills and strengths.
**2. Listing duties instead of achievements** — "Responsible for data entry" tells nothing. "Processed 200+ records daily with 99.5% accuracy during internship" shows capability.
**3. Including irrelevant personal details** — Marital status, religion, tribe, and parents' names are not needed. Stick to name, phone, email, and city.
**4. Using a generic email** — coolboy2024@gmail.com won't get you hired. Create firstname.lastname@gmail.com.
**5. Spelling and grammar errors** — Have three people proofread your CV. Errors suggest carelessness.
**6. Wrong file format** — Always send PDF unless told otherwise. Word documents can look different on different computers.
**7. Including primary school** — If you have a university degree, your O-level and A-level results are sufficient. Remove primary school details.
**8. No skills section** — Even without much work experience, you have skills from coursework, projects, and extracurricular activities. List them specifically.
What to Do Instead
As a fresh graduate, emphasize:
- **Academic projects and research** — treat major projects like work experience with descriptions of what you did and achieved - **Internships and industrial training** — describe specific tasks and outcomes, not just company names - **Extracurricular leadership** — student government, club leadership, and event organization demonstrate soft skills - **Certifications and online courses** — Coursera, Google, or Microsoft certifications show initiative - **Volunteer work** — community involvement demonstrates character and commitment
Use Nafasi's CV builder to structure your graduate CV properly — it guides you through each section with prompts relevant to the Tanzanian market.