The Government's CV Advice Is Out of Date: How to Write a South African Graduate CV in 2026

Photo: Tima Miroshnichenko / Pexels

Search for how to write a CV in South Africa and one of the first results is the government's own guide on gov.za. It tells you to include your identity number, whether you're married or single, your sex and "the state of your health".

Now ask a recruiter or a CV specialist. CV Online SA calls putting your ID number on a CV "a security risk" that's "unnecessary at the application stage". ShiftMate, a South African hiring platform, says you don't need your ID number, race, gender or a photo unless the employer specifically asks for them.

Both pieces of advice can't be right for 2026, and the more recent advice is the one that fits how hiring works now. Here's how to build a graduate CV that gets past the software and the people.

Your CV may be read by software first

South African CV guides say many larger employers now use an applicant tracking system (ATS). It collects every application and filters them, often by searching for keywords from the job advert. If your CV doesn't use the advert's language, or the software can't read your layout, a person might never see it.

That changes two things: what you write and how you lay it out.

What to leave off

Unless the advert specifically asks for it, leave these out:

• Your ID number. It's valuable to identity thieves, and an employer doesn't need it until it makes you an offer.
• Marital status, health, race, gender and a photo. None of these belong on a first-round application. Recruiters warn that photos in particular can lead to unconscious bias. ShiftMate notes a few exceptions, such as hospitality, modelling and some client-facing jobs.
• A full street address. Your city or region is enough.
• A generic objective like "I am a hardworking individual seeking an opportunity to grow." It tells the reader nothing.

Some parts of the government guide still stand up well: tailor your CV to each job, include a cover letter, and check that your referees are still reachable before you list them.

The graduate CV structure

Aim for two pages at most. One page is fine if you don't yet have much to put on it.

1. Contact details. Full name, phone number, a professional email address, your city and a LinkedIn link if you have one.

2. Professional profile (3–4 sentences). Say who you are professionally, what you bring and what you're looking for. Rewrite it for every application. For example: "BCom Marketing graduate from the University of Pretoria with a 12-week digital agency internship. Skilled in Google Analytics, Canva and social media scheduling. Looking for an entry-level brand or digital marketing role."

3. Education. As a graduate, this is your strongest section, so put it near the top. Include your qualification, institution and completion year (or expected date), plus distinctions, strong averages and any modules or final-year projects relevant to the job.

4. Relevant experience. Notice the heading isn't "Employment history". Pnet points out that experience includes volunteering, tutoring, sports teams, student societies and work you did through church. Vacation work, part-time retail shifts, freelance jobs and side projects all count too.

5. Skills. Be specific: "Excel (pivot tables, VLOOKUP)" is better than "Microsoft Office". List four to six soft skills at most, and only ones you can back up somewhere else on your CV.

6. References. See the debate below.

Turn what you've done into evidence

For each experience, don't just list your duties. Use Problem → Action → Result:

• ❌ "Responsible for social media."
• ✅ "Took over the debating society's Instagram when posting had stopped; built a weekly content calendar; grew followers from 300 to 1,100 in one semester."

Include numbers wherever you honestly can, such as people, rands, percentages or time saved. Small numbers still count.

Getting past the ATS

• Use the exact job title from the advert in your profile or experience, where it's true.
• Match the advert's wording. If it says "stakeholder engagement", use that phrase rather than "talking to people".
• Keep the layout simple: one column, standard headings (Education, Experience, Skills), and a common font such as Calibri or Arial.
• Avoid tables, text boxes, headers, footers and graphics. ATS software often can't read them properly.
• Send the file type the advert asks for, usually .docx or PDF.

A beautifully designed CV that the software can't read does you no good. Save the design skills for your portfolio.

The references debate

Advice on this is split:

• Pnet recommends writing "Available on request" and only sharing referees when an employer asks.
• CV Online SA says listing two referees upfront is often preferred, especially for frontline roles where employers call references before interviewing.

Our take: if the advert asks for references, include them. If it doesn't, "Available on request" is fine, as long as you have two referees ready, such as a lecturer and a work, volunteer or community supervisor, and they've agreed to take calls.

Pre-send checklist

1. Profile rewritten for this specific job
2. The advert's key words appear naturally in your CV
3. No ID number, photo, marital status or health information (unless requested)
4. Single column, no tables or text boxes
5. Two pages or fewer
6. Consistent formatting: if one job title is bold, they all are
7. Spell-checked, read aloud, and read by one other person
8. File named clearly, e.g. Thandi-Mokoena-CV.pdf
9. Your LinkedIn matches your CV

Sending a strong CV doesn't guarantee a job, but a weak one can rule you out before anyone reads it. Treat each application as a new document, not a copy of the last one.