Your CV for a sales role should highlight transferable skills, achievements and a clear motivation for joining the industry. This guide helps graduates tailor their CVs by drawing on part-time jobs, volunteering and university experiences, with additional tips to make your CV ATS-friendly and impactful.
Writing a Sales CV That Gets You Noticed
If you’re a graduate looking to break into sales, your CV is more than just a list of jobs — it’s your first pitch. Sales is a competitive, fast-moving industry, and employers want to see that you have the mindset, skills and potential to thrive.
Sales teams aren’t necessarily looking for candidates with formal sales experience. They want people who can communicate well, build relationships, handle challenges and work towards goals. These skills are often developed through part-time jobs, volunteering, university projects or extracurricular activities — and your CV is the place to show that.
Start With a Strong Personal Summary
Your CV should begin with a short, confident summary that gives a snapshot of who you are, what you’ve achieved and why you’re excited about sales. This section sets the tone and helps recruiters quickly understand your value.
Example: Recent graduate with experience in customer service and student leadership roles. Known for strong communication, problem-solving and goal-driven mindset. Increased student event attendance by 40% through targeted outreach. Now seeking a career in sales to build on these strengths and contribute to a high-performing team. Passionate about helping people make confident decisions and excited to grow in a performance-driven environment.
Keep it authentic and true to your voice. This is your chance to show personality, purpose and a clear interest in sales.
Look Back to Move Forward: Finding Sales Skills in Your Past
You don’t need a formal sales job to show you’re ready. Think about your part-time work, volunteering, university clubs, group projects or sports teams. These experiences often involve the same core skills used in sales.
Core sales skills to highlight:
- Communication and active listening
- Persuasion and influencing
- Resilience and handling rejection
- Organisation and time management
- Goal setting and achievement
- Relationship building
Examples:
- Worked part-time in retail, regularly exceeding weekly sales targets and receiving positive customer feedback
- Led a university fundraising campaign, raising £1,200 through outreach and event planning
- Presented group project findings to a panel, receiving top marks for clarity and engagement
These examples demonstrate that you’ve already started developing the skills valued in sales.
Use Achievements and Data to Show Impact
Sales is results-driven, so your CV should reflect that. Wherever possible, include numbers to show impact — even if it’s from a student role or part-time job.
Examples:
- Increased social media engagement by 25% during a student campaign
- Hit 110% of weekly sales targets for three consecutive months
- Managed a team of five volunteers to deliver a community event with 200+ attendees
Including measurable achievements makes your CV stand out and shows you understand performance.
Tailor Your CV to Each Role
Generic CVs don’t work in sales. Read the job description carefully and mirror the language used. If the role mentions lead generation, client relationship management or KPIs, make sure your CV reflects experience or interest in those areas.
Tailoring also means prioritising the most relevant experiences. For a B2B sales role, highlight experience working with businesses or managing relationships. For a retail or consumer-facing role, focus on customer service and communication.
Customising your CV shows attention to detail — a key trait in sales — and helps you stand out.
Include a Section on Key Skills
A short section listing your most relevant skills helps recruiters quickly see your potential. Make sure each skill is backed up by examples elsewhere in your CV.
Example:
- Confident communicator
- Comfortable working to targets
- Quick learner
- Strong interpersonal skills
- Resilient and adaptable
- Organised and self-motivated
This section is designed to be easily help you tailor for each job application, allowing you to highlight the specific sales skills and experiences that match the job description. By aligning your strengths with the employer’s requirements, you increase your chances of passing initial screenings and standing out to recruiters.
Use AI to Help — But Keep It Personal
AI tools can assist with phrasing, grammar and structure, but your CV should still sound like you. Employers want authenticity, not a generic template.
Use AI to:
- Refine your wording
- Check clarity and tone
- Generate ideas for bullet points
Review and edit to ensure your CV reflects your style, experience and goals.
Make Your CV ATS-Friendly
For some vacancies—particularly at larger companies where employers may receive hundreds of CVs—Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) are used to scan applications for specific keywords and formatting before a recruiter even sees them.
Tips for ATS optimisation:
- Use standard headings like Education, Experience, Skills and Achievements
- Avoid graphics, tables or columns — stick to clean formatting
- Include relevant keywords from the job description (e.g., lead generation, CRM, sales targets)
- Save your CV as Word or PDF — follow the job listing instructions
- Keep formatting consistent — same font, bullet style and spacing throughout
- Avoid unexplained abbreviations — write Customer Relationship Management (CRM) instead of just CRM
These small changes can make a big difference in getting your CV seen by a real person.
Final Touches Before You Hit Send
- Keep your CV to one page if possible
- Highlight skills and experiences most relevant to the role
- Include a short cover letter or email reinforcing your interest in sales and the company
- Proofread carefully — attention to detail matters in sales
Your CV is your first opportunity to show employers that you’re ready to thrive in a sales environment. Keep it concise, focused, and tailored to the role you’re applying for. Highlight the skills and experiences that demonstrate your potential to succeed in a fast-paced, target-driven setting. A short, well-written cover letter or email can reinforce your enthusiasm and help you stand out. And don’t forget to proofread or ask someone else to do this for you – attention to detail is a key sales skill, and your application is the first place it shows.
FAQ: CV Tips for Graduate Sales Roles
Q1: What if I don’t have formal sales experience?
Focus on transferable skills from part-time jobs, volunteering or university activities.
Q2: Should I include achievements from university clubs or societies?
Yes. They show leadership, initiative and communication — all valuable in sales.
Q3: How important is data in a graduate CV?
Very. Including numbers shows impact and makes your achievements credible.
Q4: Can I use AI to write my CV?
Yes, but make sure the final version reflects your tone and real experience. AI can help structure and tailor your CV, but it’s important that it still sounds like you.
Q5: How do I make my CV ATS-friendly?
Use standard headings, avoid graphics, include keywords from the job description, and keep formatting clean and consistent.