Contextual Background
One of the persistent challenges I face in delivering graduate career support is motivating graduates to engage with learning beyond their immediate needs. A primary method of enticing participation is through the offer of a personalised CV review. This tends to draw interest, as it is perceived as a practical and immediate step toward employment. However, this surface-level engagement often overshadows deeper developmental needs, such as reflection, strategic positioning, and industry understanding—areas that are critical in an increasingly competitive graduate job market.
Evaluation
To access this support, graduates are directed to pre-read a curated selection of online resources. Yet, positioning this as a prerequisite often proves counterproductive. It introduces a perceived barrier and diminishes the appeal of the CV review as a ‘quick fix’. This is further complicated by the legacy perception of higher education as transactional. As Curry (2017) explains, “students are encouraged to think of themselves not as students, here first and foremost to learn, but as customers, whose priority is a practical return on their ‘investment’.” From this standpoint, anything that delays or complicates access to a tangible outcome—like a reviewed CV—can reduce trust and engagement.
This challenge is compounded by institutional constraints. Our employability learning resources are available via the university website rather than through Moodle (the VLE), and although recent graduates can access an additional year of enhanced online support, awareness of this offer is low. To address this, I make direct contact with hundreds of graduates throughout their first year after university, encouraging engagement by offering the personalised CV review. Despite this labour-intensive method, it is the promise of bespoke, individual feedback—not the wider learning potential—that typically secures participation.
Moving forwards
This insight prompted me to reframe my approach to CV reviews, moving beyond task completion toward skills development. Inspired by Curry’s (2017) discussion of the “enchantment of learning”—the intrinsic value found in engaging with material meaningfully—I now emphasise CV writing as a transferable life skill. It demands research, critical awareness, reflective practice, and clarity in communicating positionality—skills vital for navigating not just careers, but life in broader terms. To evaluate and improve my practice, I will embed small, formative checkpoints which allow me to monitor comprehension, provide feedback, and reframe CV writing as a creative process: a dynamic expression of identity, industry direction, and personal branding.
Although many graduates initially resist engaging with CV writing beyond its surface function, repositioning it as a site of creativity and expression has encouraged deeper involvement. As Curry (2017) puts it, “the concrete magic of enchantment is often unwelcome; it is truly transgressive.” CVs need not be soulless professional artefacts—they can be living documents of self-understanding and ambition. Evaluating how this reframing affects graduate confidence and employability is an ongoing process, but early feedback suggests a growing openness to this more holistic, developmental approach.
Similarly, Brooks’ (2008) research highlights how vague or uncontextualised feedback can be demotivating and even alienating. A key takeaway from her work is that emotionally resonant, dialogic exchanges, like one-to-one tutorials, foster a greater sense of belonging— this approach aligns with the values of student-centred learning and inclusive practice. Students in Brooks’ study craved belonging, clarity, and encouragement, not just comments or grades. This speaks directly to my experience: what’s needed isn’t just better CV resources—it’s an invitation to learning through connection and trust.
References
Brooks, K. (2008) ‘Could do better?’: students’ critique of written feedback. University of the West of England, Bristol.
Curry, P. (2017) Enchantment: Wonder in Modern Life. Abingdon: Routledge.