When we delivered Esh Group's Building My Skills Checkpoint 3: Presenting Yourself on Paper to 219 Year 9 students at Astrea Academy Dearne, we started with something simple: Your CV is often your first impression.
And first impressions matter.
Your “Paper Self” Shapes Opportunities
One slide sums it up: "A CV / cover letter is often your first impression, and your “paper self” will influence how you get opportunities.".
For many students, that’s the first time they’ve thought about themselves in that way. Not as “a pupil”, but as a person with capability.
You've Done More Than You Realise
We show them this line: "You already have more to say about yourself than you think."
And then we prove it. We unpack:
- Skills
- Achievements
- Hobbies
- Responsibilities
- Any experience at all
Because employers aren’t expecting decades of experience from a 14-year-old. They’re looking for signals:
- Effort
- Initiative
- Reliability
- Curiosity
Personal Statements That Actually Say Something
We guide students through questions like:
- Who are you?
- What are your strengths?
- What are you aiming for?
- What makes you a good fit?
And we emphasise something we use ourselves in client work: Tailor your message to your audience.
The same principle applies whether you’re writing a CV or pitching a digital transformation strategy.
Online Applications: Read. Think. Validate.
One of the most discussed slides? The one that says: Don’t use ChatGPT to generate - use it to validate.
We’re not anti-AI, far from it. But we are pro-thinking.
We encourage students to:
- Write answers in a document first
- Be honest and specific
- Build a bank of responses
- Always check spelling
Those habits will serve them long after Year 9.
Why This Matters
For many of these students, this was their first ever exposure to:
- What a CV actually looks like
- What employers actually care about
- How to articulate strengths
If they leave understanding that school projects, clubs, responsibilities and interests count, then we’ve shifted something important.
And that’s what this programme is really all about.
