The CVelo Blog
Practical, no-fluff advice on writing an Australian CV that recruiters and their software can actually read, addressing selection criteria, and walking into interviews ready.
The Australian ATS handbook
How recruitment software handles Australian job applications, what it can and cannot do, and how to write a CV that reads well to both the software and the person after it.
4 articles →
How to prepare for an Australian job interview
What Australian interview panels are scoring, how behavioural questions work here, and how to practise so the answers are ready when it counts.
4 articles →
Addressing selection criteria in Australia
Selection criteria decide most government, health and education jobs in Australia. What panels are scoring, how the formats differ by sector, and worked examples.
15 articles →
CV examples by occupation, Australia
Before and after CV examples for Australian roles, with the registration, licensing and sector detail hiring managers in each field check first.
3 articles →
Transitioning from the ADF to a civilian career
Translating Australian Defence Force service into a civilian CV, choosing a civilian career direction, and handling the interview questions veterans actually get asked. Built by CVelo's veteran tools.
3 articles →
Rank and trade names do not translate directly into civilian job titles. Here is how to work out what to target next, based on what you actually did rather than what you were called.
Civilian interview panels ask about culture fit and motivation in a register Defence does not use. Here is how to answer the objections that come up almost every time.
You do not need to become a thought leader. You need your LinkedIn, your CV and your search results to tell the same true story. A practical guide for the Australian job market.
The keyword-matching method that works on any job ad, not just SEEK: what to change, which keywords actually belong on your CV, and what to leave alone.
'Proficient in ChatGPT' tells a reader nothing. Here is how to describe what you actually do with AI tools, on LinkedIn and on your CV, so you can back it up when someone asks.
In Australia, CV and resume mean the same document, unlike the US and UK where they differ. Here is what an Australian resume should actually look like, and how long it should be.
AI can make any CV read well. It cannot answer the follow-up question for you. A practical audit for every claim on your CV, and how to build the evidence file that makes interviews easier.
Six AI tools for CVs, ATS scoring and job applications: what each one actually does well, what it costs in Australia, and who it suits, including where CVelo is not the right fit.
An APS resume is a different document from a private sector one. What to include, what classification and clearance detail panels look for, and what to leave off.
A registered nurse CV example for Australian roles, with the AHPRA, clinical skills and shift detail hiring managers check first. Before and after, plus a free ATS score.
Victorian public sector roles use Key Selection Criteria written into each position description, and the rules for answering them are not the same as Canberra's or Sydney's. What to expect and how to respond.
Career changers, graduates and people stepping up a level all hit the same wall: a criterion asking for experience they do not have. Here is how to answer it honestly and still score.
Selection panels in Australian government, health and education read the same errors in application after application. Here are the seven that cost the most marks, why they happen, and what to write instead.
Most Queensland Government and Queensland Health roles on SmartJobs ask for a resume and a short statement, usually two pages, on how you meet the requirements of the role. Here is what panels want in it and how to structure it.
Word limits, page limits and what an Australian selection panel actually reads. The length rules for individually addressed criteria, APS pitches, NSW targeted questions and the two-page state statements.
Government and health applications in Australia often ask for three documents that seem to overlap. They do not. Here is what each one is for, what to put in it, and what to leave out.
A plain-English guide to what 'demonstrated experience' and similar phrases mean in an Australian selection criterion, and how to write a response that actually proves it.
A plain-English guide to answering selection criteria using the STAR method, with a full worked example for Australian public sector applications.
A before and after ADF resume example. How to translate rank, trade and jargon into civilian language that gets past recruitment software and reads well to a hiring manager.
How AI mock interviews work, what they can and cannot fix, and a practice plan for an Australian panel. Free practice sessions, no card required.
State government health and education applications have their own rules, their own credential checks and their own filters. What to write, what to attach, and where nurses and teachers lose marks.
The thirteen criteria that turn up in almost every Australian government, health and education job, each answered in full, with a note on what the panel is actually scoring.
What to cut, what to add, and what quietly counts against you when you apply in Australia with a CV written for the UK, India, the US, the Philippines or elsewhere.
NSW Health's GradStart recruits across more than 150 facilities in one statewide process. Here is what the criteria are asking, and the mistakes that cost strong graduates a place.
NSW does not use traditional selection criteria. It assesses you against focus capabilities and rates you Did Not Meet, Met or Exceeds. Here is how that changes what you write.
Local government hires across more trades and professions than almost any other Australian employer, and the applications are more winnable than state or federal. Here is the format and what councils score.
Selection criteria decide most government, health and education jobs in Australia, and almost nobody is taught how to write them. Here is the structure panels are scoring you against, with worked examples.
The one page pitch has replaced individually addressed criteria across much of the Australian Public Service. Here is what the panel is scoring, how the levels differ, and worked examples at APS5, APS6 and EL1.
Merit pools run for 18 months and can fill ongoing, non-ongoing and casual vacancies. Understanding them changes which APS jobs are worth applying for.
What the STAR method actually is, why Australian interviewers rely on it, and three worked answers you can adapt, including the setback question everyone fumbles.
The questions Australia's big banks actually ask, what they are really assessing, and a simple structure for answering them with confidence.
A practical, step-by-step method for tailoring your CV to any SEEK listing, so a recruiter searching for the right skills can find it, and read it.
How recruitment software handles your application in Australia, what it can and cannot do, and how to write a CV that is easy for both software and people to read.