UK Sustainability Professionals / Recruiters: Could you give me honest feedback on why my CV isn't landing interviews?
Hi everyone,
I'm hoping to get some honest feedback from anyone working in sustainability consulting, ESG, carbon advisory, circular economy, or recruitment in the UK.
A bit about me:
- ~5 years of consulting experience in Southeast Asia across sustainability, carbon management, digital transformation and strategy.
- Currently completing an MSc in Sustainability in the UK.
- Looking for Associate/Consultant roles in ESG, sustainability consulting, carbon advisory, climate, circular economy and resource management.
Over the past couple of months, I've applied to around 50 roles. Most have been sustainability-focused, including consulting firms, corporates and specialist sustainability consultancies.
So far, I've had 0 formal interviews (couple smaller firms asked for written responses), which makes me think there's something I'm missing.
For each application, I usually:
- tailor my cover letter to the role;
- make small adjustments to my CV, although I know I could tailor it much more than I currently do;
I've anonymised my CV and would really appreciate any honest feedback.
Some questions I have:
- Does my experience seem relevant for the UK market?
- Is there anything that would make you reject this CV within the first 30 seconds?
- Am I positioning myself too broadly or too narrowly?
- Are there UK expectations or CV conventions that I'm missing?
- If you were a recruiter or hiring manager, what would make you more likely to invite me for an interview?
I'm genuinely (read: desperately) looking to improve, so I'd really appreciate candid feedback, whether it's about the content, positioning, structure, or even whether I'm targeting the wrong types of roles.
Thank you in advance!
