CV and cover letter templates

Create a CV and cover letter from our templates and save them

Use our templates to create your CV and cover letter. You'll need to save them to your computer.

• Save your CV as both a Word document and a PDF. An employer may need either one of these file formats.
• Label your CV files with your name, the application date, and the job you're applying for.
• If you update your Word document, remember to also create a new PDF.

Create a CV online with CV Builder and it saves automatically

Use our CV Builder to create your CV online and it will automatically save to your careers.govt.nz account.

• CV Builder – create your own CV online 

Use our skills-focused CV template if you:

• have gaps between jobs
• don't have much work history
• are returning to the workforce after a break
• are changing to a new career.

• Skills-focused CV example (Word - 27KB)
• Skills-focused CV example (PDF - 0.1MB)
• Skills-focused CV template (Word - 25KB)
• Skills-focused CV template (PDF - 0.4MB)

Get information on how to describe skills in your CV:

• How to describe skills in your CV

Use our skills-focused school leaver CV template if you:

• are about to leave school
• have recently left school

• School leaver CV example (Word - 26KB)
• School leaver CV example (PDF - 0.3MB)
• School leaver CV template (Word - 25KB)
• School leaver CV template (PDF - 0.4MB)

Use our work-focused CV template if you:

• want to highlight your work experience and career progression
• are changing to a similar job
• are progressing to a higher level role.

• Work-focused CV example (Word - 27KB)
• Work-focused CV example (PDF - 0.4MB)
• Work-focused CV template (Word - 26KB)
• Work-focused CV template (PDF - 0.4MB)

Find tips on writing a te reo Māori and English CV:

• Ngāi Tahu website - Te tāhuhu tangata me te reta tautoko/Writing a CV and cover letter (PDF - 0.2MB)

Some careers require a particular style of CV.

Check out the links below for information on how to create CVs for:

• academic careers
• creative careers
• engineering careers
• health careers
• legal careers
• teaching careers.

• University of Otago website - CV information (PDF - 0.3MB)
• University of Oxford website - CVs for creative careers
• Victoria University website - CV/Resume Preparation for Teaching (PDF - 0.7MB)

Use our cover letter template to create your cover letter. You'll need to save this to your computer.

• Cover letter - example (Word - 16KB)
• Cover letter - example (PDF - 0.1MB)
• Cover letter - template (Word - 20KB)
• Cover letter - template (PDF - 0.1MB)

• How to write a CV
• How to describe skills in your CV
• How to write a cover letter
• Beginner's guide to job hunting ebook
• Job hunters' ebook