International Student CV template
A one-column design with room for education first. One of the three designs on the free plan.
Best for:
- International Students
- Recent Graduates
- Academic Roles
On the free plan: build this CV and download it as a PDF without paying. Free accounts get 1 CV and 1 free PDF download per CV.
No watermark on the PDF, on any plan
Who this design is for and why
International Student is a free design for students and recent graduates, including people looking for their first job in the UK after studying here or abroad. It is one column with an emerald green accent, section headings in capitals and small icons on the contact line.
The structure works best with education near the top: your degree, university, dates and grade, followed by relevant modules, a dissertation or a project. Work experience, internships and volunteering come after that. If your qualification is from outside the UK, write its name as it appears on the certificate, and only add a UK comparison if you have one from an official source such as Ecctis. Add a languages section with your level in each language, because that is often the thing that sets you apart. There is no photo slot, which suits UK applications, where a photo is not expected. Because the design is on the free plan, you can build, edit and download your CV as a PDF without paying, and the file carries no watermark. When you have more experience than education, the Modern Professional design is the natural next step.
How the layout works
This design puts the structure of an academic CV into a format UK employers recognise. Green capital headings with a rule under each make sections easy to find, which helps when education, projects and languages all sit near the top and work experience is short.
Who it suits, and who should pick another design
- Master's students and new graduates: graduate schemes, internships and first jobs mostly judge you on your degree and projects.
- Students looking for part-time work during a course: availability and languages are easy to show near the top.
- Graduates of overseas universities: there is room to explain a qualification a UK employer may not know.
Once you have two or three years of full-time work, education belongs further down, and Modern Professional fits that order better. Researchers with publications and grants need a longer academic CV.
How application systems read it
Graduate recruiters often screen with software before a person looks, and a single column with ordinary headings gives that software little to trip over. Write your degree title in full and give the grade in words a system can match, such as "First Class Honours" or "Merit", rather than only a percentage or a GPA.
What to put in each section
- Education: degree, university, dates and grade, then modules or a dissertation that fit the job.
- Projects: a custom section for group projects or a dissertation, with what you produced.
- Experience: part-time jobs, internships and volunteering, described as what you did.
- Languages: each language and your level, using CEFR levels if you have a certificate.
A worked example
Priya Sharma has just finished an MSc in Data Science at a UK university, after a BTech in India. Her CV leads with the MSc and its grade, three relevant modules and her dissertation on forecasting demand for a bike-share scheme. The BTech follows, its title written as it appears on the certificate. A six-month internship and a part-time café job come next, then languages: English (C2), Hindi and Marathi (native).
Common mistakes with this layout
- Converting a grade into a UK class without an official comparison. Give the original grade.
- Adding a date of birth or a photo. UK employers do not expect either.
- Listing every module. Pick the three or four that match the advert.
Switching to another design
This is one of the three free designs, so you can move to Modern Professional or Education & Teaching and back on the free plan. Your education, projects and languages stay exactly as you wrote them.
Every design downloads as a PDF that matches the editor page for page, with no watermark on any plan. This one is on the free plan, which includes one free PDF per CV; Word and plain text downloads come with Pro, the 7-day trial and the 30-day Pass. See pricing
See this design in use
- Graduate CV example (UK graduate schemes), a full example CV built on this design
- Internship CV example, a full example CV built on this design
Read the guide
How to write the CV this design is built for: International Student Resume: US, UK, EU.
Start your CV in International Student
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