How is a finance CV scored?

Your CV is scored 0–100 across six weighted criteria: metrics & quantification (25%), bullet point quality (20%), role-fit alignment (20%), structure & formatting (15%), education (10%), and skills & keywords (10%). Each is benchmarked against successful candidates at firms like Goldman Sachs, Citadel, and KKR.

Is this just generic CV advice?

No. Every point is specific to your CV — it quotes your actual bullets and explains exactly why each one is weak. The rubric also adapts to your target role, so an investment banking CV and a quantitative research CV are judged against entirely different criteria.

How is this different from my university careers service?

Careers services give general guidance like "use strong verbs". This gives you firm-specific feedback: your exact bullets rewritten in top-tier analyst voice, the precise ATS keywords your CV is missing, and a ranked action plan — all benchmarked to bulge-bracket and top-fund standards.

How long should a finance CV be?

One page for students and recent graduates; up to two pages once you have a few years of relevant experience. Bulge-bracket recruiters treat a two-page student CV as a red flag — fitting everything onto one page is itself part of the test.

What do I get for £19?

The full report: a scored breakdown of all six sections, three of your weakest bullets rewritten in top-firm voice, a role-specific list of missing keywords, a ranked action plan, and a benchmark against a successful candidate at your target firm tier. The score preview is always free.

How much does a finance CV review cost?

Professional CV writers and careers consultants typically charge £100–400, and university careers services are free but give generic feedback. Finance CV Audit gives you a finance-specific score for free, and the full report — your CV rewritten, missing keywords, a ranked action plan, and a recruiting guide — for a one-time £19.

Is there a money-back guarantee?

Yes — a 30-day, no-questions-asked money-back guarantee. If the full report does not help you improve your CV, email us within 30 days and we will refund the £19 in full.

Is my CV kept private?

Yes. Your CV is analysed in real time and is not stored after the analysis, never sold, and never shared for marketing. We keep only the email you provide to send your report and a short series of follow-up tips, which you can unsubscribe from at any time. See our Privacy Policy for full detail.

What file types do you support?

PDF and Word (.docx), up to 10MB. The PDF must be text-based rather than a scanned image, so the analysis can read your actual CV text. Upload takes about five seconds.

15 June 2026·5 min read

Why Do a CV Audit? (And When It Is Actually Worth It)

What a CV audit is, why it matters in finance recruiting, and the specific moments when getting your CV audited is worth it — and when it is not.

A CV audit is a structured review that scores your CV against the standard recruiters actually use — and tells you exactly what to fix. In finance, where the CV is the first and often harshest filter, that is the difference between an interview and a silent rejection. Here is why it matters, and when it is genuinely worth doing.

You cannot see your own CV objectively

You wrote it, so you read what you meant, not what is on the page. Every applicant has blind spots — vague bullets that felt impressive, a missing metric they assumed was obvious, jargon that does not land. An audit gives you the outside, recruiter’s-eye view you physically cannot give yourself.

The CV is the first filter — and it is brutal

Before a human reads it, your CV often passes through screening software. If it clears that, a recruiter spends six to eight seconds on the first pass. Two filters, both unforgiving, both before anyone considers your actual potential. An audit checks you against both — the ATS and the human scan.

What a good audit actually catches

Bullets with no quantification — the single most common reason strong candidates get filtered.
Weak, passive verbs that signal proximity to work rather than ownership of it.
Missing role-specific keywords your CV needs to pass ATS screening.
Structure and formatting issues that quietly cost you credibility.

When it is worth it

Before applications open. The highest-leverage moment — fix it before it costs you a rolling-deadline slot.
After a run of rejections. If you are not getting interviews, the CV is the most likely culprit and the cheapest to fix.
When switching tracks. An IB CV and an AM CV are judged differently; an audit catches the mismatch.

When it is not

If you are not applying for months and have not built any experience yet, your time is better spent on the profile itself — see the best extracurriculars for finance — and audit the CV closer to application season. An audit improves how you present what you have; it cannot manufacture experience you have not yet gained.

The fastest way to find out where you stand is to run it. A free CV score takes 60 seconds and shows your score and top issues before you decide whether to fix the rest. Curious what it costs? Here is what a finance CV review costs.