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New Zealand career guide

New Zealand CV & job search guide

Close cousin of the Australian CV — friendly, direct, and modest in tone.

New Zealand CVs closely resemble Australian ones: achievement-focused, 2–3 pages is normal, no photo, and a friendly rather than aggressively self-promotional tone.

Selection criteria responses are common for government and larger corporate roles, similar to Australia.

The Human Rights Act 1993 discourages photo, age, and marital status on CVs, consistent with Commonwealth-market convention.

Build your CV for New ZealandCheck your ATS score

CV format, length & margins

Reverse-chronological CV, friendly and achievement-focused, slightly longer than a US resume.

  • Contact details (name, phone, email, city — no full address needed).
  • Personal profile.
  • Key skills.
  • Work experience with achievement-focused bullets.
  • Education.
  • Optional: selection criteria response when requested.
Length: 2–3 pages is standard for experienced candidates.
Margins: 2cm on all sides.
Fonts: Calibri, Arial, Helvetica
File format: PDF is standard; Seek and TradeMe Jobs handle most applications.

Photo & personal information rules

Photo: Discouraged — No photo for standard corporate/government roles, matching Australian and UK convention.

Include

  • Full name
  • Phone
  • Email
  • City/region
  • LinkedIn URL
  • Working rights status (citizen, resident, or visa type/subclass)

Exclude

  • Photo
  • Date of birth
  • Marital status
  • IRD number

Stating working-rights status explicitly is standard practice and avoids applications being screened out over uncertainty, especially given New Zealand's active skilled-migration pipeline.

ATS expectations & scoring rules

  • Standard ATS rules apply for larger employers: single column, real text, standard headings.
  • Many roles, especially outside Auckland/Wellington, are still reviewed manually — clarity and completeness matter as much as pure keyword density.
  • Government roles commonly score against explicit, published selection criteria.
ATS score ruleWeight
Keyword match against job ad / selection criteriahigh
Standard, parseable section headingsmedium
Working rights status clearly statedmedium
Quantified achievement bulletsmedium

Fonts, colors & design

Recommended fonts

Calibri 10.5–11pt body, Arial 10–11pt body

Color guidance

Clean and understated; a small accent color is fine, avoid anything flashy for corporate/government roles.

Layout notes

Single-column, generous white space, no photo. 2–3 pages is normal so don't over-compress.

Cover letter expectations

A cover letter is expected. Length: ~300 words, one page — often optional but still commonly read.. Tone: Warm and direct, similar to Australian cover letters.

  • Opening naming the role
  • Body linking achievements to the role's requirements
  • Friendly close with availability

References & LinkedIn expectations

"References available on request" is standard; New Zealand employers commonly call 2 referees directly before finalizing an offer.

LinkedIn

  • Widely used in metro professional roles (Auckland, Wellington); less universal for trades and regional roles.
  • Recruiters actively source via LinkedIn for hard-to-fill specialist roles.

Common recruiter preferences

  • Friendly, modest, achievement-focused tone without overt self-promotion.
  • Working-rights status stated clearly upfront.
  • For government/public-sector roles, well-written selection criteria responses matter as much as the CV.
  • Local or regional market awareness valued for candidates relocating from overseas.

CV & cover letter examples

Marketing Coordinator CV

EMMA THOMPSON
Auckland, New Zealand | emma.thompson@email.com | 021 234 5678 | linkedin.com/in/emmathompson
New Zealand citizen

PERSONAL PROFILE
Marketing Coordinator with 4 years running integrated campaigns for consumer brands across New Zealand and Australia. Grew qualified leads 26% through a redesigned digital campaign strategy.

KEY SKILLS
Campaign Management, Google Analytics, CRM, Content Strategy, Budget Management

WORK EXPERIENCE
Marketing Coordinator — Kiwi Fresh Foods, Auckland (2021–Present)
• Grew qualified leads 26% through a redesigned digital campaign strategy.
• Manage a $250K annual digital marketing budget.

Marketing Assistant — Southern Cross Retail, Wellington (2019–2021)
• Supported the launch of 3 seasonal campaigns with combined reach of 1.2M.

EDUCATION
Bachelor of Commerce (Marketing), University of Auckland (2019)

Marketing Coordinator application

Dear Hiring Manager,

I'm writing to apply for the Marketing Coordinator role advertised on Seek. In my current role at Kiwi Fresh Foods, I grew qualified leads 26% through a redesigned digital campaign strategy, and I'd love to bring that same energy to your team.

I have four years' experience running integrated campaigns across New Zealand and Australia, and I'm confident I could make a strong contribution from day one.

I'd welcome the chance to chat further and am available at your convenience.

Kind regards,
Emma Thompson

Interview expectations & common questions

  • Typically 2 rounds: phone/video screen, then a panel or hiring-manager interview.
  • Relaxed, conversational tone — similar to Australian interviews, less formally structured than UK panels.
  • Behavioral questions are common; STAR structure still helps even when asked informally.
  • Government roles score explicitly against published selection criteria.

Tell me a bit about yourself.

Relaxed, relevant professional summary, not a formal pitch.

Why do you want to work here?

Genuine, specific reasons tied to the team or organisation.

Tell me about a time you worked under pressure.

STAR structure works well, delivered in a friendly, understated tone.

What's your notice period?

Be direct — New Zealand employers ask this early and expect a clear answer.

Salary negotiation tips

  • Check Seek's salary guide and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) wage data before any conversation.
  • KiwiSaver employer contributions (minimum 3%) are separate from base salary and worth confirming.
  • Negotiation tone is friendly and direct rather than adversarial, similar to Australia.
  • Regional/rural roles sometimes include relocation assistance worth negotiating for.

Visa & work permit information

Visa routes

  • Skilled Migrant Category Resident Visa: points-based permanent residency for skilled workers.
  • Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV): the main employer-sponsored temporary work visa route.
  • Working Holiday Visa: for eligible young people from partner countries, typically up to 12 months.
  • Green List occupations get faster-tracked residence pathways given current skill shortages.

Work permits

  • Most employer-sponsored roles require the employer to hold Accredited Employer status under the AEWV scheme.
  • Green List roles (healthcare, engineering, trades, tech) have streamlined visa processing given acute skill shortages.
  • Regulated professions (nursing, teaching, engineering) require separate registration with the relevant New Zealand professional body.

Immigration rules change frequently — always confirm current requirements with the official government resources listed above before making decisions.

Industries hiring & keywords employers search for

Industries hiring

Agriculture & agritech, Healthcare, Construction, Technology (Auckland, Wellington), Tourism, Renewable energy

Keywords employers search for

stakeholder engagement, working rights, cross-functional, compliance, process improvement, health and safety

Common mistakes & rejection reasons

Common mistakes

  • Compressing a CV to one page when 2–3 pages is the local norm.
  • Overly self-promotional tone that reads as boastful.
  • Not stating working-rights status clearly.
  • Skipping a selection-criteria response when explicitly requested.

Common rejection reasons

  • Selection criteria not addressed for government/public-sector roles.
  • Unclear or missing working-rights/visa status.
  • CV not tailored to the specific job ad's keywords.
  • Formatting issues that break parsing on Seek or the employer's ATS.

AI CV optimization for New Zealand

  • Set your target market to New Zealand in ResumeEase so tone, spelling, and format guidance (2–3 pages, no photo) apply automatically.
  • For government roles, ask the AI to draft a separate selection-criteria response mapping each criterion to your experience.
  • Ask the AI to keep tone friendly and understated rather than overtly self-promotional.

CV dos and don'ts

Do

  • Use 2–3 pages if your experience warrants it.
  • State working-rights status clearly.
  • Write a separate selection-criteria response when requested.
  • Keep tone friendly and achievement-focused without over-claiming.

Don't

  • Don't include a photo, date of birth, or marital status.
  • Don't force everything onto one page at the cost of readability.
  • Don't skip a requested selection-criteria document.

New Zealand CV checklist

  • 2–3 pages, no photo or personal details
  • Working-rights status stated clearly
  • Friendly, understated, achievement-focused tone
  • Selection-criteria response prepared if requested
  • Cover letter included even where optional

Build a New Zealand-ready CV in minutes

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