CV format for Switzerland
In Switzerland, you apply with a Lebenslauf. It runs to two or three pages, with a photo. It lists personal details such as your date of birth, place of birth and nationality. Work experience comes before education.
At a glance
Format: German-style CV (Lebenslauf)
Shared with Austria, Germany and Liechtenstein.
- Photo
- Included
- Use a formal headshot. Leaving it out lowers recruiters’ confidence.
- Length
- 2 to 3 pages
- Personal details
- Standard
- Date of birth, place of birth and nationality.
- Section order
- Experience first
- Reverse-chronological: the most recent first.
- References
- Certificates attached
- Your diplomas and certificates go with the application.
- Local name
- Lebenslauf
- Special fields
- Date and signatureAttached diplomas
- Paper
- A4
- 210 × 297 mm
These are each country’s usual conventions, not rules. Real practice varies by employer, industry and seniority, and it is changing with anti-discrimination law, screening software and remote hiring: photos are fading even where they were traditional, and multinationals usually expect none. Treat this as a starting point.
How it is written
Multilingual and very structured, with a photo.
- Europe’s most formal and structured format.
- Reverse-chronological: the most recent first.
- Dated and signed at the bottom.
- Gaps in the timeline have to be explained.
- Leaving out the photo lowers recruiters’ confidence.
- Expect to attach many documents, such as diplomas and certificates.
What to leave out
The photo and personal details, at a multinational
Multinationals usually expect the international format: no photo, and contact details only.
Questions
Do I need a photo on a CV in Switzerland?
Yes. A photo is part of the CV in Switzerland. Use a formal headshot. Leaving it out lowers recruiters’ confidence. Multinationals usually expect a CV without one.
How long should a CV be in Switzerland?
Two or three pages.
Which personal details go on a CV in Switzerland?
Usually your date of birth, place of birth and nationality.
Does education or work experience come first in Switzerland?
Work experience comes first, then education. Reverse-chronological: the most recent first.
Should I list references on a CV in Switzerland?
Not as a list: your diplomas and certificates go with the application.
What is a CV called in Switzerland?
A Lebenslauf.
Applying for a job in Switzerland?
CVMake detects the job’s country from the posting and formats the CV for it.
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