Hello everyone, I just wanted to ask a practical question and hear about your experience. After my stroke, I was referred to Shaw Trut, who are partnering with the Department of Pensions, I was taken in by an agent who helped compose my CV and Cover letter, but shortly after, I was transferred to a new agent who changed my files, it didn’t take long for me to be transferred one more time and have my files recomposedagain. This cycle continued with yet again another agent and a new CV and letter, what each of them changed was weather or not to include my stroke as information, basically they didn’t know if I should mention my stroke or not in any of my files, after many changes not a single one of my applications resulted in an interview. Have any of you had a similar experience? Do you think I should leave out my stroke until I am called for an interview? So far, I feel like a test subject for agents to gain experience in working with a disabled person.
Hello Monika.
I haven’t got a clue what you should do but someone will be along soon to advise you, I’m sure.
It would seem that there’s lots of ignorance about stroke amongst the general population and unless it’s affected us personally or someone we know, why would we have knowledge about it, I guess🤷♀️. I don’t like being disabled but fortunately I’m retired now and not facing the back to work challenge.
Hold tight. Help is coming!
Trace
@Monika given that it is your CV I wpikd hope they would let you decide whether to include it or not.
There’s no right or wrong way to do this. If it was me I don’t think I would mention it until interview and only then if I needed them to provide adjustments for me. Of course, if there is a gap in your cv you may feel you need to explain it. You could put career break & then explain at interview but in a positive way…i.e. that you have overcome the challenges your stroke left you with. Alternatively you could put it on your CV but explain the challenges you have overcome & that you are now ready to return to the work market. Determination to succeed etc is a good skill to have for example.
I have interviewed a wheelchair user in the past & they had put it on their application. We didn’t take it into account when sifting the applications. They were successful at interview.
That is probably no help at all but is just a bit of my experience.
Good luck
Ann
Hi @Monika
It’s great to hear you’re looking to get back into work.
On our website we do have some information on returning to work. I’ve linked to the page about changing career and volunteering as this specifically mentions about doing your CV which may help.
Best wishes with finding a job and please keep us updated with your progress.
Anna
Hello Monika,
I am not an expert in this field, or any field for that matter, but I do like to look at what is happening around me and see if I can help.
I am not a stroke survivor, but I have had a few jobs in my lifetime and I have made hundreds and hundreds of applications and had quite a few interviews and held quite a few different jobs. In that respect I consider myself as a good job searcher and have even offered help to others.
I have a couple of things that I would like to ask
- Were you working before you had the stroke? If so, is going back an option?
- The jobs you are applying for - are they the same as the jobs you did before the stroke or are you looking for a change of career?
Wrt comments about agents - I am not at all surprised about the differing opinions. I must have had (almost) as many different suggestions as to how to prepare my CV as I had agents. Typically, I would submit a CV (to an agent) and they would look to tailor it. What I found was they did this because of the client (prospective employer)/manager they were recruiting for - they knew what sort of CV the recruiting manager wanted to see.
There is absolutely no right way or wrong way, at least in my experience. But there are a few common things that run through a “successful” CV.
The CV (type) - targeted, generic, other) would likely depend on the job or organisation you are applying to.
There is a lot of stuff that we could discuss, but perhaps without further information it would not add value so I shall await your response.
In the meantime, I wish you all the best in your jobsearch.
A word of advice - do not despair if you hit a brick wall. Discrimination if rife in the job market and I speak from personal experience. No recruiter will admit it (it is illegal) but most do it.
Even before you take any “disabilities” into account, you can be discriminated on the grounds of sex, age, education, experience etc. etc.
There is very little you can do to avoid it (at least, I haven’t found a way to do it).
