Quantity Surveyor CV Example for 2026

Use a clean, reverse-chronological CV with clear headings and consistent dates. Two pages will usually give you enough room to show relevant evidence without burying the reader in project history; a graduate with limited experience may need less. Put your name and contact details first, followed by your personal statement, core skills, employment, education and relevant additional information.

Shape the evidence around the vacancy

Open with a short personal statement tailored to the role. A graduate quantity surveyor CV can lead with practical study, placement experience and evidence of numerical analysis. An experienced candidate should bring project scale, commercial judgement, leadership and outcomes nearer the top.

In the employment section, give each role three to six concise bullets. Start with what you did, add enough scope to make the work understandable, then state the effect. Quantity surveyor CV examples are useful for learning the pattern, but their numbers are illustrative. Replace them with your own verified figures rather than borrowing them.

Keep the skills section selective. Where relevant to your experience, show cost planning, procurement, technical construction knowledge, risk management and construction-project management. Support numerical, analytical and problem-solving ability through evidence in your employment or education instead of treating the skills list as proof.

List education in reverse-chronological order and use the exact title of each awarded qualification. Keep extras brief, choosing only material that adds evidence, such as a relevant placement, internship or practical construction experience. Do not add a photo, date of birth or references unless an employer specifically requests references later in the process.

Strong experience bullets answer three questions quickly: what changed, what part you played and how the result was measured. Begin with a specific verb, name the commercial activity and finish with a verified figure, deadline or reduction. Useful evidence can cover tender quantities and costs, contracts and work schedules, project cost monitoring, financial reporting, payment accounts, commercial risk or dispute work.

A compact formula is: action + scope + result. For example, "Reconciled subcontractor valuations across four work packages, resolving £85,000 of discrepancies before the monthly payment deadline." The figure supplies scale, while the final clause explains why the work mattered.

Treat those figures as examples of form, not numbers to copy. If the exact financial result is confidential, use a defensible alternative such as the number of packages, frequency of reporting, size of the team, turnaround time or percentage movement. Never estimate simply to make a bullet look stronger.

Choose verbs that reveal your contribution: measured, valued, reconciled, forecast, negotiated, challenged, prepared, monitored, reported, reviewed, advised and resolved. "Supported" is appropriate for junior work, but say what you supported and what you produced. A placement bullet might read: "Supported measurement for three subcontract packages, checking 140 schedule items against drawings and returning the review within four days."

Keep project context short but concrete. State the type of work only when it helps the reader understand your experience, then concentrate on your commercial contribution. For graduate or junior applicants working on substation sites, relevant evidence may include measurement, valuation, change control and cost reporting while learning contract administration in a live engineering, procurement and construction environment. More senior bullets should show wider ownership: negotiations, forecasts, commercial risk, disputed items, reporting cycles or responsibility across several packages. If you are moving into site management, site manager CV examples can help you separate commercial evidence from day-to-day delivery responsibilities.

Finish with a credibility check. Can you explain where each number came from, what you personally did and whether the outcome was yours or the team's? If not, narrow the claim until it is accurate.

List education in reverse-chronological order, using the qualification's exact awarded title, institution and completion date. Recent graduates can add two or three relevant modules, a dissertation, a live brief or a placement, but each detail should connect to the vacancy. Experienced candidates can usually reduce older education to a compact entry because employment evidence carries more weight.

UK applicants may enter through an apprenticeship route. A Level 6 Degree Apprenticeship can be pursued with a quantity surveying business or construction company, and the available routes include Construction Quantity Surveyor and Chartered Surveyor. These apprenticeship routes take between three and five years and combine on-the-job training with time spent with a learning provider. Present an apprenticeship accurately as completed, in progress or planned; do not imply that an application is an awarded qualification.

Students may optionally list RICS student member status, issued by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). It can signal interest in the field, but it is not a substitute for project evidence or an awarded qualification. Give the exact membership wording and keep it separate from education so that the reader can distinguish academic study from professional involvement.

Relevant placements, internships and practical experience can strengthen an early-career application. Experience with construction firms, house builders, development consultancies, contractors, or multidisciplinary environmental or engineering consultancies can sit under employment or a clearly labelled practical experience section.

Avoid filling space with unrelated short courses. For each useful item, record the official title, provider and date; add one brief line about assessed work only when it supplies evidence that the rest of the CV lacks.