How to write a CV for an internal promotion or internal job

Write it as if the panel has never met you: answer each criterion in the job description with a dated result from your current role, list every title you have held there separately, and spell out internal acronyms.1

Written 13 October 2026. CitedCV. How we write our guides

Treat the job description as the marking scheme

The usual mistake in an internal application is assuming people already know your work. Solent University's guidance for its own staff says to approach internal recruitment as if applying to an outside company, with a panel that has no prior knowledge of your skills, experience or achievements. Even a manager who rates you cannot score a criterion your CV does not answer.

The University of Edinburgh's guide for employees applying internally says each advert links to a job description that contains the criteria used to assess candidates, and that your application should clearly address them. The UK Civil Service gives the same instruction: read the job description, because it tells you which elements of its Success Profiles will be assessed.

Build an evidence grid first

Criterion in the job description	Your evidence from the current role	Where it goes on the CV
Leads a team of 10 or more	Covered the manager’s role for 4 months, team of 12	Under your current title, first bullet
Budget responsibility	Owned the £180,000 overtime budget for 2025	Current title, with the outcome
Process improvement	Redesigned returns handling, cutting processing time by a day	Current title
Stakeholder management	Monthly review with two key clients	Earlier title at the same employer
Qualification: CMI level 5 or working towards	Enrolled, due June 2027	Training section

Any criterion left with an empty evidence cell is a gap. Solent suggests saying how you would close it, for example a qualification you will study for or other experience you can apply.

How an internal application usually runs

Processes differ between employers, but the published guides from universities and the Civil Service follow a similar path. Check your own employer's intranet for the exact rules.

Apply through the internal system, not by email. Edinburgh says all current employees should apply through its internal jobs app; Brown University requires a Career Profile in Workday before an internal application.
Attach what the advert asks for. Brown strongly recommends a resume and a cover letter; Edinburgh allows one attachment, so you merge the CV and letter into one file.
Update your profile in the HR system. Edinburgh notes that your skills and qualifications record is visible to the hiring manager after you apply.
Prepare for a structured interview, often with a presentation. Solent and the Civil Service both point candidates to the STAR method for competency questions.
Expect your current manager to be asked. Brown contacts the current manager for a reference if you are a finalist.
Check what happens after an offer. At Brown, a move into a new role starts a new three-month probationary period.

Should you tell your manager first

Usually yes. Edinburgh encourages staff to discuss internal applications with their line manager as part of career conversations, and says the current line manager can view the system notifications for an internal application. A manager who hears about it from a reference request is a poor start.

Show several jobs at one employer

Inside one organisation you may have held three titles in six years. Each one deserves its own line and dates, because a promotion panel is reading for progression.

Stack titles under the employer

Write the employer once, then each title below it with its own dates and two or three results, newest first. This keeps the National Careers Service's order of employer, title, dates and what you did, while showing the steps you have already taken.

Translate internal language

Solent advises avoiding acronyms and institutional language. Project code names, team nicknames and system names mean nothing to a panel member from another department. Write 'the customer complaints system' rather than its internal name, and give the outcome in figures anyone can read.

Use your appraisal records

Solent suggests referring to your performance reviews for past achievements. Appraisal notes, objectives and feedback emails are where the dates and figures live that you have since forgotten. Quote results, not ratings: '4 out of 5 in my review' tells a panel less than the result that earned it.

Worked example: from team leader to operations manager

Example only. Priya Shah is an invented person in an invented logistics company; every number is made up to show the shape of a line.

Profile

Warehouse team leader with six years at the company and two promotions, applying for operations manager at the Northampton site. Led a shift of 12, held the overtime budget, and covered the operations manager's role for four months in 2025.

Experience at one employer

Logistics company, Northampton distribution centre · 2020 to present
Team leader, inbound · 2023 to present: leads a shift of 12; held the £180,000 overtime budget for 2025 and finished 6% under it while volume grew 10%.
Acting operations manager · April to July 2025: ran daily planning for three shifts (38 people) and the weekly client call during the manager’s leave.
Redesigned returns handling with two colleagues; returns now leave the site one working day sooner.
Senior warehouse operative · 2021 to 2023: trained 15 new starters on the warehouse management system; two later became team leaders.
Warehouse operative · 2020 to 2021

Training and the gap it closes

Chartered Management Institute level 5 certificate in management and leadership, enrolled January 2026, due June 2027. This answers the qualification criterion that the evidence grid left open.

What a promotion CV leaves out

Complaints about the current team or manager, or reasons you feel overlooked.
Confidential figures you would not be allowed to share outside your team; use percentages or ranges instead.
Your current salary or grade expectations; those belong in the conversation with HR.
Duties copied from your own job description; the panel may have written it.
Every training course you have attended; keep the ones the new role asks for.

Keep the tone of the cover letter forward-looking too: why this role, what you would do in the first months, and how your record shows you can.

Sources and the date they were read

All sources were read on 13 October 2026. These are one organisation’s rules each; your employer’s process may differ.

Solent University, internal recruitment guidance: approach it like an external application; meet each person-profile criterion; avoid acronyms; refer to appraisal records; STAR for interviews.
University of Edinburgh, Employee guide to applying for an internal job (June 2026, version 3.0): criteria are in the job description; one merged attachment; the line manager can see notifications; skills record visible to the hiring manager.
Brown University Human Resources, Promotions and job transfers: Career Profile in Workday; resume and cover letter strongly recommended; current manager contacted for finalists; new three-month probation.
GOV.UK, Success Profiles candidate overview: read the job description for the elements assessed; CVs may be requested in anonymised format; use STAR.
National Careers Service, the STAR method and How to write a CV.

When this approach does not apply

Some promotions are not run as job applications. Academic promotion rounds, for example, usually have their own forms and criteria set by the institution. Where your employer publishes a form or template for promotion, follow it over any CV advice.

Public bodies may also ask for something other than a CV. The Civil Service says it may ask for an application form, a CV with a supporting statement, or a CV in an anonymised format without your name, age or gender, and sometimes only qualifications relevant to the role. Read the advert before you write anything.

If you are not selected

Ask the hiring manager for feedback, as Brown suggests, and note which criteria were judged weakest.
Turn those criteria into objectives for your next review, so the evidence exists next time.
Keep the evidence grid and update it each quarter; the next internal advert will reuse most of it.
If you keep your career facts in CitedCV, it writes each CV line from the facts you entered and can produce a version for the next role without retyping your history.

Questions people ask

Do I need a CV for an internal job application?

Usually yes. Many employers ask for a CV and a cover letter even from staff; Brown University strongly recommends both, and Edinburgh asks for whatever the advert lists.

How do I write a CV for a promotion at the same company?

List the employer once with each title and its dates beneath, then give results that match the criteria in the new role’s job description.

Should I tell my manager I am applying for an internal role?

Usually, yes. Edinburgh encourages it and notes the line manager can see application notifications; Brown contacts the current manager for finalists anyway.

How do I show acting or temporary roles on my CV?

As their own line with dates, such as 'Acting operations manager, April to July 2025', followed by the scope you held and one result.

What should an internal cover letter say?

Why this role, how your record meets its criteria, and what you would do first. Leave out complaints and anything about feeling overlooked.

Is an internal interview easier than an external one?

Not by design. Solent tells staff to treat it as a formal interview, often with a presentation and competency questions answered with STAR.

Can I apply for a job two grades above mine?

Often yes. Brown, for example, considers staff for higher-grade posts if they meet the minimum qualifications; check your own employer’s policy.

Sources

Solent University, internal recruitment guidance for staffrecruitment.solent.ac.uk/internal/redeployment-3915.html
University of Edinburgh, Employee guide: how to apply for an internal jobwww.ed.ac.uk/sites/default/files/2026-06/Employee%20-%20How%20to%20apply.pdf
Brown University Human Resources, Promotions and job transfershr.brown.edu/working-brown/navigating-your-career/promotions-job-transfers
GOV.UK, Success Profiles: candidate overviewwww.gov.uk/government/publications/success-profiles/success-profiles-candidate-overview
National Careers Service, The STAR methodnationalcareers.service.gov.uk/careers-advice/interview-advice/the-star-method
National Careers Service, How to write a CVnationalcareers.service.gov.uk/careers-advice/cv-sections