I would like to talk about the use of the present perfect talking about life experience/ achievements.
In an interview, I would like to tell the interviewer that I have a life experience as winning a (one) prize in a contest for developers.
I think that present perfect is proper because it implies that in the future I can take part in other contests, and winning a contest is also considered as my life experience.
Can you introduce yourself?:
- I worked with X company in 2020, Y company in 2022…. In addition, I have won/won a prize in a contest for developers nationwide. This prize is so meaningful for my career.
**Adding to clarify my question :
As advised in the comments, I understand that with 1 prize so far, I can use either tense.
What if I have 2 prizes so far?
I have other 2 similar situations:
*Situation 1:
In 2010, I visited Thailand.
In 2016, I visited Thailand.
I would say to my friend:
- I have been to Thailand 2 times. It is a beautiful country. I wish I
could visit one more time.
*Situation 2:
In 2010, I won a prize in a contest for developer nationwide.
In 2016, I won another prize in another contest for developer nationwide.
In an interview, I would say:
3.About my achievements, I won/ have won 2 prizes. These prizes are important to my career.
Natives told me that, I can use either "I won/I have won" in this situation.
I don't understand that why I can't use "I was" the same way as "I won" for the Thailand example:
I was in Thailand 2 times. It is a beautiful country. I wish I
could visit it one more time.
Best Answer
If there is an explicit time of the action in the past, you must use the past tense.
In your example there is no explicit time in the past, but in the context of the whole paragraph, it is apparent that you are talking about events between 2020 and 2022. This gives a time, and so points to using the past tense. "In 2020 I worked . In addition, I won a prize" You are still talking about past time, so use past tense.
If you are changing perspective and are now talking about the present, you should start a new paragraph. This would make sense. Start a new paragraph to talk about a new time, a new place or a new topic.