Curriculum vitae
Definition
A curriculum vitae, or CV, is similar to a resume in that it provides an overview of your professional and educational experience. The difference between the two primarily lies in content and purpose. A CV is typically developed as part of an application package for a teaching or research position at a university or research setting, and contains a more comprehensive listing of courses taught, publications and presentations, and service on committees, review panels, and community engagements. A resume is prepared for employers outside the academic environment and generally provides more of an overview than a CV.
Deciding on a format
Take the time to craft a professional CV document reflective of your accomplishments, since this is the first thing prospective employers will use to either keep you in the applicant pool, or relegate you to the “not this time” pile. There are a number of templates to choose among as you create your vitae, and many samples are available for review. In the end, select a format that best communicates your education and experience, is easily accessible, and is appropriate for the environment to which you are applying.
Collecting evidence of accomplishment
Always do more than the minimum expectations to be a stand out candidate. Examples of evidence to include:
- List of courses taught, table of course evaluation scores, or brief statement of teaching philosophy for teaching
- Conferences attended, invited presentations, grants applied for with amounts awarded,or articles authored for research
- Committee assignments, offices held, or memberships in organizations for service
Do your homework to determine the types of evidence that are important to include in your CV to obtain a position or to achieve tenure once you have a position so you can accomplish what is expected at a particular institution. Look at the campus tenure documents, talk with the department chair, and meet with the Vice-President of Academic Affairs, Provost, or a comparable administrator to clarify expectations.
Keeping your CV up to date
It is critical to regularly update your CV as you add teaching, research, and service experiences to your accomplishments. There are several ways to go about this, but many experienced faculty advise keeping evidence of your activities in a drawer, folder, or box. Every few months, take the time to go through the file and add each of the items to your CV. Using this method of updating your CV becomes an ongoing activity that enables you to be ready to submit applications quickly when a promising position or opportunity for advancement comes around.
Academic Integrity
Your CV should be an honest accounting of your work. You should be scrupulous in keeping your CV free of any misstatements of your accomplishments.
Establishing a pattern of activity
Your CV should read like a case of accomplishment. It should outline a pattern of activities that build upon one another rather than a smattering of unrelated events or products. The resulting argument, according to an intentional agenda toward a goal, will help your record stand out in an applicant pool.
Curriculum Vitae Development and Examples
Writing a Curriculum Vitae
University Career Services, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
This website contains directions for preparing a CV.
Writing Your Curriculum Vitae
Graduate Studies, Dartmouth University
This website contains a list of items to include in your CV.
Writing the Curriculum Vitae
Yothers, B. & Jayasuriya, M. (2008). The OWL (Online Writing Lab), Purdue University,
This website offers tips on format and basic structure, along with other resources.
The CV Doctor
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Periodically the Chronicle asks CV editors to review the CV’s of individuals who submit them for feedback. They are available off and on, and are best accessed by putting CV Doctor into your search engine.
CV Cheating, Is it Wise to Bend the Truth?
Online Graduate, Graduate Jobs and Resources in the UK and Europe
A short reminder of the issues concerning ethical lapses and your CV.
