Career Success: CV (Curriculum Vitae)

As shown on Curriculum Vitae (CV) Overview  “When Should I Use A Resume Vs. Curriculum Vitae?,” a resume focuses on your experience, skills and accomplishments in a concise, clear manner, whereas a CV is much more detailed and focuses on academic achievements.

The same amount of research needs to be completed on an employer, industry, or specific position before converting your resume to a CV. Your role is to ask yourself, “What can this candidate do for my organization?” as shown in Resume Overview.

Use Your Transferable Skills

Making the transition from academic to industry compels you to tap into the universally valuable skills you have gained. Sometimes how you accomplish something speaks just as highly as the achievement itself.

Transferable Characteristics to Consider:

• Problem Solving
• Persuasion
• Data Collection and Analysis
• Attention to Detail
• Communication

• Motivation
• Interpersonal Skills/Teamwork
• Flexibility/Adaptability

What Sections go into a CV?

• Contact Information: current institution or place of employment may work best, unless you do not want your colleagues to know that you are job-hunting.
• Education: degrees earned or in progress, institutions, and years of graduation. You may also include the titles of your dissertation or thesis here.
• Grants, Honors and Awards: list of grants received, honors bestowed upon you for your work, and awards you may have received for teaching or service.
• Publications and Presentations: list of your published articles and books, as well presentations given at conferences. If there are many of both, you might consider having one section for publications and another for presentations.
• Employment and Experience: this section may include separate lists of teaching experiences, laboratory experiences, field experiences, volunteer work, leadership, or other relevant experiences.
• Scholarly or Professional Memberships: list of the professional organizations of which you are a member. If you have held an office or position in a particular organization, you can either say so here or leave this information for the experience section.
• References: list of persons who write letters of recommendations for you, which includes their contact information.

Optional Sections:

• Areas of Interest: list of your varied academic interests.
• Additional Experience: You may include positions that you have held outside of academia.
• Community Service/Involvement
• Relevant Coursework
• Interests/Activities
• Additional Sections: Different disciplines may warrant additional sections, such as Data Sets (sciences), Performances/Exhibits (arts), or Film Production Highlights (MFA). Consult with your advisor and other faculty to learn more about the conventions appropriate for your specific field.
•  Skills/Languages: Relevant computer skills, languages, technical skills, lab skills, and research skills.

How to Categorize Experiences