Curriculum Vitae versus Resume

Tips: Writing your Curriculum Vitae for Scholarships


What is the
Difference between a Curriculum Vitae and a Resume?

For higher education positions, employers frequently want a
curriculum vitae (otherwise known as a vita or CV) instead of a resume.


A resume is an individually designed summary (usually one or two
pages) of personal, educational, and experience qualifications intended
to
demonstrate fitness for a particular position or type of position. A
resume
focuses attention on an individual's strongest qualifications and
develops them
to fit the specific or general purpose for which the material is
provided. (For
more in-depth information see the UCS handout "Writing Resumes.")

A Curriculum Vitae is a document generally used instead of a
resume for an academic audience. Therefore, it is a summary of
education and
experience qualifications as related to the interests of academia.
Ph.D. candidates generally have a two to four page document, due
to their limited experience. It develops over time into a comprehensive
and
lengthy statement detailing professional qualifications and activities.
You can
easily create a one- or two-page, tightly drawn version and a complete
version
to use for different purposes.

There are other audiences that will seek a CV (adapted for that
audience and purpose) instead of a resume. For instance, a Ph.D. in
Organic
Chemistry seeking a position as a research scientist in a
pharmaceutical
company would typically use a vita. A Ph.D. in Economics seeking a
position at
the Commerce Department would also use a vita. If you are uncertain
whether to
use a CV, ask yourself “Am I sending this document to other Ph.D.s?
Is my Ph.D.
required for this position? Is my scholarship relevant for this
position?” If
the answers to those questions are yes, you are probably going to use a
CV,
which provides more detail about your academic background than a
resume.

Writing your
Curriculum Vitae

A Curriculum Vitae
(CV) is a summary of your educational and academic background. Its
purpose is
to outline your credentials for an academic position, fellowship, or
grant. Its
length can range from 2-4 pages. Please keep in mind each field has a
different
standard. Ask the faculty in your department for feedback on your CV.



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In applying for an
academic position, an applicant is asked to submit a CV along with a
Dissertation Abstract, a Statement of Research Interests, and a
Statement of
Teaching Interests. It is important to present a clear and
well-organized
application. Your goal is to make the search committee want to
interview you.



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What to include on your CV:





Primary materials


o                      Applicant
Information


o                      Education


o                      Dissertation
Title and Advisor


o                      Awards/Honors/Patents


o                      Grants/Fellowships


o                      Research
Experience

o                      Teaching Experience

o                      Publications
and Presentations


o                      Related
Professional Experience


o                      Languages


o                      Other-
Memberships, Associations, Conferences


o                      References


Supplementary Materials


o                      Cover
Letter


o                      Dissertation
Abstract


o                      Statement
of Research and Scholarly Interests


o                      Statement
of Teaching Interests


o                      Course
lists


Primary Materials


Applicant Information




Your name should
appear on the top of each page. On the first page include your name,
address,
phone number, fax number, and email address. Page numbers should appear
on all
pages except for the first. When including your email address consider
this
communication with an employer to be professional. It is advised to
avoid
"nick names" or "cute" automatic responses. This also
applies for phone messages.


Education






In reverse
chronological order list all of your degrees from college on, with the
name of
the institution and date they were awarded. List the date you expect to
receive
the degree for the program you are currently in. It is standard to list
the
name of your advisor and your thesis title.




From this point on you have more latitude
in shaping the organization of your CV. You should be guided by your
strengths,
requirements for the job, and conventions of your discipline.


Honors and Awards
(Grants, Fellowships and Patents, etc.)




Place Honors/Awards
near the top of the CV (unless you have few, then put later or omit).
This is a
good place to list research-related and dissertation-supported grants,
fellowships, awards and patents. Scientists may create a separate
section for
"Research Grants", which would probably come later in the CV.


Research Experience



Scientists will
briefly describe their postdoctoral, doctoral, and possibly
undergraduate
research. You should include both substance and techniques employed if
relevant. List names of the institution, professor, project, and dates.
Along
with descriptions note any contribution you made (Some scientists
append a
"Statement of Research Interests")


Teaching Experience






Where you place
this section depends on the target institution (i.e. small teaching
college) as
well as your strengths as a candidate. The basic information should
include:
Where, What, When you have taught and your titles i.e. teaching fellow
or
lecturer.


Publications and
Presentations






Where you place
this section depends on the strength of your publication record. If
substantial, it may come first. If too lengthy or short it can come at
the end
of the CV or have an additional page. Some candidates will subdivide
this
category into:


o                      Publications
(if have you enough, you can separate this into Books, Abstracts,
Reviews,
other publications, etc...).  Use standard bibliographic form for
publications.


o                      Papers
and Presentations.  Include dates/locations with titles of your
presentations.


Avoid listing
published abstracts in with papers. List Abstracts as a separate
section.Â
Otherwise, it gives the impression of "padding."


Related Professional
Experience






Use this category
for any experience that is related to teaching, research, and
administration,
i.e. conference organizing, tutoring, and committee work.


Languages






Accurately assess
your knowledge level of a language: native, fluent, proficient or
working
knowledge.


Optional Sections


o                      Memberships
of Professional Organizations


o                      Scholarly
Associations


o                      Travel or
Study Abroad


References






Most academics tend
to operate within small informal networks, the names of references will
convey
significant information to most readers. Most applicants will list
their
references at the end of their CV.  Include:


                Â
Full name


                  Title


                Â
Institutional address


                Â
Telephone address/email/fax


Three references
are expected, but you may add more if their evaluations would add
significant
information


** make sure your
references know they are listed and have a copy of your CV**


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Supplementary
Materials





In addition to the
CV, most academic job applications will contain the following:


Cover Letter






A cover letter
should be concise and to the point. Certainly no longer than one page.
Simply
state why you are applying, why you are interested in the
position/school, and
your relevant background. Let them know you are appending a CV, a
statement of
research and teaching interests, etc. DO NOT discuss these in the cover
letter.
Direct them to where they can find the information. Do not bury the
information
in a three page letter and make them look for it, as they won't. Use
your
department's letter head and your professional address. Do not use
plain paper
and your home address-- that's a big red flag (at least in Biology).


Dissertation Abstract






A dissertation
abstract is a clear and concise summary of your work, placing it within
its
scholarly context and noting its contribution to the field. The summary
should
be comprehensible to people outside your field, but scholarly enough to
interest those familiar with your area of expertise (HAVE FACULTY IN
AND OUT OF
YOUR AREA READ THIS). The summary is typically 1-2 pages appended at
the end of
your CV and clipped or stapled together with previous pages.


Statement of Research
and Scholarly Interests






Scientists are customarily
asked to submit a "Statement of Research". This is meant to be a 2-4
page statement of past, current, and future research interests. You
should
describe your past and present research methodology, lab skills, and
results.
For the future section, tell the reader what you hope to do for the
next 3- 5
years and how you might involve students (undergraduates, graduates,
and
post-docs) in the work. Normally, this work will follow on the momentum
of your
own postdoctoral studies, but if it does not (this would be rare) be
sure to
explain why.


Teaching Interests






A “Statement of
Teaching Interests” is typically required as part of the application
process
for an Assistant Professor position. Tell the reader what you feel
competent to
teach. If you are applying for a job where teaching biochemistry is one
of the
requirements as stated in the job ad, then you better be sure you tell
them you
want to teach biochemistry. This may sound trite, but you would be
amazed at
the number of people who fail to follow this seemingly self-evident
step.


Course
Lists/Transcript







Occasionally
applicants are asked to submit a list of their graduate courses or a
transcript.


Harvard CV Model Format


Sample CV #1


Sample CV #2


Sample CV #3





[This article was submitted by Ankita Singh, University of Pittsburgh, USA]