The CV as part of your promotion packet

ARROW Workshop PresentationMarch 13, 2015

Jeffrey G. Wong, MDProfessor of Medicine

Learning Goals

• Understand the purpose of the CV in the context of appointment and promotion– Differences between a resume and a CV– Structure the CV in an advantageous fashion– Pay attention to the details of the CV– Differentiate what to include/what to leave out

Structure of Presentation

• Purpose of the CV in context

• How best to structure the document

• Making it look “pretty”

• Inclusions/Exclusions

CV – Curriculum Vitae

• Roughly translates to “the course of life”

• A detailed overview of accomplishments to date, especially for those pertinent to one’s academic career

• Best to be viewed as a “living document “ that will be updated and amended frequently

It’s NOT a Resume

• RESUME – A general and concise introduction of your experiences and skills as they relate to a particular career or position you are aiming to acquire– Often no longer than a page or two in length– Needs to be altered depending upon the job– Contains demographic information, education and

work experience– Submitted often with an accompanying cover letter

For Appointment, Promotion and Tenure

• Must accurately and completely summarize your work and accomplishments to date– Must be accessible to the reader– Will ALWAYS be accompanied by supporting

documents• Not a place for “potential” items, future

plans or anticipated arrivals• Remember to give the committee what it

needs

CV Structure

• No “right” or “wrong” way to structure things

• Separate items by headings and sub-headings

• Chronologically or reverse-chronologically?

Making it “pretty”

• “Clean and Neat” cannot be overstated• Headings, sub-headings and sub-sub

headings should be distinguishable and consistent

• Columns are better than paragraphs of text• Eliminate typographical errors• Checking spelling• Be consistent

Generally Exclude

• Items from the “distant” past• Teaching items that are expected parts of

performing the normal job• Mention of “attendance” of local, regional,

national, international meetings• Mention of revenue generated by clinical or

procedural work• Papers submitted or being worked on

Be sure to include

• ANYTHING you wrote that gets published• ALL presentations you are invited/asked to

give that are above normal teaching• ALL activities that you volunteer to do

associated with work• Accepted papers that are “in press”• Nominations and awards – use your

judgment

Some References

• Jackson, Acy and Kathleen Geckeis. to Prepare Your Curriculum Vitae. 3rd edition. Columbus, OH: McGraw-Hill, 2003.

• Rosenburg, Arthur D. Resume Handbook: How to Write Outstanding Resumes and Cover Letters for Every Situation. 5th edition. Cincinnati, OH: Adams Media, 2007.

• Thompson, Mary Anne. The Global Resume and CV Guide. Ridgewood, NJ: Wiley Press, 2008.