Curriculum Vitae (CV) Structure and Tips

An excerpt from the UW Career Guide

Vita: A comprehensive biographical statement (generally three or more pages) and is identified with its extensive use of headings.

A Vita or a Resume? How do I choose? A vita, or CV, is typically used in academia, primarily for people with graduate and professional degrees, research, and consulting areas. Regardless, you need to make sure your most relevant qualifications appear on the first two pages.

Getting Started: As with resumes, there are widely divergent opinions about what is necessary and desirable. Consider all suggestions carefully and incorporate only those that make sense to you. Organize with the most relevant and powerful heading first, next powerful second, and so
forth.

Identifying Information: List your name, phone number, address, and email at the top of your vita. It used to be common practice that you included marital status, and children (even height and weight!); however, such information is absolutely inappropriate.

Summary of Educational Background: List all your degrees in reverse chronological order. Begin with your bolded degree abbreviation (Ph.D.) and discipline, date you received or plan to receive it, university/college name, city, and state. Include your dissertation and thesis titles. You can
include GPA, minors, or area of concentration.

Summary of Relevant Work Experience: This section can be broken down into several subcategories (Teaching Experience, Grants, Research Activities, Professional Experience, Courses Taught, Service, Advising, Work History, etc.). Again, your decision will be based on your experience and the position. Bold the position title. List organization name, city, state, and dates of employment. List all information in reverse chronological order. Describe responsibilities with action verbs.

Recent and Current Research: For most academic positions, this is the crux of your vita. Describe research projects recently conducted or in progress: type of research, purpose, grants, funding, etc.

Granting Agency, “Title of Grant,” $Grant Value, Year

Papers and Poster Sessions Presented at Conferences: Use categories such as workshops, presentation by competition, and presentation by invitation. List these in reverse chronological order (most recent comes first).

Last name, First initial., other authors. (Year, Month). Paper/Presentation Title.
Name of Conference, City, State. Dates.

Publications: List all professional publications using the bibliographic style prescribed for your discipline. However, bold your name to make it easy for the reader to find. Include published work and pending publications.

Last name, First initial., other authors. (Year). Title. Journal, Volume (Issue), page numbers.

Pending Publications:

Last name, First initial., other authors. (Year to be published). Title. Manuscript submitted for publication.

Professional Memberships: List these in alphabetical order.

Leadership/Professional Service: Bold your position title, name of the organization, and give dates. (Remember to include membership on major committees, task forces, boards, elected offices, etc.)

Special Awards and Honors: This can be divided into subcategories, or you may want to decide to include these activities under relevant work experience. You should include scholarships, fellowships, teaching or research awards, competitive assistantships, etc.

Final Tips:

  • Be consistent
  • Don’t use double entries
  • Don’t mix chronological orders
  • The job description is your
    road map!

Heading Examples

Abstracts

  • Appointments
  • Academic Service
  • Academic Training
  • Administration
  • Appointments
  • Areas of Expertise
  • Assistantships
  • Career Highlights
  • Chapters
  • College Activities
  • Committees
  • Credentials
  • Endorsements
  • Exhibits
  • Graduate Practical
  • Grants & Contracts
  • Honors & Awards
  • Internships
  • Invited Addresses
  • Language Competencies
  • Licensure
  • National Boards
  • Outreach
  • Postdoctoral Experience
  • Memberships
  • Professional Overview
  • Professional Service
  • Publications
  • Recommendations
  • Research Activities
  • Reviews
  • Scholarly Works
  • Specialized Training
  • Teaching Summary