Curriculum Vita (CV)

Curriculum Vitae (CV) means “Course of Life” in Latin. It is a summary of your education, experiences, and skills which is typically used for applying to positions in academia, scientific fields, research positions, grants, and fellowships.

CV vs. Resume

A resume is a general introduction of your education and experiences while a CV provides more detail on these points, and will further expand on academic accomplishments. These accomplishments should be related to academics and your field of study and might include teaching, research, and professional involvement. While a resume only highlights the most relevant experiences, a CV contains all experiences throughout the course of someone’s career.

How long is a CV?

A typical CV for college/grad school students is 2-3 pages long but may be longer for those who have continuous experience in their career. Although CVs are longer than resumes, it is still important to use concise writing and focus on relevant information. Remember that content is more valuable than length and brief, clear phrases are much easier to read. 

General Outline of a CV 

Use this general guide to develop content. Depending on your field of study, you may go into more detail in some sections or skip others if they do not apply. 

• Name, address, email, phone number, LinkedIn URL presented in header 
• Academic Background 
• Professional Licenses/Certifications
• Academic/Teaching Experience (courses taught/introduced, innovations, teaching evaluations)
• Technical and Specialized Skills
• Professional/Academic Honors and Awards
• Professional Development (conferences/workshops attended, other activities)
• Research/Scholarly Activities (journal articles, conferences, books or chapters published, magazine articles, papers presented/workshops, work in progress or currently under review)
• Grant Writing or Oversight
• Service/Leadership – academic, professional, community
• Consulting Experience