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8/13/2019 Effective CV for Academia
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Creating an Effective CVfor theAcademic Job Search
Presented byMIT Career Services GECDRoom 12 170Marilyn Wilsonmcwilson@mit.edu
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Overview of this WorkshopConstructing Your CV
Headings and content
Your References
Including reference etiquette
Types of UniversitiesDeveloping your List
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Question
What kind of institution do youwant to work in; what role do
you want to have?
How big?
Public, private, something else?
Research (how much)?
Teaching (how much)? Students (what level)?
Other roles in the institution?
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Question
What are the top 3-6 things you
want potential employers to
know about you? Consider: Skills
Achievements
Knowledge Areas
Professional qualities
Other
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Question
Name a few people who could
review your CV and give you
helpful feedback, e.g.
Mentors
Other postdocs or students
Friends
Others
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Curriculum Vitae
The term curriculum vitae
comes from the LatinCurriculum - course and
Vitae - life
The course of ones life.
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What is a CV Used For? Applying for:
Teaching or research opportunities
Fellowships or further academic training
A grant or contract funding proposal Tenure or promotion
Membership in a professional society ororganization
Submitted as background bio for anintroduction to a lecture or presentation
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CV Quick Review Exercise We will hand out a CV to you
Dont look at it until we tell you to You will have 20 seconds to read it
and form an impression of the
person
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What are YourStrongest Assets?
As you develop your CV, ask yourself:
What 3-6 skills, achievements,knowledge areas do you want to leap
off the page for readers of your CV?
How can you make that happen?You want to survive the early culling of
candidates
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Think Strategically Who is your audience?
How technically savvy are they?
What will they find interesting about
you?
Material you present early in your CV is
likely to make a stronger impression than
material placed later. An exception publications, which tend
to be at the end
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CV FormatThere is no single correct format or style for
writing a CV.
Consult with people in your department about
particularities of CVs in your fieldCVs are often longer than resumes -
completeness is more important than brevity.
2 to 4 pages for a young professional 4 to 7 pages for a person with more
experience
Etc.
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Typical Sections on a CVMost Common: Name & Contact Information
Education
Dissertation Title or Topic
Fellowships/Awards/Honors Research Experience
Teaching Experience
Other Professional Experience,
e.g., Industry Experience,Government Experience
Presentations
Publications
Other Common Headings: Skillsmay include
subcategories such as
Computer, Languages,
Lab Instrumentation Professional Associations
Leadership & Activities or
University Service
Research Interests Areas of Expertise
Prepared to Teach
References
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Your Name Pagination Make name larger than the basic font
size
Put your name on every page Number pages in header or footer:
Page one of five or Page 1 of 5
Page two of five It may read:
Grace Hopper - Page one of five
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Education Start with Institution in bold
Include locations
Do not have to include everyinstitution that you have attended
only those where you received a
degree
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Highlighting Your Thesis May include a brief summary of your thesis
topic in the Education section.
List your advisor; some people suggest you
list all members of your committee
Include a one-or-two page abstract of your
thesis (recommended, but optional)
Write See Abstract Attached in theEducation Section after thesis title
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Dissertation Abstract A separate page or two at end of CV
Briefly summarize your research -
Place your work within its scholarly context Note its contribution to the field
Write up should be:
Comprehensible to people outside field
Scholarly enough to interest people in yourfield.
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Fellowships and Awards Clarify awards and other
information if readers are not likely
to grasp their significance Dont have to include every award
This section can go later if you
prefer not to feature it
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Which ExperiencesShould be Included?
Describe both teaching and research
experience in detail For positions that primarily involve
research, put research experience first
For primarily teaching positions, putteaching experience first
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Should You IncludeWork Experience?
Work experience is fine to include -
If its relevant to your academic interests,
describe it and make that apparent. If not directly relevant to your academic
interests,
Are there skills you gained that make
the experience worth including?
May describe briefly, list withoutdescription, or omit.
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What Not to Include Omit references to
Age, Marital status, Children, Health,
Spouse's work, Religious affiliation
Not necessary to title the document
Curriculum Vitae - its understood that its
a CV
Do not need to write these words: "Personal Information, Contact
Information, Email; they are
understood.
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Research is Noted in SeveralPlaces onYour CV Include thesis title under Education
Include thesis research under
Research Experience Attach a Statement of Research
Interests at the end
Discuss now how to write yourdescriptions under your Experience
sections
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PAR StatementsP=Project - Setting
A=Action Tell a Story - Plot
R=Results - Ending
Use PAR statements when describing
your Experiences feature skills and
accomplishments
Projects you were involved with
Activity/Actions you took (verbs=skills)
Results impact of your work, usefulness of the
project
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PAR Statements Project establishes the setting
What problems are you trying to solve?
What knowledge area are you working
in?
What impact, in the real world might
your work ultimately lead to?
Write this so that nontechnical people,as well as technical people, can get
some idea of what you are/were
working on.
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PAR Statements Action/Activity the plot
Verbs reflect your skills
Page 22 in the workbook: a list of great actionverbs to use
Elaborate your skills e.g., Develop can mean
you did 67 different things. What were those
things? Which ones would be good to mention?
Think about transferable activities:
E.g., collaborated, wrote, presented, lead a
team, supervised
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PAR Statements Results what happened in the end?
What impact did you have?
Doesnt have to be a research finding
Doesn't have to be a positive result E.g.,
Created a methodology that has now
been adopted for ongoing use
Research is ongoing
Work is being written up for publication
Finished project ahead of schedule and
under budget
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PAR Statements Quantify your experience when possible
Convey size/scale of project, budget, results
List relevant accomplishments and skills
Not job duties and responsibilities
Example
Before: Responsible for supervising
undergraduate researchers
After: Supervised 3 undergraduate research
students who have since gone on to graduate
school in astrophysics
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Gaps In general its not a good idea to
leave a gap undescribed
Talk over with others how to
handle complicated time periods
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Publications List in reverse chronological order. Put your name in bold
Can use asterisk* on papers for which you
made leading contribution Can create separate categories:
Publications, Presentations
Can group Publications in sections, e.g:Books, Refereed Articles, Abstracts
Can list Works in Press, Submitted Articles
or Works in Progress
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Presentations Papers Presented at Conferences -
include:
Title of paper
Name of conference
Dates
Location
May indicate:
Invited Presentations, Posters
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References 3 - or more - individuals who can
comment (positively) on your fit with
institutions to which you are applying
Provide:
Name
Title
University affiliation
Address
Telephone/fax /email
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Choose Referees Who: Know you and your work well
Have high external visibility
Can speak well on your behalf fromvarious perspectives
Can comment on your unique
experiences, strengths, and addressany weaknesses or issues that may be
of concern
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Reference Etiquette Ask permission before submitting
referees names
When you provide referenceinformation to an institution:
Advise referees that they may be getting a
request Keep referees up-to-date on your
professional activities
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Reference Letters -Prepare Your RefereesIf letters of recommendation are required:
Give 2-4 weeks advance notice toreferees
Meet, discuss with referees topics tocover - they can tailor letters to positions
If pursing teaching, include a teaching
reference Provide clear information about
deadlines, addresses, specifications if any
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Reference Letters -Follow-up with Referees
Tactfully follow-up to be sure letters will
be/have been mailed in time
Im checking in to see how things are
going with my letter of
recommendation, if you would like any
more information from me, if I can behelpful in any way, etc.
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When To Prepare Your CVfor the Academic Job SearchSept.-Nov. - Seek advice and support of your advisor and other
mentors. Develop CV and begin to apply for jobs. Network.
Nov.-Jan. Prepare for screening interviews at annual
conferences. Ask advisors to help if they can (for example, bymaking calls on your behalf).
Jan.-Mar. Prepare for campus visits. Follow up with
enthusiastic letters following each interview.
March-May Negotiate offers. Be sure you are being offered thespace and resources you need.
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Types Of Institutions
The Carnegie Classification of Institutions
of Higher Education:
http://classifications.carnegiefoundation.org/
Research/Doctoral Universities (260+)
Masters Colleges and Universities (500+)
Baccalaureate Colleges (600+) other categories (2000+)
http://classifications.carnegiefoundation.org/http://classifications.carnegiefoundation.org/http://www.carnegiefoundation.org/Classification/index.htm8/13/2019 Effective CV for Academia
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Additional Documents Research Statement
Keep it under 3 pages
Include info about what you want to do 2/3
what you did, 1/3 what you want to do
Teaching Statement
Are you articulate about your own science?
Being able to raise money for research depends
largely on how articulate you are about it Cover Letter
If theres anything more I can provide for you,
please let me know.
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Thank You and Best Wishes!
Postdocs are generally welcome to attend our
career workshops. For more information see
our Calendar of Events at
http://web.mit.edu/career/www/events/
MIT Career Services GECDRoom 12 170Marilyn Wilson
http://web.mit.edu/career/www/events/http://web.mit.edu/career/www/events/Recommended