Creating a Curriculum Vitae

We’re talking testimony this week and as part of that, curriculum vitaes (CVs). I get asked about formats quite a bit, so here’s how I recommend approaching the task (based on a presentation Sasha and I give). Click through for a quick and dirty overview (a quick Google search will also net you plenty of examples):

Curriculum Vitae Overview:

A resume is designed to get you a job: it’s aspirational and persuasive in nature. e.g. “My goal is to find employment that will allow me to better hone my skills…” A curriculum vitae (CV) is simply a black and white catalogue of your professional accomplishments.

Length: resume is concise, CV is not constrained by length.

1. Plain Paper
2. Black and white
3. No weird fonts (Courier, Times New Roman, Arial)
4. No colored paper
5. No weird bullets
6. Reverse Chronological Order

SAMPLE BASIC OUTLINE:

• Education
  • Degrees: Institution/location/graduation
  • Certificate courses: Institutions/dates (this includes SANE courses)
  • Certifications with expiration dates
  • Licensure(s) with state, number and expiration dates
• Professional Experience
  • Job Title (no description)
  • Employer
  • Location
  • Dates
• Professional Affiliations
  • Organization
  • Position (if applicable)
  • Dates
• Honors and Awards
  • Awarding Organization
  • Name of the honor/award
  • Date (year)
• Publications (not limited to scientific)
  • Format According To Your Profession (e.g., APA)
• Presentations
  • Month/Year
  • Title
  • Organization/Event
  • Location (City/State)

Optional Items

• Journals for whom you peer review
• Courts in which certified/recognized as expert
  • Case name, jurisdiction
• Additional Professional Activities
  • E.g. participant in statewide roundtable, local task force, hospital committee
• Research
  • Name of study, funder, grant number, dates, award amounts, principal investigator