CV?

[usullusa]

I'm having trouble figuring out what to put on my CV. I have an M.A. but I've never published anything. I am involved in a number of community organizations that are relevant to my research, I work for an academic publisher, are these things I should put on my CV? What about writing? I'm in the process of submitting my MA thesis, should I put that? Should I put other projects as "in-progress"? Basically: help!

[Dr. Old Bill]

Anything relevant to your field, really. Mine has education (including "in progress"), a couple of field-related jobs, most of my poetry publications, academic honors I've received, academic references, languages studied, and areas of specialization.

 

I'm a bit older, but I made a conscious decision not to add all of my non-relevant work experience, and even my non-relevant educational background. A C.V., while more cumulative than a resume, should still have a focus. You still want to present all of the things that matter.

[usullusa]

Thanks!

 

How does this sound:

I have Education, Teaching Experience (I've taught high school. Everyone has encouraged me to include this), Writing (it's basically just my MA thesis. Would it be weird to include writing I've done for a political blog?), Professional Experience (I've decided to include my academic publishing experience since this seems at least tangentially relevant), Community Involvement (I've helped run some activist events and spaces that pertain to my research), and Skills (I just have languages. Should I leave these in?).  

[Dr. Old Bill]

Sure, I think that's all relevant and valid.

 

I'm glad you started this thread, by the way, as a lot of people forget that most programs require a C.V. as a part of the application. It's hard to say how significantly a C.V. is weighed, given that most of the pertinent information can be found elsewhere in your application, but it is usually a requirement, and a thread like this is helpful for those having to start one from scratch.

[lyonessrampant]

This is a great reference for constructing a CV: http://theprofessorisin.com/2012/01/12/dr-karens-rules-of-the-academic-cv/

[Dr. Old Bill]

This is a great reference for constructing a CV: http://theprofessorisin.com/2012/01/12/dr-karens-rules-of-the-academic-cv/

 

Ah! That's exactly what I used as a guide this past summer.

[lifealive]

Don't stress about your CV. It's probably the least important aspect of your application. Just list your degrees and thesis title, teaching experience (or other work experience), awards, and service that pertains to academia (chairing a committee at your grad school, for instance, or helping to bring speakers to campus). You might also list the seminars you've taken.

 

For applicants, CV is not a big deal.

[jhefflol]

I attended a workshop on how to construct a CV. I can send you mine as a guide if you would like. Just send your email my way in a PM.

[khyleth]

I've received conflicting advice about whether editorial work is relevant to a CV. One the one hand, it shows that I have experience working with manuscripts and some knowledge of the publishing process; on the other, it's not academic work. Anybody have thoughts on this?

[queennight]

I've received conflicting advice about whether editorial work is relevant to a CV. One the one hand, it shows that I have experience working with manuscripts and some knowledge of the publishing process; on the other, it's not academic work. Anybody have thoughts on this?

 

I'd assume this would be relevant! I can't think of how it wouldn't be, unless you were copywriting drafts for the Communist Party and feel it would be a better political move to leave that off.

[Dr. Old Bill]

I'd assume this would be relevant! I can't think of how it wouldn't be, unless you were copywriting drafts for the Communist Party and feel it would be a better political move to leave that off.

 

Yes. My thoughts exactly. I'm already regretting my decision to not include the year and a bit I worked at Shakespeare Theatre Company. The work I was doing wasn't really relevant, but it would have demonstrated my history with / enjoyment of early modern stuff at least.

 

Editorial work should be a shoo-in for an academic English C.V.

[jhefflol]

I included editing in a "Consulting and Workshops" section. Maybe give that a try.

[karablythe]

What are y'all's opinions on including travel experience? I'm applying to cultural studies programs and English programs with a focus in critical theory/cultural studies. Travel has been a huge part of my post-grad life; I finished undergrad in May 2011, and have spent essentially 6 months of every year since then abroad (India, Brazil, Spain, etc.). My interest in cultural studies began as a student but really blossomed as a traveler, so I feel the experience is significant... but I'm not really sure how to articulate that in a CV. Other than a 3 month internship at an NGO in India, most of my travel involved short term volunteer work at hostels, yoga retreats, and the like. So they weren't total touristy, party trips (I tried my best to really integrate into the culture and have as "authentic" an experience as possible) but I also wasn't there doing relative or reputable work. 

 

Thoughts? Thanks in advance! 

 

Afterthought: I just read Dr. Karen's Rules and saw that she advices against including overseas travel. Hmph. Her guidelines make for such a sterile CV! I was planning on doing my name in a lovely lavender color at top, which I doubt she'd agree with

Edited December 6, 2014 by karablythe

[Dr. Old Bill]

Afterthought: I just read Dr. Karen's Rules and saw that she advices against including overseas travel. Hmph. Her guidelines make for such a sterile CV! I was planning on doing my name in a lovely lavender color at top, which I doubt she'd agree with

 

Yeah, I was going to mention that your proclivity toward travel sounds more like a line or two for your SOP, rather than lines in your C.V. Dr. Karen aside, a C.V. is a fairly sterile document. It's sort of a "just the facts" listing of what you've done in relation to your field. But your travel could be interesting to adcomms, so if you can squeeze a line or two about that into your SOP, it probably wouldn't be a bad thing.

[queennight]

Afterthought: I just read Dr. Karen's Rules and saw that she advices against including overseas travel. Hmph. Her guidelines make for such a sterile CV! I was planning on doing my name in a lovely lavender color at top, which I doubt she'd agree with

 

For the record, if I was on an adcomms committee and an applicant used a lovely lavender font for their name, I would genuinely accept them on the spot. Meanwhile, if anybody used Comic Sans MS, I'd probably start screaming and running around the room before collapsing, devastated, in the corner.

 

Which is probably why I'm not on adcomms, but still.

[hypervodka]

The only thing about travels abroad that actually made it into my CV was my time working at a Spanish art museum. Other than that, it's not really relevant (but, as WT says, it could be an engaging opener for your SOP).

 

ETA: Also, if you have learned some other language through your travels, and that language is relevant (or potentially relevant) to your scholarly interests. If you're a Victorian who speaks a little Hindi, I (as a postcolonialist who knows how intralinked India and England were particularly in the 1800s) would be very interested, for example.

Edited December 6, 2014 by hypervodka

[xolo]

Well it seems relevant to me.  For Spanish programs, I know at least some of them wanted foreign residence noted on the CV. 

[karablythe]

Thanks for all the feedback everyone! I think I will remove travel experience from my CV but include it in my SOP, as suggested. However, I also fully intend on keeping with my lovely lavender color scheme because who doesn't love a little rebellion  

[Between Fields]

Writing (it's basically just my MA thesis. Would it be weird to include writing I've done for a political blog?)

 

Unless you've published your writing (not just through ProQuest, mind you) a writing section shouldn't appear on your CV; you'd include your MA thesis title under the Education heading.

[fancypants09]

Hi everyone, 

 

Question on the CVs. How important is it to identify the month and the year for a particular professional experience? For instance, if I switched jobs twice in 2014, once in May and once in July, would I need to note the months? I'm used to writing resumes for jobs where you want to have absolutely no gap between the various experiences, and where listing the months and the year for start and end dates for a position are the norm. Would appreciate your thoughts on this!

[Dr. Old Bill]

For what it's worth, I didn't list months for work experience...just the year. I think it's standard practice to do that on C.V.s

 

I included months on publications though.

[ProfLorax]

I did seasons because I taught, so Fall 2010-Spring 2013. But really, adcomms aren't going to worry about gaps. Some applicants will have large gaps on their CV because their employment wasn't relevant (retail, food service, admin work, etc). Hell, I have nothing on my CV between my BA and my MA because I was working at Borders (RIP!). 

[fancypants09]

Wyatt's Torch and proflorax, thank you! This is indeed helpful. 

 

One additional question---how much description should we offer in the CV? The teaching that I am doing now should be self-explanatory since I am at a university, but what about the corporate gig---do I need to, or can I, include descriptions of what I did there? It was my first gig out of law school, I was there for almost 4.5 years and did Many Things, but I also understand that they are not quite directly related to my PhD application. 

 

Thanks again

[lyonessrampant]

The Professor is In says no descriptions (linked earlier in this thread), but people aren't unanimous about it.  I personally wouldn't because it makes the CV look too much like a resume, but if you think it is useful or helpful to your application, maybe?

[fancypants09]

The Professor is In says no descriptions (linked earlier in this thread), but people aren't unanimous about it.  I personally wouldn't because it makes the CV look too much like a resume, but if you think it is useful or helpful to your application, maybe?

 

I've run out of positive votes for the day, but thanks so much for your input! I decided not to include descriptions, and to put all the non-academic professional experiences in a separate section altogether. This is after I checked the application requirements for several of the schools, only to realize that many of them don't even require CVs. So I guess that's telling of the importance of CVs to the application.