CVs

[Caien]

Are people including course descriptions on their CVs? I have a relevant courses section, but the titles of some aren't very illustrative. For example I took a course in Tokyo called 'American Religion', which was sort of a politics/cultural studies course. Its relevant to me as it peaked an interest in the narrative of the US, city on a hill and all that, but that's not really apparent from the title.

[Yanaka]

I'd say you should talk about the course in your SoP if it's relevant to your research project?

[Dr. Old Bill]

I'm sure she is, Yanaka!

No, I don't think the C.V. is the place for course descriptions, especially considering that many programs insist that the C.V. is a maximum of two pages. It's not a bad idea to have research interests in there somewhere, but if you really feel your courses need explication, I would draft a supplemental document for that. Most applications will allow you to upload additional materials not covered elsewhere in the app.

[Yanaka]

11 minutes ago, Wyatt's Terps said:

I'm sure she is, Yanaka!
 

 Huh?  

[museum_geek]

I think Wyatt means that he's sure Caien is talking about relevant courses in her SOP, as you suggested!

[WildeThing]

Aren't courses listed on your transcripts? I wouldn't waste CV space on them (unless your CV is sparse and you want to make up for that somehow, although I would still think that there must be something better you can include).

Two questions on CV:

- Do you all send in your academic CV? Does anyone find that there is value in including non-academic experience, like office experience?

- In my last MA I was asked to give a speech (so did another student) for our graduation ceremony. Is this considered an achievement in the US? Should I include it? It wasn't because of any official honor, more an implicit recognition of good work.

[Caien]

That's a good idea @Wyatt's Terps. My transcripts are just random numbers, and due to the education system here I've been taking English classes almost entirely for the four years of my undergrad, so while I've highlighted one or two particularly pertinent courses in my SoP I've also included a courses section in my CV to show the depth and breadth of my training in English. I also wanted to show how some courses, particularly those I took while on study abroad, that may not be that obviously linked to my research interests are actually tied in, but I really don't have space to go into it in my SoP. I think I will add an extra document with the course summaries, that way they only have to look at them if they're interested and the CV stays short.

I think I'm at a point where all my materials are basically ready, but every time I look at them my mind tries to find something to worry about/fix. Tis making me crazy.

[Warelin]

5 hours ago, Wyatt's Terps said:

No, I don't think the C.V. is the place for course descriptions, especially considering that many programs insist that the C.V. is a maximum of two pages. It's not a bad idea to have research interests in there somewhere, but if you really feel your courses need explication, I would draft a supplemental document for that. Most applications will allow you to upload additional materials not covered elsewhere in the app.

Hi WT. Is the 2-page CV a hard rule? (I fear that my CV was too long last cycle now. Fearing it more next cycle because I'll have taught a total of 24 courses. )

[Dr. Old Bill]

3 minutes ago, Warelin said:

Hi WT. Is the 2-page CV a hard rule? (I fear that my CV was too long last cycle now. Fearing it more next cycle because I'll have taught a total of 24 courses. )

It depends. Ohio State is quite clear about it, and I'm sure I've come across one or two others that ask for two pages maximum as well (though the verbiage may have been on the application itself). I don't get the sense that the C.V. is all that important overall -- a few of the programs I applied to don't even require one.

[poliscar]

Honestly, if your C.V. is much over two pages at this point, it is probably bloated. 

[Dr. Old Bill]

2 minutes ago, poliscar said:

Honestly, if your C.V. is much over two pages at this point, it is probably bloated. 

Yup. I could have reduced mine to one, but I thought it would be prudent to list my poetry publication history -- a tough decision, and one I'll be second-guessing if I have a bad cycle, but seemed germane, given that my SOP and WS are both focused on poetry.

 

[Warelin]

On 12/6/2016 at 1:33 PM, Wyatt's Terps said:

It depends. Ohio State is quite clear about it, and I'm sure I've come across one or two others that ask for two pages maximum as well (though the verbiage may have been on the application itself). I don't get the sense that the C.V. is all that important overall -- a few of the programs I applied to don't even require one.

Thanks for the link. I've got some work to do between now and when I apply next season.

On 12/6/2016 at 1:37 PM, poliscar said:

Honestly, if your C.V. is much over two pages at this point, it is probably bloated. 

I've heard different things by different professors. I was told to include all teaching and research experience.

[Concordia]

@Wyatt's Terps, you could certainly condense that-- show maybe "Twelve poems published 2011-2015 in New Yorker, Atlantic Monthly, and Reader's Digest" rather than

"Published 'A Man from Nantucket' (five lines verse) in Christian Science Monitor, 15 May, 2012, evening edition, p. 12.  Republished on-line (www.christianscienceisfabulous.com) and read by panelists on CNBC, CNN, ad Good Morning America."

"Published 'A Young Maid from Aberystwyth' (five lines verse) in Rolling Stone, 1 April, 2013....  Etc.

[Dr. Old Bill]

On 12/6/2016 at 1:49 PM, Warelin said:

I've heard different things by different professors. I was told to include all teaching and research experience.

I don't think you were misled. Research experience may not be a major C.V. item at this level, but I think itemizing as much of your teaching experience as possible is wise.

In your situation, then I would expect a longer C.V. What @poliscar meant (which I agreed with) is that it's not typical for a B.A. or M.A. applicant to need a C.V. beyond two pages.

[Concordia]

On 12/6/2016 at 1:49 PM, Warelin said:

I've heard different things by different professors. I was told to include all teaching and research experience.

Can you sort those into two or three columns?  Or a list with course numbers and abbreviations/relevant highlights?  "TA for English 101, 102, 113, 114, 231, 240, 331, 332.  Assisted Prof. William Faulkner proofread new fiction for publication."

[biyutefulphlower]

3 hours ago, Wyatt's Terps said:

Yup. I could have reduced mine to one, but I thought it would be prudent to list my poetry publication history -- a tough decision, and one I'll be second-guessing if I have a bad cycle, but seemed germane, given that my SOP and WS are both focused on poetry.

 

I can relate - I listed an upcoming comic publication on my CV, which I'm also hoping reviewers will see as relevant to my over all application (SoP and WS related to comics).  I was worried that my CV was a little lean since I didn't include the majority of my work experience over the last decade. The bulk of my jobs have been 'non-industry' and I'm assuming they aren't 'relevant'.  (Though they've built character and, you know, fed me, haha.)

[poliscar]

Yeah, when I said "bloated" it was partially in reference to actual content, but also a lot to do with presentation. Yes, mention your teaching experience, your poetry, your comics, etc, but don't overload committees with excess information. You shouldn't be devoting a line/bullet-point to each section you've taught of a course. Present the concept—i.e. you have a lot of teaching experience—without drowning it in minutiae.

[Warelin]

On 12/6/2016 at 6:48 PM, poliscar said:

Yeah, when I said "bloated" it was partially in reference to actual content, but also a lot to do with presentation. Yes, mention your teaching experience, your poetry, your comics, etc, but don't overload committees with excess information. You shouldn't be devoting a line/bullet-point to each section you've taught of a course. Present the concept—i.e. you have a lot of teaching experience—without drowning it in minutiae.

Thanks for the advice, Poliscar. I've managed to cut it down by a few pages.

I have my CV divided between education, teaching experience, relevant employment, publications, awards/honors,  and public readings. I've noticed that I do include a few awards/honors from my undergraduate years. Do you think this information is important or do you think this can be cut? Shall I also get rid of readings? (It's a section added that was encouraged to be added by my professors) I'm curious to hear your thoughts on the manner. (Or anyone else's if they'd like to chime in.)

[poliscar]

On 12/6/2016 at 7:18 PM, Warelin said:

Thanks for the advice, Poliscar. I've managed to cut it down by a few pages.

I have my CV divided between education, teaching experience, relevant employment, publications, awards/honors,  and public readings. I've noticed that I do include a few awards/honors from my undergraduate years. Do you think this information is important or do you think this can be cut? Shall I also get rid of readings? (It's a section added that was encouraged to be added by my professors) I'm curious to hear your thoughts on the manner. (Or anyone else's if they'd like to chime in.)

It's hard to say—at the end of the day it comes down to what you want to communicate to committees. I do think that it is super helpful to look at examples of scholarly CVs, both those of current students and junior faculty. As far as I can tell, employment isn't often listed because the most relevant experience (teaching, research assistant work, editorial positions) are generally covered in other categories. In that case having an employment section can be redundant, or contain information that isn't particularly useful. 

Anyhow, take what I say with a grain of salt. It varies based on your background, so—like I said above—the best thing to do is probably to get a feel for the CV genre/format by looking directly at other scholarly CVs. Academia.edu can be brilliant there! 

[othersamantha]

On 12/6/2016 at 2:33 PM, Wyatt's Terps said:

It depends. Ohio State is quite clear about it, and I'm sure I've come across one or two others that ask for two pages maximum as well (though the verbiage may have been on the application itself). I don't get the sense that the C.V. is all that important overall -- a few of the programs I applied to don't even require one.

I have that sense also -- it seems like most of the programs I'm applying to don't highlight the CV as an important element on their "information for applicants" pages, but rather it is just something that pops up as part of the online application system. Speaking from absolutely no experience whatsoever (meaning, don't take this too seriously) it seems to be just a box that needs to be checked. Still, trying to present my best side in mine! I'm worried that it seems a little short/sparse because I was advised by one of my letter writers to exclude any sales/customer service experience (even for jobs where I earned a promotion) to keep it as academic as possible and that because I'm applying from a BA, I don't have a lot of formal teaching experience. Agree with all above that it's hard to know what level of detail to include about courses taken, paper written (especially those that fall outside of my intended subfield), etc. Good luck all!