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| Early Thirsty! |
A colleague of mine recently reviewed my resume and she seems to think that my CV ought to be around 6-7 pages and filled with other activities like committee work and other college related misc. tasks.
I have always been told that part-timers who serve on committees are effectively committing suicide. At one institution, just being called to serve on the Academic Senate without tenure was effectively a death sentence.
So I guess my thirsty is whether or not she is on to something, or should I just go with my happy 1 pager? And I realize I am not being very helpful since I haven't actually posted my resume for you all to look at, but then again that would out me.
As I understand it, the rule of thumb is that a resume--which you'd use for non-academic jobs--is around 1-2 pages, while a CV--for academic jobs--is everything ever and can reach upward of 10 pages.
ReplyDeleteThat's the impression I have, too.
DeleteA CV (curriculum vitae? Yes? No? Maybe?) is from the Latin "Curriculum vitae" loosely translated: "Everything you have curriculumed in your LIFE, EVARH! Because academicing is all LIFE is." (Citation needed.)
That's why a CV is expected to be longer.
Caveat: I've never been on an academic hiring committee, and was not spectacularly successful on the job market. So what do I know? But I have revised my c.v. multiple times for multiple purposes, and had a TT friend look it over a few times.
ReplyDeleteI think you need to find a happy medium. 1 page is too short for academia; 6-7 pages may be overkill (though yes, I think the everything-I've-ever-done c.v. is appropriate in some circumstances -- perhaps as part of a tenure or other major promotion file?)
At the very least, I'd suggest listing degrees earned (Bachelors up), awards and honors (if any), teaching (or similar academic) positions held, courses taught (at least for teaching-intensive jobs/institutions; these can be grouped by category -- if intro algebra has different numbers at different schools, but is essentially the same course, group them); publications (if any); conference presentations (if any); and some sort of service category (not every little thing you've every done, but a sampling of the kinds of activities; here, too, grouping might work). Many people also list the professional associations they belong to, and/or their references, at the end. If you have oodles of entries in any one category (more than a pages' worth, say), you can always do "selected"; I've done this for conference presentations, which stretch back to my second year in grad school). If you don't have many, or any, publications and/or presentations, it might make sense to include a category for conferences, workshops, etc. attended, headed something like "professional development" (I'm pretty sure this would be unhelpful at many R1s, even for a teaching-oriented job, since they tend to look down on anything less than a conference or workshop *presentation*, but it might go over quite well at a community college; context matters).
And I think that leads to my last piece of advice: context matters, a lot. You can't have only one copy of your c.v.; you need multiple copies tailored for specific jobs/situations (if you're posting one on the internet, this gets tricky; I think you have to post the one tailored to your main audience at the moment). CCs, SLACS, and R1s are looking for different things, in general, and for specific positions. I still haven't figured out myself, when writing a c.v. to be included in various sorts of review portfolios for my own R2 institution, whether I should go for a teaching-oriented one (appropriate to my job/official job description), or a research-oriented one (because that's what most people at my institution are most used to reading, and what they most respect, whatever they may say about the value of teaching). In some cases, I think there's a parallel version of the old "dress for the job you want, not the one you have" advice, but you don't want to take that too far. For teaching-oriented jobs, I don't think you can go wrong emphasizing the kinds of courses you've taught and the kinds of service/professional development you've done, plus education (which is usually a minimum requirement, and so goes up front). 2-4 pages of such information seems about right to me if you're applying mostly for part-time or non-TT jobs. And yes, if at all possible, have it read by several people who've served in a hiring capacity. You'll probably find some differences of opinion, some institution-related, and some more personal ("but my late, sainted advisor always said. . ."). Triangulate, interpret for context, and go from there.
I don't know, depends largely on what you're applying to. Fellowships I emphasize my research, publication, conferences, etc. I drop my teaching to a small 2-3 inch section that lists the subjects and level (ie, 400-level etc) and an overview of duties.
ReplyDeleteFor teaching jobs, I expand my teaching to a full page of courses, duties, innovations, etc and a I drop my research to two major chunks: publications, research interests.
Both include a list of honors/awards. This gives me a 2-3 page CV every time.
I've been spending much of my day updating my CV so I no longer look like a grad student when I submit my tenure portfolio. I've found this helpful:
ReplyDeleteDr Karen's Rules of the Academic CV
(I know this website's gotten a bit of negative comments here before, but today I am grateful for it, especially since there are a ton of comments).
In short, you should definitely NOT be worried about going over a page...or even 3-4.
Thank you Ana!
DeleteKelsky is a parasite, preying on our anxieties, offering cookie-cutter advice based on her personal preferences and LIMITED experience. The cv advice is typical: adequate for R1 type applications, but actually quite detrimental to people looking at teaching-oriented positions.
DeleteBut in terms of length, yes: all academically relevant service and experience is fair game on a cv, and there's nothing unusual about 3-5 pages for a mid-career academic.
I'm partially in agreement with ahistoricality: while Kelsky's advice strikes me as generally good (if a bit doctrinaire and, yes, panic-inducing - fear sells, and she's got a product to sell) for someone applying to TT, and perhaps full-time visiting, positions at an R1, R2, or SLAC with significant research expectations, it doesn't make sense for teaching-oriented SLACs and ccs, and departments of all kinds hiring adjuncts, which will want to know, first and foremost, about your education, and then your teaching experience. But the advice to categorize the kinds of experience in ways that will be understandable to people outside those institutions (subject and level of class, and perhaps mode of instruction, rather than course numbers) is still good. I try to get my education and the beginning of the section my audience is most likely to care about (either teaching or research, ordered in a way that emphasizes the things most relevant to that particular job) on the first page (and I don't see how one can avoid "category--continued" headings, as she advises, and still prioritize effectively -- but one does have to proofread carefully). That's sort of a compromise between your "happy one-pager" and the need to provide more detail.
DeleteAs usual, Cassandra is right: Context matters.
ReplyDeleteWord processors make it relatively easy to tailor a CV to the job, and that's what you need to do.
Someone applying to an R1 probably needs to focus on her research and grants. Specialization is important, too. Someone with a Ph.D. involving the East Anglian hamster fur guilds obviously won't be a good fit for a department looking for a specialist in 21st century hamster fur breeding. But if the you've taught classes in modern hamster fur breeding, then your CV should say so.
If you're applying to a cc, you can safely assume that we're looking for good teachers, and not literature teachers, either. Your Ph.D. in medieval hamster fur weaving won't mean squat. Your CV should focus on lower-division teaching experience including remedial classes. Letters of recommendation from deans and from students should do the same.
As far as length goes, one single page seems almost insulting. If I were on a hiring committee, "That's it?" would be my first reaction. Six or seven pages feels like gilding the lilly. If I were on a hiring committee, I'd probably regard pagge after page of minutiae as filler: "He was on the modern hamster fur grooming ad hoc submcommittee of the Hamster Fur Task Force Planning Group? So what?"
I'm not really looking for a full time gig, though. I would like to land an online gig for one of the well paying online colleges (one institution has classes that are one month long, they pay about $2000 per class, and classes are year round). If I play my cards right, I'll be making $2000/month year round!
ReplyDeleteIt should definitely be a few pages. I cut mine back to apply for non-academic jobs, but the single page rule of thumb does not apply to academics. Everything Cassandra said - publications, talks, even poster presentations, the research you do (if any - it sucks to be an adjunct b/c you have to spread yourself so thin in order to pay he bills, that the research never gets done) and if nothing current, the research you did in grad school... all goes in the CV. Good luck.
ReplyDeleteI have a long CV (but then I'm old).
ReplyDeleteI include education, work experience, and work-made-public (published, exhibited, workshops taught, presentations at conferences). I do also list computer programs I am proficient in (important for my job), professional memberships and awards.
I do not include committee work, advising, etc. That is included in my annual report. If you really wanted to, you could state, under a work experience listing, something like, "instructed in the art of hamster fur weaving, served on committees, and provided student advising". Or something along those lines. But I wouldn't bog down your CV with a listing of committees, etc. Or this could be included in your statement of teaching philosophy or your cover letter.
For a CV - 1 page seems short to me. Students stepping right out of school start with a 1-pager. I would hope an experienced instructor would have more than that. But some general advice (borne out of experience)...
Formatting, formatting, formatting. Please oh please have someone format your CV if you don't know how to do it. A type size of 10 pts is perfectly acceptable. Pick ONE type face and stick with it. Don't overdo the use of boldface. And NEVER underline (this is a carryover from typewriter days). Italicize, rather than underlining. Following these few rules alone, will make for a professional-looking CV. You could also do a "targeted" resume/CV, where you list your skills at the very top. If you want to tailor your CV to a particular job or type of job, this could be effective. Use action verbs that are dynamic to describe duties you have fulfilled. If you do go to more than one page, number the pages... and I would include your name in the header or footer as well.
And if you are writing a cover letter (or email for that matter) - either INDENT or use an extra HARD RETURN between paragraphs. Otherwise, you are basically submitting a big, run-on sentence. I see this all the time in grant proposals that I review, and it's hard to read and really annoying. And very common.
Good luck!
I have a long CV (but then I'm old).
ReplyDeleteI include education, work experience, and work-made-public (published, exhibited, workshops taught, presentations at conferences). I do also list computer programs I am proficient in (important for my job), professional memberships and awards.
I do not include committee work, advising, etc. That is included in my annual report. If you really wanted to, you could state, under a work experience listing, something like, "instructed in the art of hamster fur weaving, served on committees, and provided student advising". Or something along those lines. But I wouldn't bog down your CV with a listing of committees, etc. Or this could be included in your statement of teaching philosophy or your cover letter.
For a CV - 1 page seems short to me. Students stepping right out of school start with a 1-pager. I would hope an experienced instructor would have more than that. But some general advice (borne out of experience)...
Formatting, formatting, formatting. Please oh please have someone format your CV if you don't know how to do it. A type size of 10 pts is perfectly acceptable. Pick ONE type face and stick with it. Don't overdo the use of boldface. And NEVER underline (this is a carryover from typewriter days). Italicize, rather than underlining. Following these few rules alone, will make for a professional-looking CV. You could also do a "targeted" resume/CV, where you list your skills at the very top. If you want to tailor your CV to a particular job or type of job, this could be effective. Use action verbs that are dynamic to describe duties you have fulfilled. If you do go to more than one page, number the pages... and I would include your name in the header or footer as well.
And if you are writing a cover letter (or email for that matter) - either INDENT or use an extra HARD RETURN between paragraphs. Otherwise, you are basically submitting a big, run-on sentence. I see this all the time in grant proposals that I review, and it's hard to read and really annoying. And very common.
Good luck!
EMH, I'm so glad you brought this up. I went back and tidied up my C.V. (not that it was horrible) and made it more streamlined. I tried to view it like a stranger would, and it appears even more professional now. Thank you! May we both find awesome online jobs!
ReplyDelete