Purpose of a Curriculum Vitae (CV) 

In the United States, the curriculum vitae, also called an academic résumé or CV for short, is a summary of one’s personal history and professional qualifications submitted as part of a job, graduate school or internship application process. In Latin, the term means “the course of one’s life.” CVs are similar to résumés - they are marketing tools that showcase your skills, experience, knowledge, education and personal qualities; however, they have a different audience and often include additional categories with more in-depth information.

CVs are most requested for:

• Applying for academic, scientific, medical, legal and research positions 
• Applying to some graduate and professional programs 
• Grant, fellowship and scholarship applications 
• University and College Faculty departmental/tenure review 
• Professional association memberships 
• European and Latin American countries 

What Are the Differences Between a Resume and a CV?

Formatting Tips

• Arrange the sections of your CV to prioritize the most important and relevant information. 
• Tailor your CV to align with your field or a specific employer/position. 
• Select information strategically; avoid including everything you’ve ever done despite the lack of a page limit. 
• Use a standard font (e.g., Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri), action verbs, accomplishment statements, proper grammar and spelling and consistent headings to organize content effectively. 
• Avoid first-person pronouns (“I”) and exclude irrelevant or personal information (e.g., marital status, health). 
• Include your name and page number in a header or footer starting on the second page; update your CV every six months to a year. 
• Apply a 10 to 12-point font size with 0.5” to 1” margins; use a slightly larger font size for headings. 
• Position dates to the right to keep key selling points aligned to the left, where the reader’s eye naturally begins. 
• Highlight information using boldface, italics, and spacing sparingly and consistently to maintain readability. 
• Maintain a clean, professional appearance by avoiding shading, multiple fonts, images and other distracting elements.

Common CV Section Headings

Begin your CV with a header that includes your name (bolded and in one font size larger than the body of the document), city and state, telephone number, personal email address and website and/or LinkedIn URL. The body of the CV will include all other relevant information under different headings. Common CV headings include (but are not limited to):

• Education 
• Dissertation, Thesis or Capstone Project Title
• Teaching Interests/Teaching Experience
• Scholarly Activity 
  • Research Positions 
  • Oral Presentations 
  • Poster Presentations 
  • Publications 
• Service/Community Engagement 
• Awards, Fellowships, Honors, Grants 
• Relevant Experience (e.g. internships, professional training opportunities, relevant work experience)
• Memberships and Professional Affiliations

Additional CV Section Headings

Some of these headings may not apply to you or your field. Add only sections that are relevant to you and add additional sections that are appropriate for your field of interest. Faculty and experienced professionals are helpful resources.

• University Involvement/Co-Curricular Experience
• Certifications/Licenses 
• Clinical Experiences 
• Consulting Experiences 
• Laboratory Experiences 
• Language Proficiencies 
• International Experiences/Exposures 
• Leadership 
• Practicum Experiences
• Professional Summary/Summary of Qualifications
• Technical/Specialized Skills
• Personal Interests