How to write an Academic CV :
Firstly, let me clarify the difference between a Resume and a CV.
Resume is written for job seeking purposes (showcasing professional experiences) mostly whereas CV basically highlights your academic experiences more than your professional experiences. A good CV should Include your academic achievements, teaching, research and volunteering experiences. 33
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Basics in Academic CV :
If you’re applying for postgraduate studies, your SSC or HSC GPA/scores is not necessary at all. However, your undergraduate level CGPA is important. Most of the North American institutions put more emphasis on the last two years CGPA. You can mention that inside a bracket. Write all your achievements in reverse chronological order. That means the newest one comes first.
Points required in Academic CV:
Education: You don’t have to add your entire education journey in here, just the post secondary level of your studies. University name from where you did your Bachelor’s/Master’s , subject name and the year you passed.
Awards and Scholarship:
- Educational awards : You can add any scholarship/awards you got. I have seen people getting dean’s award, presidential gold medal, even DU Halls gives out Scholarship to the good CGPA holder. Don’t hold back. No matter how small your achievement is ADVERTISE! And for the thousandth time please quantify your achievements. What does it mean Apu? I was three times winner of the Dean’s List award for my outstanding results in 3rd, 4th and 7th semesters where I got 87% marks. Do you write your achievements like this? If not you can reconsider.
- Extracurricular activity awards : If you got any award for representing your institution in any kind of Olympiad/Debate Tournament/Dancing singing competition, you can show it in your CV. It creates a positive impact on your CV as it shows that you’re exceptional compared to other students.
Research Interest: Doing research about a certain topic isn’t easy. You’ve to invest time in it, brainstorm, edit the facts and review over and over again. Try to find a research puzzle that interests you to research about it to impress your professor. This part is extremely valuable as it shows your excellency. Lot of people have trouble finding out their research interests. This is mostly important for the thesis based Masters program. Why is the thesis based MS given more attention here? Because these kinds of MS have the Highest Scholarship potential. If you don’t need funding don’t bother. Enjoy your life. Now about research please do some background reading, (at least 50 research papers). The more you read on your topic of interest the more ideas you will generate. Understand what people are doing in your field. Maybe a lot of these reading materials are not directly applicable for your research but it is very easy to distinguish a well read person from the other. I am posting a podcast on a YouTube channel. I will interview people about their scholarship journey. Do watch them. Every single student emphasized the importance of reading to identify your research interest.
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Research Experience :If you have any thesis, or paper that has been published, research project you’ve participated in under any professor, working as a freelancer under any research community or organization, you can add it as your experience. Students with research experience are highly valued. Hyperlink the published papers. If you don’t have publications for now but are working on any project, mention them as well. Add and bracket to say this is a working paper.
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Professional Experience :If you have relevant work experience well and good. Add that. Again quantify. Try to establish why you are better than others. If you don’t have relevant work experience, strategically place your relevant skills and experiences first and put less relevant ones behind.
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Teaching Experience : if you’ve taught or coached in any institution, or taught online as a freelancer, you can add it. You can add your teaching experience with any undergraduate student if you’ve coached him/her being a postgraduate applicant.
Extra Curricular: Same rule applies here too. Put relevant experiences first and less relevant ones behind. No need to overthink on this part. It is just a backup plan for the people who have lacking in research or work experiences. Volunteering and extracurricular experiences proves this student can go the extra mile for their passion.
Conferences : Students attend various training programs/conferences where they present their works. You can add about your participation in conferences and talk about the work you presented there.
Language ability : Good command over language is essential in grad school, especially for students from Arts background as the topics in this subject are debatable, not mathematical. There is no shortcut here. But a lot of students ask if I can start sending emails to the professors without an IELTS score. Professors don’t care about your IELTS as long as you have some research plan. I will write more on how to email professors in the next newsletter.
References : Depending on your field you might include references at the end of your CV. It does not necessarily have to be a Celebrity Professor. You should opt for someone who knows you well.
Tips and Tricks:
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NEVER ADD PHOTOS!
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Try not to exceed your CV by more than two pages.
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Think about which topic is more important for your particular university/department and place the most valuable information at the top.
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Talk to someone who reads in the department you’re wanting to apply in and ask for feedback for your CV.
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Be sure to use an easy-to-read font (Times New Roman).
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You don’t have to make it aesthetically pleasing but make sure it is easy to read. No hijibiji.
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Carefully review your CV and proofread for any spelling or grammatical errors. USE GRAMMARLY GAWD. It’s free. :’)
I am always a work in progress. I am not super impressed with the CV I submitted at MUN. I got the admission God knows how. I am Adding a CV sample I found online and also attaching some links that you might find helpful. Don’t rely on my words solely. Always double check. Be skeptical. Have a great day. If you need Mentorship, SOP review bla bla you know the drill………
