How To Write a CV: Tips, Template and Example

What Is a CV?

CV stands for curriculum vitae, a Latin expression commonly translated as “course of life.” It is a document that summarizes a person’s education, experience, skills and achievements.

The meaning of CV varies by location:

• United States: A CV is generally a detailed document used for academic, research, scientific and medical opportunities.
• United Kingdom and parts of Europe: CV is the standard term for a document similar to a U.S. resume.
• Other countries: CV and resume may be used interchangeably or may follow country-specific conventions.

Always review the application instructions before deciding which format to submit.

CV vs. Resume

Area	CV	Resume
Primary purpose	Academic, research or detailed professional record	Targeted job application
Typical length	Multiple pages when necessary	Usually one or two pages
Main focus	Education, research, teaching and complete achievements	Skills and experience relevant to one role
Customization	Sections and emphasis change by opportunity	Content is closely tailored to each job
Common U.S. use	Academia, medicine, research and grants	Most private-sector positions

A CV should still be relevant and readable. Having no strict page limit does not mean including every activity you have ever completed.

When Do You Need a CV?

You may need a CV when applying for:

• Academic positions
• Research jobs
• Graduate school
• Medical or scientific roles
• Fellowships
• Grants
• Scholarships
• Teaching positions
• Conference opportunities
• International jobs
• Expert consulting assignments

If an employer requests a CV but the expected format is unclear, review examples from the country and industry or ask the employer for clarification.

Common CV Sections

Contact Information

Include:

• Full name
• City and state or region
• Phone number
• Professional email address
• Professional website
• Portfolio
• Professional networking profile

A full street address is usually unnecessary unless specifically requested.

Professional or Research Summary

A summary introduces your field, experience and main areas of expertise. Keep it concise and adapt it to the opportunity.

Education

List your degrees in reverse chronological order. Include:

• Degree
• Field of study
• Institution
• Location
• Graduation date
• Thesis or dissertation title
• Academic honors when relevant

Research Experience

Describe research appointments, laboratory work, fieldwork and major projects. Explain your methods, responsibilities and contributions.

Professional Experience

Include employment relevant to your academic or professional development. Provide the organization, title, dates and accomplishment-focused bullet points.

Teaching Experience

List courses taught, teaching assistant positions, workshops and curriculum-development responsibilities.

Publications

Use a consistent citation style appropriate for your discipline. Separate peer-reviewed articles, books, chapters and other publications when necessary.

Presentations

Include conference presentations, invited lectures, posters and seminars. Specify the event, location and date.

Grants and Fellowships

List the title, funding organization, amount when appropriate, your role and the award date.

Awards and Honors

Include competitive awards, academic recognition and relevant professional honors.

Skills

Possible skills include:

• Laboratory methods
• Research techniques
• Statistical software
• Programming languages
• Data visualization
• Languages
• Specialized equipment
• Field methods

Certifications and Licenses

Include the credential name, issuing organization and expiration date when applicable.

Professional Memberships

List active memberships in relevant academic or professional organizations.

Service and Leadership

Include committee work, peer review, mentoring, community involvement and leadership positions.

References

Some academic applications request references directly on the CV, while others use a separate document or online system. Follow the application instructions and obtain permission before sharing someone’s contact information.

How To Write a CV

1. Review the Application Requirements

Identify the required document type, sections, file format and length. Some institutions provide detailed formatting instructions.

2. Create a Complete Master CV

Maintain a master document containing your education, projects, publications, presentations, awards and employment. You can then create targeted versions without trying to remember older achievements.

3. Add Accurate Contact Information

Place your name prominently at the top. Use an email address that you check regularly and verify every link.

4. Write a Targeted Summary

Use two to four sentences to explain your background, research focus and relevant strengths. Avoid broad descriptions that could apply to any candidate.

5. Organize Your Education

For an academic CV, education often appears near the beginning. Candidates with extensive professional experience may choose a different order when appropriate.

6. Describe Experience With Strong Verbs

Begin bullet points with action verbs such as:

• Analyzed
• Conducted
• Designed
• Developed
• Evaluated
• Investigated
• Presented
• Published
• Supervised
• Trained

Explain the result or purpose rather than listing only routine duties.

7. Document Publications Consistently

Use the citation style common in your discipline. Maintain consistent capitalization, author order, journal titles and dates.

Clearly distinguish published, accepted, under-review and in-preparation work. Do not describe an unpublished paper as published.

8. Select Relevant Additional Sections

Choose sections that strengthen your application. An early-career researcher might emphasize coursework and projects, while an experienced academic may prioritize publications and grants.

9. Arrange Sections Strategically

Place the most relevant information where reviewers can find it quickly. For a teaching position, move teaching experience higher. For a research fellowship, emphasize research and publications.

10. Format the CV Clearly

Use:

• Consistent headings
• Readable fonts
• Reasonable margins
• Reverse chronological order
• Consistent date formats
• Simple bullet points
• Sufficient white space
• Page numbers for longer documents

Avoid excessive colors, graphics and decorative elements unless they are appropriate for your field.

11. Proofread and Verify Every Detail

Confirm names, dates, publication titles and contact information. Ask a mentor or colleague in your field to review the document.

12. Save the Correct File Type

PDF usually preserves formatting, but submit a Word document if requested. Use a clear file name such as:

Morgan-Davis-Academic-CV.pdf

CV Writing Tips

Tailor the Order, Not the Facts

You can change which sections appear first, but never change dates, titles or accomplishments to create a misleading impression.

Include Evidence

Replace general statements with specific contributions.

Instead of:

“Helped with several research projects.”

Write:

“Collected and analyzed water samples from 24 monitoring locations for a regional watershed study.”

Explain Unfamiliar Terms

Spell out uncommon abbreviations the first time they appear. Reviewers outside your immediate specialty may not recognize internal terminology.

Use Consistent Dates

Choose one format, such as “August 2023–Present,” and use it throughout the document.

Update the CV Regularly

Add publications, presentations and awards when they occur. Waiting until an application deadline increases the risk of missing information.

Protect Private Information

Do not include sensitive identification numbers, marital status, age or a photograph unless local application conventions specifically require them and doing so is appropriate.

CV Template

[Full Name]
[City, State or Region] | [Phone] | [Email]
[Professional website] | [Portfolio or professional profile]

Professional Summary

[Two to four sentences describing your field, experience, research interests and relevant strengths.]

Education

[Degree and field]
[Institution], [Location] | [Graduation date]
Thesis or dissertation: “[Title]”
Advisor: [Name, if relevant]

Research Experience

[Position title]
[Institution or organization], [Location] | [Dates]

• [Research responsibility or achievement]
• [Method, equipment or software used]
• [Result, publication or contribution]

Professional Experience

[Job title]
[Employer], [Location] | [Dates]

• [Relevant achievement]
• [Relevant responsibility]
• [Measurable result]

Teaching Experience

[Course or teaching role]
[Institution] | [Dates]

• [Teaching responsibility]
• [Curriculum or mentoring contribution]

Publications

• [Authors]. “[Article title].” [Journal], [volume and issue], [year], [pages or DOI].
• [Authors]. “[Chapter or book title].” [Publisher], [year].

Presentations

• “[Presentation title],” [conference or event], [location], [date].

Grants and Fellowships

• [Award title], [funding organization], [year], [role or amount if appropriate].

Awards and Honors

• [Award], [organization], [year].

Skills

• Research: [Methods]
• Technical: [Software, programming or equipment]
• Languages: [Language and proficiency]

Professional Memberships

• [Organization], [dates]

Service and Leadership

• [Position], [organization], [dates]

References

Available upon request, or list references when the application requires them.

CV Example

Morgan Davis
Portland, Oregon | (555) 012-6843 | morgan.davis@email.com
morgandavisresearch.com

Professional Summary

Environmental researcher with six years of experience studying urban water quality and watershed restoration. Skilled in field sampling, statistical analysis and translating scientific findings into recommendations for public agencies and community organizations.

Education

Master of Science in Environmental Science
Northwest State University, Portland, Oregon | May 2021
Thesis: “Effects of Urban Development on Seasonal Stream Nutrient Levels”

Bachelor of Science in Biology
Lakeside College, Eugene, Oregon | May 2017
Graduated magna cum laude

Research Experience

Research Associate
Northwest Water Research Center, Portland, Oregon | June 2021–Present

• Coordinate water-quality monitoring across 32 urban and rural sampling locations
• Analyze nutrient, temperature and dissolved oxygen data using R and geographic information systems
• Supervise four undergraduate research assistants and maintain fieldwork safety procedures
• Coauthored two peer-reviewed studies on watershed restoration
• Presented findings to municipal planners and nonprofit partners

Graduate Research Assistant
Northwest State University | August 2018–May 2021

• Designed a two-year study of seasonal nutrient changes in urban streams
• Collected and processed more than 500 water samples
• Developed reproducible data-cleaning and statistical analysis procedures
• Prepared technical reports for a regional environmental agency

Teaching Experience

Teaching Assistant, Introduction to Environmental Science
Northwest State University | 2019–2021

• Led two weekly laboratory sections with 24 students each
• Evaluated laboratory reports and provided written feedback
• Developed a field exercise on stream-health assessment

Publications

• Davis, Morgan, and Elena Ruiz. “Seasonal Nutrient Patterns in Urban Watersheds.” Journal of Applied Water Research, vol. 18, no. 2, 2024, pp. 115–132.
• Ruiz, Elena, Morgan Davis, and Samuel Green. “Community-Based Monitoring and Watershed Restoration.” Environmental Field Methods, vol. 11, no. 4, 2022, pp. 201–219.

Presentations

• “Using Community Data to Evaluate Stream Restoration,” Northwest Environmental Research Conference, Seattle, Washington, April 2025.
• “Seasonal Changes in Urban Stream Chemistry,” Regional Water Science Symposium, Portland, Oregon, October 2023.

Grants and Awards

• Early Career Environmental Research Grant, Regional Science Foundation, 2024
• Outstanding Graduate Research Award, Northwest State University, 2021

Skills

• Field sampling and laboratory quality control
• R, Python and geographic information systems
• Statistical modeling and data visualization
• Scientific writing and public presentations
• English and professional working proficiency in Spanish

Professional Memberships

• Society for Freshwater Science
• Association of Environmental Professionals

Service

Volunteer Science Advisor
Portland Community Watershed Network | 2022–Present

• Review community monitoring procedures
• Deliver workshops on water-quality sampling and data interpretation

Use Dokie To Present Your CV Achievements

Dokie can help transform CV content, research findings and professional accomplishments into a structured presentation. You can use it to create an academic interview deck, research portfolio, conference presentation or project summary while maintaining a clear connection between your evidence and main message.

Conclusion

A strong CV presents a clear, accurate record of your academic and professional development. Follow the application requirements, prioritize relevant sections and update your master CV whenever you complete a significant achievement.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long should a CV be?

An academic CV has no strict page limit. It should be long enough to document relevant achievements without including unnecessary information.

Do I need a CV if I have limited experience?

Yes, if the opportunity requests one. Early-career candidates can include education, research projects, coursework, presentations, volunteer work and technical skills.

Should a CV include a photograph?

In the United States, photographs are generally excluded unless specifically requested for an appropriate reason. Expectations differ by country, so review local conventions.

Should I include references on my CV?

Include them when the application requests them or when doing so is standard in your field. Obtain permission before providing a reference’s contact information.

Is PDF the best format for a CV?

PDF is usually appropriate because it preserves formatting. Submit another format when the application instructions specifically request it.