Career and Life Planning Guidebook for Medical Residents

R E A D : CVs and Resumes Defined You know what a CV is, but how is it different from a resume? A resume, usually limited to one page, lists your education andwork history and is primarily used in business settings. A curriculum vitae, Latin for “course of life”, is used in academic and medical settings. A CV provides the same information as a resume but in much more detail including achievements, certifications, awards, publications, etc. Because it offers much more information, and continues to expand with your career, a CV can grow to be many pages long. R E A D : Length and Other Myths Depending on the purpose of your CV, size matters: too long and you’ll overwhelm and bore your audience; too short and you’ll look inexperienced and unqualified for the position. Again, think of the SOAP note analogy: too many words on the page and your eyes glaze over; too few and you have no idea what is wrong with your patient. Unfortunately, many candidates either leave off all sorts of defining qualifications and experience for academic CV or they include too many details on a clinical CV. We are going to begin the CV building guide by discussing length before delving into detail about content; some physicians are so preoccupied with length that size becomes the overarching mindset when crafting their CV. Let it go. Honestly, keeping your CV to no more than two pages is optimal, but there’s an exception to every rule. It’s not uncommon for a seasoned academic CV to be dozens of pages long; full of presentations, publications, clinical experiences, reviews, consulting services, and The Art of Professional Storytelling: CV Building for Physicians 175 WWW.PHYSICIANCAREERPLANNING.COM