Career and Life Planning Guidebook for Medical Residents

R E A D : The Components: Your first page is the most significant and should always include the following: contact information, undergraduate and medical education, licensing/ certifications, and experience. Assume that the physician recruiter or search committee will only see the first page. Since you may use your CV for multiple reasons, you may want to create a master CV and change it depending onwho you are sending it to. Candidates whohaveanacademicbackgroundbut areapplying for a non-academic position could consider deleting the academic parts, i.e. publications and presentations and include a line at the end of your CV stating “publications upon request”. other professional activities. A clinical CV, on the other hand, might be relatively brief and to the point highlighting training and clinical practice. Regardless of length, you can use the same CV for more than one job opportunity, but you may want to have two different versions: one for clinical practice and one for academic opportunities You should get in the habit of updating your CV on a regular basis. When you accomplish something, update your CV that very same day. Many residency programs now require that residents submit an updated CV annually, documenting the past year’s clinical load, research accomplishments, and service to the department, institution, profession, and community. Starting off with a blank page can be somewhat intimidating when creating your CV and is usually the hardest part. This is common and easy to overcome. Later in this chapter, we will provide you with sample CVs to use as a “jumping off” point if you are struggling to get started. Just remember, the devil is in the details. You can spend hours finding the treatment for a giant “zebra” of a case, only to be trampled by the “horse” that’s riding shotgun for the same patient. Remember this basic rule: As long as you build your CV so that it shows your timeline and is easy to read, you will be in good shape. So, what goes in a CV anyway? How do I use it to land that esteemed fellowship? First gig in a teaching hospital? A job at that family practice in your hometown? Read on to learn what exactly should be included. Don’t sweat it - the following will help guide your draft. SECTION II: T MINUS TWO YEARS CAREER AND LIFE PLANNING GUIDEBOOK FOR MEDICAL RESIDENTS 176