What is an Academic CV?

How do you write an academic CV that helps you stand out for all the right reasons as a PhD graduate? In this article, Katie Hoare, a careers and employability specialist for postgraduate and early career researchers, shares her top tips.

First of all, let’s deal with a common misconception which can lead to unsuccessful applications and frustrated recruiters. An academic CV is not a static document that you only update when you change jobs or have a new publication to record. Your academic CV should be a living, breathing document that you change and tailor every single time you apply for a job.

The purpose of a CV is to secure a job interview, therefore, you need to demonstrate how you can provide specifically what the hiring manager is looking for. Even if a job has the same title but is in a different department of the same institution, you should not use the same CV, you need to tailor it to the specific role every time. For this reason, you won’t find an academic CV template in this article, instead, you will acquire the understanding and knowledge you need to create your own, flexible academic CV.

Although you need to tailor your academic CV for each role, you can still write a skeleton CV without having a specific role in mind. This will save you time when you have a job application due. (Tip: try to submit your job applications at least 48 hours before the deadline, as this will impact when your CV is read by the shortlisting panel). In a skeleton CV you can work out your formatting and include the core information, which is unlikely to need tailoring. For example, your contact details (always the first section), Education (usually the second section), Publications, Conference attendance etc – see the full list of sections below.

Academic CV Format and Layout

There is no prescribed order for presenting the information, and there are no word or page limits. As the document may be lengthy, it is important to ensure that it is well-structured, clearly laid out, and easy to navigate. Use headings for each section and, where appropriate, present information in bullet points rather than lengthy paragraphs. You should avoid using decorative fonts or graphics, and underlining, bold text, and italics should be used sparingly and only where they add clarity. The appearance should be simple and professional, and, as with all documents, but particularly job applications, make sure you check and double-check your spelling and grammar.

When you write your skeleton CV, do not worry about the order of the sections or how the content fits within the pages, as the order will change based on the role you are applying for. For example, the location of your publications section should change, depending on the focus of the role. If you are applying for a Postdoc/Research Associate/Research Fellow position, your publication history is very relevant, so this would be towards the top of your CV. However, if you are applying for a teaching-focused post, your publications would be placed further down the document, and your teaching experience section would be near the top.

The sections which will need tailoring for each individual application are Research Experience, Teaching Experience, Administrative Experience and your Profile, if you choose to have one.

Common Sections of an Academic CV

Within each section of your CV, you should include information in reverse chronological order, i.e. the most recent achievements are recorded first.

The following is not a list of required sections; many of them are optional and should only be included if they are relevant to the post for which you are applying.

Contact details

Always the first section: Name, email address, phone number, ORCID, potentially your LinkedIn URL if your profile is well-maintained.

Profile

Describe your achievements to date, your relevant skills, qualifications and training and your plans for the future.

Education

Limit this to your Higher Education qualifications only. For your PhD, provide the title and a brief synopsis, the names of your supervisor/s and your external examiner, your university, and your date of completion or projected submission date.

Research experience

Include the knowledge and experience that is relevant to the post. (See tips below)

Relevant research skills

List your transferable research skills that are relevant to the role. (See tips below)

Teaching experience

At a minimum, include the name/s of the module/s, the level and your role. (See tips below)

Administrative experience

Include information that is relevant to the post, e.g. organising PGR events, invigilating exams, volunteering at Open Days, committee membership. (See tips below)

Publications

Organised by status:

• books (if applicable)
• peer-reviewed journal articles (published, then forthcoming, then under review)
• book chapters
• other outputs

Include those that are in progress, submitted and under review, as well as published. Clearly note the stage of each publication and include any future release dates. If any publications are particularly relevant to the department’s research clusters, highlight them and/or mention them in your Research Experience section. Don’t expect the panel to identify it themselves from a list.

Editorial positions

Include information about your role, the work involved, and the skills you developed.

Awards and research funding

If you received funding for your PhD, include the full amount, e.g. ‘EPSRC Doctoral Training Partnership: approx. £62,340’. Include any competitively awarded funding such as for travel to conferences, scholarships, small research grants, etc.

Conference attendance

Highlight any invitations to present, provide papers or posters.

Professional qualifications and training

Include e.g. PGCert in Teaching and Learning, Fellowship of AdvanceHE. Include memberships of learned societies or professional bodies.

Public engagement/knowledge exchange

If relevant, use this section to demonstrate your ability to communicate your research outside the academy and give evidence of your impact.

Employment

Only include roles which are relevant to the post and focus on your transferable skills and achievements.

References

Include the details of two or three referees who can comment on your academic abilities, research potential, teaching experience, and professional conduct. For most academic applications, referees will typically include your principal supervisor and either your external examiner or another academic who knows your work well. Make sure you ask their permission before giving their details. It can also be helpful to let them know the types of roles you are applying for and the specific skills required, so they can tailor their references rather than provide a generic statement. It will save your referees time if you remind them of specific work or activities you undertook which demonstrate key skills you would like them to highlight.

Using action words in your CV

When writing your CV, you may want to use ‘action words’ to highlight your skills and achievements. For example:

achieved, analysed, assessed, arranged, budgeted, calculated, completed, conducted, co-ordinated, created, designed, devised, developed, discovered, evaluated, examined, explained, increased, liaised, managed, monitored, negotiated, organised, planned, recommended, represented, selected, solved, supervised, taught, tested, trained, welcomed.

How to Tailor Your Academic CV for Each Application

Tips for your Research Experience Section

If you are applying for a postdoc or other research-focused role that is closely aligned with your PhD, you could go into some detail about your current research, i.e. your research aims, the methodology, techniques you used, key findings, etc. and make it clear how this relates to the research project of the post. You might want to refer to any specialist equipment or software that you used or anything directly relevant about your data collection or analysis process, if these are mentioned in the job description. You could also name-drop any experts in the field, leading theories or key developments that have influenced your work, to demonstrate your knowledge and engagement with the subject area.

In addition to describing your specific research project, you should also talk about what you have learnt through the process of doing a PhD, i.e. relevant transferable skills that you will bring to the post. Carefully review the job description and person specification and extract all the specific skills the employer is seeking. Ensure you mention each of them, demonstrating how you have developed them. If the post is asking for knowledge and experience of specific research methods or techniques, you could add a Relevant Research Skills section. This can be presented as a concise bullet-point list that directly matches your experience to each of the criteria. Where appropriate, use the same terminology and language as the job description to make these connections explicit. This will make it easy for the recruitment panel to go through and tick each of the requirements off.

If you are applying for a postdoc that is not so closely aligned with your research area, you should keep the detail about your PhD in your Research Experience section brief, and instead focus on your research knowledge, skills and experience that are transferable and directly relevant to the role. For example, how you approached your research topic, any processes or techniques you used which are relevant and transferable for this post, i.e. conducting literature reviews, designing and implementing research methodologies, data collection and management techniques, analysis process etc.

You could mention specialist equipment, software, or technical skills you have acquired if they are similar to or relevant to the requirements for the post, or if you need to evidence your ability to learn new processes. The main focus is what you have learnt through the process of doing a PhD, i.e. relevant transferable skills that you will bring to the post. You may also want to add a Relevant Research Skills section, as mentioned above.

In your Research Experience section, you might also want to outline your research interests and future career aspirations, making clear links to the focus of the postdoc project. The Principal Investigator (PI) wants to hire someone who will stay for the duration of the project, so you need to evidence your passion and commitment. This is particularly important if the research topic differs significantly from your PhD area.

If you are applying for a teaching position, it can still be beneficial to include a Research Experience section, but it would be shorter and positioned later in the document. Rather than referencing your research methods, data collection process or the equipment you learnt to use, you could refer to key texts or theories that you studied or experts in the field that your work relies on, if these are relevant to the topics you will be teaching. It is your knowledge and understanding of the subject area that is most important to highlight, especially if you will be delivering research-led teaching.

Profile Section

Another option is to include a Profile section at the beginning of your CV. This can be used either alongside or instead of separate Research Experience and Research Skills sections. A profile should provide a concise overview of your achievements to date, your most relevant skills and experience, and your future career aspirations, allowing you to immediately demonstrate your suitability for the role.

For teaching-focused positions, this section would highlight your teaching-related skills, i.e. presentation skills, ability to translate complex information for an undergraduate audience, designing teaching materials and assessments etc. You should also highlight any relevant teaching qualifications and professional recognition such as a PGCert in Teaching and Learning and/or Fellowship of AdvanceHE (FHEA).

Tips for your Teaching Experience Section

For a Teaching Fellow, Lecturer or similar role, your Teaching Experience section should be positioned prominently, typically near the beginning of the document, and the level of detail will be much greater than in a CV for a postdoc. Include all relevant teaching experience, paid and voluntary, including any informal mentoring or support you offered to individual students. For each teaching role or module, provide clear information on:

• The module title and level
• The type of teaching delivered (e.g. lecture, seminar, tutorial, lab, demonstration)
• The number of students taught
• Your specific responsibilities and contribution

Where a module title does not clearly convey the content, and the topic is relevant to the role, consider including a brief description to highlight your subject expertise. Ensure you include information about your input to the planning or design of the teaching, any innovations you made or impact you can quantify, as well as the evaluation techniques you used for marking and feedback of students’ work.

If you have experience of delivering online or blended learning, be sure to explain what this involved rather than simply listing it as a responsibility. This could include the use of virtual learning environments, lecture capture technologies, online assessment tools, discussion forums, or other digital platforms. You should also highlight any experience of adapting or redesigning existing face-to-face teaching for online delivery, particularly if this improved the student experience, engagement, or accessibility. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) is an important consideration in Higher Education. If you have developed accessible learning materials, implemented inclusive teaching methods, supported students with diverse learning needs, or have undertaken training or research in this area, ensure this is clearly reflected in your application. Demonstrating an awareness of, and commitment to, inclusive educational practice can be a significant strength.

For applications within the UK Higher Education sector, you could look at the Advance HE Professional Standards Framework and use similar language when writing about your teaching experience.

In a postdoc CV, you should still include a Teaching Experience section if you have had the opportunity to teach during your PhD, especially if teaching or supervision of students is mentioned in the job description. Provide the title and level of each module and your specific role. You may choose to add a brief description if the module title is not clear enough, especially if the subject area aligns with the research area of the postdoc.

Tips for your Administrative Experience Section

This section is an opportunity to highlight activities that contribute to the wider academic community and institutional environment, beyond your core research and teaching responsibilities. The content will depend entirely on what is being asked in the job description. As well as the person specification, read the Main Activities/Tasks/Responsibilities to find specific duties that the post-holder will undertake.

For example, a postdoc job description may talk about liaising with colleagues and students, developing internal and external contacts, participating in networks for the exchange of information etc. If you have been in any networks or on any committees or liaised with people outside of your research team, perhaps to organise events, these are relevant experiences to include. When describing these experiences, focus not only on your responsibilities but also on the transferable skills you developed.

Similarly, teaching-focused roles often expect candidates to contribute to the wider work of the Faculty, School, or University through involvement in committees, working groups, professional networks, and institutional initiatives. So again, your membership of committees or networks would be a relevant activity to include. Ensure you highlight your role and what you learnt and achieved.

Hopefully, you are now beginning to understand how to design your academic CV for each specific role to best highlight your most relevant skills and experience. You can use the Person Specification and the Main Activities/Tasks/Responsibilities sections of the job description to guide the order of the sections within your CV.

Should You Contact the Hiring Manager Before Applying?

If you have already started reading job descriptions, you may have noticed similarities and even identical text between descriptions for academic roles within the same university. Many institutions have standard text which the hiring manager chooses from a list provided by HR. This can mean that a job description becomes a bit generic and not as insightful about the individual post as you might expect.

However, when a role is advertised, there is a named person to contact with any questions. It is always a good idea to contact them and arrange a brief meeting, usually online. You may think you already have plenty of information about the post, but there is always more specific detail you can find out to help you accurately tailor your CV. And it is good to show your interest and enthusiasm for the role, as the lead contact is usually the hiring manager, and they will remember your name when they are shortlisting.

Every academic job vacancy exists because an institution has identified a specific need. This may be the appointment of staff to a newly funded research project, the replacement of a departing colleague, or the creation of a new position to support departmental growth, strategic priorities, or emerging areas of research and teaching. Whatever the reason, the hiring manager has a need or a problem that they want the candidate to address. The more you understand about their needs, the more you can position yourself as the best person to address them. You can also find out what they think success will look like in the role, and this will help you tailor your application according to their specific priorities. Here are a few tips to ensure it is a good meeting:

• Prepare some questions in advance. This is your opportunity to find out if this role is the right one for you.
• Have something ready to make notes with, or ask if you can record the meeting so that you can refer back to it when writing your application.
• Consider what you are wearing and what is behind you on the screen if you are meeting online.
• Prepare a brief introductory statement about yourself and why you are interested in the role, or why you requested the meeting.
• Make sure you know who they are and their role – read their bio on the University website and/or their profile on LinkedIn if they have one.
• At the end of the meeting, don’t forget to thank them for their time and the information they have given you. You could also send them an email afterwards to re-thank them for their time, and, if you are still interested in the role, mention your enthusiasm for submitting your application for the post.
• You could also make a connection request to them on LinkedIn after the meeting, if you both have a profile. (Ensure yours is up-to-date first).

Understand the Academic Shortlisting Process

An early career academic position can receive over 100 applications, and only 4 or 5 will be shortlisted for interview. Shortlisting is usually a speedy process, with the hiring panel aiming to significantly narrow the field and eliminate weak applications, leaving a long list for discussion. The panel then agreed on the handful of candidates to invite for an interview.

To carry out the shortlisting process, the members of the interview panel individually go through the CVs and cover letters/job applications with an assessment grid or similar document, and mark them against the criteria set out in the job description. This is usually a scoring system such as: 0 – has not met; 1 – has partially met; 2 – has met; 3 – has exceeded. The candidates who have met all the essential criteria, or with the highest scores, are then shortlisted for interview.

It can be useful to bear the shortlisting process in mind when writing your CV (and cover letter/application), as it will assist you in making your evidence that you match their criteria very precise and unambiguous.

Final thoughts

I hope you have found this article useful and informative. I wish you all the best with your future academic career.

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