jobs.ac.uk - Great jobs for bright people
  • Find a Job
  • Find PhDs
  • Career Advice
  • Jobs by Email
  • Advertise a Job
  • Recruiters
  • Your Account

  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to secondary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

career-advice.jobs.ac.uk

Secondary Sidebar

jobs.ac.uk Career Advice

  • CV and Cover Letter Advice
    • CV Tips
    • Free CV Templates
    • Cover Letters with Examples
    • Personal Profiles
    • CV Resources
  • Jobseeking and Interview Tips
    • Jobseeking Tips
    • Academic Interviews
    • Professional Interviews
    • Jobseeking and Interview Resources
  • Career Development
    • Academic Careers
    • Research Careers
    • Career Progression Stories
    • Professional Careers
    • Working in Industry
    • Career Development Resources
    • Global Careers
    • Working From Home
  • Women in Higher Education
  • FE Career Advice
    • FE CV & Interview Tips
    • Working in FE
    • Managing your Career in FE
    • FE Jobs Profiles
  • Resources
    • Academic Case Studies
    • Professional Case Studies
    • Job Profiles
      • Biological Science Jobs
      • Health and Medical Jobs
      • Engineering and Technology Jobs
      • Computer Science Jobs
      • Physical and Environmental Science Jobs
      • Professional Service Jobs
        • Business Development Manager Jobs Profile
        • Chef Jobs Profile
        • Civil Service Jobs Profile
        • Email Marketing Jobs Profile
        • SEO Jobs Profile
        • Office Admin Jobs
    • Vlogs
  • Webinars
  • Country Profiles
    • Africa
      • Egypt
      • Ghana
      • Kenya
      • Nigeria
      • South Africa
    • Americas
      • Canada
      • United States of America
    • Asia
      • Bahrain
      • Brunei
      • China
      • Hong Kong
      • India
      • Japan
      • Kazakhstan
      • Malaysia
      • Qatar
      • Saudi Arabia
      • Dubai
      • Singapore
      • South Korea
      • Turkey
      • United Arab Emirates
      • Work in Vietnam – Country Profile
      • Work in Uzbekistan – Country Profile
    • Europe
      • Belgium
      • Denmark
      • Finland
      • France
      • Germany
      • Ireland
      • Italy
      • Netherlands
      • Norway
      • Russia
      • Spain
      • Sweden
      • Switzerland
      • United Kingdom
    • Oceania
      • Australia
      • New Zealand
  • PhD and Studentship Advice
    • Before your PhD
    • During your PhD
    • After your PhD
    • PhD advice
    • Studentship Resources
    • PhD Vlogs
  • Need help advertising a job?
  • About jobs.ac.uk
  • Ask A Professional
  • Academic Spotlight Interviews
  • Menu
    • CV and Cover Letter Advice
      • CV Tips
      • Free CV Templates
      • Cover Letters with Examples
      • Personal Profiles
      • CV Resources
    • Jobseeking and Interview Tips
      • Jobseeking Tips
      • Academic Interviews
      • Professional Interviews
      • Jobseeking and Interview Resources
    • Career Development
      • Academic Careers
      • Career Progression Stories
      • Research Careers
      • Professional Careers
      • Working in Industry
      • Career Development Resources
      • Global Careers
      • Working From Home
    • Women in Higher Education
    • FE Career Advice
      • FE CV & Interview Tips
      • Working in FE
      • Managing your Career in FE
      • FE Jobs Profiles
    • Resources
      • Academic Case Studies
      • Professional Case Studies
      • Interview questions tool
      • Vlogs
      • Job Profiles
        • Biological Science Jobs
        • Health and Medical Jobs
        • Engineering and Technology Jobs
        • Computer Science Jobs
        • Physical and Environmental Science Jobs
        • Professional Service Jobs
        • Civil Service jobs
    • Webinars
    • Country Profiles
      • Africa
        • Work in Egypt – Country Profile
        • Work in Ghana – Country Profile
        • Work in Kenya – Country Profile
        • Work in Nigeria – Country Profile
        • Work in South Africa – Country Profile
      • Americas
        • Work in Canada – Country Profile
        • Work in the United States of America – Country Profile
      • Asia
        • Work in Bahrain – Country Profile
        • Work in Brunei – Country Profile
        • Work in China – Country Profile
        • Work in Hong Kong – Country Profile
        • Work in India – Country Profile
        • Work in Japan – Country Profile
        • Work in Kazakhstan – Country Profile
        • Work in Malaysia – Country Profile
        • Work in Qatar – Country Profile
        • Work in Saudi Arabia – Country Profile
        • Work in Singapore – Country Profile
        • Work in South Korea – Country Profile
        • Work in Turkey – Country Profile
        • Work in United Arab Emirates – Country Profile
      • Dubai
      • Europe
        • Belgium Country Profile
        • Work in Denmark – Country Profile
        • Work in Finland – Country Profile
        • France Country Profile
        • Work in Germany – Country Profile
        • Work in Ireland – Country Profile
        • Work in Italy – Country Profile
        • Work in the Netherlands – Country Profile
        • Work in Norway – Country Profile
        • Work in Russia – Country Profile
        • Work in Spain – Country Profile
        • Work in Sweden – Country Profile
        • Work in Switzerland – Country Profile
        • Work in the United Kingdom – Country Profile
      • Oceania
        • Work in Australia – Country profile
        • Work in New Zealand – Country Profile
    • Studentship Advice
      • PhD
      • Studentship Resources
      • Vlogs
    • Need help advertising a job?
    • About jobs.ac.uk

How to Layout an Academic CV

academic cv1

An academic CV is very different from a generic CV, so the advice you see on other CV sites might not be relevant if you are applying for an academic job. It is important to present your CV so that it displays your academic achievements as well as relevant experience and skills and shows that you are suitable for that job. Remember, the selection panel might only have a few minutes to look at each CV, so it needs to catch their eye.

Here are some tips on how to layout an academic CV.

Length

Unlike other CVs, an academic CV does not have a limit and is usually 3 – 5 pages long. You are expected to include detailed information about your teaching experience, research and publications.

Format

You should put your contact details first and you might want to list information about your qualifications next (especially if you are completing a masters or PhD).

This could be followed by your experience in teaching, research publications and any grants/prizes awarded.

Ensure you include a list of any other professional activities and the names of two referees.

Personal statements are not as common in an academic CV. However, if you are applying for a specific opportunity, you might choose to write a short paragraph or bullet points summarising your research/career interests.

The order of the information will vary depending on the job you are applying for. If the job is teaching focussed, put the section about your teaching expertise near the top or if it’s a research post, prioritise that part of your CV.

Always put the most recent and/or the most prestigious example in each category first to show that your experience is current and relevant.

Contact details

Do not forget to include your contact details, many people do!

Include your name, professional and permanent email address and contact number that the employer can reach you on directly. You might choose to include your postal address, LinkedIn URL and a website / online portfolio showcasing your academic achievements.

There is no need to give your date of birth or include a photo for an academic CV in the UK. Research academic CVs in other countries if you are considering working overseas.

Content

Under the heading of teaching expertise include:

  • the names of courses
  • the institution where this was taught
  • the level (i.e. first year, postgraduate etc)
  • your role (seminar tutor, course leader)
  • your duties that focus on transferable skills and achievements rather than reading like a job description (course design, marking, lecturing, leading seminars etc)

Under the heading of research publications include:

  • books (academic and textbooks)
  • articles/papers
  • online publications
  • don’t forget to include information about any grants/prizes you have been awarded for your research, including dates, names of awarding body and amount awarded.

Under the heading of professional activities include:

  • membership/leadership of public bodies in your field
  • editorial experience (journals or collections of conference papers)
  • refereeing experience (for journals or publishers)
  • administrative roles you have done within your department such as admissions tutor

Overall appearance

Avoid large chunks of text and instead, use headings and bullet points where possible.

Do not use fancy fonts or graphic gimmicks.

Keep underlining, bold and italics to a minimum and use it to guide the reader’s eye to the most important sections.

Use a large enough point size for the average reader to be able to easily digest information (12 point is usually about right).

Keep the appearance simple and professional.

What did you think of our article? - please rate

3.7 / 5. 6


Share this article

Nadine Lewis

Nadine Lewis is a qualified and experienced careers consultant currently working in higher education. She is passionate about empowering students, graduates and professionals to take control of their careers. Nadine has been published in Prospects and presented at various events. In her spare time, she enjoys attending cultural activities and travelling around Europe. LinkedIn linkedin.com/in/nadinermlewis

Reader Interactions

You may also like:

  • Good leadership and teamwork lead to success

    Keeping your team motivated in challenging times

  • mature lady looking over paper work planning for retirement

    How to prepare for retirement

  • A man working from home using a laptop and calculator to analyze business activities.

    Get Creative with a Limited Budget

Comments

  1. Sonya Marden says

    3rd August 2020 at 1:46 am

    An excellent post, congratulations !!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

1 + 7 =

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Follow us

EDI button for Article

Latest Jobs

  • English Language Instructor

    Center for Language Education, Southern University of Science and Technology

    Location: Shenzhen

    Salary: Competitive compensation


  • LSE Fellow in Social Policy

    Department of Social Policy , London School of Economics and Political Science

    Location: London

    Salary: £42,679 - £51,000 per annum inclusive with potential to progress to £54,730 pa inclusive of London allowance


  • Health and Safety Adviser

    LSE Health and Safety, London School of Economics and Political Science

    Location: London

    Salary: £42,679 - £51,000 pa inclusive of London Allowance (with scope for progression to £54,730 pa inclusive of London Allowance)


  • Communications and Administration Assistant

    Homerton College, University of Cambridge

    Location: Cambridge

    Salary: £12,724 - SCP 14 , £13,471 - SCP 17, based on FTE (SCP 14 £25,448 – SCP 17 £26,942 pa) depending on experience.


  • School Administrators (2 posts, full or part time available)

    Faculty of Arts and Humanities - Faculty Professional Services , University of East Anglia

    Location: Norwich

    Salary: £24,344 per annum (pro rata), with an annual increment up to £25,733 per annum (pro rata).


  • Service Owner : Grant Management

    Cambridge Research Office, University of Cambridge

    Location: Cambridge

    Salary: £46,735 - £59,139 per annum


Footer

jobs.ac.uk - Great jobs for bright people
  • Find a Job
  • Find PhDs
  • Career Advice
  • Jobs by Email
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Terms of use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Accessibility Statement

Copyright © jobs.ac.uk 1998 - 2025

  • Find a Job
  • Find PhDs
  • Careers Advice
  • Jobs by Email
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Terms of use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Accessibility
jobs.ac.uk - Great jobs for bright people

Copyright © jobs.ac.uk 1998 - 2025