What Makes a Curriculum Vitae Stand Out?
You'll generate a better response with your curriculum vitae if it is well organized and is packed with relevant information to match and support your professional, academic or research objective.

As a Job Placement Specialist for the University of Washington, Bothell I worked with students submitting curriculum vitaes for graduate programs. In this capacity, I applied several unique strategies when writing each curriculum vitae. The first was to prioritize and list the most relevant academic, research, volunteer or work history experience first within the curriculum vitae. The second was to include an Objective and Summary of Qualifications section at the top of each C.V. The third was to incorporate many of the strategies and resume writing techniques you'll learn by perusing the resume tips in this site as well as in my sister site which offers 40 Free Resume and Job Search Workshops.

These strategies proved to be extremely effective and boosted the acceptance rate of students applying for highly competitive graduate programs - many of which accepted only one to twelve students out of 300 to 600 applicants. My endeavors and success in this arena were recognized and commented on by the Director of Student Activities as a result of students reporting their acceptance into graduate programs.

Preparing effective C.V.'s presents a unique challenge due to length, which can make them boring and result in important data being buried or lost in such a long document. As a result, prioritizing your top skills and experience to be presented in the first or uppermost section of your C.V. makes sense. Then detail additional educational, employment or academic experience.

In this way you will maximize important criteria which you do not want to be overlooked by academic or hiring committees.

Who Needs A Curriculum Vitae?
A curriculum vitae is often required for those applying to graduate or professional programs, employment with international firms, or when promoting oneself within professional and academic fields.

How Does a Curriculum Vitae Differ From A Regular Resume?
A curriculum vitae is longer than the average 1-2 page resume because it provides a greater range of information which can include:
• Professional, Vocational or Research Objective
• Summary of Qualifications
• Professional Licenses or Certifications
• Education including Post Graduate, Graduate and Undergraduate Degrees and Studies
• Listing of Relevant Course work to Match Career or Academic Objective
• Educational or Professional Honors or Awards
• Scientific or Academic Research, Laboratory Experience and Related Skills
• Description of Thesis or Dissertation, Papers Written, Publications
• Academic or Professional Presentations
• Related Extracurricular Activities, Professional and Association Memberships
• Community Involvement
• Work Experience - Paid or Volunteer
• Technical and Specialized Skills such as Computer Progamming or Laboratory Instrumentation
• Interests - Future Academic or Professional Goals
• Travel / Exposure to Cultural Experiences
• Foreign Language Skills
• Additional Information that May Support Objective or Qualifications

How Do I Get Started?
Writing a curriculum vitae can seem overwhelming but can be made easier by organizing your background. To begin, put each of the headings listed above--and any others that are relevant--at the top of several sheets of paper (using a computer makes this even easier). Once you've done that then begin filling in your information for topics such as those listed above.

Remember To Be Descriptive
When describing your background be descriptive, use numbers and paint a broad range of your experience.