Globally applicable:
Q: Why Should I write an Academic CV
A: You never know when it will be necessary to summarize and share your experience through your academic career. Having a CV allows you to organize and communicate aspects of your education, technical knowlege, achievements, and even personal interests that might help others (employers, schools, advisors, etc.) evaluate whether you are appropriate for a given opportunity.
If you are considering seeing a research experience with a WWU faculty member or through a formal REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) – it’s great to share a CV or Resume, and you may even be required to submit one as part of an application.
How to write an Academic CV
You can find lots of templates for crafting Academic CVs on the web, here’s just two examples: Cornell CV Guide – good for students and Elsevier Article on CVs For Faculty Grad Students and Postdocs but they’re not the only ones out there. Probably the best advice is to have someone knowledgeable look over your CV and give you advice. A faculty advisor or mentor would be a great person to do this.
Q: How do I find people to write letters of recommendation for me?
A: Writing a letter of recommendation for you is a part of our job as a faculty member, advisor or mentor. However, be careful when you choose who you ask to write you a reference letter for you, for a given opportunity. Here are a few general tips to getting great letters to help you be competitive for a job, internship:
- Cater your list of references to your opportunity. If you are applying for a job and the selection committee may know or have hear of anyone from your institution (are there any famous people you have taken classes from or work with?), ask them to write you a letter. It’s much easier to believe information in a letter if you recognize the person writing it. Although it’s tempting to ask your favorite professor, they may not always be the most appropriate letter writer (thought sometimes they may be).
- Find someone to write you a letter who will have something specific to say about you, and ideally, positive to say! (duh)
- Help your letter writers write good letters! When you ask them to write the letter, let them know your goals, some information on the opportunity and your strengths.
- Related to the above, I usually ask for a student in need of a letter to send me their CV/resume and a personal or research statement if one is required to apply for the position.
- Communicate the letter deadline VERY CLEARLY to your letter writers. Help them submit the letter (i.e. make sure they get an email request, or send them the direct link to submit the letter). Don’t be afraid to remind them (politely) as the deadline approaches – they may need the reminder!
- If you feel like you have experience or achievements that make you well-qualified for a given opportunity, but that your letter writers don’t know about, let them know, they may be able to incorporate it a letter. Alternatively, think about also submitting a cover letter as a part of your application with that information included.
Applying to Graduate School:
Q: How do I write a personal statement to apply to graduate school:
A: (Answer is a work in progress here:) We like to use research statements to evaluate any experiences a person has that may be useful to help them in graduate school, as well as that has helped shape their goals. This could be research experience or general life experience. We also (when possible, can be difficult) use statements to evaluate if someone is compatible with a given advisor or project. Don’t worry too much about the specifics of the project you want to do at the application point however, it’s good to show some flexibility in case projects or funding change or alternativley opportunities arise – you can always say “no” after you’re accepted (though we hope you say “yes”). A personal statement will also possibly be used to evaluate your writing skills, so have it proofread by a peer or mentor. Hopefully you can enjoy writing about something you are or could be passionate about!