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Preparation of a Curriculum Vitae
Dr D Tullett, MBBChir, MRCPsych
It is important for all Doctors to have a reasonable up-to-date curriculum vitae ("CV") available. Of course the most important use for this is in an application for jobs, it is important not only in obtaining short listing but also in the interview itself since it will be the main source of information for the interviewers about the candidate, particularly those not involved in the short listing. Even after obtaining a consultant’s post and no longer applying for new jobs it remains important for purposes such as application for grant and merit awards and for the allocation of junior staff.
Traditionally the medical CV is largely based on a chronological list of posts and achievements but in professional spheres outside medicine this has been largely replaced by a more concise type of CV which concentrates on skills required for the job you are applying for. Until this trend infiltrates itself into medicine, however, candidates would be wise to stick to the traditional form of medical CV. Another advantage of this is that since who you know remains as important as what you know, this form of CV has a useful list of consultants who you have previously worked for and, as always, the more eminent these are the better.
Application Forms
For most posts in medicine one is still asked to complete an application form. This is a rather tedious process particularly when one has spent a long time preparing a CV. Nevertheless, it is important to complete the form neatly without errors and to transfer a reasonable amount of information from your CV to the form. Often this is difficult since there is little space on these forms and it seems that the same form is used when applying for a post as a consultant psychiatrist as for a cleaner at the hospital. Ideally, one should get someone to type onto the form but these days this is almost impossible and a hand-written form has to suffice.
Often there is a section at the end of the form for additional information and this is a place where you can try to show how your previous experience is relevant to the current post.
Unless the application specifically says not to it is important to include your CV in with an application form since most interviewers and shortlisters would much rather read a typed CV than hand-written form however neat your handwriting is.
General Points
It is essential that the CV is tidy and free of spelling and punctuation errors. It should also be clearly laid out with appropriate headings. The design should also be simple and I would suggest not using more than two different fonts on any page. It must be produced on a computer or word processor and if you cannot do this yourself you should pay someone else to do it.
It is important to continue to update the CV and ‘weed’ out information which is no longer relevant. When applying for a post it is very useful to read through the job description and personal specification and alter your CV with this in mind.
Specific Points
It is not compulsory to include information about marital status but you may be asked about this. It is worth while including telephone numbers, such as a mobile number where you can be contacted at short notice for last minute interview invitations.
In the Education Section it is usual to only list the secondary school attended. Details of ‘O’ and ‘A’ Levels are no longer necessary after qualification.
In the section on degrees and diplomas it is preferable to avoid adding the grade of your degree unless it is spectacular but first class degrees can be recorded in a section reserved for scholarships and prizes. This latter section can be omitted if you have nothing to put in it, information about school prizes are usually discarded after qualification.
The next part of the CV should include previous appointments in reverse chronological order and the grade of appointment should be clearly labelled e.g. House Surgeon, Senior House Officer. As in any job application it is important to account for all the time you have spent since qualifying as unexplained ‘gaps’ may suggest that you spent this period in prison! The list of appointments should also state the type of post you were doing, the hospital and the consultants you worked for. If you are on a rotation it is best to mention the rotation scheme as a whole and posts in it below this.
After this, a section on experience should be included broken down into clinical, management teaching and research. In these sections it is important not to either state the obvious or appear egotistical. These sections can be used to slant the CV towards the post for which you are applying and to highlight areas of relevant experience. The section on research/audit gives an opportunity for mentioning projects which have never been published or elaborating on those which have been.
The next section on papers and publications can be followed by one on papers presented to learned societies if appropriate.
In the past it was not relevant to include a section on other interests but these days this is felt to be more important, in that it shows a sense of a person’s character, and lack of evidence of life outside medicine may worry some selectors. One should be wary, however, of including too much information which may lead to thoughts that the candidate may be too busy to do his job properly.
After this a section on career intentions is useful and should of course be tailored to the job being applied for.
The final section on referees should include telephone numbers where they can be contacted at short notice.
The references are the least important part of the selection for a post after the CV and the interview. Their main importance is to provide objective cognitive information of a candidate’s history that has been given and most interviewers are aware that a reference is more about the referee than the candidate. It is important, however, not to have as a referee someone who may give a very bad reference as this can prevent you getting the post and it is not worth taking a chance on this.
The following layout of CV is one I have used in the past and encourage my Juniors to use. It is something of a compromise between the traditional medical CV and the more modern competency based document.
(New Page)
DR PETER W PAN
MB BChir MRCPsych
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Name Peter Walter Pan
Address
23 Railway Cuttings
Cheam
Surrey SP5 4ES
tel. 0123 456789
mob 0797 657483
fax 0123 674892
e mail peterpan@tesco.net
Date of Birth 16th August 1972
Civil Status Married
Children One son aged 9
Education
School Eton College, Bucks 1983-1990
University
Gonville and Caius College,
Cambridge
1988-1991
Medical School St Thomas’ Hospital, London 1991-1994
Degrees and Diplomas
B.A. (Hons) University of Cambridge 1991
M.B, B.Chir University of Cambridge 1994
MRCPsych Nov 1998
Scholarships & Prizes
Undergraduate Schuldham Plate, Gonville & Caius 1991
Postgraduate Wellcome Foundation Fellowship 1995-1996
Other Qualifications
Full driving licence
(New Page)
Present
appointment
Specialist Registrar Aug 1998-
Old Age Psychiatry
Lizard Cottage Hospital
Lizard, Cornwall
Dr V. Wild
Previous Appointments
Senior House Officer Western Psychiatric Rotation
General Adult Psychiatry Feb 97-Aug 98
Lands End Hospital
Cornwall
Dr D. Haywire
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Aug 96-Feb 97
Lizard CFCS
Dr. S. Woolly
Forensic
Psychiatry Feb 96-Aug 96
Jack Straw Unit
Lands End Hospital
Dr V. Rich
Old Age Psychiatry Aug 95-Feb 96
Lundy Island Clinic
Dr M. Smith
Senior House Officer Accident and Emergency Aug 95-Feb 96
Basildon Hospital,
Essex
Dr. P Brown
House
Surgeon
Bedford Hospital Feb 95-Aug 95
Mr. J. Nife (General Surgery)
House
Physician
Southend Hospital, Essex
Aug 94-Feb 95
Dr S. Martin
(New Page)
Clinical Experience
During my training in Psychiatry I have worked in both inner city and rural areas and in a variety of service structures.
I have worked in a number of psychiatric specialities and at Lands End I saw a patient for individual psychotherapy for a year. During my old age post on Lundy I carried out home assessments with other members of the team. In my present post I see many liason referrals on the geriatric wards.
After house jobs and before starting psychiatry I did a busy casualty SHO post.
Administrative / Management Experience
As an SHO I was Chairman of the Lizard psychiatric junior doctors group and junior doctor representative at psychiatric division meetings.
At Lands End Hospital I organised the journal club for SHOs and registrars and attended monthly management meetings of the care directorate.
In 1998 I attended a residential management course for senior registrars in psychiatry at Keele University.
Teaching Experience
I was involved in teaching medical students in small groups in several posts as SHO and specialist registrar and I gave the lecture on psychogeriatrics to medical students. I also taught on the Truro MSc course.
While at Lundy I gave several talks to care staff at a residential home, at Lizard I have given lectures to GPs, psychiatric trainees and medical SHOs.
Research / Audit Experience
1991 - As part of my medical studies at Cambridge I specialised in pharmacology in my final year and did a research project investigating the renal nerve supply using uptake of neurotransmitters into tissue. Antidepressants were used as a tool to identify active uptake. The project was written up and assessed as part of my final degree.
1998 - As an SHO I carried out an audit of the use of section 5 (2) within Lundy hospital, this was requested by the Mental Health Act Commission after a visit.
Papers / Publications
Pan PW, Done AJD. Psychosurgery for depression - a double blind placebo crossover study. The Psychosurgeon 1999; 3: 136-146
Other Interests
I have long been fascinated by stamp collecting. My other interests include skydiving and power boat racing. I represented England in the latter in the 1998 European championship in Naples.
Career Intentions
I hope to follow a career in old age psychiatry preferably in a post where I will be able to continue my research interests.
Referees
1 Dr V.
Wild
tel.
Lizard Cottage
Hospital fax.
Lizard, Cornwall
2 Dr M.
Smith
tel.
Old Age
Psychiatry
fax.
Lundy Island Clinic
Cornwall
3 Dr. P
Brown
tel.
Accident and
Emergency fax.
Basildon Hospital,
Essex