1. Start with a simple academic header
Place your name first, followed by your university, degree or major, expected graduation date, academic email, and a professional link when it adds value. A LinkedIn page, portfolio, or GitHub can be useful when it contains relevant scholarly or technical work.
Keep the header clean. The purpose is to make it easy for a faculty member or selection committee to know who you are and how to contact you within a few seconds.
2. Make your research interests specific
Use two to four focused research areas rather than broad labels. “Psychology” or “neuroscience” tells the reader very little. A stronger description identifies a narrower topic, population, mechanism, or method. When relevant, name methods you are developing, such as systematic review, qualitative coding, survey design, Python/R analysis, archival research, or visual analysis.
| TOO BROAD | MORE USEFUL |
|---|---|
| Research interests: neuroscience, mental health, AI. | Research interests: adolescent internalizing risk; computational neuroscience; health communication; AI ethics in academic writing. |
3. Turn research experience into evidence
For each research role or project, identify the role, mentor or institution, the work you actually performed, and the output or evidence that resulted. Avoid bullets that only say “helped with research.” Strong bullets show action, method or tool, object of work, and outcome when possible.
Action
What did you do? Developed a research question, coded sources, cleaned data, conducted a structured search, revised a manuscript.
Method or tool
How did you do it? PubMed, Scopus, R, Python, SPSS, thematic analysis, evidence mapping, survey logic.
Object
What did you work on? A dataset, a literature corpus, survey responses, interview transcripts, a poster, a manuscript.
Output or evidence
What came from the work? Number of sources coded, an abstract, a poster, a manuscript status, a cleaned dataset, or a completed analysis.
4. Label publications and manuscripts honestly
Separate published work from work that is accepted, under review, or still in preparation. Status labels matter because they tell the reader exactly where the scholarship stands. Never present a manuscript in preparation as a publication.
| Status | Example format |
|---|---|
| Published | Author. (Year). Title. Journal. DOI. |
| Accepted / in press | Author. (in press). Title. Journal. |
| Under review | Author. (Year). Title. Manuscript under review. |
| In preparation | Author. (Year). Title. Manuscript in preparation. |
5. Separate presentations from publications
Posters, oral presentations, and workshops are scholarly outputs, but they are not journal publications. List them in a dedicated presentation section and state the event, date, and presentation type clearly.
6. Group skills by what they help you do
A random software list is hard to interpret. Group skills by research function so the reader understands how you can contribute.
| Research function | Examples |
|---|---|
| Study design | Research question development, literature review design, survey logic, corpus selection. |
| Analysis | R, Python, SPSS, Excel, thematic analysis, regression, evidence mapping. |
| Tools | Zotero, PubMed, PsycINFO, Google Scholar, Scopus, OSF, GitHub, REDCap when applicable. |
| Dissemination | Abstracts, posters, manuscripts, responses to reviewers, academic email outreach. |
7. Tailor the CV without turning it into a transcript
Relevant coursework can be useful when you are early in your training, but it should be selective. Emphasize courses, methods, projects, and experiences that help the reader understand your preparation for the opportunity in front of you. The goal is not to document every class; it is to make your academic path legible.
Helpful standards & references
These are starting points, not substitutes for the requirements of a specific journal, conference, institution, or research team.
UConn Career Center resume/CV resources: https://career.uconn.edu/resources/resume-cv-cover-letter-guide/
UConn CV guide: https://career.uconn.edu/resources/writing-your-curriculum-vitae-cv/