A presentation given to final year medical students on how to write CV. It also includes some tips on the application process: cover letter, personal statement, choosing references, and thank you letter.

1. “How” to write a good CV? Sohail Bajammal, MBChB, MSc, FRSC(C), PhD(c) Assistant Professor, Faculty of Medicine Vice Dean, Academic Development, Faculty of Dentistry ssbajammal@uqu.edu.sa

2. Key Points “How” or “What”? Your CV is your marketing representative Organization “look” is important as well

3. Planning Writing CV is not a big deal What to write is more important than how to write “what to write” depends on “what you have done”

4. Failure to plan is planning to fail

5. Planning Mission Statement Short Term Goals Long Term Goals

6. Orthopedics Education Research

7. Planning I use MindMapping (MindManager) There are lots free in the market

8. How to achieve your Goals? Make a plan Academic performance: Medical school/workplace Research Extra-curricular academic activities (courses, workshops, conferences, symposia) Extra-curricular activities: Volunteering Teamwork Leadership

9. How to achieve your Goals? Be committed Be available Networking Be proactive Be organized Surround yourself with encouraging people

10. So, how to get a job?

11. Cover Letter Personal Statement CV References Screening of Candidates Excluded Interview Thank You Letter

12. Cover Letter

13. Cover Letter Addressed to the program director One paragraph (4 lines): About you & why they have to pick you Don’t repeat the whole CV One paragraph (4 lines): About them & why you want them

14. Curriculum Vitae

15. CV No right or wrong – Personal Flavor But there are guidelines

16. Organization Make a folder in your computer for CV Save each file like: “Mohammad Ahmed CV 2009 08 20.doc” “Mohammad Ahmed CV 2010 03 30.doc” Update your CV regularly

18. Organization Keep original certificates, thank you letters, timetable of your presentations etc in a folder Keep copies of the above in a separate folder (identical replicate) Fancier: scan the certificates and keep an electronic format Keep Track of EVERYTHING about yourself

21. What to include?Categories/Sections Personal Data: Name & Contact Education Honors Certification/Licensure Experience Research Experience Publications Presentations Professional Membership

22. Additional Categories/Sections Objective or Professional Interest Statement Computer/Technical Skills Leadership Additional Experience Committees Professional Development – training, professional organizations, workshops, conferences Community Service/Volunteer Foreign Languages Interests/Hobbies

23. General Rules of CV

24. General Rules Consistent organization: style, margins, alignment, periods, spaces Use horizontal space Balanced page Fill the page Avoid ODD page breaks

28. General Rules Use easy readable font (Arial, Times New Roman) Avoid Comic Font Don’t use more than one font Font size (depends on the font): Size 18: your name at top Size 14: headings Size 12: text

29. General Rules Use bullet format, no dashes Use Bold, Italic, and Underline carefully Check your spelling & grammar Use Punctuation marks, Capitalization, Underlining carefully If you use more than one page, include “Name, Page #”

30. Page Break

31. Do Share it with your best friends & tutors: ask for their advice Read revise, read revise, read revise your CV regularly

32. Don’t Don’t write “Curriculum Vitae” at the top Don’t send your CV as Word Doc, send it as PDF Don’t send your CV electronically with a file name “MyCV.pdf”

33. This how your CV might look if you send it as Word

34. Don’t Don’t use emails like: ZaKoolDoc@..... SoftDreams@..... lazzoza@....... Don’t fabricate

35. Formatting Consistency of format throughout the CV Use all periods or no periods at the end of sentence Don’t number sections: 1. Personal Date, 2. Education Avoid personal pronouns “I” Instead use Action Verbs: organized, facilitated Consistent alignment Left Aligned Use Tab Use Indent, not Spaces

37. Formatting of Date Date: Use consistent format Sebtember 2010 Novambar 22, 2008 23-Oct. - 2007 Oct. 09 6/7/1423 25 – Safar - 1429H Very easy to have spelling mistakes If you are submitting abroad, no one knows about Hijri

38. CV Final Product Avoid graphics, color ink Use laser printer Use high quality, 100% cotton paper A4 or Letter Size; change Page size in Word Don’t print on both sides of the paper Don’t staple Don’t fold  if mailing, use large envelope

39. Your CV should read Like a purposeful professional journey, not a series of random courses and conferences Like you are directing your career

40. CV Contents

41. Heading Your name (large font - 20 ) Your contact: address, email, phone, fax Will people be able to reach you? Your address is not “Al-Azizyah District” Are these your permanent contacts?? You may need to add a second address Your email shouldn’t be ZaKoolDoc@....., ZozaMoza@....., or sweat_dreams@..... Problems with using your institution account (e.g., uqu.edu.sa)  you may move

43. Personal Data Date of birth Nationality Marital status Gender Controversy: many countries do not want these information because of fear of bias

44. Education Chronological order (start with most recent) High school Do not include elementary & intermediate school Keep consistent format The University, College, Dates, Degree granted, Grade

45. EducationConsistent Format August 1998 – July 1999: Compulsory Internship, King Abdulaziz University Affiliated Hospitals, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia September 1992 – June 1998: Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery, MB ChB, Very Good, 79.3%, honor degree, 3rd rank in class, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia September 1989 – June 1992: Secondary School Certificate, Excellent, 99.2%, 3rd rank, Western Province, Saudi Arabia

46. EducationInconsistent Format August 1998 – July 1999: Compulsory Internship, King Abdulaziz University Affiliated Hospitals, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery, MB ChB, Very Good, 79.3%, honor degree, 3rd rank in class, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, September 1992 – June 1998 September 1989 – June 1992: Secondary School Certificate, Excellent, 99.2%, 3rd rank, Western Province, Saudi Arabia

47. Honors/Recognition Appreciation letters Scholarships awarded Other significant awards Alphabetical or reverse chronological order Include graduation with honors in Education section

48. Experience STC Focus on relevant experience Include significant experience obtained before medical school Include volunteer/community service completed during medical school Do not include experience that is part of the Medical School curriculum

50. Clinical Experience

51. Research Experience

52. Teaching Experience

53. International Experience

55. Medical Action Verbs Examine Perform Interpret Prescribe Administer Diagnose Counsel Evaluate Treat Confer Monitor Assess Refer Specialize Repair Consult Communicate Document Teach Implement Supervise Manage Collaborate Plan

56. Research Experience Institution or organization and department Principal investigator, supervisor or advisor Research topic or title Your title/role Dates (months and years) Short description of project and your role

57. Research Action Verbs Analyze Assess Clarify Collaborate Collect Compare Conduct Determine Consult Disprove Document Evaluate Examine Extract Formulate Gather Identify

58. Research ExperienceExample Umm Al-Qura University Faculty of Medicine – Summer Research Program Department of Genetics Makkah, Saudi Arabia Research Assistant 07/2010 – 08/2010 Principal Investigator: Faisal Allaf, PhD Research Title: Genetic Determinants of Colon Cancer in Saudi Patients Conducted interviews of patients and assisted in conducting physical exams

59. Interests Usually non-medical This where most of interviews start Be careful of what you put here!

60. Final Word on CV

61. The market is getting more competitive for job applications Younger folks are more expert in writing CV (like a grade 11 student!)

64. Personal Statement

65. Personal Statement According to the application process Usually one page Narrative account Tell them something special about yourself Yourself, your personality, your strengths What made you choose medicine, your specialty Personal successes, Obstacles you’ve overcome

66. References

67. References Ask their permission to be your referees & release of their contact information Give them a copy of your CV and ask for their feedback Tell them about the job & why this job

68. References Choosing your referees: Careful: someone who knows you & likes you Relevant Credible & Competent For each referee, list: Name, title, organization and department, business address, phone number, and email

69. Thank You Letter

70. Thank You Letter Make sure you send a thank you letter after the interview Thank them for giving you the chance of the interview Follow up/highlight some of the points discussed Re-emphasize that you really want the job

71. Why a Thank You letter? It’s a small community You will come across these people, sometime, somewhere Even if you were not accepted, you maybe wait-listed

72. Summary

73. Write your CV TODAY

74. Summary Failure to plan is planning to fail “What” is more important than “How” (Read  Revise)3R The organization is as important as the content It’s not only CV Cover letter, Picking your references, Personal statement, Thank you letter