Writing a grant proposal (Part 1): Preparing a CV

Writing a grant proposal (Part 1): Preparing a CV

 

Introduction

CV stands for curriculum vitae. It is a Latin phrase that roughly translates to "the course of one's life."

A modern CV includes details of one's education, employment, and so on.

CVs are often an integral part of grant applications. In the United States and some other countries, the word "resume" is commonly used to refer to a short CV that's used by job-seekers to seek employment.

Why?

 

Question

Do you know why CVs are often needed as part of grant proposals?

Answers

Option 1

To show that you’re qualified for the project or activity you’re proposing to do

Option 2

To present all your publications and presentations, and thus impress the grants committee

Option 3

For bureaucratic reasons

Option 4

To present the grades you obtained at university

Feedback

1, That's correct! It's good to mention your publications and grades, but the purpose of the CV is to demonstrate that you're qualified because of your relevant experience and achievements. Keeping this purpose in mind will help you develop the right kind of CV for a grant proposal. Always try to customize your CV so that it matches the grant proposal you are writing.

What to include in a CV

 

The format of a CV can vary widely from one country to another. In this lesson, the focus is on preparing a CV at an international standard. Check whether you know which items to include and which to leave out in an internationally oriented CV.

Name: Cloze (1): Important

Contact information: Cloze (2):Important

Gender: Cloze (3): Otional,especially if it not obvious

Marital status: Cloze (4): Not necessay unless asked for

Number of children: Cloze (5):Not necessay unless asked for

Photograph: Cloze (6):Not necessay unless asked for

Religion: Cloze (7):Not necessay unless asked for

Passport number: Cloze (8):Not necessay unless asked for

Educational background: Cloze (9):Important

Employment / work experience: Cloze (10):Important

Publications: Cloze (11):Important

Presentations at conferences: Cloze (12):Important

Awards and honors: Important

 

CV formatting

 

Just as the contents of a typical CV can differ from one country to another, the formatting can too.
Check whether you know how an internationally oriented CV should be formatted.

Borders: Cloze (1):Avoid

Colours: Cloze (2):Avoid

Bold, italics, underline: Cloze (3):Keep to a minimum

Highlights: Cloze (4):Avoid

White space: Cloze (5): Important

Headings: Cloze (6):Important

Correct spelling: Cloze (7):Important

Consistency across sections: Cloze (8):Important

Font variations:Keep to a minimum

Model CVs

There are many online resources on how to prepare good academic CVs. You'll come across them when you search online.

Click here to download a sample CV from the Columbia University Center for Career Education. 
Notice how simple and clean it looks.

• Uniform font
• Consistent headings and spacing
• Clear structure
• Sufficient white space
• Completeness and consistency of information (for example, see the formatting of the items in the "publications and presentations" section)

These characteristics make the CV look professional and easy to read.
But please note, this is just a sample and not the only way to prepare a CV. 

CV instructions

Some funders provide CV guidelines or a CV template for grant applicants. This way, the funder will receive CVs that look uniform and can be easily compared to one another. Instructions may be given on various matters, for example:

• What information to include, and in what level of detail
• How to organize the information
• How long the CV should be

If you're given CV instructions, make sure you follow them word-for-word.

Remember: Following the funder's instructions carefully is critical if you want to improve your chances of winning a grant. 

What kind of CV to prepare

 

Question

Let's say you've found an RFP which says you must submit a CV along with your grant proposal, but there are no specific instructions on how to prepare a CV.
What should you do?

Answers

Option 1

Prepare a lengthy CV listing everything you have done

Option 2

Prepare a focused CV matching the nature of the grant

Option 3

Prepare a short CV with a summary of your work

Option 4

Prepare a one-paragraph biography

Feedback

2, That's correct! If the RFP does not have any information on what to include in a CV, the best option is to prepare a focused CV that matches the nature of the grant and the mission or goals of the funder. This can be hard work especially if you apply to grants regularly. You may have to prepare a customized CV for each grant you apply to. But by doing this, you will stand a better chance of winning a grant.

Listing publications

Publications make up an important part of an academic CV. Broadly, there are three kinds of research papers:

1. Papers that have been published
2. Papers that have been accepted but not yet published
3. Papers that have been submitted but not yet accepted

When listing your papers in your CV, include only accepted and published papers under the "Publications" heading (that is, categories 1 and 2 above). In addition, when listing an accepted paper that is awaiting publication, make sure you state this by including the phrase "In press" or "Forthcoming" after the paper's citation.

If you have papers that have been submitted but not yet accepted, do not list them under the "Publications" heading. List them under a different heading, such as "Ongoing research".

Finally, make sure that you have written out the full citation to each publication, and that this format is consistent for all your publications. Include web links to your publications as far as possible.

CV checklist

• Check whether your contact information is accurate (especially your email address and phone number)
• Check the content and formatting: have you followed the funder's instructions, if given? Otherwise, is the content and formatting fit for an international audience?
• Check the citations to any publications or presentations you have mentioned: are the citations complete and is the formatting consistent across all citations?
• Check the grammar and spelling
  • Run a spell check, and proofread manually as well to catch errors in usage such as "aboard" vs "abroad" not detectable by spell-checkers
• Expand any abbreviation unless its meaning is widely known (such as "CV"!)
  
  • After you expand the first instance of an abbreviation, you can use only the abbreviation after that point
• Include a brief description of concepts or terms that might not be widely known outside your field
• Show your CV to a colleague or friend and incorporate their feedback
•  

  End matter

  This lesson has been developed by INASP, an international development charity in the UK, as an extension of the work carried out by the AuthorAID team. Visit inasp.info and authoraid.info to learn about our work. 
  
  This lesson was authored and developed by Ravi Murugesan, an INASP Associate. Parts of this lesson were based on material in AuthorAID workshops facilitated by Dr Gastel.
  We have used a free and open source e-learning authoring tool called eXeLearning
  (http://exelearning.net/?lang=en) to create this lesson.
  
  This lesson was last updated on 12 June 2015.
  
  Licensing
  This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/.