CURRICULUM VITAE
Recommended guidelines for Promotion and Tenure Review
These guidelines are suggestions about the information which should be included in a CV that is submitted to the Promotion and Tenure Committee or to the Promotion to Librarian Committee.
It is important to remember the purpose of this CV, and the audience it addresses. This CV aims to point out the individual’s professional and academic achievements. It is not a CV intended to accompany a job or grant application. It is addressed to the promotion and tenure committees. It must address the three areas of academic duties: position responsibilities, contribution to the university, contribution to librarianship and/or scholarship. Contributions to the community, while commendable in their own right, are not within the scope of this CV, unless they happen also to fall within the scope of academic duties. For guidance about the appropriate achievements to include in the CV, refer to the ancillary document: Expanded Explanation of "Academic Duties".
There is no single format which is correct. The individual should choose a clear, legible, well-organized format, with headings that suit the person’s record; the order of the headings may also be adjusted to suit the person’s record, e.g., a person at the beginning of their career, without a long employment record, may prefer to list education before employment. The headings used in these guidelines are not definitive but indicate the areas that should be covered in the CV.
When organizing achievements into various categories, make sure that each activity is only assigned to one category.
Aim for three pages. If the section on publications and/or committees is lengthy, select the most substantive examples. If the individual wants to record the full list, put the most substantive examples in the body of the CV and add an appendix with the full list. Major contributions, whether recent or not, should always be included in the CV.
Punctuation, spelling, and grammar are important.
Spell out all acronyms.
Date the CV.
Consider asking a colleague to read the CV.
2. Personal information
Name, work address, phone, e-mail, fax
Do not include age, personal data such as marital status or children, hobbies, etc.
3. Employment
Begin the list with one’s current job title and most recent work experience.
Progress backwards, listing job titles, position responsibilities, and dates. Do not include pre-professional librarian work unless it is pertinent (e.g., worked as lawyer before becoming law librarian).
Include brief descriptions of the scope of your position responsibilities and activities. If appropriate, also mention any significant in-house documents produced as part of one’s position responsibilities, such as subject guides, Web pages and procedure manuals.
Also include special accomplishments, such as grants received for special Library projects or programs. If you are making a significant contribution to a list server, consider including it in the CV. Training of staff and/or students should be included here, and not as part of teaching activities.
If one has been employed for a long time, in many different positions, cite all job titles during the last 5 years of employment, and consider summarizing the rest. If necessary, one can also append an exhaustive list of job titles, position responsibilities and dates at the end of the CV.
4. Education
Begin the list with the most recent degree and progress backwards, including only post-secondary education (in Québec, post-DEC). List the name of the institution, dates attended and degree earned.
If you are a recent graduate, consider including scholarships and awards won while completing your degree.
Also list relevant continuing education although it may not have led to the awarding of a degree, e.g.,course work in languages or subject areas related to one’s responsibilities.
5. Memberships in professional and/or scholarly associations.
List memberships, with acronyms spelled out; acronyms can be included in brackets at end if the association will be mentioned again, in another section, such as committee work.
Give dates of membership.
6. Awards
Academic or professional awards (post MLIS), e.g. Career Recognition Award, SLA Member of the Year Award.
7. Committee work
Use judgment. It is not necessary to include an exhaustive list. For an individual who has been at McGill over 5 years, consider including a full list of committees for the last 5 years, and examples of substantive committee work prior to that time.
(See also suggestion in sect. 1 re: appendix)
List committee work, most recent first. Add information about one’s role in the Committee (chair, member, secretary, etc.). Include information about how one was selected as a committee member: elected, appointed, ex officio, volunteer. Also clearly indicate the scope of the committee if it is not evident from its name: national, regional, etc.
Organize committee work into the categories which are delineated for academic duties: committees related to position responsibilities, contribution to the University, and contribution to librarianship and/or scholarship.
8. Research and publications
Keep this section for true research and publications. In-house documents that are produced as part of one’s position responsibilities, such as subject guides, bibliographies, manuals, task force reports, etc., should be included in the employment section.
Include non-print publications, e.g., Web sites (give Web address as well) and other significant creative achievements, e.g., exhibitions.
Be aware that peer-reviewed publications tend to carry more weight than non peer-reviewed ones. However, substantive contributions in publications that may not fit the strict definition of a peer-reviewed publication do have value.
Consider organizing publications in a list with the most substantive ones first, and brief items at the end. If you have produced many book reviews, consider making a brief note in the CV, such as: 20 book reviews in various periodicals (see appendix); and list the citations in the appendix only.
Include personal research grants (grants for projects or programs related to the Library’s mission and one’s position responsibilities should be described in the employment section as a special accomplishment).
Research in progress: include research in progress, if you can show evidence of the status of this research. Include evidence in the dossier.
Include major research and publications even if older than 5 years.
9. Teaching activities
Use the term "teaching activity" for formal teaching responsibilities, i.e. responsibility for a whole course or part of a course taught at a post-secondary institution, setting assignments and exams, grading students. Other types of instructional activities, such as workshops or public lectures should be considered contributions to the profession, but not teaching activities.
When describing teaching responsibilities, list the name of the course (and number), course level, institution where it was taught, enrolment and format (lecture, seminar, etc.). If co-taught, also mention level of involvement.
Include activities such as the supervision of undergraduate or graduate student theses, academic research projects.
Include involvement in curriculum development, and other teaching related work.
10. Other contributions to librarianship and/or scholarship
Use judgment. It is not necessary to include an exhaustive list. For an individual who has been at McGill over 5 years, consider including a full list of contributions for the last 5 years, and examples of substantive contributions prior to that time.
(See also suggestion in sect. 1 re: appendix)
Include presentations at conferences, poster sessions at conferences, workshops, panel appearances, guest lectures, teaching at non post-secondary institutions, e.g. course taught at a public library.
Include information such as the title of the presentation, date, conference or institution, etc. If one gave a guest lecture in a course, include the date, course name (and number), course level, enrolment, teaching faculty responsible for the course.
Consultations, participation in exchanges, etc., should also be listed with brief descriptions, including dates and scope.
These guidelines were prepared by the Professional Issues Committee of the MAUT Librarians' Section as recommendations only. The Library Administration is in no way bound by them.
CV guidelines (11/97)