CV vs. Resume: What the BLEEP is a CV and When Should One Be Used?
As a recruiter for a staffing firm, there is no shortage of resumes to review. I’ve probably read through thousands in the past six years at Juno, and the thought of that makes my eyes hurt. But they aren’t all resumes, are they? Most are resumes, a lot are CV’s, and a select few are a hodgepodge of personal information, career facts, and misplaced information carelessly assembled into a document I’ve been “lucky” enough to receive.
Forgetting about the latter, let’s dissect the other two: We all know what a resume is, but why is there a separate item called a CV?
I’ll be honest…I had never heard of a CV before becoming a recruiter, I only learned it stood for “Curriculum Vitae” upon Googling, and until writing this blog I still had no idea what the BLEEP it meant. I just assumed it was a high brow, pushes glasses up, “well…actually” proper term for resume and never looked it up. Whoops!
Turns out CV, or Curriculum Vitae, is Latin for the phrase “course of life” and has differences in formatting, length, and content. “Most notably, in the United States, a resume should be a concise and curated collection of your professional experience, skills and qualifications that are strictly relevant to the job you’re applying for. In contrast, a CV is more comprehensive, presenting an in-depth history of your professional and academic credentials and accomplishments.”
That’s all well and good, but, when do should you use one or the other? From what I’ve learned in my extensive research, it appears a resume is best suited for industry-type jobs whereas a CV is more commonplace in academic careers or educational pursuits.
My research-specific take: It depends on where or who you’re sending the resume to. Are you submitting your profile to a large university or well-known corporation? Make a CV and show ‘em your stuff. Are you applying to a job at a 20-person tech company? Resume all day. Do your research and know your audience!
My personal, non-research, maybe too honest take: Send me a resume, pal. If you’re so accomplished and have enough of a career story to fill a proper CV, then flex on the haters and send it wherever you want. You’ve earned it. But, whether it’s a resume or a CV or an autobiographical account of how wonderful you are, it always comes down to your experience and skills and how that aligns with the opportunity. Always lead with that.
Also, is it “resume,” “résumé,” or “resumé”??? No clue. I’ll let you look that up for yourself!
Meet the Author
Ryan Serviolo
Vice President, Sales & Marketing
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