Residency Application Components Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE) Letters of Recommendation Curriculum Vitae (CV) and Personal Statement Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) : Download applications and upload letters of recommendation through this program National Residency Match Program (NRMP) Residency Application Timeline Years 1 and 2 Track your actions/projects/honors/awards/scholarships Careers in Medicine Year 3 Write or revise your CV (Nov – March) Be prepared to write and rewrite and rewrite . . . Info from CV can be used for ERAS and MSPE and provided to those writing LsOR Receive ERAS tokens Request LsOR MSPE Unique Characteristics Year 4 Apply through ERAS Register for NRMP MSPE Interviews Rank Order List What is a CV? Similar to a resume but more detailed and can include personal interests and activities Permanent work in progress Customize for each purpose Only chance to make a good first impression Goal of Your CV To make an argument that you are a strong match for the residency program that you are applying to Crafting a Competitive CV 5 Steps Step 1: Decide What to Include What do you want the residency director to know about you? In general, residency directors are looking for information on: What you would add to the residency program: Unique experiences: Cultural Language Medical Jobs/Hobbies Unique or desirable skills Leadership experiences Recognitions gained in the past Experiences or attributes shared with current members of the team CV nucleus: Education, Research, Leadership, Volunteer and Health Experience Hobbies and Interests – keep it short and strategic Ask yourself: What things are most relevant to the position? Which things are most recent chronologically? What things make me unique among other candidates? Length : Inclusive better than too short, but must be readable Step 2: Outline and Order Section Headings Section headings dependent upon your background and the specialty you want to match into Be descriptive, not general: Before Education Experience Activities After Education Clinical Research Pediatric Focused Experience Community Health and Service Conferences and Presentations Descriptive Headings Clinical Research Teaching Experience Community Leadership and Service Healthcare Experience Public Health Experience Advocacy and Outreach Women’s Health Experience Pediatric Focused Experience Community Health Employment Honors and Awards Professional Associations Conferences Presentations Publications Language Skills Interests Ordering Descriptive Headings Start with name and contact information Next is Education (institution, location, dates, and degrees earned and expected) Professional Skills (research, teaching, leadership, employment, service, etc.) and Outcomes (honors and awards, presentations, publications, professional affiliations and memberships, etc.) Order here depends on your strengths and argument as to why you’re qualified for specific specialty extra-curricular Activities and Interests (optional) List the components of each section in reverse chronological order Step 3: Write Activity Descriptions Reader should understand the extent of your experience in terms of: Settings Whom you worked with (types of specialists, researchers, etc. you worked with) Populations served (adults, children, underserved, bilingual) Clinical issues you addressed Skills developed/demonstrated during the experience Achievements/Accomplishments gained during the experience extracurricular activities and interests Briefly focus on how activities helped you develop skills, if possible Can be talking points for the interview Be specific but concise! Summarize and highlight; don’t pad OK to use bullets Use action-oriented verbs Don’t use the first person “I distributed medications at . . .” vs. “Distributed medications at . . .” Parallelism Keep structure of phrases and sentences consistent throughout Avoid acronyms Avoid listing one-time activities unless significant DO NOT list anything that is untrue, exaggerated, or not something you want to discuss in an interview Step 4: Design Your CV Visual impact of your CV sends an important message about your thoroughness and attention to detail! Design Tips Format Choose a format that’s clean, uncluttered and easily updated Avoid templates that accompany software programs Font Choose one professional font and stick with it (e.g. Times New Roman) 10-12 font size Margins 1 inch margins Plenty of white space for easy reading Step 5: Revise and Proofread Your CV Carefully proofread for misspellings, grammatical mistakes, inaccuracies. Have at least one other person proofread. Submit to mentor, faculty member, or Student Affairs for feedback Tips Don’t use “Curriculum Vitae” as the main heading Make sure you have name/page # on each page Don’t overuse bold and italic If possible, don’t split sections across pages Print your CV on good sturdy paper Take 5-6 with you to each of your interviews Offer one to everyone you interview with Source
