We at the J1 Physician Network (http://www.J1Physicians.com)  review between 10 and 20 CV’s per week.  They range from 2 pages to over 30.  And these are just from Residents and Fellows that haven’t even had any work experience.  There is always a question on what should and should not be included in your CV.

I am not going to give a step by step guide to writing your CV but there are some generalities that I would like to share and examples that are important:

1.  Stick to the Truth - This sounds like it is simple to do, but people like to make themselves seem more important or more interesting than they sometimes actually are.  We had a client once that put down that she played golf.  She went on an interview and the facility seeing this  thought it would be great to set up a golf date for her and them to get to know each other.  She had never played before.  Needless to say, she did not get the job - the reason is that she lied on her CV.  Always stick to the truth.

2.  Don’t leave gaps - We work with over 3000 facilities and I am constantly asked this question by them - what did he/she do during this period that is not covered on their CV.  This is important.  If you were studying for the USMLE, or whatever, put it on.  Don’t leave gaps on your CV.

3.  Include Hobbies and Interest- I know I know, many people will tell you not to put on hobbies but they ARE important.  Remember, there are many qualfied physicians and many facilities hire because they think it is a “good fit”.  It meets the facilities requirements, and the area is someplace that offers what the physician and their family likes.  For example, if you are into Snow Boarding, Snow Skiing, Snow Mobile riding, it is unlikely that you will be happy in Texas and even if you take the job, will probably become frustrated over time.  I placed a physician once because besides being qualified, loved to sing and had that in common with the facility.  They had a singing group made up of physicians and hospital personel.  This was a reason the facility believed that she would fit in, make friends and want to stay and be happy.  And they were right.

Also remember, the facility is trying to figure out if they can work with you for 40, 50, 60 hours a week and you are doing the same thing.  Wouldn’t it be a great raport builder if you like to bike and they do too.  We just got done placing a J1 physician in California 10 miles from Yosemite National Park because the physician loves to hike and have hiked all over the world and the owners of the facility have done the same thing.  What a nice fit that is.

On the other hand, we do see many CV’s that have “Reading Medical Journals” as the physician’s hobby.  Honestly, this makes the person sound one dimensional and not very interesting.  Again, the good jobs with the good employers will care about this.  There are people out there that don’t but would you want to work with someone that doesn’t care whether or not you are going to be happy?

By the way, one of the best I saw was one had a listing for hobbies and the physician put on “I have been in residency for the past three years and have had not time for hobbies, but really want to get some”.  The reason it was great is that it was exactly true.

4.  Don’t put your Visa Status on your CV -There is no reason why you should put on your Visa Status.  I am not saying not to disclose that information, and if you are working with a physician recruiter than they will disclose it when qualifying you for the job.  But it is not necessary, just like your birth date.

5.  Think about your reader - Do you really think that someone is going to look at 10 pages of publications?  They don’t.  If you had 50 publications, you might want to put some of the most recent on and list that you have over 50 others and they are available upon request. 

6.  Have your references ready - Have your references ready (Name and Contact Information).  It shouldn’t take you 10 days to get references if someone has an interest in hiring you or inviting you for a site visit.

7.  Your Cover Letter - I am not a big fan of cover letters.  If you are working with a physician recruiter than they are your cover letter.  They will introduce you and tell your background.  That is what their job is, it is not just sending out CV’s.  It is introducing you as a physician and as a person.  If you are looking for a job on your own, you are taking that responsibility on and should talk to someone before sending your CV.  Sending hundreds of CV’s out is useless if they are not targeted to people that want to see it.

8.  Length of CV -For residents and fellows we typically try to keep them to 3 pages.  Remember your reader is someone that is working in a hospital or other facility, that might see many CV’s and they want to be able to review it quickly.

9.  Format of CV - Please please please make it that the most recent activities are at the top and works backwards in time.  People want to see what you are doing NOW, not 5 years ago.  And then they will work backwards in time.

 Also, we always review and rewrite all of our clients CV’s making sure that they are easy to read, flow nicely, look professional, are formatted correctly and covers all the areas above.  And we always then send it back to the client for approval.  Any physician recruiter should do this for you.  If they do not, then they are just sending out CV’s, and you can do that yourself.