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Academic Research CV

Make research excellence visible from PhD to professorship

Research
Publications
Research Funding

Why academic CVs have their own rules

An academic career proceeds in multi-year project cycles, is evaluated internationally, and is oriented around publications and external funding. An Academic CV therefore needs to be more comprehensive, quantified, and significantly longer than a traditional corporate CV.

Research career in the CV

Focus areas and CV challenges for each career stage.

PhD (Doctorate)

Duration: 3–7 years · Focus: Specialized research

CV challenge: Document long-term projects in a structured way

  • Dissertation & first publications
  • Conferences and teaching assistantships

Postdoc

Duration: 2–6 years · Focus: Independent research

CV challenge: Contextualize fixed-term positions and relocations

  • Own projects & external funding
  • International collaborations, mentoring

Junior professorship

Duration: approx. 6 years · Focus: Research + teaching + administration

CV challenge: Demonstrate balance between research, teaching and service

  • Building a research group
  • Curriculum development, peer review, committees

W2/W3 Professorship

Permanent · Focus: Research management & transfer

CV challenge: Emphasize leadership responsibilities and strategic impact

  • Leading institutes & consortia
  • Spin-offs, policy advising, stakeholder management

Publications & Impact

Prioritize quality, impact and metrics.

Peer-reviewed articles

Peer-reviewed journal articles

Very high

CV presentation: Journals with impact factor, author order, DOI

Example: Müller, A. et al. (2024) 'Novel approaches…' Nature Biotechnology 42(3), 234-245 (IF 54.9)

  • Impact factor
  • Citations
  • h-index

Conference contributions

Talks & posters

High

CV presentation: Distinguish invited vs. contributed talks; note awards

Example: Keynote 'Future of AI' – ICML 2024, Vienna, 3,000 attendees

  • Keynotes
  • Best paper awards
  • International conferences

Books & chapters

Monographs and edited volume chapters

Medium-high

CV presentation: Separate section with publisher, ISBN, reviews

Example: Schmidt, B. (2023) 'Handbook of …' Springer, ISBN 978-3-642-12345-6

  • Publisher reputation
  • Editions
  • Translations

Preprints

Not yet peer-reviewed publications

Medium

CV presentation: Separate section clearly marked as preprints

Example: bioRxiv doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.15.123456

  • Downloads
  • Media coverage
  • Policy impact

Research funding & grant programmes

Highlight reputation and funding volume.

DFG

150k–2M € · Duration 3–12 years

CV relevance: Highest scientific reputation

Success rate: 25–30%

  • Individual grant
  • Emmy Noether
  • Heisenberg
  • SFB/TRR
  • Excellence Cluster

EU programmes

200k–3M € · Duration 2–5 years

CV relevance: International excellence

Success rate: 10–15%

  • ERC Starting/Consolidator/Advanced
  • Marie Curie
  • Horizon Europe
  • COST

Foundations

100k–1M € · Duration 2–5 years

CV relevance: Thematic focus & innovation

Success rate: 15–25%

  • Volkswagen Foundation
  • Humboldt Foundation
  • Thyssen Foundation
  • Gates Foundation

Industry & BMBF

200k–5M € · Duration 2–4 years

CV relevance: Transfer & application

Success rate: 30–40%

  • BMBF consortia
  • ZIM
  • Industry collaborations
  • EXIST

International networking

Make community engagement visible.

Peer Review

Reviewing articles & proposals

CV value: Professional recognition

Documentation: Number of reviews per year, journals

  • Career benefit: Visibility in the community

Editorial Boards

Membership on journal editorial boards

CV value: High reputation

Documentation: Journal, position, period

  • Career benefit: Scientific leadership role

Conference organization

Conferences, workshops, summer schools

CV value: Organizational skills & network

Documentation: Role, number of participants

  • Career benefit: Community building

Expert committees

Commissions, scientific council, advisory roles

CV value: Science policy expertise

Documentation: Committee, institution, role

  • Career benefit: Influence on science policy

The Academic CV

Structure and must-have sections.

Personal data

ORCID, ResearcherID, Scholar Profile

Essential

Pro tip: Provide all IDs for unambiguous identification

  • Institution & department
  • Contact channels

Publications

Peer review, books, preprints

Core

Pro tip: Prominently display h-index, total citations, impact factors

  • Quality ranking
  • Bibliometric metrics

Funding

Approved projects & roles

Very high

Pro tip: Calculate total amount and approval rate

  • Funding amount
  • Duration
  • Success rate

Teaching & supervision

Courses, theses, doctoral supervision

Pro tip: Combine quantitative data with evaluations

  • Evaluations
  • Mentoring projects

Service & engagement

Peer review, committees, organization

Pro tip: State annual effort and impact

  • Editorial boards
  • Conference organization
  • Scientific committees

Awards

Prizes, fellowships, invited talks

Pro tip: Be selective and explain the ranking

  • Competitive awards
  • Media resonance

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