We chose this reader for the CV Doctor because she is in a position similar to many humanities Ph.D.'s. In an e-mail message to us she wrote, “Amid all the publicity about the irrelevance of the humanities in the current economic climate, as an art historian I am one of those lucky souls searching for both academic and nonacademic jobs.” Lucy is in the final year of her program, and focuses on early modern Asian art. She is applying for tenure-track faculty posts at small teaching universities, and for postdoctoral fellowships at large research universities. Outside of academe, she is looking for museum, media, education, and other arts-related jobs that would make specific use of her Chinese language skills and humanities background.
Although we have a few suggestions, Lucy’s CV is quite strong. Her résumé, however, needs some modifications. For her nonacademic job search, we would recommend that she tweak her résumé for each type of position she’s applying for, and take the time to provide a more substantial description of the work she’s done.
Lucy Scholar
lscholar@provider.com
www.lucyscholar.com (1)
123 Main Street City, ST 12345 United States +1 234 555 6789
1A Central Close City, AB1 2DC United Kingdom +44 (0) 2345 678 910
Education
City, ST
Expected May 2010
X University
Ph.D., History of Art and Architecture
Dissertation: Title
General Examination fields: Chinese painting, Neolithic to present; High Qing (1661-1799)
Chinese visual culture; Edo period (1683-1868) Japanese visual culture
City, ST
March 2005
X University (2)
A.M., History of Art and Architecture
Qualifying paper: Title
City, ST
2003
Y College
A.B., Asian and Middle Eastern studies (China concentration); minor in art history
Magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, Presidential Scholar with High Honors
Senior Honors Thesis: What TLV Mirrors Reflect: Cosmology, Culture and Divination in Han China
Awarded Wing-Tsit Chan Prize for best thesis in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies
Fellowships and Awards (3)
| Graduate Dissertation Completion Fellowship, X University | 2009-2010 |
| Andrew W. Mellon Research Fellowship, Y Research Institute | 2009 |
| Name Traveling Fellowship, X University | 2008 |
| X University Asia Center Grant | 2008 |
| Nominee, Award for Exceptional Advising and Counseling | 2008 |
| Nominee, Joseph Smith Memorial Teaching Prize | 2008 |
| Blakemore Freeman Fellowship for Advanced Asian Language Study (Mandarin) | 2005-2007 |
| X University Graduate Society Summer Pre-Dissertation Research Travel Grant | 2005 |
| Fairbank Center Director’s Graduate Student Travel Grant | 2005 |
| Mary and James Smith Foundation Fellowship, X University | 2004-2005 |
| Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Summer Grant (Mandarin) | 2004 |
| Rufus Choate Scholar (First Honor Group), Y College | 2003 |
| Citations for Academic Excellence, Y College | 2002, 2000 |
Teaching Experience
| Instructor, Z University China studies program | Beijing, PRC |
| Art of China 4391/FNAR 358, “Arts of China: Monuments of Visual Culture” | Autumn 2008 |
Designed and taught original seminar covering monuments of Chinese visual culture from ancient times through the present day. Average student evaluation 4.36/5. (4) |
| Head Teaching Fellow, X University | City, ST |
| Literature and Arts B-23, “The Japanese Woodblock Print” | Spring 2008 |
Coordinated all course logistics for Professor Name. Supervised teaching fellows and maintained course Web site for 100+ student core course. Taught two discussion sections and held weekly office hours. Average student evaluation 4.2/5. |
| Teaching Fellow, X University | City, ST |
| History of Art and Architecture 18k, “Introduction to Japanese Art” | Autumn 2007 |
Coordinated all course logistics for Professor Name. Maintained course website and taught two discussion sections. Average student evaluation 4.3/5. |
| Instructor, Z University China studies program | Beijing, PRC |
| Art of China 4391/FNAR 358, “Arts of China: Survey of the Golden Age” | Autumn 2006 |
Designed and taught original seminar on eighteenth-century Chinese art and architecture with focus on Beijing. |
| Teaching Assistant, Y College | City, ST |
| Art History 60, “Arts of China” | Winter 2002 |
| Delivered four lectures for Professor Name on Museum collection of Chinese art. |
Professional Presentations (5)
| 2009 | “Paintings in Late Imperial China,” paper delivered at the Association for Asian Studies Conference, Brown University “Painting at the Eighteenth-Century Chinese Court,” paper delivered at East & West Conference, University of St. Andrews, Scotland “Qing Illusionistic Painting,” text-reading seminar presented at Y Research Institute, Cambridge, UK |
| 2008 | “Illusionistic Paintings at the Court of the Emperor Qianlong,” paper delivered at An International Symposium on Westerners and the Qing Court, Q University, Beijing |
| 2007 | “Secrets and Stories of the Forbidden City,” guest lecture for Royal Bank of Scotland All-Asia Retreat, Beijing “The Palace of the Qianlong Emperor,” guest lecture for Dutch Pension Fund, Beijing |
| 2006 | “The Forbidden City: Life and Art in the Imperial Palace,” guest lecture for KPMG International, Beijing |
| 2005 | “Imperial Aesthetics at the Court of Emperor Qianlong” paper presented at East and West in Chinese Visual Culture, X University “Chinese Art at the Smith Museum,” gallery talk delivered for Smith House Intellectual and Cultural Fellows, X University “Portrait Photographs of the Empress Dowager Cixi (1835-1908),” paper presented at East Asia Society Graduate Student Conference, X University |
| 2004 | “Qianlong’s Landscape Engravings,” paper delivered at Association for Asian Studies New England Regional Conference, Y College |
Related Professional Experience (6)
| Co-Editor and Social Media Director, Asian Art Journal | Summer 2009-present |
Co-edited digital journal on 18th-21st-century Asian art presenting postgraduate peer-reviewed articles, exhibition reviews, and market commentary. Designed and directed social-media strategy. |
| Faculty in Residence, the Beijing Center, Beijing, China | Autumn 2008 |
Originated position for Z University China Studies program as student adviser and liaison between student life staff, faculty and administrative staff. |
| Research Director, Laura B. Whitman Fine Arts Advisory, New York | 2007-2008 |
Directed and conducted connoisseurial research specializing in East Asian art and the global art market. |
| Co-President, Y Club of China, Beijing | 2006-2007 |
Coordinated regular events to connect current and former students living in China. Liaised between Alumni Affairs and club members. Supervised transition from print to digital database and correspondence. |
| Translation Editor, Department of Foreign Affairs, Palace Museum, Beijing | Spring 2006 |
Edited and corrected English translations of Chinese materials for Museum publications and exhibitions. |
| Graduate Coordinator, New England East Asian Art History Seminar, X University | 2004-2005 |
Originated position as logistical and electronic media coordinator for monthly seminar series. Designed, organized and presented at the international symposium East and West in Chinese Visual Culture. |
| Graduate Assistant, Smith Museum, X University | 2004-2005 |
Assisted with production of exhibition and international symposium for “Marks of Enlightenment in Japanese Calligraphy.” |
| Research Assistant, Chinese Works of Art, Christie’s, Inc., New York | Spring/Summer 2002 |
Drafted catalog entries for all Fall 2002 sale catalogs. Supervised floor attendants and resolved client inquiries during exhibitions and sales. |
| Chinese Art Intern, Museum of Art, Y College | Summer 2001 |
| Worked independently to correct and unify cataloging for collections of ancient and medieval Chinese bronze mirrors, Neolithic jades, and Han-dynasty shrine rubbings. |
Languages
Mandarin Chinese (fluent professional reading, writing, and speaking)
Classical Chinese (proficient reading and translation)
French (proficient reading, functional speaking and writing)
Spanish (proficient reading, functional speaking and writing)
Professional Affiliations
College Art Association
Association of Asian Studies
Comments:
1. Lucy includes a link to her new blog, which focuses on her academic subfield and on contemporary questions in the art world of the country she studies. It also ties into her Twitter account, the most recent entry of which mentioned a paper she wrote that was accepted at a conference. Her blog is a great example of a professional Web site. Job seekers wishing to develop something similar would have to work hard to keep the blog content fresh, which can be a time-consuming task. Return to CV.
2. Her CV now lists X University twice under the Education section. She doesn’t need to do that and might simply list her degrees as follows:
| X University | Cambridge, MA |
| Ph.D., History of Art and Architecture | Expected May 2010 |
| Dissertation: Imperial Illusions: Picturing the Emperor Qianlong’s Ideals and Identities in Eighteenth-Century Chinese Court Painting |
General Examination fields: Chinese painting, Neolithic to present; High Qing (1661-1799)
Chinese visual culture; Edo period (1683-1868) Japanese visual culture |
| A.M., History of Art and Architecture | March 2005 |
| Qualifying paper: Reality, Representation, and Reception: Tripartite Space in the ‘Pictures of the European |
Return to CV.
3. Lucy has an extensive list of fellowships and awards. That’s wonderful, but it does take up quite a bit of real estate on the first page of her CV. It might be worth trimming here, or including the information on a second or third page. Also, she might talk about her grant-supported research in a Research Experience section. Return to CV.
4. Lucy includes her average teaching-evaluation ratings right on her CV. This is an interesting idea—it’s not something we often see. It’s hard to know what these numbers mean, however, without a bit more context. We’re not sure if the numbers are about her, or the course as a whole. Return to CV.
5. Lucy’s Professional Presentations section could benefit from two changes. First, she needs to put the dates on the right to be consistent with other sections of her CV. Second, because she includes guest lectures and paper presentations here, she might separate them into two different subheadings under this section. Return to CV.
6. The Related Professional Experience section is too much of a mixed bag to be useful to readers. We would suggest that Lucy divide the information into multiple sections, the most important of which would be one called Research Experience. She lists four positions that would easily fall under that section and it would give her a forum to talk a bit more about her own scholarship. Other sections might be Editing and Translation Experience and Administrative Experience. Return to CV.