











































CV and Résumé Workshop for Mid-Career Professionals


359

CV and Résumé Workshop for Mid-
Career Professionals
Courtney McDonald, Associate Professor and User Experience Librarian, Uni-
versity of Colorado Boulder
Megan E. Welsh, Associate Professor and Interdisciplinary Arts & Humanities 
Librarian, University of Colorado Boulder

ABSTRACT Composed of two parts, this in-person workshop and panel 
discussion supported attendees in crafting and reconsidering their CVs and 
résumés with special attention to the concerns and considerations of mid-
career professionals. During the workshop portion, facilitators engaged 
participants through presentation, discussion, and hands-on exercises, of-
fering advice on tweaking these important documents and opportunities 
to implement suggestions. The panel discussion brought together hiring 
managers, job seekers, and those who have transitioned to work outside 
of a theological librarian role for a thoughtful and spirited conversation.

INTRODUCTION

The workshop, sponsored by the Atla Professional Development 
Committee, was designed specifically with mid-career professionals 
in mind. It included three main areas of focus. The three segments 
of the workshop were:

Section 1: Defining the CV and the résumé
Section 2: Recipe for success: cooking up the perfect CV/résumé
Section 3: Maintaining your CV & résumé

POST-CONFERENCE WORKSHOP



360  ATLA 2023 PROCEEDINGS

Following the workshop, five panelists from various institutions 
responded to questions posed by a moderator and session attendees. 

WORKSHOP 

Section 1: Defining the CV and the Résumé
The workshop began with a brief discussion contrasting the purpose 
and form of a curriculum vitae (CV) with that of a résumé, identify-
ing times when each is valuable. Facilitators characterized the CV, 
widely used in academia, as a comprehensive written record of ac-
complishments. Commonly used across public and private sectors, 
and within academia for specific purposes (e.g., grant applications), 
the résumé is a concise document, generally two pages or less, and 
is often tailored to the specific application packet in which it is used. 

Attendees were encouraged to consider a number of different 
“lenses” that might be applied specific to the situation for which the 
document was prepared, and how each would impact what parts of 
their work they would wish to highlight — for example: an annual 
review, grant application, promotion dossier, and so on. These dif-
ferent lenses have distinct audiences and purposes and form key 
considerations for how they might wish to present or contextual-
ize their body of work as a whole. The first section of the workshop 
concluded with an opportunity for attendees to individually reflect 
on what accomplishments they were most proud of, how their pro-
fessional dreams and aspirations have changed over time, and what 
lens they might wish to apply throughout the remainder of the day’s 
workshop. 

Section 2: Recipe for Success: Cooking up the Perfect CV/Résumé
Facilitators then presented their advice for content and formatting 
of effective CVs and résumés, developed from their collective experi-
ence in reading numerous documents prepared for job applications 
and for reappointment, promotion and tenure dossiers, as well as 
from their own personal experience in preparing documentation 
of this type. 

Essential categories to appear in every CV or résumé are educa-
tion, professional experience, scholarly work (includes research, 
publications, presentations) and service (within one’s institution 
or as part of professional organizations). Other categories which 



POST-CONfERENCE WORkShOP  361

might be appropriate to include pending context included awards 
and honors, media coverage, language proficiency, professional 
development or certifications, specialized technology proficiency, 
and volunteering or community service (if industry adjacent). Faith-
based employers may also require disclosures regarding religious 
identity and affiliation, congregation membership or standing and 
the like -- although this information would not typically be included 
for other scenarios. 

Avoid including images (e.g., charts, photos, decorative borders), 
as they are inappropriate for the format. Similarly, do not include 
summary or value statements, goals, or objectives. While these are 
important, they should appear in other companion documents to 
the CV or résumé. Attendees were encouraged to keep information 
presented concise and to avoid long lists and detailed descriptions, 
with examples of how to transform longer text of this type into short, 
bulleted lists. A group activity allowed participants to work together 
to review each other’s documents, highlighting items that stood out 
and discussing whether each other’s highlights aligned with what 
each individual intended to communicate with their documents.

A short discussion on formatting followed, focusing on practi-
cal advice: list items in reverse chronological order; number lists, if 
used; don’t rely on color; standard margins and fonts are preferred. 
Facilitators noted that the inclusion of page numbers and your last 
name in a document footer is helpful to all readers, in particular 
those who may opt to print out your files. 

This section of the workshop concluded with time for participants 
to individually review and edit their documentation.

Section 3: Maintaining your CV & Résumé
CVs and résumés are documents that are always “in progress.” At 
mid-career, professionals are well advised to consider what accom-
plishments to retain and which to remove from these documents, 
emphasizing that curating for the reader does not reduce the value 
of accomplishments that might no longer be listed. Facilitators pre-
sented various approaches to responding to the evolving nature of 
career accomplishments and goals as they are represented by their 
CV or résumé: summarize accomplishments meaningfully as they ac-
cumulate (i.e., “thirty book reviews” rather than individual citations); 
celebrate achievements, but be open to removing them from the cur-
rent CV as appropriate; review and update supplemental sources, 



362  ATLA 2023 PROCEEDINGS

such as professional networking sites (e.g., LinkedIn), institutional 
profiles, and self-maintained professional websites. 

Attendees were also encouraged to consider and identify a regular 
schedule for reviewing and updating their documentation, at mini-
mum on an annual basis. 

To conclude, facilitators encouraged attendees to think of their 
CVs as a celebration of their achievements, acknowledged that the 
information shared was a matter of opinion and that individuals are 
best suited to make their own best choices for these documents, and 
shared a sample CV available online (https://scholar.colorado.edu/
concern/defaults/k0698876t). As a final reflection activity, attendees 
responded to one or more prompts on a postcard, to be mailed to 
them by the facilitators in four months: one thing learned from the 
workshop; one strategy to remember to implement; a point of pride 
gleaned from the day’s reflection on one’s accomplishments. 

PANEL DISCUSSION

The panel discussion portion of this session amplified content pre-
sented in the workshop and provided more detailed and, in some 
instances, alternate perspectives. The five panelists are located at 
institutions across the United States. These institutions are very dif-
ferent from each other, and panelists were able to offer personal per-
spectives about professional documentation in the mid-career stage 
based on their own unique settings and experiences. The panel was 
moderated by Megan E. Welsh, Associate Professor and Interdisci-
plinary Arts & Humanities Librarian at the University of Colorado 
Boulder, and panelists included: 

• Courtney McDonald, Associate Professor and User Experi-
ence Librarian at the University of Colorado Boulder, who 
works at a large public, secular institution, 

• Alexis Weiss, Member Engagement Librarian at Atla, who 
works for a professional organization after working in vari-
ous academic library and school settings,

• Patrick Milas, Library Director and Assistant Professor of 
Theological Bibliography and Research, who works at New 
Brunswick Theological Seminary,

• Jessica Boyer, Library Director at Mount St. Mary’s Univer-
sity, who is located at a private, Catholic institution, 

https://scholar.colorado.edu/concern/defaults/k0698876t
https://scholar.colorado.edu/concern/defaults/k0698876t


POST-CONfERENCE WORkShOP  363

• James Estes, former Library Director at a seminary library, 
who is a Head of Section in the Library of Congress, a posi-
tion in the US federal government.

Below are summaries of the discussion prompted by each question.

Question 1: What do you focus on as you review CVs/résumés?
Panelists found it important for CVs and résumés to relate to the job 
description or the job ad. One panelist mentioned wanting to see a 
direct connection between an applicant’s experiences and the re-
sponsibilities associated with the position. Yet this panelist also add-
ed that they like seeing “extraneous nonsense” — maybe a past posi-
tion unrelated to the one for which they are applying or a volunteer 
experience outside of the profession entirely — that allows them to 
see the uniqueness of the individual and how seemingly unrelated 
experiences and skills might transfer to the position. Other panelists 
also appreciated applicants who connect their experiences directly 
to the position description: one panelist mentioned the importance 
of comparing CVs to a rubric established by Human Resources (HR) 
to help them rank applications, and two other panelists desired see-
ing how applicant experiences related to the business needs of the li-
brary and how the applicant may contribute to their team. While one 
panelist mentioned looking for organization and clarity on the CV or 
résumé, another said they may not even look at this documentation 
which is supplemental to the required fields on a well-structured 
application platform which their organization uses.

Question 2: Do you require CVs or résumés? What are you hoping to 
see on these documents?
One panelist described how their hiring platform requires knowl-
edge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) to be completed in specific fields, 
rather than represented on separate documentation such as a CV 
or a résumé. A rubric for evaluation is developed based upon these 
fields, allowing applicants to first identify if they have a KSA and 
then explain relevant experiences associated with each. This pan-
elist mentioned a functional style résumé may be most helpful as 
a supplementary document in this situation given that functional 
résumés organize an applicant’s professional history around ac-
quired skills across a career and individual positions (rather than 
listing individual positions and responsibilities for each). Other pan-



364  ATLA 2023 PROCEEDINGS

elists described receiving both CVs and résumés, depending upon 
the type of job they hire for (faculty or staff status) and if there is an 
expectation of scholarship. Résumés were sufficient for many posi-
tions, especially non-tenure track positions. One panelist suggested 
that they preferred more information to fully contextualize a can-
didate’s application, and another panelist reiterated that applicants 
shouldn’t “add fluff.”  

Question 3: How did you reformat your CV/résumé for a position 
outside of theological or academic libraries?
While one panelist shared that their CV was drastically different 
when they worked in a K-12 setting, they didn’t change their docu-
mentation significantly as they shifted from an academic library 
setting to a position in a professional organization. They empha-
sized the importance of asking oneself: how are skills transferable 
between institutional settings and positions? Other panelists men-
tioned that they personally maintain multiple CVs and résumés for 
different purposes such as authoring grants, seeking new positions, 
and for tenure and promotion purposes. In particular, one panelist 
stated that they update a CV for theological library roles, maintain 
a different CV for adjunct teaching positions, and they crafted a lim-
ited résumé for a federal position. Also discussed was the trend that 
different platforms, such as LinkedIn, have become places not just 
to communicate professional history and qualifications, but also to 
apply for jobs. Such sites can pull content from your profile, but this 
content is only as good as how well you update it. 

Question 4: How do you prefer CVs or résumés to be organized? Is 
there a structure you prefer that makes these documents easier to 
review?
Panelists expressed that clarity is crucial for an effective CV or ré-
sumé. While content in these documents can be rearranged to em-
phasize strengths, essential categories to include on a CV (especially 
for a tenure track position) are: education, research, teaching, and 
service. Regardless of how these are arranged, panelists wanted ap-
plicants to clearly share their story. One panelist emphasized how 
busy they are and how important it is for applicants to share their 
stories in a way that is quickly and easily understandable to them. 
They said, “I’d like to be able to glance at the first page and be able to 
tell if you meet the job requirements, so that would entail listing the 



POST-CONfERENCE WORkShOP  365

appropriate degrees and work experience.” Their preferred struc-
ture means having the “nuts and bolts” of an applicant’s professional 
history on page one of their CV or résumé.

Question 5: How do you prefer applicants distinguish experiences 
and qualifications which appear both on the CV/résumé and in cov-
er letters? How do you approach each document strategically (either 
personally or how you prefer applicants to approach them)?
Panelists agreed that cover letters are another important tool that 
further illuminate professional history and accomplishments listed 
on a CV or résumé. Effective cover letters could include pulling spe-
cific words and phrases from the job advertisement or description; 
they offer an opportunity to describe the “why” behind an applicant 
wanting this position at this institution, and they also help reviewers 
to evaluate candidates based on a rubric. Cover letters do not have 
to be long. After a question from the audience, panelists suggested 
that cover letters range from one to two pages depending on the po-
sition and the applicant’s experience level, but, most importantly, 
they should enhance the story that a CV or résumé begins to tell. As 
one panelist stated, “Consider a CV as a menu and your cover letter 
as a ‘buffet of all the things.’” Cover letters can be especially impor-
tant if transitioning to another type of library or role within the in-
stitution. They should be used to clearly highlight something unique 
you’re very proud of, explain the diversity of your experiences, and 
acknowledge if and how your research changed over time.

Question 6: Does your institution require religious affiliation or 
membership to a specific religious community? If so, how and 
where would you like to see that represented on a candidate’s CV/
résumé?
Ranging from federal to public to private institutions, panelists over-
whelmingly noted that religious affiliation was not expected to be 
disclosed on a CV or résumé though, for some, it was a part of the 
interview process. Overall, panelists had not been asked to identify 
their own religious identity when applying for positions. For pan-
elists affiliated with federal or public, secular libraries, requesting 
information about religious identity is actually illegal. For those at 
private, religiously affiliated libraries, panelists emphasized that 
candidates should be prepared to respond to interview questions 
about how they can contribute to the mission of the institution which 



366  ATLA 2023 PROCEEDINGS

is often aligned with religious values. One panelist suggested that 
applicants should “do their homework” about the institution and 
possibly incorporate alignment with values in a cover letter (rather 
than a CV or résumé). This homework also entails personal reflec-
tion, i.e., are you okay working for an institution with very specific 
values and everything that it entails?

Question 7: How do you personally keep track of your accomplish-
ments and responsibilities while balancing currency, impact, and 
the audience reading your CVs? How do you identify and articulate 
accomplishments of great impact on your CV?
Tracking accomplishments and responsibilities, especially at the 
mid-career stage can be difficult to manage. Several panelists shared 
that they maintain a “master” CV which lists all of their professional 
history, everything they have published, and the smallest details 
which may not be important in the moment but could be helpful to 
revisit years from now. As one panelist mentioned, “You can’t keep 
too much information on yourself.” One panelist also mentioned 
keeping a document outlining their major responsibilities associ-
ated with their past positions. While a long list of accomplishments 
might be ideal for your reference, panelists agreed that CVs and ré-
sumés should be tailored as needed to specific audiences including 
administrators, teaching faculty, evaluators (such as supervisors), 
and grant-issuing bodies. Ideal timing to update CVs and résumés 
differed from panelist to panelist. These ranged from updating an-
nually in time to submit annual evaluations, updating on Friday af-
ternoons as a low-stakes means of doing something productive, and 
updating immediately when anything changes. These changes can 
include updates to numbers where you have quantified your work 
(e.g., number of information literacy classes taught in a semester), 
publication status updates, promotion or rank changes, and changes 
to job duties. 

Question 8: How do you learn how to dream again? Where do you 
draw inspiration for your career now that you are in the mid-career 
phase?
As one of the most open-ended questions, panelists responded to 
this final question with incredibly unique perspectives. Notably, 
one panelist began, “I don’t dream of labor.” Noting that life satisfac-
tion is more important than work, their dreams focused on enjoying 



POST-CONfERENCE WORkShOP  367

life outside of their professional position, where they “kept work at 
work.” One panelist found inspiration in engaging in professional 
organizations, both at annual conferences and throughout the year, 
as a way to situate their work outside of their immediate institution-
al setting. Another panelist draws inspiration from mentoring the 
next generation of librarians, and still another panelist voiced the 
importance of appreciating the human moments that are present 
throughout our daily work and our careers as a whole. 

CONCLUSION

While most advice about CVs and résumés is focused on those in the 
student or early career stages of librarianship, this session, consisting 
of a facilitated workshop and moderated panel discussion, addressed 
a mid-career audience. Mid-career librarians have particular needs 
related to tenure and promotion processes, and career transitions, 
possibly including a transition outside of librarianship. This work-
shop and panel discussion provided space to address these needs, 
learn from each other, and implement tangible advice into each at-
tendee’s own CV and résumé.


