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The curriculum vitae: what is supposed to be a compilation of a lifetime's worth of education, work and accomplishments. For many of us applying to grad school, whether it be a master's program or a direct-to-PhD program, we might find it as one of the listed application requirements. But as young undergraduates, we might be a bit daunted. After all, how can we, at our young age, compare to the vast amount of experience other candidates might have? Thoughts that you might not stack up or are underqualified are completely understandable.
However, in your undergraduate program, there are plenty of opportunities to build up those experiences. Since I know it can be difficult to find and figure out, I've compiled a few of them for you right here!
Whether you're interested in research or academia, here are some opportunities you can participate in and work towards building up your CV:
Publish to undergraduate journals.
If you're a university student, you've probably read a paper or journal article at some point. Well, you can submit your own, too! Just at the U of A alone, there are several journals that accept submissions from undergraduate students, such as Eureka and Spectrum. Beyond campus, there are also journals specific to disciplines that are accessible to undergraduates. You don't even necessarily need to produce new work to submit; many of these journals actually encourage you to use papers you've written for previous classes, which reduces your workload. It's all just a matter of some editing and cleaning up before submitting.
Publishing to journals is beneficial for many reasons. Having work already published gives some degree of credibility to your work in your field, demonstrating proficiency in discipline-specific methodologies, critical thinking and general writing and communication skills! It'll also give you a taste of the publication process, as these journals will have peer editors and copyeditors reviewing your work and working with you to polish your piece for publication. This, in turn, can be a learning opportunity for you to apply to your future research. Plus, you can share your hard work with others and relish in having your own intellectual insights and scholarship out there for others to read and learn from!
Become a peer editor or copy editor.
Along the same vein as publishing, you can join the teams that help review submissions! Many of the U of A's journals also recruit volunteers to assist in the process, and it can be a relatively low-commitment, high-reward experience! Most of these positions entail reading over student submissions and providing feedback and edits to enhance the writer's message and research.
Working behind the scenes can give you more insight into what journals are looking for and how to optimize your work for academia. Furthermore, you can practice and sharpen various skills, such as attention to detail and clarity, while learning a lot from reading the styles and perspectives of other writers, which may help you as a writer as well. Not to mention that it's just fun and interesting to read on topics and disciplines you might not have explored otherwise. Though by no means light reading, many of these submissions tend to have shorter word limits, making it more digestible for you to enjoy and work with!
Present your work to conferences, symposiums and festivals.
As an essential part of the graduate school process, whether it's your thesis defence or doing lectures, the ability to present your work to an audience will be very important. As such, applying to speak and present work at conferences such as FURCA or the Eureka Symposium will help develop your skills in articulating complex topics in an accessible way! Of course, there's a plethora of conferences specific to each field of study, so make sure to ask your professors to let you know of any available to you as an undergraduate student.
In addition to serving as practice, these sorts of activities demonstrate a commitment to not only conducting research but transmitting it to others. After all, a large part of academic progress is educating others and sharing knowledge. As you speak at more and more of these events, you will gradually build your confidence and prepare yourself to be able to do so in graduate school! Showing that you've already gotten a head start will reflect your engagement with your topic of interest to admissions officers.
Pursue professional development.
While it's great to speak at such events, even just attending conventions, speaker series and more can be highly beneficial! Many of these sorts of seminars can be more limited in scope, so you'll likely need to ask professors or check department newsletters. However, keep in mind that professional development isn't limited to being discipline-specific; it can also be broader topics such as leadership, EDI etc. The thing that remains consistent is self-growth.
You can often meet highly accomplished specialists in your field of interest, many from institutions around the world. Forging these connections can be very helpful in pursuing your graduate studies if, say, you'd like that professor to be a thesis supervisor for you. You can also learn about a breadth of topics and keep up to date with the latest findings happening in your field. Including professional development on your CV demonstrates an eagerness to learn and build your expertise.
Take research beyond undergraduate classes.
While your work in your classes is undoubtedly great, you may want to consider participating in research outside of them as well. This can manifest in many forms, for example, directing a self-led research project. There are several programs at the U of A that will even provide funding and support in these undertakings, such as the Roger S. Smith Research Award or URI Stipend. Another method is taking on research or teaching assistant positions, which entails being on the lookout within your specific department. You could even consider an honors program or taking on a graduate-level class to do additional research, the latter of which requires permission from your department.
This experience will give you flexibility to delve deeper into your own scholarship with the support of a supervisor to provide you with guidance. Showing that you're self-motivated and have a genuine passion for your work can be a great point on your CV, as when it comes to graduate school, you're usually in it for the long haul. Self-directed projects can also demonstrate innovation, familiarity with research methodologies and more!
With that being said, not all opportunities will be super visible and easy to find; a lot of times, it will require some digging around and research. Make sure to ask your professors as they're engaged with the field and will know the most relevant opportunities for you. I also recommend visiting the Undergraduate Research Initiative (URI), as they actually helped me a lot with the very article you've just read! Not only are they aware of many research opportunities on campus, but they can also help you with conducting research, whether it's reviewing your abstract, funding application or more! Most of all, be persistent; you probably won't get 100% of the opportunities you apply for.
Make sure to not give up and keep trying and undoubtedly, you will reap the rewards you've sowed!