CV question

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

voyeurofthemind

Full Member
10+ Year Member
Joined
Dec 16, 2010
Messages
195
Reaction score
40
Updating the CV and wanted feedback regarding the listing of clinical workshops. I have attended a variety of day long or half day clinical workshops in a variety of areas (i.e. smoking cessation, ACT, hoarding) and would like to list them under training experiences. I want to make sure this isn't CV padding. IN applying to internships wouldn't sites that have clinical opportunities in this area want to see this experience (albeit brief)?
 
Updating the CV and wanted feedback regarding the listing of clinical workshops. I have attended a variety of day long or half day clinical workshops in a variety of areas (i.e. smoking cessation, ACT, hoarding) and would like to list them under training experiences. I want to make sure this isn't CV padding. IN applying to internships wouldn't sites that have clinical opportunities in this area want to see this experience (albeit brief)?

Yeah, I listed mine under a seperate category (and more towards the end of the CV). I personally only listed workshops that were very relevant to the site, extensive (2-day+ or at least 1 full day), and were provided by experts in the field (e.g, steven hayes if ACT). I don't think a 2 hour workshop is going to be impressive to anyone.
 
Agree with the above - no harm in listing it, but I'd tack it onto the end (and not expect it to mean much even then). As others, I only bother including the major ones (i.e. week-long APA Advanced Training Institute, 2-day seminar in Motivational Interviewing).
 
Updating the CV and wanted feedback regarding the listing of clinical workshops. I have attended a variety of day long or half day clinical workshops in a variety of areas (i.e. smoking cessation, ACT, hoarding) and would like to list them under training experiences. I want to make sure this isn't CV padding. IN applying to internships wouldn't sites that have clinical opportunities in this area want to see this experience (albeit brief)?


I have these listed on my CV. I included them when I applied for Internship if they were relevant. I have a section titled Professional Development at the end of my CV. These kinds of training tell them about you and your background. I did a week of intensive ACT training a few years ago and I attended a two day workshop on the MMPI RF done by Yousef Ben Porath (one of the developers). Both are on my CV. If you don't tell them about what you have done, they won't get a complete picture of you. I would not regard it as "padding" in any way. You won't be showing clinical proficiency. Rather you will present a picture of your interests and the fact that you are invested in training and avail yourself of training opportunities outside your doctoral program. This can only help you.
 
Last edited:
I've never listed these in a CV. I suppose you could, but no one expects that after a short day or two workshop that you would be anywhere near competent to deliver a new intervention, so I'm not sure how much bang for the buck it would actually give you to list them. If you're looking for more experience in a certain area and or are targeting a specific site, mentioning that you have some exposure may be helpful.

+1 👍

I have never listed anything like this. Unless it is something that gives you some kind of formal certification, I wouldn't list it. But I've noted in other threads that I am a CV minimalist as well.

Side question - do people in clinical practice ever list this kind of stuff when they do CEU trainings? I would not view it very favorably and have never seen it, but curious if anyone else has.
 
+1 👍

I have never listed anything like this. Unless it is something that gives you some kind of formal certification, I wouldn't list it. But I've noted in other threads that I am a CV minimalist as well.

Side question - do people in clinical practice ever list this kind of stuff when they do CEU trainings? I would not view it very favorably and have never seen it, but curious if anyone else has.

I know people in clinical practice who do this. I attended a seminar where it was recommended by a PhD. J.D. who spoke on the topic of lawsuit prevention and defense.
 
I know people in clinical practice who do this. I attended a seminar where it was recommended by a PhD. J.D. who spoke on the topic of lawsuit prevention and defense.

To list workshops you have attended on your CV?

I will never do that, because I think a CV is for accomplishments, not things you can passively show up for. If you get some kind of certification from it, then it might be appropriate.
 
To list workshops you have attended on your CV?

I will never do that, because I think a CV is for accomplishments, not things you can passively show up for. If you get some kind of certification from it, then it might be appropriate.

People definitely list extensive workshops they attended when applying for internship. I think it looks good as a graduate student if you have very intensive workshops on your CV that are relevant to the site population (DBT etc.). Once you graduate, I don't think it matters anymore and it def. won't help.
 
The ones I listed are all relevant to my clinical interests.
 
Personally, I think its only real utility would be if you need to "sell" that you have at least a basic knowledge in something that won't come through in other ways. For example, I've attended some stats workshops for techniques I haven't (yet) published papers using. I'll probably include those on my post-doc applications (assuming I don't have the pubs out by then) just because I can't imagine any other place it would go and it seems relevant. I could see similar things for clinical workshop - I did the same thing when applying for a clinical practica in an area I had relatively minimal experience with at the time aside from attending a couple workshops. Once I have other evidence of ability in something, I usually chop these out and I imagine I won't bother any longer once I'm more established.

Either way its very unlikely to mean anything, but you never know what might catch someone's eye. Just like listing professional affiliations (which mean even less!), it can help paint a picture of where you are at.

All of this should be kept reasonable though. 3 pages of scattered workshops and no other qualifications looks ridiculous (seen this among the PP crowd). Hitting a couple highlights to emphasize you have at least basic abilities in an area you are seeking to expand on or get more training in seems reasonable.
 
People definitely list extensive workshops they attended when applying for internship. I think it looks good as a graduate student if you have very intensive workshops on your CV that are relevant to the site population (DBT etc.). Once you graduate, I don't think it matters anymore and it def. won't help.

I really don't think it makes anyone look good. I wouldn't recommend it to people. It just a workshop that you attended.

If it was that crazy Kansas Stats camp or some very extensive training that gives you a specific skill, perhaps it could be listed. But for any intern or job applicants out there - I never once listed anything like that and came out just fine. You possibly will encounter someone like me who would view it as padding too, so there is some risk involved with listing half-day workshops.
 
I really don't think it makes anyone look good. I wouldn't recommend it to people. It just a workshop that you attended.

If it was that crazy Kansas Stats camp or some very extensive training that gives you a specific skill, perhaps it could be listed. But for any intern or job applicants out there - I never once listed anything like that and came out just fine. You possibly will encounter someone like me who would view it as padding too, so there is some risk involved with listing half-day workshops.

Was referring more to a 4-day ACT or DBT workshop with big names if you are applying to DBT specific sites for internship or even a 2-day Prolonged Exposure training with Foa if you are interested in VA sites. This wouldn't be your only experience with the treatment modality, but it may show the site that you have gone out of your way to get additional relevant training.

Also, I wouldn't list more than 2-3 very extensive workshops, if I was going to list any at all.
 
I dunno, one of the workshops I listed helped me get a practicum interview--the supervisor specifically mentioned it during my interview.

I just think that at the very least it shows that you're pursuing training outside of your program. Furthermore, my program doesn't offer any formal training in DBT and I hope to pursue DBT training on internship, so I list all of the DBT-related workshops that I've attended.
 
To each their own. Like I said earlier, if it is something really substantial (like several days long) or leads to some kind of certification, it might be worth listing. An example I could think of is special training in a type of intervention (e.g., EMDR) originating from whoever developed the intervention to promote fidelity of implementation.

I wouldn't read a CV line like that as bad. I would view people listing short workshops that they attended as padding. A good example of this is the AACN conference. They have lots of awesome half day workshops on neuropsychology related topics that an be used for CEUs. They are great workshops, but if I saw someone list attending one on their CV, I wouldn't view it favorably.

I could see your reasoning about wanting to show some DBT experience. But I would be concerned if you were listing something that didn't reflect formal training (e.g., saw a grand rounds on it or attended a 2-3 hour informational session on it). As mentioned earlier in the thread, too, these really won't matter as you get further along in your career. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt for your internship applications - but eventually people will want to know that you actually trained at a site known for DBT, not that you attended some workshop on it during graduate school. My friends who were into DBT did practica that were DBT focused and that helped them get DBT internships.

I could see a scenario where someone is a clinician, does not do any publishing or research presentations, and starts catologing all of their CEU workshops to show that they are actually doing something other than their job. But some people (like me) would just view that as someone doing what they are supposed to be doing, and probably taking too much credit on their CV. Once again, to each their own. List at your own discretion.
 
Right, the issue is that my program doesn't have any local practica with a DBT focus (in fact, we don't have any clinics offering full model DBT in the entire state). So maybe it won't be enough to get me a DBT-focused internship, but it's the best that I can do at this point. Obviously if I get real DBT training down the line, I can take them off of my CV.
 
Top