CV length and layout for a multi-page document

A long CV is used like a reference book. People do not read it through; they look things up. Lay it out so that looking up is easy.

Length follows content

There is no correct number of pages for a CV. It should be as long as a complete record requires and no longer. What matters is that nothing true and relevant is missing, nothing is padded, and each kind of information can be found at once. Where an application sets a limit ("CV not exceeding four pages"), keep to it by trimming older and lesser items, not by shrinking the type.

The first page

The first page should carry your name, present position, contact details, education and the start of your appointments. A reader who sees only this page should know who you are, what you are qualified in and where you work now. Avoid a title page: "Curriculum Vitae" in large letters with nothing else wastes the most-read page of the document.

Running header and page numbers

Pages get separated, in printing and in committee files. Put your name and "page 2 of 7" in the header or footer of every page after the first. In a word processor this is set once in the header and applied to all pages.

Type and spacing

• One typeface for the whole document. A serif face such as Times New Roman or Georgia suits long reading; a plain sans-serif such as Arial or Calibri is equally acceptable.
• Body text at 11 or 12 point. A CV is not short of space; do not go below 10.5.
• Headings a little larger or in bold capitals, all in the same style.
• Margins of about 20 to 25 mm, so that pages can be punched and filed.
• Line spacing single or slightly more, with a clear gap between entries.
• Black text. At most one sober colour for headings.

Entries that line up

Every entry in a section should have its parts in the same order and position. The simplest reliable pattern is dates at the left (or right) in a narrow column and the details beside them.

Use a tab stop or a two-column table without borders to keep the columns straight. Do not line things up with rows of spaces; they shift when the file is opened on another computer.

Dates

Choose one form and keep it: "Jul 2019 to Mar 2023", or "2019 to 2023" where years are enough. Write "present" for a current post. Avoid all-numeric dates such as 03/07/19, which are read differently in different countries.

Numbering

Number publications, presentations and projects. Numbers make long lists easy to cite and to count. If an application form asks for "best five publications", you can refer to them by number.

Page breaks

• Do not leave a heading alone at the foot of a page with its entries overleaf. Use "keep with next" on headings.
• Do not split a single citation across two pages if you can avoid it.
• It is fine for a section to run over several pages.

Emphasis

Use bold for headings, for your own name in author lists, and for designations. Use italics for titles of journals and books, following your citation style. Avoid underlining, capitals for whole sentences, boxes, shading and icons.

Photographs, logos and signatures

Add a photograph only where the institution or the country's custom expects it (see CV by country). Do not add institutional logos; the CV is yours, not your employer's. Sign and date the last page only where a signed CV is asked for, as some institutions and some countries do.

Saving and sending

• Save as PDF so that the layout stays fixed. Check that the PDF contains real text by selecting a line.
• Name the file with your name and "CV" and, if useful, the month: S_Verma_CV_Nov2026.pdf.
• Keep the file size modest; do not embed large images.
• Print one copy on plain white A4 and read it on paper before sending. Errors show up in print that the screen hides.
• If an online form asks you to paste text, paste from a plain-text copy and check line breaks.

Shorter versions

Funding bodies and conferences often ask for a short CV or biographical sketch of one or two pages, sometimes in their own template. Do not shrink the full CV. Build the short one afresh from the master: present post, degrees, the five or ten most relevant publications ("selected publications", so labelled), current grants, and a line of total counts.

A quick test

Hand the printed CV to a colleague and ask three questions: when did I get my doctorate, how many journal articles do I have, what am I teaching this year? If each answer takes them more than ten seconds to find, the layout needs work. The CV checklist has the full list of checks.

Questions people ask

More CV guides

Sample CVs

General guidance. This page gives general suggestions, reviewed in November 2026. If an institution, employer or country gives its own form, format or instruction, follow that. Every person, institution and publication in our examples is invented. Nothing here is legal, immigration or professional advice.