2024 Senior Fellows Program (2nd & 3rd Year) | September 2024-Kolb Tips and Tricks for CV, Academic Portfolio, and Cover Letters

Kolb Tips and Tricks for CV, Academic Portfolio, and Cover Letters

Pdf Summary

Dr. Jennifer Kolb, an Assistant Professor of Medicine at UCLA and an interventional endoscopist at the West Los Angeles VA, specializes in digestive diseases and has a strong interest in educational innovation and mentorship. She highlights her role as the VA site director for the UCLA fellowship program, where she finds considerable reward in mentoring trainees. Dr. Kolb is involved in revising and offering feedback on CVs and cover letters, reflecting her broader commitment to improving educational methods.<br /><br />Her involvement with the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) has been a significant aspect of her career. Inspired by her initial participation in the ASGE First-Year Fellows Course, she engaged deeply with ASGE's initiatives, including serving on the eLearning committee and chairing the Golden Scope competition. These roles allowed her to innovate in medical education and contribute to professional networking and skills training.<br /><br />Dr. Kolb offers practical advice for crafting effective CVs, cover letters, and academic portfolios. She underscores the importance of personalizing documents, maintaining accuracy, and ensuring a cohesive narrative that encapsulates one’s accomplishments and goals. For CVs, she outlines essential components such as educational background, research, teaching, clinical leadership, and service roles. She recommends using institutional templates, reviewing examples from peers, and keeping the document updated regularly.<br /><br />Her sample cover letter is targeted toward applying for a faculty position, emphasizing her advanced endoscopy skills, clinical interest in endoscopic oncology, and research ambitions in gastrointestinal neoplasia. She stresses the need for cover letters to clearly communicate strengths, goals, accomplishments, and specific interests that align with the potential role.<br /><br />Dr. Kolb also provides tips on obtaining and crafting letters of recommendation, advising that specifics and personal anecdotes should be used to highlight unique competencies. As for building an academic portfolio, she believes it should integrate factual CV elements with a narrative that reflects career trajectory and future directions.<br /><br />Her guidance aims to help academics present themselves effectively and stand out in job applications and professional evaluations.

Keywords

Jennifer Kolb

UCLA

digestive diseases

mentorship

ASGE

CV advice

cover letters

academic portfolios

endoscopy

gastrointestinal oncology