Application Materials for Faculty Positions

Welcome to our collection of sample materials for faculty positions and guidance on how to write your own!

It is to your advantage to create a document that stands out from your fellow applicants. To create an application package that highlights your unique skills and experiences, watch our short video series Applying For Faculty Positions, use the resources below and consider scheduling an appointment.

Developing Faculty Application Materials

Understand the application materials

You have identified the type of faculty position you'd like to apply to and you are ready to start applying to faculty positions.

What types of materials?

Faculty application packets typically include a Cover Letter, a Curriculum Vitae (CV), Letters of Reference, a Research Statement and/or a Teaching Statement.

Who will read the materials?

The materials will first be screened by a faculty members on the search committee. Depending on the institution, faculty members may come a wide range of backgrounds, so it's best to write the materials for educated non-experts. Once you are invited to interview, the materials may be shared with the rest of the faculty members in the department.

How will they read it?

Faculty members often need to review hundreds of applications, which means that you will need to demonstrate you are a promising candidate through your Cover Letter and your CV in just 3 to 10 minutes for the first selection.

Are your materials ready?

Use the checklists below to make sure your application materials showcase the strengths of your candidacy.

To learn more and get assistance writing your own application materials, look for our annual fall programming on application materials, visit our Office Hours, or make a 1:1 consultation with us.

Write your cover letter

The cover letter (1-1.5 pages) is meant to be a guide to your application package, so that the reader wants to continue reading your application and knows what to look for in your materials.

Your cover letter should highlight and summarize your strengths and it should help the reader quickly decide that you are a potential fit for the position. It also should be well written and edited to make sure you come across as thorough and professional.

Suggested layout for a cover letter:

Paragraph 1: What position you are applying for, where it was posted, what you currently do and where.
Paragraph 2: What your area of expertise is, what you have accomplished to this date (details in CV), who you’ve worked with (details in CV). Highlight your strengths as a candidate for this position, make them want to read your CV.
Paragraph 3:
- For a research position: What is your research vision (details in RS), why is this relevant (details in RS), is it fundable (details in RS), does it fit with the position, the department, the institution?
- For a teaching position: What is your teaching experience (details in TS), what is your approach to teaching (details in TS), why I our interested in teaching at that particular institution (details in TS)?
Paragraph 4: In what other ways will you contribute to the department (service, outreach), what have you done that can demonstrate you will do any of this (details in CV)?
Paragraph 5: Express enthusiasm for the position, the colleagues, the department, the institution.

Resources

Download our Tip Sheet for Cover Letters
Additional Resources: Science Careers Article: Writing a Winning Cover Letter by John K. Borchardt.

Build your Curriculum Vitae (CV)

General format:

Academic CVs follow a fairly standard format, which can be anywhere from 2 to 15 pages long. A CV should list all experience relevant to an academic position. Keep fonts coherent.

Common sections in the CV:

Education, Research Experience, Teaching Experience, Mentoring Experience, Grants & Awards, Honors, Publications, Trainings, University Service/Professional Involvement, Memberships. (The titles to these sections can vary)

Different versions of your CV:

Because the first few pages of a CV are "prime real-estate," the order of these sections will vary depending on the research- and teaching-focus of the position:

For a highly research-focused position: Research Experience, Grant & Fellowships, Publications sections may immediately follow the Education section.
For a teaching position: Teaching Experience, Mentoring Experience, University Service/Professional Involvement sections may immediately follow the Education section.

Therefore, if you are considering applying to a range of positions (from teaching-focused to research-focused), you will need to keep several versions of your CV.

Additional resources:

Browse our collection of Sample Application Materials for academic positions below.

Develop your research and teaching statements

Research Statements:

Download the OCPD Tip Sheet and Checklist: "Developing a Winning Research Statement."
Use this fairly comprehensive rubric that helps a candidate evaluate the content, style and form of their research statement.
From Cornell University, this website contains a clear outline for writing a research statement and provides several example statements to help candidates when evaluating their own.
Read “Developing Your Research Statement” a webpage that demystifies what a research statement is and offers some brief do’s and don’ts.
From AAAS’s Science magazine, this article includes a “How To” section addressing elements of a successful research statement.
For example research statements, view the sample faculty application materials below.

Teaching Statements or Statements of Teaching Philosophy

Developing your teaching statement is part of our Evidence-Based Teaching Course!
Rubrics for developing and evaluating a teaching statement:
- An in-depth in-depth rubric developed by Kearns & Sullivan; this rubric is very comprehensive and provides good information for crafting your teaching statement, but is probably more in-depth than most biomedical, or research-intensive positions require.
- A simpler Rubric for Statements of Teaching Philosophy (Kaplan, O'Neal, Meizlish, Carillo, and Kardia, 2005) can be used to develop your teaching statement.
- From the University of Minnesota’s Center for Educational Innovation, this website provides links to rubrics that are more general and can apply to a variety of applicants.
From Vanderbilt University’s Center for Teaching, this website is not directed to biomedical students specifically, but does contain helpful information about writing a teaching statement, the Kaplan rubric, and provides links to other resources.
From AAAS’s Science magazine, this article provides a more science-centered perspective on writing and evaluating a teaching statement.
Browse the "Teaching Philosophy webpage" for sample teaching statements & how-to articles targeted to scientists, by the University of Michigan's Center for Research on Learning and Teaching.
Download “Writing A Teaching Statement” by the University of Washington’s Center for Instructional Development and Research. Contains good writing prompts to help you get started writing your teaching statement.
For example teaching statements, view the sample faculty application materials below.

Other Application Materials: Describing Relevant Experience and Contributions

You may be asked to describe how their teaching, research, mentoring, patient care, leadership, service, community engagement, or other professional activities contribute to student success, foster a sense of belonging, support welcoming learning and working environments, or prepare them to work effectively with individuals from a variety of personal experiences, values, and worldviews.

Institutions often look for evidence of these abilities throughout application materials, including cover letters, CVs, teaching statements, research statements, service statements, clinical statements, publications, and other supporting documents.

Some institutions may ask applicants to address these experiences directly. For example:

"Submit a cover letter detailing your interest in the position, relevant qualifications, and experiences. Applicants should articulate how their past experiences and/or future plans in research, teaching, mentoring, patient care, and/or service promote a sense of belonging and foster a welcoming environment."

Other institutions may communicate these expectations through statements of institutional values and expect candidates to address them as appropriate throughout their application materials. For example:

"We are committed to fostering a welcoming environment for students, faculty, and staff. We believe that wide range of experiences, perspectives, and thought enriches our learning environment and strengthens our academic community. We encourage applications from individuals whose backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives will enhance our commitment to these values."

Each institution has its own language and framework for expressing its commitment to creating a positive academic community for all of their learners. The overall strategy is to review position announcements carefully, using institution-specific language, and echoing their framing and priorities.

When preparing application materials, focus on concrete examples that demonstrate relevant knowledge, skills, experiences, accomplishments, and future plans. The strongest examples are specific, authentic, and directly connected to the responsibilities of the position.

Examples may include:

Teaching and instructional practices that support student learning across varied educational backgrounds, experiences, and learning styles.
Mentoring, advising, supervising, or sponsoring students, trainees, staff, or colleagues.
Research, scholarship, creative activities, or clinical work that address the needs of various populations or examine barriers to opportunity, access, or participation.
Community engagement, outreach, or partnerships that expand educational, research, or service opportunities.
Leadership, committee work, professional service, or institutional initiatives that foster welcoming, supportive, and collaborative environments.
Contributions that promote student success, belonging, and opportunity for all students through teaching, scholarship, service, mentoring, clinical practice, or institutional leadership.

Remember that institutions are typically evaluating the knowledge, skills, abilities, experiences, and accomplishments you bring to the role. Focus on demonstrating impact through specific examples rather than only making broad statements about your values or intentions.

When a Stand-Alone Statement Is Requested

Requirements for faculty application materials vary across institutions and are always evolving. For example, as of March 2025, the University of California no longer requires stand-alone statements. However, some colleges and universities, academic medical centers and other research organizations do request stand-alone statements addressing opportunity, accessibility or belonging as part of their application process.

You should always carefully review each position announcement and prepare materials that respond to the specific requirements and priorities identified by the hiring institution, as carefully following the application instructions and responding directly to the institution’s own prompt is more important than any general guidance.

When a position requests a stand-alone statement, focus on addressing the prompt directly and provide specific examples of both 1) what you have already done, and 2) what you plan to do that supports the values they’ve identified. A common mistake is only addressing your past contributions without mentioning how you will continue that work at the institution you are applying to. Strong statements address not only your overall approach, but also clearly describe 1) concrete actions, 2) demonstrated impact, 3) lessons learned, and 4) future plans.

Because expectations vary widely (by institution, discipline, geographic region, etc.), applicants should focus on examples that are responsive to the specific position and aligned with the specific institution's mission and stated priorities.

Additional Resources

If a position specifically requests a stand-alone statement, the following resources provide guidance, examples, and strategies for writing an effective response:

University of Washington provides tips for assessing statements, related to research, teaching, service and/or outreach, which can help you understand what faculty are looking for when they read your statement.
Getting started writing a personal statement (from the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy)

The samples below have been generously donated by UCSF students, postdocs, and alumni, in order to offer you ideas about how to present your own skills and experiences. We make no claims that they are perfect, but we offer them as useful examples.

Do not copy the text exactly. To do so is plagiarism.

UCSF Office of Career and Professional Development