In last week's email, we reminded members of the AdjunctWorld community to highlight any online learning experiences on their resumes, as many schools are listing "online learning experience" as preferred or required in their job descriptions. This is good news for online job-seeking adjuncts who may not have taught online before but who have taken online classes themselves.

In the ensuing conversation, an AW member asked me, "How do I list my online learning experience in my CV?" Good question! I do not know if there is a specific "accepted" method for documenting one's online learning experiences in a resume, but it seems to me that it would go quite nicely in the "Education" section, which as luck may have it, is usually at the top of one's CV after contact information. One's educational background is read even before one's teaching experiences are - that's more good news for the online job-seeking adjunct who has online learning experience but may not have much online teaching experience!

Here are some examples of ways to highlight one's online learning experience in a CV. Notice that emphasizing the LMS used is important as well, as some schools require "LMS experience" although they may not require online teaching experience, per se.

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND

PhD in Leadership Studies
State University International College
Conferred: December 2020
Modality: Online
LMS Used: Blackboard

MS in Organizational Behavior
University of the Colleges Online
Conferred: May 2015
Modality: Online
LMS Used: Moodle

In the above example, the applicant's entire academic programs were online. In some instances, the job-seeking adjunct may have taken several online classes but in a traditional university environment. In that case, you might format your educational experience like this:

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND

MA in Criminal Justice
University of Academic Excellence
Conferred: May 2021
Number of fully online courses taken: 5
LMS used: Canvas

BA in Criminal Justice Studies
University of Achievement and Academics
Conferred: May 2016
Number of fully online courses taken: 3
LMS used: Blackboard

If a school is specifically asking for LMS experience, I don't see where it would be strange or inappropriate to include an "LMS Experience" section somewhere at the top of your resume/CV. You can also allude to your online learning experience in your personal statement. Something like "As a seasoned distance learner myself, the idea of using technology to teach students from across the globe in an online setting is most appealing to me."

Also, if you have taught in the traditional college environment, but heavily used LMS technology to keep track of grades or have class discussions, you can highlight those in your "Teaching Experience" Section by drawing attention to the LMS used in the list.

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

On-Ground Psychology Instructor (2002-2012)
Eastgate Community College
LMS used: Blackboard
Classes taught: Introduction to Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, and Forensic Psychology

I wouldn't worry too much about how "properly" a CV or resume is formatted. Read what the school is looking for and requires/prefers and make sure that information jumps off of your resume. You typically have a chance to describe your experiences in a cover letter as well, so use that as an additional opportunity to tout your online learning and LMS experiences.