Your CAAPID CV: There Is No CV Upload. Here Is What Actually Replaces It.
Most applicants search for a “CV upload” button on CAAPID and never find one, because it does not exist. What every program actually reads is a set of structured fields: your Experiences, your Achievements, your licenses. Here is exactly how that system works, and how to fill it like a real CV instead of a form.
What CAAPID actually asks for instead of a CV
These are the mechanical facts from ADEA CAAPID’s own application help center.
Experiences sectionEvery job, rotation, research project and volunteer role goes here as its own structured entry, sorted into one of 8 fixed categories. This is the closest thing CAAPID has to a CV.
Achievements sectionAwards, presentations and published or media-covered work go here, separately from Experiences.
Documents section = diploma onlyThe one file CAAPID’s Documents section takes is your dental degree diploma, scanned with an official English translation. No CV, no resume, nothing else goes here.
CAAPID recommends focusing on experience and achievement entries “within the last 10 years and at the collegiate level and above,” and you cannot repeat the same hours across more than one experience type.
Which of the 8 categories does this belong in?
Pick something from your own background and see where CAAPID wants it filed.
Paid or unpaid dental work outside graduation requirements
Your years of practice as a general dentist go here. This is usually an applicant’s single most substantial entry.
Work required for graduation
Anything your dental school made you complete to graduate, including required rotations, goes in this category, separate from experience you chose to take on yourself.
Unpaid counts too
Shadowing is dental-related work, paid or not. Log the real hours and be specific about what you observed and any tasks you assisted with.
Community and charitable work
Organising or working a free clinic is volunteer activity, distinct from paid dental work. This is a strong category for showing community commitment.
Any structured research project
CAAPID’s own guidance is to log research “preferably in addition to or outside of regular classroom work,” so be clear about what was course-required versus what you sought out yourself.
Any time you were in charge of instructing others
Tutoring, teaching assistant roles and similar instruction-focused work belongs here, separate from your own academic experiences.
Choosing your 4 starred experiences
You can mark up to 4 experiences as most important, and that star is often the first thing a reader’s eye goes to on a long list.
Cover more than one categoryFour stars all inside “Dental Related Experience” tells a narrower story than one star each across clinical work, research, teaching and volunteering.
Star depth, not just lengthA 6-month role where you led something specific usually reads stronger than a 3-year role with a vague description. Pick the entries with the clearest, most concrete description.
12 tips, in three groups
Tap a group.
List every job, rotation, research project, volunteer role and teaching moment from the last 10-plus years in one document first. Sort it into the 8 categories afterward. Working inside the form first almost always means forgetting entries.
If a rotation was both clinical work and technically a form of teaching juniors, pick the category that dominates and log it once. CAAPID does not allow the same hours counted twice.
The form asks for the average weekly hours you actually completed. A realistic number is more credible than a suspiciously round one, and it is what the program uses to judge the scale of your involvement.
Each entry can ask for a supervisor’s contact information and a release authorization. Have names, titles and emails gathered in advance so you are not chasing this information at the last stage of a long form.
“Assisted the lead dentist in over 200 restorative procedures” tells a reader more than “Dental Assistant.” Titles get skimmed. Concrete numbers and actions get remembered.
Patient counts, procedure counts, team size, duration: numbers make an entry easy to evaluate at a glance. Only use numbers you can speak to confidently if asked about them later.
A “Research” entry should read like research (question, method, outcome), while a “Teaching” entry should read like teaching (who, what you taught, how). Generic language in every field is a missed chance to show range.
Shadowing and volunteer hours count as real experience in CAAPID’s own categories. Describe them with the same level of detail and outcome-focus as paid roles, not as an afterthought.
Keep a single, current, professionally formatted CV outside the portal. You will need it the moment any program’s “Program Materials” section requests one, and for mentors, recommenders and interviews.
Clear section headers, consistent dates, no dense paragraphs. A reader skimming it for 60 seconds should be able to reconstruct your career timeline without effort.
Dates, hours and titles that do not match between your CV and your CAAPID application are an easy, avoidable red flag. Update both from the same master list.
A CV written two admission cycles ago will not reflect your most recent, and often most relevant, experience. Treat it as a living document, not a one-time task.
Before-you-submit checklist
Tap each item as you clear it.
Frequently asked questions
Do I upload a CV anywhere in CAAPID?
What if I run out of the 4 stars but have more strong experiences?
Can I edit an experience after I submit?
Is “Employment” the same as “Dental Related Experience”?
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Current as of 30 September 2026. Source: ADEA CAAPID Applicant Help Center (Experiences, Achievements, Documents and Program Materials sections). The category-picker examples and tips are TSB’s own practical advice, not official ADEA material. Requirements can change; confirm on your CAAPID application before you submit. Educational content, not admissions advice or a guarantee of acceptance.