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Is it acceptable to list the journals you have reviewed papers for on your CV? Is it common? Do you think it’s recommended?

On the one hand, it shows that you are engaged in this necessary part of scientific research that is peer-review. On the other hand, it sounds a bit useless, because everyone actually reviews papers for journals, and it is actually an unverifiable information (reviewers are confidential).

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Some journals publish reviewer lists‌​, so it is sometimes verifiable. – Andy W Oct 2 '12 at 22:15
CV's have different audiences - I have at least 5 versions (different organizations request different aspects). The journals reviewed winds up on the version of my CV I used for promotion and tenure evaluations, as it's a "service to the community" aspect. It won't be on my CV for my research web page. – Fuhrmanator Oct 22 '12 at 14:11

4 Answers

up vote 24 down vote accepted

On the one hand, it shows that you are engaged in this necessary part of scientific research that is peer-review.

That's one of the major reasons why people list it. If your CV is being viewed as part of a performance review or hiring decision, or even for awards, this constitutes "service to the community" and indicates that you're a good citizen.

It's a noisy signal for the reasons you indicate, and so it doesn't carry a whole lot of weight compared to things like technical committee memberships and leadership roles, but it's part of the larger picture. Moreover, for more junior researchers who haven't yet had the chance to take on leadership roles, this is a good signal of service.

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Let us not forget, that reviewing for a certain scientific field makes you officially the Boss. Confidence and reputation boost guaranteed. – fgysin Jan 29 at 16:42
up vote 23 down vote

I did this in the earlier stages of my career, when every little bit of CV weight helped. But as the number grew, and as I did other more significant things, I removed all traces of reviewing.

You need to show that you are involved in the community when you are young and starting out. Later other aspects will be more important.

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up vote 14 down vote

I would say that being asked by a journal to review an article is an indicator of esteem and for that reason, suitable and useful for inclusion in your CV.

With regard to confirming - or otherwise - whether or not you did indeed act as a referee for a journal, I would expect that anyone who wanted to verify this could ask the journal in question. Which specific articles that you reviewed could, properly, remain confidential. However, disclosing the information that you acted as a referee for the journal would not, as far as I can see, break any confidentiality policy.

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Probably, a journal can say without breaking confidentiality rules that X acted as reviewer for them… but I don't know if they actually would answer such requests. – F'x Oct 2 '12 at 20:36
@F'x: there could be potentially a problem with journal revealing its reviewers in a too liberal fashion. Most of the time, the idea is to have a blind review. Yet, many journals ask authors to list potential reviewers of their submission. Simply asking whether somebody reviewed for the journal could sometimes jeopardize the blind review process. – walkmanyi Oct 2 '12 at 22:12
up vote 5 down vote

I will essentially repeat the answer I gave here. The context for what the CV is going to be used for is key. I have a single CV that includes "everything" since I started grad school and selected things from before then. Having a long CV makes it easier for me to create short CVs because it means I need to delete things instead of remember things.

When I would include this information depends on the purpose of the CV and your previous experience. If you are giving a talk and someone asks you for a CV, then I would leave it off. If you are applying for a job and it is your only evidence of service, I would leave it in.

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