When applying for a job, you typically only get one chance to catch the attention of the hiring manager or recruiter. A well-crafted medical resume can help you land job interviews and move you past the pile of discarded resumes that only received a fleeting glance.
You may be wondering what makes a medical resume different from other resumes. While many elements are the same, a medical resume requires more technical information specific to whatever medical field you’re planning to enter.
This article walks through the elements to include (and not include) in a medical resume and how a resume writing service could be helping is landing your dream job.
Need assistance in getting your resume ready? Dive into our thorough reviews of the top-notch resume-writing services we recommend.
What Is Unique About A Medical Resume?
A medical resume highlights personal information relevant to jobs in the medical field, including education and training, skills, licenses or certifications, and experience.
Typically, a medical resume is longer than a traditional one, so a two-page resume is not ordinary. Some medical positions may call for a more comprehensive curriculum vitae (CV). Because of the nature of the healthcare industry and that every position has different requirements, it’s a good idea to customize your resume each time you send it out instead of sending the same one to different positions.
What Should Be Included On A Medical Resume?
A medical resume should include detailed information about you and your education and work experience. Here are some of the specific sections to include on a medical resume.
HEADER
Your resume should always include your name and contact information. You can include this in the header at the top of your resume. Your header should include information like your name, address, email, and phone number.
SUMMARY
It’s a good idea to include a resume summary towards the top of your resume. This section is meant to grab the attention of the hiring manager or recruiter. Your summary doesn’t need to be long. Write three or four sentences to showcase your career highlights and relevant accomplishments or experiences.
WORK EXPERIENCE
Include your employment and work experience, starting with your most recent experience and work backward. This section should include any relevant experience, including internships, residencies, fellowships, and other experiences.
List your position title, company name, location, and dates of employment. Then, include a bulleted list of your responsibilities and accomplishments using action words whenever possible. If you have specific statistics or numbers to back up your work, include that information as well.
EDUCATION
Include your formal education experience in the education section, starting with the highest degree you’ve received and working backward. List the college or university name, location (city, state), the years attended, and the degree earned. You can also include your major if it’s relevant.
If you’re currently participating in a degree program, go ahead and list the same information, except including your anticipated graduation date. If you didn’t include your residency or fellowship information in your work experience section, you could place it here instead.
You should also include any educational achievements, relevant school clubs or associations in the education section of your resume.
CERTIFICATIONS AND LICENSES
If you’ve earned any certifications or licenses relevant to the desired position, include them in a separate section. Make sure you list the certification or license title, license number, the issuing organization, and the expiration date (if it has one).
SKILLS
Join The Break Community
Depending on the position, you may want to include a skills section on your resume. Within this section include both hard skills and soft skills. Hard skills are specific skills you acquired through medical training and experience. Soft skills are general skills that are still relevant to the job. Don’t go overboard listing skills. Stick to around ten skills or so whenever possible.
What Should Be Left Off A Medical Resume?
Do your best to leave off any information that isn’t related to the medical industry. If you have experience outside of the medical field that’s still relevant to the position, go ahead and include it. In most cases, though, it’s better to leave it off, so the more important information doesn’t get lost on your resume.
Important Job Skills For Medical Resumes
Medical resumes should include skills that directly apply to the medical field or are transferable soft skills that will help you succeed in a particular position. Relevant skills vary based on the particular position or medical field. Here are some of the skills you could include on your medical resume.
- Administering injections
- Administrative skills
- Appointment scheduling
- Attention to detail
- Basic computer skills
- Basic life support (BLS)
- Catheterization
- Charting
- Cleanliness and organization
- Communication
- Computer skills
- Critical thinking
- Customer service
- Discuss care with patients
- Documentation
- Electrocardiogram
- HIPAA compliance
- Infection control
- Insurance billing
- Interpersonal skills
- IV management
- Knowledge of basic medical procedures
- Maintaining pharmacy equipment
- Medication dosing
- Patient assessment
- Patient care
- Practicing sterile techniques
- Preparing labels for drug bottles
- Processing customer payments
- Record keeping
- Reviewing expiration dates on drugs
- Scheduling
- Taking vital signs
- Taking X-rays of various body parts
- TB Test clearance
- Telemetry
- Time management
Related: How To Get A Job In Healthcare
In search of additional job search resources? Don't miss our round-up of the best job posting sites for a wider range of choices.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should be on a medical resume?
A medical resume should include your name and contact information, a brief summary, work and education experience, relevant skills, and any certifications or licenses earned.
What is a medical resume called?
In some cases, you may need a more detailed resume called a curriculum vitae (CV). A CV can be several pages long and include more comprehensive information instead of just mention and bulleted lists.
How do I write a medical resume?
You can create a medical resume from scratch using programs like Microsoft Word or Google Docs. You can also use a resume template to create a medical resume or use a resume writing service to assist you in creating one.
What are medical skills?
Medical skills are specific hard skills that directly relate to positions in the medical field.
The Bottom Line
A top-notch medical resume will help you land job interviews and hopefully lead to landing your next job. Take time to gather everything you need to fill your resume with the necessary information. If you need help, a resume writing service can help you put together a medical resume that will get the attention of the right people.
