You’re looking for a new job in the medical field, and you need to update your resume. So, where do you begin? Follow these resume best practices for healthcare professionals.
Resume Tips for Healthcare Professionals
List Your Credentials
Since many healthcare jobs require specific training, be sure to record all your relevant degrees and certifications. Create separate Education and Certification sections so this information is easy to find. List your most recent accomplishments first and work backward. Also, include the official title of each certification/degree, issuing institution or licensing agency, and year earned plus expiration date (if applicable).
Highlight Your Experience
Next, you’ll want to address on-the-job experience. If you’re new to the field, remember, volunteer work and internships count. In addition, if possible, cover employment gaps in your resume. For instance, let’s say you took five years off to raise a family. However, if you regularly volunteered with the American Red Cross during this time, you should mention this.
Give Lots of Details
To make your experiences appear as impressive as they are, support them with interesting and informative statements. Action verbs, numbers, and specific details will help. For example, rather than writing, “Cared for elderly patients,” you could elaborate. “Assisted 15 residents with activities of daily living including showering, dressing, oral care, and personal grooming.” Furthermore, this is an ideal place to highlight any of your specialized medical knowledge, technology expertise, and soft skills.
Add Keywords
Many healthcare organizations use Application Tracking Systems (ATS) to pre-sort resumes. This means a software program may screen your application before sending it on to a real person. So, how can you get past the computer? Usually, an ATS looks for keywords pulled directly from the job description. Therefore, for the best results, print the job description, circle key phrases, and, whenever possible, put those exact words in your resume.
Keep Your Formatting Clean
Hiring managers want to know if you might be a good fit for a position at a glance. Thus, your resume should be neat and easy to read. Use headings, bullets, short sentences, and whitespace so your information stands out. And avoid fancy fonts, photos, and graphics which can be distracting for both people and ATSs. Finally, since most healthcare professionals aren’t experts in graphic design, don’t feel pressured to build your resume from scratch. There are hundreds of free templates online, while programs like Microsoft Word provide resume builders as well.
Proofread
Even if you’ve crafted the perfect resume, a single misspelling, grammatical error or typo can derail your efforts. Many hiring managers automatically eliminate any applications with mistakes. Therefore, proofread everything several times. Or better yet, ask a friend or family member to look it over. They may catch something you missed.
Are You a Healthcare Professional Who’s Searching for a New Job?
Anodyne places caregivers, home health aides (HHAs) and certified nursing assistants (CNAs) in Quincy, Massachusetts, and the surrounding areas. Our recruiters would be happy to review your resume and help you find the right-fit position. Learn more about the benefits of job searching through Anodyne today!