In order to assess what your resume should contain and how that
information should be displayed, you need to first understand the
function of a resume. Put simply, a resume is a marketing tool. The
biggest mistake that many people make when it comes to their resumes is
that they simply list information without giving any thought to how
relevant the information is, and what impact the information will have
on the person reading it.
While your resume
does contain facts about your academic and professional past, you need
to make sure that you are assessing the relevance of each achievement
rather than simply listing things as they happened. You want your
resume to resonate with an employer in the way that an effective
advertisement does with a consumer.
Because the
process of becoming a licensed physician is highly regulated, most of
your credentials will speak for themselves. Therefore, you won’t have
to face many of the obstacles faced by people in other professions with
regard to their resumes, such as explaining confusing professional
backgrounds or re-shaping the focus of the experience to appeal to a
different field. As such, your primary goal is to present those
hard-earned credentials in a clear and concise manner, such that the
reader can immediately zero in on the most important and impressive
aspects of your candidacy.
You can make certain
things in your resume stand out through their placement on the page, by
using stylistic devices such as bolding or italicizing, and by
monitoring the amount of information on your resume. Some people
believe that a packed resume equals a good resume. This isn’t true. A
candidate who pares down his/her resume to the most pertinent
information will be much better off than a candidate who crams his/her
resume full of irrelevant information.
The
following is a list of the most common headings used on a physician’s
resume. Before you begin drafting your resume, go through this list and
jot down everything you can think of from your background that relates
to each category (if applicable). Getting all of this information
assembled ahead of time will make it easier to create a layout that
maximizes your experience:
- Education (School Name, School Location, Degree Earned, Graduation Dates)
- Academic Honors/Activities/Leadership Positions
- Research
- Internships/Clinics/Residencies/Fellowships (Employer Name, Employer Location, Specialty Area, Dates)
- Practice Experience (Name of Practice/Hospital, Location, Title, Type of Practice, Brief Description)
- Specialty Area
- Publications
- Presentations
- Professional Memberships
- Licensure/Board Certification
- Other Work Experience (Employer Name, Employer Location, Title, Dates of Employment, Brief Job Description)
- Professional Awards/Honors
- Language Skills
You
want to present employers with a clear snapshot of your experience—one
that can be grasped in a matter of seconds. In order to do this
effectively, you should list your experiences in a reverse
chronological order—from most recent to oldest—and include dates for
your education and experiences. Job titles, names of degrees, names of
schools, etc. should be clear at first glance.
After
completing your residency, you will be in the position of having to
“job hunt” for the first time in your life, unless you had a prior
career in a different field. The key to overcoming this necessary evil
is to start early. This means getting your resume in order and figuring
out the type of position you want to target.
Whether
applying for a fellowship or to another type of position, it will be
important for you to emphasize your specialty area on your resume. Be
specific about the training you received in your specialty area. In
addition, you might want to consider including a brief introductory
paragraph in your resume which explains your goals and the most
relevant aspects of your background. You want to appear focused and
convey that you have well-defined professional objectives.
Conclusion
While
this article serves to highlight the primary things that you need to
consider when creating or revising your resume, there are no hard and
fast rules. Each situation is unique and therefore you need to spend
some time considering what it is that you want to convey to the person
reading your resume. The Certified Professional Resume Writers at The
Doctor Job are well-versed in the art of resume writing and can provide
expert guidance to you throughout the process. |
