Dentist Resume Example

After reading this article, you'll feel confident creating a dentist resume that effectively showcases your relevant skills and experience. You'll find useful insights on constructing a resume that makes the most of your unique skills, experience and strengths. You'll also learn how to tailor your resume according to the job description, and depending on your experience levels. Read on to access expert insights from Jobseeker that will help you create a winning dentist resume.

Main elements of a dentist resume

The key sections to include in a dentist resume are similar to those for any role or profession. If you're lacking relevant work experience, you might choose to add sections that showcase your skill set earlier than in a traditional resume layout. These sections might include projects, education, hobbies and interests, skills and other optional sections.

You will have some choice over your resume layout and structure, but be sure to include these sections as the core of your document:

Resume Header

In your dentist resume header, list your name, email address, phone number and address or location. You can also add your LinkedIn, if you have one, to help employers better understand your work history and skills. While in some countries, you might include additional personal information or a photo, these aren't necessary. Make your resume header clear, concise and as brief and compact as possible. Consider different layouts that spread the information horizontally across the page rather than using a different line for each piece of information.

Make sure your email address appears as professional as possible, and doesn't include anything like nicknames, inappropriate language or personal information. If it does, set up a new email account with an address based on your name or initials, and use that for your job applications. Always double-check your contact details are up-to-date before sending your resume.

Resume Objective

Your resume personal profile is a short, concise paragraph to highlight two or three key skills and achievements in dentist roles. You may also see this section named as 'resume summary' or 'resume objective'. Resume summaries tend to focus on your career experience, while resume objectives cover your ambitions and plans for the future. Always make sure your summary reflects the job description and highlights some of the key skills required for dentist roles.

Alternatively, focus on introducing your career ambitions, and why this role is a good fit, both for you and the organization.

A great resume summary should highlight why you're an ideal candidate for dentist roles by showing key skills and qualities that reflect the job description and provide evidence to support them. It should also introduce your personality and unique qualities to the reader, to help them start to form an opinion about you as a candidate. You can see some positive examples of a resume summary for dentist jobs below.

On the other hand, an unsuccessful resume summary is one that mentions irrelevant skills, qualities and achievements and fails to differentiate you from other candidates. In the graphic above you can find some negative examples of how to write a resume summary.

Skills

The skills section is one of the main ways to show employers you've got the skills required for dentist roles. Whether your skills include CAD/CAM technology, empathy and patience or any other useful skills for the role, you'll want to list them here. Again, refer to the dentist job description for an indication of the types of skills the employer is looking for, and make sure your skills section reflects these.

How to list hard skills on your dentist resume

Hard skills are the key technical skills required for dentist positions. They include specific industry knowledge and abilities that you could learn on the job, or through a specialist qualification. Furthermore, your hard skills list helps to show employers how competent and experienced you are at key dentist duties and responsibilities. Aim to include four or five key hard skills. If you have space, explain how and where you've used that skill to create successful outcomes in your career. These skills will demonstrate your credentials and show how you meet the job description.

For an effective resume hard skills section, focus on the technical skills that are most essential in the job description, and that match your specific expertise. Some examples of the best hard skills for a dentist resume are listed below.

Listing soft skills on your dentist resume

In your soft skills list, include any personal characteristics that make you a good fit for a dentist job. Soft skills tend to be more universal than hard skills, but they're no less important. Indeed, transferable skills are growing in importance in the modern world of work, so make sure you include several of these in your resume. You should generally look to include up to five soft or transferable skills that match the job description.

The strongest resume soft skills sections include a mix of skills that match your best personal strengths, and that reflect the skills listed in the job description. See below for some examples of effective soft skills for a dentist resume.

Education and Qualifications

Under education, add details of any degrees or professional qualifications relevant to dentist roles.

Typically, working as a dentist requires a university or college degree, which you'll need to list on your resume. If you're working in this sector, it's usually a good idea to highlight your Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) degree or other relevant qualifications. Focus on qualifications that showcase your dental radiography proficiency or CAD/CAM technology.

Enter the name and level of the qualification, the institution you studied at, its location and your dates of study or graduation. You can also add some bullet points outlining any high grades, awards you won or specialist subjects you studied. Adding this information will show the employer your dedication to learning and your areas of specialist knowledge.

If you were a member of any clubs or societies, or volunteered for any causes while studying, you could also mention these in your education section.

Certifications and Training

Your certifications section is the place to mention any relevant professional dentist certifications, licenses or qualifications. These might be licenses that show you're qualified to operate certain equipment, or certifications that give you the edge over candidates with otherwise similar career history. Therefore, make sure you list the dates of your certifications and licenses so employers can see they're up-to-date and valid.

Take a look at some example certifications for a dentist resume below:

Work Experience

Under your work experience section, add any jobs you've had in the past that are relevant to the position of a dentist. Add each previous employment in reverse-chronological order. This means starting from your current or most recent role and working back in time from there. Include your job title, the company name, the location of the job and your dates of employment.

Add some bullet points under each job entry, explaining your achievements in the role, so the reader can see how you contributed towards success for the company. Provide evidence of your impact and make sure each point addresses a requirement listed in the job description.

A successful resume work experience section will always showcase skills and experience relevant to the job description, and how you put each to good use in your previous roles. Offering quantifiable evidence in a dentist resume proves you're a strong candidate for the job, such as client feedback, project outcomes, KPIs or financial results. There are some examples of strong resume work experience sections below.

The example above can give you some idea of what not to include in your resume work experience section. Poor examples of resume work experience sections tend to be vague and fail to quantify your achievements and the impact you've made in your career to date. They may also focus on responsibilities above relevant skills and how you've used them.

Additional Information

There are several additional sections you could add to a dentist resume, to improve your chances of success. Add any of the sections below that help you showcase your key skills and experience.

Personal Interests

Adding your hobbies and interests is a legitimate way of showing off your skills and personal qualities. These are particularly useful for your resume if you're short of work experience and need to showcase a particular skill or experience. Only include hobbies and interests that showcase your personality and personal qualities, and add something different to your application.

Voluntary Work

Voluntary work can help you develop useful skills, so it's a valuable addition to your dentist resume. Include the title of your volunteer role, who you volunteered for, as well as the dates you carried out the work. Provide brief details of your responsibilities and the impact you made.

References

It's not typical to include references in a dentist resume, but some employers might ask for them. Don't add references unless requested by the employer. Be sure to prepare your referees in advance, so they've agreed to provide a reference and are ready to be contacted.

Best words to use in a dentist resume

Using strong action words to make your resume resonate with the employer. Choose from the list of words below to increase the impact of your work experience section.

Jobseeker's resume templates were created by careers experts to help you produce a professional resume in minutes. You can also find cover letter templates to complete an eye-catching job application that gets you noticed.

Sample resume for dentist positions

The dentist resume example below includes all the sections above, so you can see how a completed resume looks:

How to make an ATS-friendly resume

Applicant tracking systems (ATS) help recruiters and employers to streamline their hiring process. They can store and process data, including applications and applicant data, quickly and efficiently. One of the jobs ATS applications are increasingly responsible for is initial candidate screening. The systems can quickly scan and rank resumes based on how closely they match the job description. There are several things you can do when writing your dentist resume, to give yourself the strongest chance of ranking highly in the ATS stage and progressing through the recruitment process.

Here a some simple tips to follow for an ATS-friendly resume:

• Use a traditional resume format, such as reverse-chronological or functional. These will give your resume a structure that's easier for ATS systems to scan.
• Include keywords throughout your resume that align with the job description. ATS software tends to compare your resume to the job description for points of similarity, so careful, considered use of keywords should help your chances of success.
• Using clear, simple headings makes it easier for an ATS application to scan your resume, as it can easily identify what's in each section of your document.
• Adopt a clean, unfussy design that gives your content enough white space to breathe. Use professional, readable fonts and subtle use of color and other design elements.
• Use concise language to keep the length of your resume to between one and two pages. This will make it easier to scan for ATS applications.

Key takeaways for your dentist resume

Writing a strong, impactful resume is about using your experience to demonstrate your relevant skills and achievements. You can do this through your work history or other resume sections. Choose the most suitable resume format for your experience levels, and focus on tailoring your resume based on the requirements listed in the job description.

Using the professional resume templates and resources of Jobseeker can help you create a great-looking resume that stands out from other applicants. Sign up today and follow the simple steps to get started. A stylish, professional cover letter can make all the difference to your job prospects. See Jobseeker's cover letter examples, written by careers experts, to help you craft an eye-catching application.

Sources:

(1) Writing a Resume, California Department of Human Resources: https://www.calhr.ca.gov/employees/Pages/resume-tips.aspx

(2) Resumes, Cover Letters and Job Applications, New York State Department of Labor: https://dol.ny.gov/resumes-cover-letters-and-job-applications