Psychiatrist Resume Example

The aim of this article is to equip you with all the knowledge required to create a resume that positions you to succeed in your psychiatrist applications. The guide will show you practical examples of how to structure your resume to show off your best and most relevant skills and career achievements. It will also show you how to tailor your resume according to the job description and your unique skill set. Read on to learn the tips Jobseeker careers experts recommend as the best for your psychiatrist resume.

Main elements of a psychiatrist resume

The key sections to include in a psychiatrist resume are similar to those for any role or profession. A resume for candidates with little or no work experience may focus less on the work experience section, and bring sections to the fore that emphasize their skills, such as hobbies and interests, volunteer work, education, projects and skills lists.

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 and Personal Information

Your psychiatrist resume header should contain your name and contact details. These include your email address and phone number. If you have a LinkedIn profile, you can also add that, to give employers the chance to learn more about your skills and experience. It's not necessary to include a photo or any other personal information. Create a clear, well-structured header that acts as the headline of your resume. Use color accents and blocks to help this section stand out and catch the eye of the reader.

Make sure the email address you list in your header is professional-looking and doesn't contain any inappropriate content such as nicknames or unsuitable language. Opt for an email address based on your name or profession, or a combination of both. Finally, check your contact details before sending your resume, to ensure everything's up-to-date.

Resume Summary

Following your resume header, write a resume summary to introduce yourself and showcase some of your key skills and achievements. Alternative names for this section are 'resume objective' and 'personal profile'. While a resume summary focuses on your career experience, a resume objective covers your ambitions and career plans. However, make sure you keep your resume summary short and snappy, and focused on the skills and experience listed in the job description.

Alternatively, you could use this section to reference your objectives and ambitions, and how this role would fit into your career journey.

The best resume summaries reflect the job description and focus on qualities that are relevant to working as a psychiatrist, while highlighting elements of your personality that make you an ideal candidate. They also quantify the information provided with evidence. See below for some great examples of how to approach your psychiatrist resume.

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. The graphic above shows some of the pitfalls to avoid when creating your resume summary.

Hard and Soft Skills

The skills section of a psychiatrist resume is a chance to list any skills you have that match those of the job description. You could include medication management, strong communication skills or any other skills that show you're a suitable candidate. Once more, review the job description and pick out any key psychiatrist skills listed that match yours. Focus on these skills and any other key transferable skills that make you a strong candidate for the job.

Listing hard skills on your psychiatrist resume

Hard skills are specific skills related to the job you're applying for. They include particular abilities, technical skills and industry knowledge that relate directly to jobs as a psychiatrist. Furthermore, your hard skills list helps to show employers how competent and experienced you are at key psychiatrist 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.

The best resume hard skills sections focus on specific technical skills necessary for the job, showcasing skills that you have particular expertise in. There are some examples of valuable hard skills for a psychiatrist resume below.

Listing soft skills on your psychiatrist resume

In your soft skills list, include any personal characteristics that make you a good fit for a psychiatrist job. Soft skills tend to be more universal than hard skills, but they're no less important. In fact, you can develop soft skills throughout your career, and they tend to be suitable for various roles and professions. In this section, add four of five 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 psychiatrist resume.

Educational Achievements

The education section provides space to list your highest and most recent academic achievements that are relevant to working as a psychiatrist.

If you're applying for psychiatrist positions you'll typically need to have a degree. A Bachelor of Science in Psychology will usually help your chances of success. You could also list any qualifications that demonstrate your medication management or diagnostic assessment tools.

For each entry in this section, add the name and level of your qualification, the institution you studied at, its location and your dates of study. You could also add one or two bullet points to draw attention to your grades if they were particularly good, as well as any specialist subjects you studied. This will help the hiring manager understand your knowledge and special skills better.

Membership or leadership of any societies, clubs or causes while studying can also make a positive impression on hiring managers. Consider adding these to your education section for more insight into how you used your time as a student.

Certifications

In your certifications section, list any professional certifications or licenses that are relevant to working as a psychiatrist. 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, include the details of any licenses and professional certifications required for psychiatrist roles, along with completion dates so employers can see you're up-to-date.

See below for some suggestions of relevant certifications for a psychiatrist resume:

Work History

In your work experience section, list any previous relevant roles you've worked in, as well as your key achievements as a psychiatrist. Include any relevant jobs you've held in reverse-chronological order. Start with your current or most recent roles and work back through previous roles. For each job, list your title, the name of the company, its location and the dates you worked there.

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.

An effective resume work experience section is one that constantly echoes the skills and experience listed in the job description, and shows how you used your skills to positive effect in each job. Each bullet point should be carefully crafted to showcase a particular skill or achievement relevant to psychiatrist jobs, with evidence to show the value you added. There are some examples of strong resume work experience sections below.

Above, you can see a weaker example of a resume work experience section to best avoid. Less effective resume work experience sections might take a more vague, descriptive approach to previous jobs. They focus on responsibilities and everyday duties rather than referencing career achievements and the value you've added for previous employers.

Additional Information

In addition to the core sections of a psychiatrist resume, there are several optional sections you could include to enhance your chances. Take a look at the sections below and add any that help you show how and why you're right for the job.

Hobbies

Adding your hobbies and interests is a legitimate way of showing off your skills and personal qualities. Hobbies can help you show different sides of your personality and make your resume more memorable to hiring managers. They're ideal to include if you're a junior candidate who might lack real world psychiatrist experience. Just make sure any hobbies and interests you include in your resume add genuine insight into your personality, in ways other sections of the resume can't.

Volunteering

Listing volunteer work is another useful way to prove your relevant experience for psychiatrist roles. Add any voluntary roles, including your position, the name of the organization, the dates of your voluntary work and a brief explanation of your responsibilities and achievements.

References

Standard psychiatrist resumes don't tend to include references, but you might find them requested occasionally. Check the job advert to see if you'll need to add references to your resume. Only include referees that you've had prior approval from, and notify them to expect contact from the employer.

Best words to use in a psychiatrist resume

Start each bullet point in your work experience section with a strong verb to show actions you took. Choose from the list of words below to increase the impact of your work experience section.

If you need help creating a resume that impresses HR managers, take a look at Jobseeker's professional resume templates. You can also access beautiful cover letter templates that help your application stand out.

Example of a psychiatrist resume

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

Making an ATS-friendly resume

An applicant tracking system (ATS) is just one of the tools employers and recruiters can use to streamline their hiring practices. This typically includes screening candidates by scanning and ranking their resumes based on their likely suitability for any vacancy. There are several things you can do when writing your psychiatrist resume, to give yourself the strongest chance of ranking highly in the ATS stage and progressing through the recruitment process.

Create an ATS-optimized resume by following these quick tips:

• Choose a resume structure that matches the traditional, reverse-chronological layout or alternatively, the functional resume structure. This should make your resume more readable for ATS applications.
• Add keywords throughout your resume that help ATS software match your application to the job description. A higher match means your application is more likely to proceed to be reviewed by human eyes.
• Use clear headings that break your resume up into readable, scannable sections that match the standard content employers expect from a resume.
• Utilize a clean, clear resume design that helps make your content more readable. Use simple fonts and subtle color accents and design elements that don't detract from the written content.
• 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 psychiatrist resume

The key to a strong resume is to showcase your relevant skills and achievements through your work experience and other activities. Select a resume format that suits your experience levels and the job you're applying for, and make sure you tailor your resume for each application.

Jobseeker has a wealth of resume tools, including resume templates and examples, to help you create a winning job application. Sign up today to get started. Jobseeker's expert-designed cover letter generator can help your applications make a strong first impression on hiring managers. Find detailed cover letter examples to complement your resume and get your application noticed.

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