Action Verbs: A Must-Have in Your Healthcare Resume

Put yourself in the shoes of a recruiter. Imagine that you have two healthcare resumes in front of you for a medical assistant position that you’re trying to fill for a physician’s office.

Both job candidates were in the same graduating class, and each one also has one year of work experience. Which one of these healthcare resumes peaks your interest the most?

Wording used in medical assistant resume #1:

• I went to school to become a medical assistant.
• At my last job, I was a part of the biohazard committee.
• I entered patient information into a computer.
• I assisted the doctor with procedures.

Wording used in medical assistant resume #2:

• Headed the student ambassador committee while earning my medical assistant diploma. Led the meetings, recruited other student leaders, and participated in public speeches.
• Improved the productivity of the monthly biohazard committee meetings by preparing agendas, recording member attendance, and decreasing meeting length from 60 minutes to 15 minutes.
• Educated new staff on how to enter patient information into the electronic health record (EHR) system and monitored their progress during their first week on the job.
• Maintained patient confidentiality while inputting patient information into the EHR system.
• Organized medical supplies, comforted patients, assisted the physician, and applied bandages during minor office surgeries.

As you can quickly see, the second candidate started each bullet point with an action verb. They also used strong action verbs within sentences and avoided the use of the word “I.” This can make them seem more accomplished and experienced than the first candidate.

The use of action verbs makes all the difference. It also likely results in you, as the recruiter, selecting the second candidate to come in for an interview while bypassing the first.

Action Words to Use in Your Resume for Healthcare

If you’re creating your healthcare resume, here is a brief list of powerful action verbs you may want to use:

• Organized
• Achieved
• Earned
• Increased
• Decreased
• Operated
• Ensured
• Demonstrated
• Succeeded
• Reached

It doesn’t matter if you’re a new healthcare grad or you’ve been in the workforce for years – action verbs can improve your chances of getting an interview. Can you see the difference?

Want Help with Your Healthcare Resume?

If you’re not sure which words to use when creating your healthcare resume, let us know. Ultimate Medical Academy’s Career Services team is here to help all our students and grads write a resume that shines.

We can also provide guidance and advice once you’re selected for an interview, such as what to wear to a healthcare interview and questions you may be asked. We’d love to help in any way we can!