Curriculum vitae, Latin for "course of life", often shortened to CV, is a short written summary of a person's career, qualifications, and education. Whether you are searching for a permanent or locum tenens position, your physician CV will either make or break your chances of landing an interview, and ultimately getting the job. Keep in mind that most, if not all, of the applicants will meet the clinical qualifications of the job, so simply having the skill set that they’re looking for is not enough to get your foot in the door. You’ll need to have an optimized CV that showcases your education and skills in an organized, easy-to-read format in order to make a good first impression and stand out among the 250 CVs received on average for every job opportunity!

We review hundreds of CVs each month here at Med X, so we know what recruiters are looking for. From the experts, here are the best tips for crafting a compelling physician CV that will increase your chances of getting that call-back.

Format and Presentation

With so many CVs to review, recruiters don’t read through every detail right away. Instead, they’ll take a few seconds to skim CVs for anything that can immediately disqualify you from further consideration, such as unorganized formatting, an unprofessional email address, or grammatical errors. Ensure that your CV makes it past the first round of review by doing the following:

• Use subheadings so recruiters are able to separate each section easily.
• Avoid long paragraphs, and instead opt for bullet points that are more skimmable.
• Use a reverse chronological order by starting with the most recent accomplishments.
• Use MM/DD/YY format. It is typically the preferred format for recruiters and credentialers as it allows them to auto-fill/populate paperwork.
• Be consistent. Uniformity makes for a stronger presentation. If you use a bold heading for one section, ensure you do the same for the rest.
• Be concise and only include pertinent details. Recruiters only want to see relevant info, not stories about waiting tables to get yourself through medical school.
• Ensure your CV is free of grammatical errors and typos by proofreading or using an automatic grammatical software such as Spellcheck or Grammarly. You may even find it beneficial to utilize the services of a professional copy editor.

Account for Employment Gaps

Did you take a break from your academic pursuits at some point? If so, do not forget to include explanations for the gaps in your CV. Not including an explanation for gaps leaves room for recruiters to imagine what may have happened during that missing time, and it’s not usually positive. In fact, according to a field experiment conducted by ResumeGo, applicants with work gaps had a 45 percent lower chance of receiving job interviews than those without.

Stick To The Truth

This should be obvious, but the information presented in a CV should always be truthful. An article in Reuters Health citing the results of two studies found that, surprisingly, more residents lie on their CVs than you would think. One study showed that out of 148 doctors who indicated that they published research findings, 44 apparently had no publications whatsoever. The other study reviewed 937 applications, 136 of which alleged to have published studies that no one could find. Additionally, 62 applicants claimed their studies were peer-reviewed when, in fact, they were not.

Honest mistakes are one thing, but lying on a CV is something else altogether. It's a matter of integrity and credibility. Don't risk putting your career in jeopardy over a lie. 

Break the Ice With a Cover Letter 

Cover letters are not a requirement in CVs, but serve many different purposes such as a way to tailor your CV to the employer/position, add a personal touch, and just generally break the ice. However, you should keep them brief. After all, there is only a 17% chance that your cover letter will be read in the first round of review anyways, so don’t spend too much time on it.

You can use your cover letter to tailor your CV to the position by looking at the specific job requirements and going from there. You can also proactively list your references and their contact information on your cover letter. Just don't forget to inform them beforehand! We suggest keeping your references to either your direct supervisors or coworkers within the same specialty. You can also provide some personal information here, such as your ties to the area or characteristics that make you suited to the job. Stray from including details that are too personal though, such as your hobbies or social media details.

Keep It Up To Date

Get in the habit of regularly refreshing the information on your CV, especially as a locum physician. On average, the first applicant submission is received 200 seconds after a job is posted, so you don’t want to waste time adding licenses or work history to your CV when an opportunity arises. You want your recruiting consultant to already have your current CV on file and ready to send over as soon as the job drops for the best chance of getting a call-back. 

Land The Position You Want

A physician CV is the ultimate deciding factor on whether you will get the interview. Recruiters spend 5-7 seconds on average looking at your CV before deciding if you are suitable for the position, so make sure you are making the best first impression.

We hope to see your optimized CV on our desks very soon! If this article was helpful, don't forget to subscribe to our blog for more content like this!