9 Medical Assisting Resume Essentials to Get Hired

The purpose of any resume is to make you appear professional, educated, and good at what you do.

Those working in a medical assistant job are constantly under pressure to be perfect with every patient and there is no room for error when it comes to the service levels you provide or the detailed documentation used to track patient medical procedures and overall health.

Keep the last point in mind before you send your medical assisting resume and cover letter out for consideration to any office – spelling, grammar, and structure have to be flawless – and you must include all the right information within limited space.

All the while it is also essential that you exude the type of confidence that any competent certified medical assistant should have.

In this article, we will highlight 9 essential components that every medical assisting resume should include in order to increase your chances of getting hired.

Professional Summary: A Strong Opening Statement

Crafting a strong opening statement for your medical assisting resume is essential in grabbing the attention of hiring managers. This section should succinctly highlight your key qualifications and achievements, showcasing why you are the perfect candidate for the job.

To create an impactful professional summary, focus on emphasizing your relevant skills and experiences that align with the position you are applying for.

Highlight any certifications, technical abilities, or expertise in areas such as:

• patient care
• medical procedures
• administrative tasks
• electronic health records management

Keep it concise yet compelling to make a lasting impression on potential employers.

Remember that recruiters have limited time to review each resume, so avoid lengthy statements by sticking to short and straightforward sentences. Use action verbs and quantitative information where applicable to demonstrate your accomplishments effectively.

By creating a strong opening statement tailored specifically to the job requirements, you can increase your chances of securing interviews and ultimately landing your dream medical assisting role!

Personal Information

There is nothing stressful about writing this part of your medical assistant resume. It’s information you should know by heart.

Put your name, address (including zip/postal code), phone number, and email at the top of the page.

Make sure your name is in bold and use a slightly larger font than the font used in the resume body, so it stands out.

Professional Objective

Customize the name of this heading to whatever suits your personal taste.

The objective statement of your medical assistant resume should briefly state your experience, and qualifications, and briefly touch on your unique skill set.

Try to not be vague, or too general with this statement – be specific and try to relate it to the office you’re applying to and the position you want.

Examples:

Certified medical assistant, with three years of professional experience: Seeking employment in your medical center, where my staff coordination skills can benefit your experienced staff.

Long time medical assistant, with 5 years of insurance billing experience, seeking new opportunity working in the not-for-profit sector of the health care field.

These resume templates are courtesy of hloom.com

Work History

This section details your medical work history and should be the second or third section of your medical assisting resume.

You may choose to place your professional skills after the objective statement if you’re lacking office experience, but if you have at least two years of experience, then place this section next.

Include any work experience you have as a certified medical assistant and detail the responsibilities you’ve had.

For instance, experience working with: Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, medical billing software, diagnostic equipment, medical paperwork, etc.

Also include any specialties you have that might set you apart from other candidates including: assessment of vital signs, allergy testing, taking blood, administering medication, etc.

Be detailed, be direct, and use skills that are displayed in the medical assistant job description provided by the office doing the hiring.

When crafting your medical assisting resume, it’s crucial to highlight relevant work experience that showcases your skills and qualifications.

Here are some key tips to follow:

• Include the most recent positions first: Start with your current or most recent role and then list other relevant work experiences in reverse chronological order. This allows employers to see your most up-to-date skills and responsibilities.
• Emphasize clinical experience: Highlight any hands-on patient care tasks you performed such as taking vital signs, administering medications, or assisting with procedures. These experiences demonstrate your ability to handle medical tasks efficiently.
• Showcase administrative abilities: Medical assistants often have administrative duties like scheduling appointments, managing records, and insurance billing. Including these skills on your resume shows employers that you can handle both clinical and administrative responsibilities.

Remember to tailor each bullet point under the work experience section to clearly express how those accomplishments are related specifically to the position you’re applying for.

By highlighting relevant medical assisting roles effectively, you’ll increase the chances of catching a potential employer’s attention.

Education

This is another section of your medical assistant resume that shouldn’t give you too much difficulty. In fact, included in your medical assistant education program should be career services to help with your resume.

Name the certified medical institution you attended, the degree you obtained, etc. Also include any relevant coursework you’ve taken – both courses you’ve taken on your own time, and those that may have been provided by previous employers.

Continuing education is a must for medical assistants and will be a part of your medical assistant schooling. It is becoming more common for continuing education medical assistant classes to be offered online.

When applying for a medical assisting position, it is crucial to showcase your education and certifications. These credentials not only demonstrate your training but also indicate your expertise in the field.

Here are some tips on how to effectively highlight them on your resume:

• List relevant education: Start by listing any formal education you have received related to medical assisting. Include the name of the institution, degree attained, date of graduation, and any honors or awards you received.
• Include certifications: Next, include any certifications you have earned that are relevant to the job. This could include Certified Medical Assistant (CMA), Registered Medical Assistant (RMA), or other specialized certifications such as CPR or phlebotomy.
• Emphasize continuing education: If you have participated in any additional training programs or workshops after completing your formal education, be sure to mention them. This shows employers that you are committed to staying updated on the latest advancements in the field.

By highlighting your education and certifications in a clear and concise manner, you will grab the attention of potential employers and increase your chances of getting hired for a medical assisting position.

Professional Skills and Qualifications

As mentioned in the work history section: A newly certified medical assistant should place this section after their objective statement unless they have some on-the-job experience in the healthcare field.

Otherwise, you can place your professional skills wherever you feel they fit best on the medical assistant resume.

Place any certifications you have: Certified Medical Assistant (CMA), first-aid, CPR, defibrillator, etc.

Also state specific skills you excel at including: appointment scheduling, scheduling, medical reporting, software (MS Word, MS Excel, medical billing software, etc), lab testing, etc.

You can use bullet points, or a comma-separated list if you have 10 or more specific skills you want to list.

Highlighting your skills and qualifications is essential when creating a medical assisting resume. Here are some key points to keep in mind:

• Technical competencies: Include specific technical skills such as knowledge of medical terminology, proficiency in electronic health records (EHR) systems, and experience with taking vital signs. These abilities demonstrate your understanding of the medical field and your ability to perform various clinical tasks.
• Interpersonal skills: Effective communication, empathy, and strong interpersonal skills are crucial for healthcare professionals. Highlight these qualities on your resume by mentioning experiences where you successfully provided emotional support to patients or collaborated effectively with colleagues.
• Organizational abilities: As a medical assistant, you need to handle multiple tasks efficiently while maintaining accuracy. Emphasize your organizational abilities by describing how you managed patient appointments, coordinated lab tests, or updated medical records within deadlines.

Demonstrate that you possess the necessary technical know-how, interpersonal prowess, and organizational acumen required for success in the field of medical assisting by clearly showcasing your relevant skills and qualifications on your resume.

References

If you do not have space to list out your professional references then a notation about your ability to provide references will suffice.

Put “available on request” under this heading and prepare a separate sheet of paper (or file) that include all of your personal and professional references.

Aim to be able to provide at least three separate ones (minimum of 2 professional, and 1 from your professor/trainer/volunteer coordinator.)

Cover Letter

This will complement your medical assisting resume and also help convince the hiring staff that your medical office skills make you a worthy candidate for the job (I.e., that your resume is worth reading.)

Introduce yourself in the first paragraph and indicate your willingness to work for them.

The second paragraph should talk about one or two key attributes you bring with you to the job.

The last paragraph is where you tell the employer you’re looking forward to hearing from them, and when/where you can be reached to schedule an interview.

Writing Your Medical Assisting Resume

When it comes time to write your medical assistant resume, start by writing out the essentials listed here.

By including all of this information and presenting it in a perfectly written and formatted resume you will be making a good confident first impression upon your potential employers.

That first impression is what will get you more interviews where you are given the opportunity to convince the employer to hire you.

If you leave out the above medical assisting resume essentials, then you won’t make a very good first impression and will likely miss out on interviews and job opportunities.

In today’s competitive job market, it is crucial for medical assistants to have a standout resume that will catch the attention of hiring managers.

With healthcare being one of the fastest-growing industries, employers are looking for qualified professionals who possess not only the necessary skills and experiences but also an impressive resume that reflects their potential contributions to the organization.

Your Turn

Well, there you have it. The 9 essentials your medical assistant resume needs to have to help you land the job you want.

So, now it’s time to get started.

Use the outline above and make sure your resume includes all 9 of these essentials before you begin sending it out for job applications.

And remember to listen to the responses that you get. Consider “optimizing” or editing sections of your resume that you think could be improved based on the feedback you received from the company responding to your application and resume.

By paying close attention to these key elements and tailoring your resume accordingly, you will be well on your way toward securing your dream career as a medical assistant.

Questions or comments about medical assisting resumes? Ask us in the comments below 🙂