We all used to watch that amazing and legendary The Scrubs TV series, and we all identified with their daydreams and ambitions even though we know it was just a show. Okay, not all of us, but real-life scrubs certainly did.

Only those among you involved in this highly-dynamic profession can confirm the countless obstacles and challenges on a daily basis. Even when doing the simplest task such as writing the surgical tech resume.

As silly as it sounds, this piece of paper you submit to the potential employer should persuade him/her that you are the most ideal candidate there is. And knowing that competition is merciless, the task put before you is not an easy one.

But, we came up with a detailed and complex guide to help you create a CV that will enchant the recruiters and maximize your chances.

Wanna hear more?

Stay tuned to find out how to create a flawless CV for a surgical technician and optimize every section to point out your qualities in the best way.

Surgical Technician Resume Example

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Lead Surgical Technologist Resume Example

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These were two examples of how your CV should look like when you’re surgical tech looking for the job. Now we shall dive deeper into each of the sections, and guide you step by step to make sure that you will fill each of the segments correctly (read: recruiter-friendly!)

You can also try the luck with our convenient resume builder and optimize your CV for any job that you are interested in. Within just several clicks you will have a brand-new resume suitable for any advertisement.

MINOR SURGERY NEEDED TO MAKE PERSONAL INFO ON YOUR SURGICAL TECH CV LOOKS PERFECT

Even though this section is the same all over again, and it seems that nothing could go wrong with a bunch of basic data, still, there are some small but significant differences that either minimize or maximize the chances to get the job you applied for.

Some basic rule to follow here is- stick only to the necessary information. You don’t have to write anything that may make you feel uncomfortable or reveal something too personal (such as bank ID number and similar).

Things like your full name, phone number, and address (primarily e-mail) do not belong to those “highly confidential data” you would want to hide from your future boss.

I mean, if those aren’t listed on your CV, how on Earth will someone get in touch with you to tell you that you’ve got the job?!

Photo is not a mandatory ingredient in every resume unless specified in the job advertisement, so yours is to decide whether you want to include or omit it. However, if it is required, and you exclude it, that will only be an eliminatory factor.

I mean, if you were sloppy enough not to pay attention to that detail, that pic is needed, the same may reflect while assisting the surgeon during the operation. THAT’S HOW the recruiter will resonate with the situation, so don’t let that happen.

E-Mail us what you should particularly focus on. When younger, people create some silly e-mail addresses just because it’s funny.

But, when the time comes to send that to your potential boss, you don’t feel quite comfortable that some silly address will sound serious and persuasive enough.

The feeling is right, so if you haven’t got it, creating a new one is just several clicks, and the whole perspective looks different. Here’s the practical example to show you what we mean:

atwell.madeline@yahoo.com
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maddie.goes.mad777@yahoo.com
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Things are pretty straightforward, as far as your full name is concerned. If something silly-sounding is a no-no for e-mail in your surgical tech resume, it’s even HUGER no-no for your name.

Stay clear of nicknames, pseudonyms, and alias names, at least in the resume. Your real name is the data your recruiters are interested in.

Madeline Atwell
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Maddie Atwell
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As for your profession, try to be as specific and precise as possible. Listing the broad field should be avoided, but in case that’s your first job, it’s okay. Though, you can still write something like junior, and similar.

Even that will look much better than just “surgical technician”.

Writing your previous job title is also a good option because it will give a hint of what your field of expertise is. All in all, it should be something related to the position you’re applying for now.

Lead Surgical Technician
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Surgical Technician
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Your social media, if you use any, is a valuable ingredient of your CV. This particularly goes for LinkedIn, as it represents an extension to your CV. If you decide to include it, make sure the data are up to date.

Do know that this network is a professional one, so avoid complaining about the job as your employers may see that.

You can include Twitter as well, and as for Fb, that’s entirely up to you.

If you ask us, the best would be to avoid it, because it features plenty of private details that may not be suitable for the eyes of the recruiters.

THESE ARE THE HOTTEST TIPS TO CREATE A CATCHY SUMMARY SECTION IN SURGICAL TECH CV

As a surgical tech, it’s quite natural that you are detail-oriented and use that virtue when creating your CV.

This mini intro and a brief recap of your work experience should grab the reader’s attention after the first several words.

No one says that it has to be a punchy intro for some action movie, but don’t let the summary section sound dull and boring either.

These are some directions to follow, things to do and those to avoid:

  • Be well-focused on the entire procedure, just as the surgeon is while operating. Exercise that skill when creating a resume. If skateboard is not something you find in the operation room, then the summary shouldn’t feature some details that cannot be found in the rest of your resume. Make sure the information is adjusted.
  • Have reasonable expectations. Even if you cooperated with the most renowned surgeons on your previous job, that certainly doesn’t mean the job you are applying for is guaranteed. So, point that out in your resume, follow our tips, and the chances will be quite big.
  • Don’t put the recruiter to sleep. If the HR has started yawning after reading just one of the sections from your resume, that’s bad. Your resume needs to sound engaging and catchy, you must not bore the reader to death. Keep things to the point, without insufficient details.

An ideal structure for the great summary usually consists of approximately three sentences revealing your skillsets, and experience.

If this is the first job you are applying for and there’s no experience, you can list the university or college you graduated from and perhaps at least one reason why you are interested in this job in particular.

These are some practical examples for writing this section:

Summary

Certified surgical technologist with 8+ years of experience with solid knowledge of basic anatomy, physiology, operating room, and patient safety, body substance isolation, and medical terminology. Working on the establishment of healthy, energized surroundings where team members support each other to enhance patient care and satisfaction. Seeking an opportunity to upgrade the experience in different fields of surgery.

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Summary

Certified surgical technologist with plenty of experience. Knowledge of basic anatomy. Seeking an opportunity to develop.

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Having a bland summary will lead to competition beating you. Even if you are the most qualified candidate for the job, if you have a dull summary, no one will even pay attention to you, let alone expect anything from you. So, spice it up a little bit but keep it correct.

HAVE A PRECISENESS OF A SURGEON WHEN WRITING THE EXPERIENCE SECTION IN SURGICAL TECH RESUME

The Experience section in a surgical tech resume or any other CV is maybe the most significant aspect.

This segment features valuable info about your previous experience and gives hints to the future employer in which way will you contribute to the company you are applying for.

These data give precise information on how long you have worked somewhere, what were your duties and obligations and did you change working places frequently or you have some steady flow in your previous career.

When including those in your CV, list them in bullet points for easier navigation.

The mentioned duties and obligations will imply if you are suitable for the position you are interested in, how fast can you adapt, are you a quick learner and can you work independently. Efficiency is one of the key values in surgery, so if you have that, chances to get the job are quite high.

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If you are a junior applicant with no previous experience, then this section will either be an empty one or you can list some previous jobs from your college days that has nothing to do with surgery.

The choice is entirely yours, but perhaps it’s much better to focus on boosting other sections, than listing you have worked in KFC or local cafeteria.

Even though this will most certainly imply that you are hard-working, this has nothing to do with being a surgical tech, and won’t tell the recruiter anything about your skills in the operating room.

THIS IS HOW TOP SCRUBS ACE THE EDUCATION SECTION WHEN WRITING RESUME

Even though people commonly believe that recruiters don’t pay attention to the Education section, they actually do.

Of course, the experience matters the most, but what happens when there are two candidates who have equal experience?

The education section is the one that can make a difference in this case.

Some candidates were very active during college or university, attended lectures and volunteered in a variety of activities, which is a strong proof that they worked on upgrading their knowledge.

This section is the key one for scrubs with no previous experience.

That’s where they grab the attention of the reader (recruiter, in this situation) and keep him/her interested. (So, you better have something valuable to add here if you are planning to send your first ever application).

Here’s what you may highlight in this section:

  • The college, academy, university (even an online course) you’ve graduated from.
  • Your GPA score (if very high).
  • Essays you’ve written, projects you’ve participated in and seminars you’ve attended.
  • Clubs or organizations in which you are a member (ideally the ones that are surgery-related).

Again, always make sure not to stray away from your main profession- surgical tech, so be careful that everything you list in this section needs to be in some relation with the job you are applying for.

THE MOST WANTED SKILLS ON SURGICAL TECH CV

Measuring by the importance, this section is almost equal to Experience, as it reveals details about your personality, in a way. We already said scrubs need to be efficient above all, fast-thinkers, able to act independently and provide professional assistance to surgeons. And they also need to learn and upgrade constantly.

Be as precise as possible when listing skills you have, as sometimes a detail that may seem irrelevant to you will be of crucial importance to your future employer.

Point out if there was something that was specifically your duty, and which of your skills was the key one to perform it as best as possible.

The best would be to avoid the common ones that are the usual scope of obligations for scrubs, but if there’s nothing particular you can list, even those will do. In that case, try to express them in some creative way.

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Pro Tip
A quick tip:

We all have some awesome and unusual skills we are proud of, but we should avoid them in our resume. The fact that you can “blow a bubble gum balloon of 50cm” or “excel in limbo dance” has nothing to do with how well you perform while in the hospital, right?

So, even if you lack some specific skills, it’s okay to write some common and broad ones (communication, language, computer and similar) than listing some silly stuff.

HOW TO SCRUB AND POLISH YOUR RESUME TO PERFECTION- ULTIMATE TIPS AND TRICKS

To make sure that your CV will look absolutely flawless, as a final touch, we have prepared a brief reminder for you.

Being a surgical tech is a responsible job, so make sure you apply that virtue while writing the resume.

So, before you click “send”, “submit” or whatever else, these are what you should do:

  • Review the resume – Go through it once again just to make sure it looks good even when just skimming it. Getting another opinion would be excellent, so if you have a friend who’s already receiving countless resumes daily and who has a clear picture of what employers pay attention to, ask him to check yours and tell you the impressions.
  • If your CV is an endless journey of scrolling, cut it short– Even if you have so many things to say about your education, rich experience and so on, someone from the other side of the screen simply hasn’t got enough time to read it. So, one page is the ideal length, two is maximum if there are indeed so many valuable information you would like to share with the recruiter.
  • Check if it’s optimized for the position– In the ideal world, we should all have a different CV for each of the vacancies we re applying for, but sometimes there’s not so much time for that. So, adapting it to the job advertisement is the least you can do. Sometimes it’s just several words you need to change and make it sound suitable.
  • Make sure it’s eye-friendly– When encountering a huge block of text, we all freak out, recruiters are no exception to the rule. Making it readable is essential, and that is possible by proper formatting, highlighting and using bullet points where appropriate. The whole idea is to make it quick and easy to read. Of course, don’t go all dots and colors crazy, use those options wisely to stress out some key points from your resume. The same goes for font, choose the most ordinary one (Calibri, Helvetica, Times New Roman and similar), because they are the easiest ones to read.
  • Do the grammar examination of your CV– If you are not sure whether your resume has some typos, or if there are any grammar errors which could damage your credibility, have your CV checked by the proofreader. Sometimes even the tiniest mistake may ruin an excellent opportunity, and yours is to boost the chances to get the job, not to minimize them.
  • Have both digital and physical copy of your resume– You never know what might happen (electricity shortage, PDF reader won’t load and so on), so to be well-prepared, create both variants of your CV. AS for the digital one, create PDF and TXT version, and the recruiter may select the one he/she prefers.
  • The final double-checking of data validity– Sometimes while in the hurry to apply for the job we may forget to check out if all the data are up to date. If the recruiter encounters some non-adjusted information in your CV which you failed to correct, the chance is gone. So, checking out the personal info section several times is of vital importance.
  • Have a go with our resume template – Just add or eliminate the unnecessary sections, that’s how our template works. It will be a useful associate of yours when looking for the job because it will minimize the process of writing the resume all over again and leave you more time to apply for more positions.

FINAL THOUGHTS

We hope you enjoyed our comprehensive guide on how to write the surgical resume. It may look like a long journey, but once you apply all the tricks and tips we gave you, you will be surprised how amazing your CV will look.

Now that you know how to arrange your skillset adequately and what you should point out in that section, what to emphasize in your Education and how to write down your work experience and contributions properly, chances to score that amazing job are much bigger.

If you are still unsure how to write the perfect resume and not sure whether the layout is okay, give the chance to resume template builder. This tool plus all the advice from us equal maximal chances to get the job you truly love.

Have the best of luck with finding your ideal job!

Surgical Tech Resume: Sample and Complete Guide

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