Psychologist Resume Example

It’s been refreshing to see mental health gain more attention. Things aren’t perfect, but we’re working towards destigmatizing asking for help. That’s a good thing, and psychologists play a key part in ensuring that their patients achieve the best mental health possible. 

If you’re a psychologist, you know the hard work, dedication, and education you have in addition to your caring nature. Don’t you deserve a job where your work is supported, and you can do as much good as possible?

You’ve done the work required to become a licensed practitioner. Now, let us help you with your job search with a psychologist resume example and some great tips.

Psychologist Resume Example (Word)

Download example (.docx)

Psychologist Resume (plain text)

How to Write a Psychologist Resume

Unless you are writing a CV for an academic position, a psychologist’s resume should be fairly short. Your aim is one-page. 

To keep things compact, eliminate irrelevant jobs and the earliest parts of your education. Add up to 5 bullet points per each work resume entry and highlight extra skills in a feature summary section.  

Finally, to further save on space, consider using a two-column resume template. Such a format lets you pack in more details without making your resume look busy. 

Below are several more helpful tips to help you out with writing. 

Emphasize The Delivered Outcomes

When you list your duties, you show your experience level as well as your responsibilities. This is helpful, particularly if you don’t have extensive experience. However, it is even more important to detail your outcomes and accomplishments. Specifically, what have you achieved in your work and education? 

For example, in the above resume example, the psychologist achieved a lower recidivism rate among his clients in the prison system. They also helped to lower violent crime in the community through their outreach initiatives. Try to think of similar outcomes in your career and incorporate them in your resume. 

Show a Career Trajectory

Hiring managers want to see career growth. Show how you have taken on new responsibilities, pursued additional education, and been given leadership roles. In the sample resume, the applicant obtained two graduate degrees and was hired into positions that required increasing responsibility.

Insert Helpful Keywords

Many major hospitals, medical centers, and government agencies use applicant tracking software or ATS. The app “screens” resumes before they are made available to hiring teams. If your resume doesn’t pass that screening, no human being will read it.

How do you beat ATS? By playing alongside its algorithms. The software scans your resume and cover letter for certain words and phrases. For example, if the job listing is for a clinical psychologist, the software would eliminate resumes that don’t contain that phrase. The best way for you to pass an ATS screening is to include words and phrases that are relevant to the job.

Always Proofread

Proofread your resume, but think beyond spelling and grammar. Look for factual mistakes. Have you gotten all the dates correct? Is your contact information up to date?

Also, consider readability. Your resume should be easy to skim and find the most relevant information. Remember that HR people spend an average of six seconds on each resume.

Final Tip: Use Action Words

Manage, lead, nurture, strategize, coordinate, administer, and other strong action verbs give your resume extra credibility. They help you paint a picture of a knowledgeable, confident, and determined candidate, ready to come in and make work happen. Sprinkle these throughout your resume liberally to convey a good first impression.