You might expect job applicants with life sciences degrees or similar to be among the best at producing a standout CV among other professional specialities. However, how you present your skills is not always straightforward, and creating a strong Associate Medical Writer, or Account Executive CV requires a certain level of dedication.

This post will discuss how to write a stand-out MedComms CV

Create a CV template

Before you start filling in the specifics of your CV template, sit down and think it out because nobody knows your education, experience, and hobbies, like you do.

Several methods exist for doing this:

Cut out each portion of your CV and reorganise it on paper, highlight the material for each section, or modify it online if that’s more comfortable for you.

Mix and match any of these techniques, and don’t be embarrassed to consider your options. Since few people need to write a MedComms CV on a regular basis, it may feel unfamiliar to you in certain ways.

Key CV Aspects

1. Name, contact information, and personal statement

Your personal statement and information should be brief and sit at the top of the page. A statement can be helpful for a CV because it allows you to market yourself using persuasive language and full sentences while highlighting what makes you a great candidate for the role.

2. Career history or Education?

Well, as you will be applying for your first MedComms job, it would be best for you to highlight your education and academic achievements next. Write in depth about your degrees and the modules you worked on, any extra-curricular activities, and elaborate on any areas of your academia that would be relevant to the role you have applied for

You worked hard for your degree – shout about it!

As you progress in your MedComms career however, you will instead highlight your work experience.

For each entry, include the start and end dates, firm name, and job title. List your responsibilities and accomplishments that you are particularly proud of.

If there are any gaps in your CV then explain why they are there, as these won’t be frowned upon but will instead likely open up a conversation during the interview. Perhaps you went travelling or volunteered for an abroad charity – these are all legitimate reasons for a gap in your employment that many will experience in their career, so don’t leave these out!

3. Interests

Just like your education, your extracurricular activities, interests and hobbies may become less important as you advance in your career than your work experience, but they should still be mentioned in your summary.

One of the many things an employer will look for in a new employee will be team synergy.

By understanding your interests and hobbies an employer can learn more about your character and even find common-ground to ensure your interview has more of a casual approach than one that is overly professional – one of the many great things about the MedComms industry is the way that agencies embrace individuality.

Creating a MedComms CV to get through the gate

One more thing to consider is that many hiring managers increasingly utilise automated CV shortlisting software, especially in competitive fields. Your CV will be scanned for specific keywords or phrases.

If you are already in medical communications, or studied a life sciences degree or similar, you probably understand the power that some words have. Use that information on your CV to get past the gatekeepers in the AI system.

If you are looking for a medical writing career, ensure you incorporate these keywords in your CV along with therapy areas you have studied to!

When creating your CV, approach it as a comprehension exercise. Look over the job description and identify any technical skills that are needed.

Be sure to include them in your CV using language similar to that found in the job description.

Don’t get filtered out by straying too much from the terminology used in the job advertisement because many CV scanners are set up to look for the identical words used there.

If you are looking for support in your career development, feel free to contact Seb Hall, Senior Healthcare Communications & Consultancy Specialist at Zenopa.