While most of us prefer to stay out of dentist offices, we can't deny that good dentists are worth their weight in gold. Your competent and steady hands go a long way toward improving people's smiles and confidence, resulting in happy and healthy patients.
Your dentist resume has the power to demonstrate your technical skills and your ability to be an empathetic advocate for your patients.
While you're incredible when it comes to all things teeth, you might be unsure where to begin on your resume. That's why we're here!
We've done the hard work for you by researching the good, the bad, and the ugly for all types of dentist positions and their respective resumes (such as dental hygienist resumes and dental assistant resumes). We've taken everything we've learned to design these five dentist resume samples to help you build an amazing resume to land your next dental job in 2023!
Why this resume works
Why this resume works
Why this resume works
Why this resume works
Why this resume works
You're anxious to get started in your new dentist role, so we won't waste time with our how-tos on making a dentist resume that stands out to employers.
Accomplished and seasoned dentists, you can take advantage of a summary statement by highlighting your greatest career accomplishments, like pediatric care where your work impacted the oral hygiene in children, families, and schools. If you’re just starting your dentistry career, your objective can assure employers you’re skilled and ready to meet the specific challenges of the clinic, like improving the quality of life for the underprivileged. Alternatively, skip this section if you're in a hurry.
Recount your experience in reverse-chronological order in your dentist resume. For example, the top third of your resume might contain your senior dentist role where you not only served patients daily in minor oral surgeries, extractions, and exams but mentored other dentists, coordinated international trips to initiate dentistry programs, led presentations at conferences and community programs. Clinical rotations and associate dentistry roles are better saved for the bottom two-thirds of your resume.
Quantify your impact in dentistry for a winning resume. Was patient education your passion? If so, did you see a decrease in cavities or gingivitis in your pediatric population? Or, maybe you worked to implement new technologies that increased the accuracy of diagnosing oral disease. By how much did this technology increase the accuracy of diagnosis, and how did this affect your treatment and education plans for the patient?
No dental position is the same. Strategically pick skills to include on your dental resume by first thinking about the skills you possess and then matching those skills to what you see in a business' job description. One clinic may focus on disease prevention for underserved geriatric populations while another primarily cares for families. So, skills in sedation, preventative dental education, and extractions might be appropriate for a clinic focused on disease prevention.
Include your dental accreditation and education, so employers can quickly assess your qualifications. Whether you earned a DDS (Doctor of Dental Surgery) or a DMD (Doctor of Medicine in Dentistry), this degree with the year earned and the institution should come first in your education section. Undergraduate work can follow. If you just finished dental school, consider adding awards and recognition, such as the inaugural Dr. Jeanne Craig Sinkford Student Leadership Award.
List your dental licenses in a small section beneath your education and skills. Include your state dental license as well as any other required certifications and licenses, such as a CPR certification or DEA license.
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