Physician Assistant Resume: Examples & Templates for PA

Another job application sent out to no response. If only you could order a CAT scan for your resume to find out exactly what’s causing it to malfunction…

Time to treat your resume to some collaborative care. Between our expert advice and your excellent communication skills, we can vaccinate your physician assistant resume against failure once and for all. 

This guide will show you: 

• A physician assistant resume example better than 9 out of 10 other resumes.
• How to write a physician assistant resume (also pa school resume) that will land you more interviews.
• Tips and pa resume examples to create the best physician assistant resume out there.
• How to describe your experience on a resume for a physician assistant to get any job you want.

Want to save time and have your resume ready in 5 minutes? Try our resume builder. It’s fast and easy to use. Plus, you’ll get ready-made content to add with one click. See 20+ resume templates and create your resume here.

Use this resume template

Sample resume made with our builder—See more resume samples here.

Targeting other assistant jobs in healthcare? Check the guides below:

• Medical Assistant Resume Sample
• Medical Admin Assistant Resume
• Lab Assistant Resume Example
• Pharmacy Assistant Resume Sample
• Dental Assistant Resume Example
• Certified Nursing Assistant Resume
• Patient Care Assistant Resume
• Best Examples of Resumes for Any Job

Physician Assistant (PA) Resume Example

That was our physician assistant resume sample. Feel free to use it as a guide for writing your own!

Now, here’s how to write a physician assistant resume using our tips and tailored pa resume examples:

1. Choose the Best Format for Your Physician Assistant Resume

Whether at a busy city hospital or the local specialty clinic, physicians, surgeons, and medical assistants have structure in place to be safe and efficient.

Same here—a great PA resume format keeps everything organized and readable.

Follow these formatting rules:

• Begin with your address info in the resume header. Make sure to add your professional title after your name.
• Make it easy to scan by laying out resume sections neatly and with clear headings.
• Use the right resume format: usually, the chronological format is best.
• Choose the best resume font, and use white space to guide their eyes.
• Send the resume in PDF format, unless the job ad specifically requests otherwise.

Pro Tip: PDFs are the way to go unless they conflict with the hospital’s or clinic’s Applicant Tracking System. Check the job listing to find out for sure.

2. Write a Physician Assistant Resume Summary or Objective

A PA resume objective or summary is also called a resume profile. This introductory paragraph is 3 to 4 lines long and gives hospital hiring managers a quick look at your background, skills, work experience, and career goals.

Like the siren of an incoming ambulance, it has to grab the reader’s attention effectively.

Use the resume summary if you have more than 2 years of PA experience. This intro paragraph summarizes your medical skills and hospital experience. It includes a key physician assistant accomplishment with numbers to prove you’re the top candidate.

Use the resume objective when you have little experience as a physician assistant. The career objective states your healthcare vocational goals, and it also gives a numbered win to prove your medical and emergency skills.

Pro Tip: The physician assistant resume objective or summary goes on top, but save it for the end. It’s difficult to “sum up” a PA resume if you haven’t even written it yet!

3. Create the Perfect Physician Assistant Job Description

Whether specializing in vascular surgery, dermatology, or neurosurgery, the work history section is important to get right.

So, here’s how to master physician assistant job descriptions in your pa resume:

• Start with the most recent job, and go back in reverse-chronological order from there.
• Put your job title at the top, followed by dates, hospital name, and 3–5 bullet points outlining your job duties and achievements.
• As you go further back in your medical work history, reduce the number of job description bullet points, and include only the most appropriate accomplishments.
• Begin each work entry with action words (e.g., instituted, spearheaded, etc.).
• Show off quantifiable achievements, not just regular hospital responsibilities and tasks.
• Target each resume to the specific job. Don’t spam them a generic resume.

Pro Tip: If you don’t have physician assistant experience, add any residency or classroom hours from during your studies. Skip the least relevant jobs you had, like working as a barista or computer programmer—irrelevant.

4. Make Your Physician Assistant Resume Education Section Sparkle

The education section on a physician assistant resume is crucial to get right, whether in general surgery or cardiothoracic surgery.

Keep these academic section rules in mind to get it right:

• Over 5 years of PA experience? Add only your degree, major, concentration, and university name.
• New to assisting physicians? Include more details, such as academic accomplishments, relevant medical coursework, and Latin honors, for example.

• Don’t include high school on physician assistant resumes.

Pro Tip: Relevant coursework for physician assistant jobs include first those closest to your specialty (e.g., pathology, critical care medicine, general surgery). If you have room, add some secondary specialties, followed by general medicine classes.

5. Highlight Your Physician Assistant Skills

Don’t let your PA resume be like an injection—in vein. Instead—show them your bedside manner is up to par by listing the best physician assistant resume skills:

Key Skills for Physician Assistant Resumes

• Works Well Under Pressure
• Treating and Diagnosing Patients
• Commitment to Patient Care
• Internal Medicine
• Chronic and Acute Illnesses
• Prescribing Medications
• Spinal Immobilization
• Obstetrics
• Gynecology
• Effective Communication
• Skin Cancer & Rashes
• Compassion and Empathy
• Cardiothoracic Surgery
• Decision-Making Skills
• Health Risk Assessment
• Order and Perform Diagnostic Tests

However, don’t just copy-paste this list and throw your surgical gloves in the bin.

Do this instead:

• List skills you have related to physician assistant jobs and your particular specialty, including both soft skills and hard skills.
• Parse the hospital job description for the physician assistant position advertised.
• Note medical and physician skills they look for from the clinic’s job requirements. Those are the best resume keywords to choose!
• If one of the noted skills matches something on your list, add it to your PA resume!

Finally, appease the ATS.

Larger clinics and hospital systems use applicant tracking systems to manage the barrage of medical resumes they take in each day.

This HR software lets hiring staff scan your resume for physician assistants into their system, search for specific keywords, and delivers a score based on its match to the job ad.

No match, no job!

Pro Tip: Patients will love your friendliness, but keep the soft skills down to a minimum. Physicians and head doctors worry more about your hard skills and abilities.

Creating a resume with our builder is incredibly simple. Follow our step-by-step guide and use content from Certified Professional Resume Writers to have a resume ready in minutes.

Create my resume now

When you’re done, our free resume builder will score your resume and our resume checker will tell you exactly how to make it better.

6. Add Other Sections to Your Physician Assistant Resume

You now have the makings of a great physician assistant’s resume, with a compelling intro, relevant experience, impressive achievements, and awesome skills.

However, mind that all the other physician assistant applicants have those same resume sections. How to make your physician assistant resume sample call out for attention? Add extra resume sections as individual as you are.

Here are some great additions to a resume for physician assistant jobs:

• certifications
• language skills
• projects
• awards
• licenses
• hobbies and interests
• volunteering

Pro Tip: Medical certificates on your resume are super important, so don’t forget to give them their own section for prominence.

7. Attach a Cover Letter to Your Physician Assistant Resume

Always turn in a cover letter along with your resume. More than 50% of employers say physician assistant resumes themselves aren’t enough.

So whether it’s dermatology, urgent care, emergency medicine, or surgery, here’s how to write a cover letter for PA jobs they’ll love:

• Format your cover letter before beginning to write.
• Start your cover letter with an intriguing intro.
• Document your physician assistant work experience.
• List key PA achievements to prove your abilities.
• End the cover letter with a call to action.

Also, we’ve got some great cover letter tips to help you along. Check them out!

Pro Tip: Don’t forget to follow up on your job application. Shooting off a quick email or making a brief call might just be what gets you hired.

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

Create my cover letter now

See more cover letter templates and start writing.

So, that’s it. You’ve now got a physician assistant resume that’s as healthy as they get!

Got any questions on how to write a resume physician assistant hospitals love? Not sure how to talk about medical skills or doctoral achievements? Get at us in the comments below, and thanks for reading!

About Zety’s Editorial Process

This article has been reviewed by our editorial team to make sure it follows Zety's editorial guidelines. We’re committed to sharing our expertise and giving you trustworthy career advice tailored to your needs. High-quality content is what brings over 40 million readers to our site every year. But we don't stop there. Our team conducts original research to understand the job market better, and we pride ourselves on being quoted by top universities and prime media outlets from around the world.