This post is based on content that has already appeared on the Propel Careers website and BioCareers.com. It is reproduced here with the author’s kind permission.
When you apply to a job, the details listed on your resume provide your future employer with information about the type of job you are looking for. Everything matters—the key words you include, the way you phrase your accomplishments and experiences, how you order your bullet points, etc. These details build your brand.
RESEARCH ROLES
Include research techniques. If you are looking for a job doing bench research, make sure you include the major research techniques that you used during each of your roles, as well as a separate section listing all of the methods you have ever used and know well. A hiring manager will want to see both the current techniques and previous ones. Whether you are a post-doc or an industry professional, listing these details is important to show growth.
List relevant details. Many companies use resume-parsing systems to input a candidate's details on their job skills into their database. Companies then scan resumes against job descriptions to see which candidates could be a fit. Resumes without details listed won't come up as matches, and you will be passed over in favor of candidates who have listed the relevant skills.
Be specific and thorough. Include research techniques that match the desired job description only if you have experience with them. Customize the resume for each job. Don't just list a general term like molecular biology techniques. Elaborate on exactly which technique you have experience with, such as molecular cloning, recombinant DNA methods, PCR, site directed mutagenesis, DNA isolation, purification, and sequencing, Southern blotting and Northern blotting. Don't rely on a hiring manager to guess that you have the right experience. Don't be afraid to take too much space when listing skills; you can recover some of that through clever formatting: by using a smaller font for the list, as well as going from a vertical bullet point list to a horizontal one.
NON-RESEARCH ROLES
Don’t include research details. Resumes for non-research roles should not include details about research techniques, since these are not typically relevant to these jobs. If you are considering a role in clinical research, disease and/or therapeutically relevant experience is important to highlight. You can include high-level information about techniques you know under each of your experiences, but you do not need to include an entire section on research methods. Sending a research-focused resume for a non-research role will indicate to the potential employer that you are not sufficiently interested in the role that you are applying to because you did not bother to tailor your resume to the job.
Highlight transferable skills. Hiring managers for non-research based roles prefer to see more transferable skills and experiences such as: leading teams, managing collaborations, working with clients, managing projects, strong communication and writing experience and mentoring, rather than specific laboratory skills and techniques. For a non-research role, extra-curricular or community service activities should also gain more prominence on your resume. For example, note if you write a blog, work as a teaching assistant or serve as the president of a charity. These activities highlight your transferable skills, especially if your previous job or academic experience is heavy on laboratory research and not much else.
What you decide to include on your resume is important. The details tell a story and indicate the type of position you are looking for. Be focused and strategic. The effort will pay off!
Lauren Celano (lauren@propelcareers.com) is the co-founder and CEO of Propel Careers, a life science search and career development firm focused on connecting talented individuals with entrepreneurial life sciences companies.