CaRMS resume editing checklist
As a healthcare professional, your resume / CV and supporting documents should reflect the same precision and professionalism you bring to clinical practice. The following checklist outlines key areas to review, to ensure your resume presents you as a credible, well-prepared candidate.
content
Verify that your contact information is accurate and up to date.
Eliminate redundant or implied information (e.g. “when needed; when required; to deliver healthcare; in the best interest of the patient; for the patient; as per evidence based medicine”).
Evaluate your keywords and action verbs - do they reflect CanMeds roles?
Check: have you quantified the outcomes of your work, or measured its impact somehow?
Remove inflated or inaccurate descriptions (e.g. “multilingual” if only 2 languages are known).
Consider whether claims about your communication skills will be reflected in your interview.
Do not copy large sections of job ads.
Remove any referees’ information. Submit this separately and only when requested.
grammar
Ensure consistent and accurate verb tenses.
Determine whether articles are necessary - use them consistently or not at all.
Check usage of Latin pluralizations (e.g. “symposia; curricula; alumni”).
punctuation and mechanics
Ensure capitalization of cities, countries, hospitals, supervisors, and section headers.
Review punctuation marks for accuracy and consistency (e.g. full stop; apostrophe; comma versus semicolon; em dash versus en dash; “and” versus &, etc.).
Ensure consistent presentation of dates (e.g. punctuation; numbers versus words).
formatting
Ensure consistent font, font size, and bullet size and shape.
Ensure consistent spacing, margins, alignment.
Ensure consistent use of bold, underline, and italics.
Include a footer with your full name and page numbers.
spelling
Ensure accuracy in commonly misused words that spell checkers may not catch, like the following:
affect / effect
allied / ailed
cite / site
compliment / complement
conscious / conscience
council / counsel
disciplines / disciples
discrete / discreet
elicit / illicit
inpatient / impatient
lumbar / lumber
patients / patience / patents
principal / principle
proceed / precede
prostate / prostrate
pubic / public
stationary / stationery
unit / unite / untie
ward / word
