As a healthcare professional, you know that each medical career opportunity can vary wildly from one setting to another. So you also know how important it is to stick the landing when you finally find the best allied health job that meets both your personal and professional needs.
Whether you’re a psychologist or social worker, a technologist or technician, a physical or occupational therapist or any other allied health job seeker, here are 10 useful tips for making sure you land your dream job when you do find it.
10 Tips for Landing the Best Allied Health Job
1. Make the effort to craft the best possible resume and CV. We know how time-consuming it can be to create a great resume and CV. We also know how downright frustrating the task is for folks who aren’t disposed to paperwork, or to the idea of “selling” themselves. But take our word for it — it’s worth the time and effort.
Remember, a busy hiring manager may spend just a few seconds scanning your resume before moving on to the next one. So it’s important to make sure the best info stands out at a glance, with your key achievements presented in a way that catches their attention. If you’re unsure of how to pull this off, it may be worthwhile to seek the help of a staffing agency who can help make sure your resume “pops.”
2. Describe your accomplishments, not just your experience. When you write up your resume, describe the milestones of your career in terms that are active, not passive.
For instance, instead of writing, “I set up a new treatment plan for my previous employer,” try writing something like: “The new treatment plan I developed led to improved outcomes and higher patient satisfaction rates.”
3. Be mindful of your social media image. Like it or not, today’s hiring process usually includes a review of a candidate’s social media profiles, like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. If you haven’t created a LinkedIn profile, now is the time to do so, and update it with your latest career info. And make sure that your Facebook and Insta feeds are free from any embarrassing undergrad moments.
4. Do your research. Preparation is the cornerstone of landing the best allied health jobs. Take some time to get to know the company that you’re applying to — what it’s known for, its patient profile, its reputation for care. Thanks to Google, this is something that you should be able to accomplish in an hour or so. All the same, the attention to detail that it communicates will be noticed!
5. Take the time to connect your experience to the role. The next step after learning as much as you can about the job is connecting that info to your own skills and experience. If you can, customize your resume to highlight your most relevant experience. And be prepared to speak to your specific qualifications during the interview, focusing on the aspects of your experience that will be of most value.
6. Be confident and honest. Remember that your interview is a chance to sell yourself — so don’t sell yourself short! Even if you’re not the outgoing type, projecting confidence in your skills and ability to perform is important to landing a job.
If there are any areas where you think you may fall short, be honest, and address it by describing when you’ve successfully adapted to an unexpected challenge.
7. Be ready to answer questions. In addition to job-specific inquiries, expect to be asked some basic questions, too, such as the ones listed below. Instead of being caught off guard, take a moment to prepare some brief answers in advance. That way, you’ll avoid any awkwardness of groping for an answer, while giving the impression that you’re prepared and in control of your career path.
- Why did you leave your most recent position?
- What makes you a better choice than other candidates?
- Why did you choose to dedicate your career to healthcare?
- What made you decide to work in your specialty?
8. Be ready to ask questions. Almost every interview ends with the question: “Do you have any questions for us?” When that happens, be ready to ask a few relevant questions about the job. Some samples:
- Is the role new, or will you be replacing someone?
- Who will you be reporting to?
- What kind of training and technology accompanies the role? (Try to avoid questions about salary at this point.)
Even if the info presented during the interview is comprehensive enough to give you everything you need to know about the job, there are still more casual questions you can ask, like how’s the traffic around here? The takeaway is to show that you’re interested in the day-to-day workings of the position and that you’re ready to take on the role.
9. Follow up! On the next business day after your interview, follow up with each person you met with. Send them a brief message — whether by email or standard mail — letting them know that you appreciated the time they spent speaking with you about the role.
If you’re not sure how to write these, a quick Google search on “post-interview thank you letters” will provide a good guide.
10. Be selective when choosing a new opportunity. Allied healthcare professionals are in demand nationwide. That’s the good news! But because of this, many healthcare staffing companies have sprung up in recent years offering job seekers promises of career fulfillment without having built a network of jobs to meet those claims.
Find Your Next Allied Health Job with CareerStaff
Avoid this trap by choosing the allied health job providers with a proven track record of offering great positions at the nation’s top facilities. At CareerStaff, we’re trusted by facilities of all types to deliver the best possible healthcare professionals. That’s why we have more and better opportunities than other sources, and why you can trust us to connect you with the best allied health jobs.
If you’re in the market for a great allied health job opportunity, we’ve got opportunities to match your interests. You can join our roster of high-quality professionals here, or browse our list of allied jobs here.