Pharmaceutical Sales Resume - How I Wrote A Client's Transitional Resume To Pharmaceutical Sales

© Copyright 2009
David Alan Carter / All Rights Reserved

Jason was a client just barely out of college and already looking to make a career change. He'd been working as a pharmacy intern at two of the big chain drugstores, in keeping with his degree, but found himself longing for outside sales work. During high school and college, he had worked in retail sales for The Gap. That would come in handy on the resume.

After a telephone conversation that evening to delve into his background and explore his goals, three decisions were an easy call.

1. The resume should have an objective statement. A job objective is not always advised, but in this particular case, since Jason was looking to shift his career path from pharmacist to sales rep, a job objective would provide much needed focus for the resume.
2. The objective statement should be followed by a "summary" or "profile" section. This would give me the opportunity to stress Jason's academics and internship in a related field, as well as transition that brief work experience in retail sales into relevant career skills of interest to a pharmaceutical manufacturer.
3. The resume needed to impress immediately, capturing attention within the first few lines.

Here's The Objective Statement I Wrote for this Pharmaceutical Sales Resume

Position in PHARMACEUTICAL SALES requiring an effective communicator with strong presentation skills and critical industry insight through college studies and practical internships.

Here's The Profile (or Summary) I Wrote

Dedicated, results-driven professional with a B.S. in Pharmacy, hands-on internship in Pharmacy Operations, and significant Sales and Customer Service experience in a competitive retail environment.

Good working knowledge of marketplace dynamics--specifically sales and marketing--with a clinical understanding of drug therapy and pharmaceuticals.

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills; easy rapport with physicians.
• Strong time-management skills.
• Work well in a team setting or independently - with little or no supervision.

OK, What Was I Thinking?

For the objective, I took stock of Jason's attributes and selected just a few that would be of undeniable value to a prospective employer in the law enforcement industry.

Regarding the profile section, you'll notice that this is basically an expansion of the objective; we're putting some meat on the bones. Because I didn't want the section to overwhelm with a large block of text, I elected to separate and italicize the second sentence. I further broke up the monotony of text by using four bullet points to drive home some relevant skills.

The education section followed, then internships (under their own heading), and finally the abbreviated work history (the retail sales job in support of college).

Final Thoughts

Could Jason have written this resume himself? Yes. With time, study, and a bit of marketing skill, most folks can write an effective resume. But it's not a walk in the park. If your resume is going to be fighting for attention in an extremely competitive field, or if your work history or job qualifications are difficult for you to express in a promotional and unbiased manner, the services of a professional resume writer might make sense.

If you opt for the latter, seek out a certified resume writer, and a writer who will guarantee the resume he creates will generate interviews. Yes, they're out there.

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You’ll find in-depth reviews on each of the 9 companies. But if you’re pressed for time, you can click straight to the website of top-rated ResumeWriters.com. As the largest network of certified resume writers on the internet, they've got unparalleled resources to best match you with a writer most qualified in your profession. Plus, they guarantee you'll get interviews with their resume. That cinched the deal with me.

Whether you go it alone or trust the services of a pro writer, I wish you the best of luck in your job search!

– David

David Alan Carter is a former headhunter and the founder of Resume One of Cincinnati. For more than ten years, he personally crafted thousands of resumes for satisfied clients from all occupational walks of life -- entry level to executive.

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