One specific CV challenge faced by therapists is showcasing the range of interpersonal skills and professional experiences unique to their practice in a concise yet impactful manner. Our guide can help you distil the essence of your therapeutic expertise into a compelling CV that resonates with employers and clients alike.
- Design and format your professional therapist CV;
- Curate your key contact information, skills, and achievements throughout your CV sections;
- Ensure your profile stays competitive by studying other industry-leading therapist CVs;
- Create a great CV even if you happen to have less professional experience, or switching fields.
When writing your therapist CV, you may need plenty of insights from hiring managers. We have prepared industry-leading advice in the form of our relevant CV guides.
Structuring and formatting your therapist CV for an excellent first impression
The experts' best advice regarding your CV format is to keep it simple and concise. Recruiters assessing your CV are foremost looking out for candidates who match their ideal job profile. Your white space, borders, and margins. You may still be wondering which format you need to export your CV in. We recommend using the PDF one, as, upon being uploaded, it never alters your information or CV design. Before we move on to the actual content of your therapist CV, we'd like to remind you about the Applicant Tracker System (or the ATS). The ATS is a software that is sometimes used to initially assess your profile. Here's what you need to keep in mind about the ATS:- All serif and sans-serif fonts (e.g. Rubik, Volkhov, Exo 2 etc.) are ATS-friendly;
- Many candidates invest in Arial and Times New Roman, so avoid these fonts if you want your application to stand out;
- Both single and double column CVs can be read by the ATS, so it's entirely up to you to select your CV design.
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Incorporate a touch of colour in headers or section breaks, but keep it professional and ensure it doesn’t detract from readability, especially in more conservative industries.
The top sections on a therapist CV
- Clinical Experience shows years of patient interactions.
- Relevant Qualifications highlight essential therapy education.
- Professional Registrations confirm legitimacy and standards.
- Therapy Specialities showcase areas of expertise and focus.
- Supervisory Experience denotes leadership and mentor skills.
What recruiters value on your CV:
- Emphasise your credentials by including your relevant degrees, certifications, and professional association memberships, as these qualifications are often prerequisites for practising therapy.
- Detail your experience with specific modalities or therapeutic approaches, such as CBT, DBT, or psychodynamic therapy, to showcase your expertise and compatibility with potential employer needs.
- Highlight your soft skills, such as empathy, active listening, and strong communication abilities, which are critical in building rapport and effectively helping clients.
- Include any specialties or populations you are particularly skilled in working with, such as children, those with trauma, or individuals with specific mental health challenges.
- Provide concrete examples of successful interventions or outcomes from your practice to demonstrate the impact of your work on clients' wellbeing.
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Making a good first impression with your therapist CV header
Your typical CV header consists of Your typical CV header consists of contact details and a headline. Make sure to list your professional phone number, email address, and a link to your professional portfolio (or, alternatively, your LinkedIn profile). When writing your CV headline , ensure it's:
- tailored to the job you're applying for;
- highlights your unique value as a professional;
- concise, yet matches relevant job ad keywords.
You can, for examples, list your current job title or a particular skill as part of your headline. Now, if you decide on including your photo in your CV header, ensure it's a professional one, rather than one from your graduation or night out. You may happen to have plenty more questions on how to make best the use of your CV headline. We'll help you with some real-world examples, below.
Examples of good CV headlines for therapist:
- "Clinical Psychologist | Child and Adolescent Therapy | CBT Specialist | HCPC Registered | 8 Years' Experience"
- "Family Therapist | Systemic Practices | Relationship Dynamics Expert | AFT Certified | 5+ Years in Practice"
- "Psychotherapist | Trauma and Anxiety Focus | Integrative Approach | BACP Accredited | 10 Years Clinical Experience"
- "Counselling Psychologist | Mental Health and Wellbeing Advocate | PhD | Chartered Psychologist | 15+ Years Professional"
- "Addiction Counsellor | Substance Abuse and Recovery | 12-Step Programme Facilitator | 3 Years Dedicated Support"
- "Occupational Therapist | Rehabilitation and Inclusion | Sensory Integration Specialist | HCPC Registered | 7 Years' Expertise"
Catching recruiters' attention with your therapist CV summary or objective
Located closer to the top of your CV, both the summary and objective are no more than five sentences long and serve as an introduction to your experience. What is more, you could use either to entice recruiters to read on. Select the:
- Summary, if you happen to have plenty of relevant experience. Feature your most impressive accomplishments and up to three skills that are relevant to the job you're applying for;
- Objective, if you're just starting your career off. Provide your career goals and answer how you see the role you are applying for will match your professional growth.
Judging which one you need to add to your therapist CV may at times seem difficult. That’s why you need to check out how professionals, with similar to your experience, have written their summary or objective, in the examples below:
CV summaries for a therapist job:
- With over a decade of dedicated service as a licensed clinical psychologist, I possess a rich tapestry of experience assisting clients through cognitive behavioural therapy and crisis intervention. My tenure includes developing a renowned mindfulness-based stress reduction programme that significantly elevated patient outcomes.
- Adept in delivering compassionate care, with 7 years of experience as a family therapist, I have refined my expertise in systemic therapy, fostering resilience and emotional well-being among diverse clientele. My distinguished accomplishment includes spearheading a community outreach programme that reduced therapy access disparities.
- Transitioning from a 10-year career as a seasoned educator, I bring a unique amalgamation of skills in communication, conflict resolution, and group facilitation. Excited to leverage this background, I am eager to enrich the therapeutic landscape with innovative support strategies tailored to individual learning preferences.
- Fusing a 15-year journey in human resource management with a recent postgraduate diploma in psychotherapy, I am enthusiastic about utilising my robust understanding of organisational dynamics and employee wellness to foster therapeutic relationships centred around personal growth and professional development.
- As a recent master's graduate in counselling psychology and with a thorough grounding in psychoanalytic and humanistic modalities through my academic training, I am committed to initiating my career by contributing to the emotional well-being of clients. My goal is to facilitate healing and self-discovery within a supportive therapeutic environment.
- Embarking upon a new professional path in therapy, having completed a comprehensive bachelor's programme in social work, my objective is to integrate my robust interpersonal skills and foundational knowledge of mental health to provide empathetic, evidence-based support to individuals across various stages of life.
How to meet job requirements with your therapist CV experience
We've now reached the essence of your actual CV - your experience section. This is the space where you can list your career roles and on-the-job successes. Many candidates tend to underestimate just how much time and effort they should put into writing this CV section. Your experience shouldn't be a random list of your responsibilities, but instead:
- Match the job description with your skills, values, and accomplishments;
- Start each bullet with a strong action verb, followed up with one key skill and your outcome of applying this skill;
- Spotlight parts of your career history that are relevant to the job you're applying for.
Before we move on, make sure to check out some professional CV experience sections.
Best practices for your CV's work experience section
- Utilised a wide range of therapeutic modalities, including CBT, DBT, and psychodynamic approaches, to tailor treatment plans for individual client needs.
- Conducted initial assessments for over 200 clients, meticulously collecting client histories and presenting concerns to inform treatment direction.
- Facilitated weekly group therapy sessions for clients dealing with anxiety and depression, creating a supportive environment to foster shared healing and growth.
- Collaborated with multidisciplinary teams including psychiatrists, GPs, and social workers to provide comprehensive care and ensure continuity in clients' mental health support.
- Implemented evidence-based interventions to support clients with trauma histories, achieving significant improvements in PTSD symptomatology as measured by the PCL-5.
- Maintained detailed client records with the utmost confidentiality, adhering to GDPR and professional ethical standards regarding data protection and client privacy.
- Created and delivered psychoeducation workshops in community settings aimed at raising awareness of mental health issues such as anxiety disorders and coping strategies.
- Successfully navigated a caseload of up to 30 clients per week, demonstrating strong organisational skills and the ability to prioritise therapeutic needs effectively.
- Engaged in over 100 hours of continued professional development activities annually, staying abreast of the latest research and advances in clinical psychology and therapy techniques.
- Implemented a client-centred therapeutic approach that improved patient satisfaction scores by 20% within the first year.
- Collaborated with a multi-disciplinary team to develop and launch a wellness program that served over 500 clients with positive feedback.
- Utilised evidence-based practices to enhance treatment efficacy, reducing average client recovery time by 25%.
- Managed a caseload of 40+ clients per week, providing individualised treatment plans that led to a 30% improvement in client mental health.
- Provided crisis intervention services, resulting in a 15% reduction in emergency incidents amongst the client group.
- Delivered training workshops to 100+ healthcare professionals on cognitive behavioural therapy techniques and their application.
- Spearheaded a research project on the effectiveness of mindfulness therapy, which was subsequently published in a peer-reviewed journal.
- Conducted group therapy sessions for adolescents, resulting in a 40% decrease in reported symptoms of depression and anxiety.
- Developed a teletherapy program that expanded service access to remote clients, leading to a 20% increase in clinic revenue.
- Introduced an innovative art therapy program to the clinic, enhancing patient expressive capabilities and aiding in the treatment of 150+ patients.
- Trained 25+ interns in patient communication and therapeutic techniques, ensuring high-quality service delivery across the clinic's offerings.
- Created comprehensive treatment plans that integrated patient feedback and preferences, increasing patient compliance by 35%.
- Instrumental in the development of a digital therapy platform, which broadened client accessibility and led to a 50% rise in client engagement.
- Engaged and supported clients through the development of a patient advocacy program, which improved patient outcomes and clinic reputation.
- Authored a series of client-centred resources that were utilised by over 200 patients to self-manage their mental health.
- Achieved a high success rate in treatment adherence by incorporating motivational interviewing techniques tailored to individual patient motivations.
- Successfully engaged with hard-to-reach client demographics, increasing the clinic's outreach effectiveness by 30%.
- Pioneered a peer support program that improved long-term treatment outcomes for 80% of participants.
- Designed and facilitated a specialised therapy program for veterans, which helped over 100 individuals reintegrate successfully into civilian life.
- Coordinated with local health authorities to increase funding for mental health services by presenting successful case studies from our clinic's work.
- Pioneered the use of virtual reality therapy at the clinic, enhancing treatment options for clients with PTSD.
- Enhanced interdepartmental communication pathways by 40% through the introduction of a unified case management system, resulting in improved patient care coordination.
- Led a team that developed and implemented a holistic therapy program that saw a 25% increase in positive patient outcomes compared to standard treatment protocols.
- Oversaw the integration of biofeedback mechanisms into treatment plans, increasing the precision of therapeutic interventions.
How to ensure your therapist CV stands out when you have no experience
This part of our step-by-step guide will help you substitute your experience section by helping you spotlight your skill set. First off, your ability to land your first job will depend on the time you take to assess precisely how you match the job requirements. Whether that's via your relevant education and courses, skill set, or any potential extracurricular activities. Next:
- Systematise your CV so that it spotlights your most relevant experience (whether that's your education or volunteer work) towards the top;
- Focus recruiters' attention to your transferrable skill set and in particular how your personality would be the perfect fit for the role;
- Consider how your current background has helped you build your technological understanding - whether you've created projects in your free time or as part of your uni degree;
- Ensure you've expanded on your teamwork capabilities with any relevant internships, part-time roles, or projects you've participated in the past.
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If applicable, briefly mention a situation where things didn’t go as planned and what you learned from it, demonstrating your ability to learn and adapt.
Describing your unique skill set using both hard skills and soft skills
Your therapist CV provides you with the perfect opportunity to spotlight your talents, and at the same time - to pass any form of assessment. Focusing on your skill set across different CV sections is the way to go, as this would provide you with an opportunity to quantify your achievements and successes. There's one common, very simple mistake, which candidates tend to make at this stage. Short on time, they tend to hurry and mess up the spelling of some of the key technologies, skills, and keywords. Copy and paste the particular skill directly from the job requirement to your CV to pass the Applicant Tracker System (ATS) assessment. Now, your CV skills are divided into:
- Technical or hard skills, describing your comfort level with technologies (software and hardware). List your aptitude by curating your certifications, on the work success in the experience section, and technical projects. Use the dedicated skills section to provide recruiters with up to twelve technologies, that match the job requirements, and you're capable of using.
- People or soft skills provide you with an excellent background to communicate, work within a team, solve problems. Don't just copy-paste that you're a "leader" or excel at "analysis". Instead, provide tangible metrics that define your success inusing the particular skill within the strengths, achievements, summary/ objective sections.
Top skills for your therapist CV:
Psychotherapy
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Family Systems Therapy
Play Therapy
Group Therapy Facilitation
Crisis Intervention
Treatment Planning
Psychological Assessment
Mental Health Counselling
Behavioural Modification Techniques
Active Listening
Empathy
Communication
Patience
Problem-Solving
Adaptability
Professionalism
Confidentiality
Cultural Sensitivity
Self-Reflection
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Use mini case studies or success stories in your CV to demonstrate how your skills have positively impacted previous roles or projects.
CV education and certificates: your academic background as proof of your skill set
A common misconception about your therapist CV education is that you only need it, if you have less professional experience. That is completely false. The CV education section serves to back up your technical (and sometimes personal) capabilities, fill in gaps in your work history, and show you have the initial industry background and know-how. When creating your education section:
- List your degrees in the reverse chronological order, starting with the most recent (and relevant) ones first;
- Include your degree and university names, start and graduation dates. It's optional to also denote you received a "First-Class Honours" for diplomas that are more relevant to the role;
- Curate your relevant university coursework, projects, or thesis work if you happen to have less professional expertise and need to integrate more job keywords and skills.
Your professional qualifications don't need to stop at your academic background. It's advisable to also select up to three of your most noteworthy (and relevant) industry certificates and feature them in a dedicated section. Once more, include the certificate name, the institution that issued it out, and the date you obtained it on. You could feature both hard skills and soft skills certificates, as in the examples below:
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Focus on describing skills in the context of the outcomes they’ve helped you achieve, linking them directly to tangible results or successes in your career.
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Key takeaways
Here are five things you need to remember about writing your therapist CV for success:
- Sort your experience based on the reverse chronological order, starting with your most recent career items, to showcase how you've grown your career;
- Include within your CV header your relevant contact details, a headline that could spotlight your unique value, and a photo - if you're applying for roles outside the UK or US;
- Decide to use the CV summary, if you happen to have more professional experience, and an objective, if you want to showcase your career goals;
- Within the experience section, write your bullets using action verbs, skills, and success, instead of just merely listing your on-the-job responsibilities;
- Prove your technical skills, using your education and certificates, and your soft skills, with your achievements and strengths sections.
