Veterinary assistant CV examples to use this year

Veterinary assistants are critical to a functioning veterinary clinic and help to provide vital healthcare to our furry friends. 

Candidates looking for a job as a vet’s assistant will need to show hiring managers and recruiters that they have the right skills and experience for the role. That includes knowledge of animal science and veterinary medicine, as well as a strong mix of technical and interpersonal skills.

The structure of your CV should be set up like the following:

• CV header 
• Summary/objective
• Skills
• Work history 
• Education 

Header

The CV header section is the first section of your CV and presents your contact information:

 

• Name 
• Phone number
• Location (city and country)
• Email address 

If you have lots of work experience and accomplishments, you can also include a link to professional networking sites – any links that provide the hiring manager with more information about your experience in animal hospitals or vet’s offices.

CV summary or objective

The CV summary provides a rundown of your best skills and experiences. This section is usually two to three sentences long that aims to hook the recruiter and encourage them to keep reading your CV.

In this section, you should highlight useful skills, certifications or experience that fit what the job is looking for, and show that you can provide exemplary animal care.

If you don’t have a lot of work experience as a veterinary assistant, then you can use a CV objective. A CV objective sums up your career ambitions instead of your achievements. Briefly explain your intentions for the role and list skills that show you’re the right candidate.

Skills

Depending on the type of CV format you choose, the skills section might be the most crucial part of your CV. A functional CV will showcase skills instead of experience to make up for a lack of experience.  Your CV skills section should contain a mixture of both hard skills and soft skills.

Hard skills are role-specific and learned through training, with hiring managers usually expecting candidates to have these skills before applying. Soft skills such as communication and interpersonal abilities are transferable across many different industries and help to support candidates as they fulfill their primary responsibilities.

If you can’t think of the right assistant skills for your vet assistant CV, then consider including these skills on the CV:

• Animal restraint 
• Time management 
• First aid 
• Administrative tasks 
• Sterilizing for surgical procedures 
• Conducting X-rays 
• Communication skills 
• Knowledge of animal health 
• Preparing exam rooms 
• Use of veterinary technology
• Analyzing lab work and laboratory tests
• Microsoft Office 
• Collecting urine samples via catheters 
• Comforting animals in kennels 
• Relaying information to pet owners 
• Supporting the delivery of vaccines 

Work history

Your work experience section will vary in length and depth depending on your experience. List your work history in reverse chronological order, starting from the most recent experience. This ensures that you provide the hiring manager with the most up-to-date information about your skills and experience.

Include your previous employer’s company name, location and the dates you worked there. Focus on featuring a few bullet points for each job, highlighting your top duties and achievements at the job.

Education

To become a veterinary assistant, you will need a high school diploma or an equivalent qualification. You should also how that you’ve completed a veterinary assistant program or completed formal training under the supervision of a veterinary technician or fully qualified vet.

If you went to college, then list your degree at the top of this section, alongside any notable achievements such as making the dean’s list or graduating with honors.

Do: 

• Use a CV template. Our CV templates offer a variety of employer-ready designs you can use to structure your CV. 
• Study the job description. This will help you use the right keywords (e.g., skills and requirements) to help tailor your CV. This also helps you navigate applicant tracking systems (ATS) that employers use to scan CVs for these keywords. 
• Use a CV builder that gives you job-specific suggestions to help create a CV with the right format and professional font that targets the job you want. 

Don’t:

• Make your sentences too long. Stick to concise phrases and bullet points that recruiters can easily scan.
• List your high school GPA – your skills and work experiences are more important.
• Include employment information from over ten years ago that isn’t relevant to the role.