The Perfect Medical Examiner Resume Writing Tips

Do you want to apply for a Medical Examiner position to help you get closer to your career goals? Applying for jobs on Seek, LinkedIn, and other job boards can be a time-consuming process, however, to streamline the process, you can ensure your resume writing helps you to stand out from the crowd, and your online profile helps you to get an interview!

If a recruiter or hiring manager are looking for a Medical Examiner, they are searching for specific transferable skills. With less than ten people being interviewed for the job and hundreds of people, just like you, applying, The Perfect Resume team have created Resume Writing Tips to help you stand out from the others.

What do recruiters look for in a Medical Examiner resume or an online profile?

Tailoring your resume to a Medical Examiner position is mandatory today to ensure that your application will pass Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS). In doing so, your resume will be read by the prospective employer. Then, fingers crossed, you will be shortlisted as a potential candidate and be called for not one, but multiple job interviews!

Firstly, before you apply to be a Medical Examiner, you need to be acquainted with what a Medical Examiner does!

Medical Examiners handle the forensic and anatomical pathology tests to determine the cause of death whether natural, accidental, or intentional, of decedents.

Hiring Managers are looking for a detail-orientated and even-tempered Medical Examiner to assist in conducting postmortem medical examinations on decedents, in order to determine the cause, manner, and circumstances surrounding the death.

To be successful as a Medical Examiner, you should have knowledge of necessary healthcare and medical procedures, be open to learning, and have strong communication skills. Ultimately, a high performing Medical Examiner should be able to achieve legal compliance, infection control standards and be trained in forensic analysis, criminal procedure and understand the chain of custody, and evidence collection.

Knowing this, your resume and online profile should include the hard and soft skills that the recruiter or hiring manager is looking for in a candidate.

The Medical Examiner position description template will also contain pivotal information about what the candidate will need to do daily. Such as:

• Performing autopsies to determine the cause of death.
• Undertaking examinations of specimens, tissues, organs, fluids, and blood to determine abnormalities that may have resulted in death.
• Investigating sudden and/or unnatural deaths, in conjunction with law enforcement, when needed.
• Conducting on-site investigations to obtain data and information pertaining to a case, when needed.
• Reviewing police reports and checking medical records of decedents for pertinent information relating to death.
• Preparing reports of findings to be given to law enforcement, when needed, to aid any on-going investigations.
• Providing expert testimony in court regarding autopsies and the findings thereof, when required.
• Preparing death certificates and determining when decedents may be released.
• Remaining informed of developments in forensic pathology and attending seminars and courses in forensic medicine, for continuing education.


You will also have some requirements and personal attributes that you will need to demonstrate in your resume to ensure your potential employer will take your application seriously, such as:

• Bachelor’s degree in biology, physical sciences, or a related field.
• Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree.
• 4 to 7 years’ internship and residency training, specializing in forensic and anatomical pathology.
• Successful completion of the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE).
• Certification by The American Board of Pathology in forensic and anatomical pathology.
• Valid and active medical license in the state you wish to work.
• Experience using lab testing equipment.
• Working knowledge of applicable laws and statutes governing forensic services.
• Exceptional analytical and research skills.


You may also want to do some industry research to find out what other companies want in their Medical Examiners.