Surgical assistant resume examples from 2026
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How to write a surgical assistant resume
Craft a resume summary statement
A resume summary is your opening statement that highlights your strongest skills and top accomplishments. It is your chance to quickly let recruiters know who you are professionally - and why they should hire you for the surgical assistant role.
Step 1: Start with your current job title, or the one you aspire to. Are you a passionate manager? A skilled analyst? It's a good starting point.
Step 2: Next put your years of experience in surgical assistant-related roles.
Step 3: Now is the time to put your biggest accomplishment or something you are professionally proud of.
Step 4: Read over what you have written. It should be 2-4 sentences. Your goal is to summarize your experience, not recite your resume.
These four steps should give you a strong elevator pitch and land you some surgical assistant interviews.Please upload your resume so Zippia’s job hunt AI can draft a summary statement for you.
List the right project manager skills
Your Skills section is an easy way to let recruiters know you have the skills to do the job. Just as importantly, it can help your resume not get filtered out by hiring software. Here is how to make the most of your skills section and make sure you have the right keywords:
- Look at the job listing and skills listed. You need to include the exact keywords from the job description to get your resume in front of an actual human. Do you have those skills? Fantastic! Be sure to list them.
- Include as many relevant hard or technical surgical assistant skills as possible for each job you apply to.
- Be specific with the skills you have and be sure you are using the most up to date and accurate terms.
Here are example skills to include in your “Area of Expertise” on a surgical assistant resume:
- Patients
- Surgical Procedures
- Patient Care
- Vital Signs
- CPR
- Infection Control
- Insurance Verification
- Pre-op
- General Anesthesia
- Surgical Instruments
- DR
- Aseptic Technique
- Suturing
- Catheter
- Sponges
- EMR
- Medical History
- Scheduling Appointments
- Retractors
- Oral Surgery Procedures
- Sterile Technique
- Surgical Equipment
- Front Desk
- Electrocautery
- Suture Removal
- Post-Operative Care
- EKG
- Resuscitation
- Mohs
- Exam Rooms
Zippia’s AI can customize your resume for you.
How to structure your work experience
Your work experience should be structured:
- With your most recent roles first, followed by earlier roles in reverse chronological order.
- Job title, along with company name and location on the left.
- Put the corresponding dates of employment on the left side.
- Keep only relevant jobs on your work experience.
How to write surgical assistant experience bullet points
Your resume is not a list of responsibilities or a job description. Instead, it is your chance to show your accomplishments and show why you're good at what you do.
- Use the What, How, and Why format. Answering these questions turns a bland job description into an effective showcase of your abilities.
- What were your responsibilities or goals?
- How did you accomplish them?
- Why were your results important? (How did it impact your company? Can you quantify the results in numbers? )
Here are effective examples from surgical assistant resumes:
Work history example #1
Ophthalmic Surgical Assistant
Cub Foods
- Scheduled appointments for patients, called in medications for patients to their pharmacies and did triage calls.
- Performed clinical rotations under the close supervision of qualified clinical staff and faculty.
- Scheduled Glaucoma and Cataract surgeries.
- Maintained all inventory including IV sedation medications to comply with federal and state Drug Enforcement Agency regulations.
- Performed diagnostic testing such as visual field, Optic Nerve Analyzer, and A-Scan.
Work history example #2
Surgical Assistant
SURGICAL CONSULTANTS PROFESSIONAL ASSOC
- Developed and implemented appropriate care plans*Maintained extensive medical records*Performed CPR and ACLS as required*Provided health education to patients and their families
- Performed pre-operative and post-operative task.
- Provided first assist services to surgeons in the OR.
- Performed EKGs, prepared patients for diagnostic tests, helped with understanding consent forms.
- Ensured proper staffing patterns according to established nurse-patient ratios.
Work history example #3
Ophthalmic Surgical Assistant
Medical Eye Center
- Prepared and assisted Physicians with in-office minor and laser procedures.
- Worked under all specialists at our facility including: Lasik, glaucoma, cornea and cataract.
- Programmed and operated a VISX Star S4 IR Excimer Laser.
- Educated patients on various eye diseases and abnormalities, including macular degeneration and glaucoma.
- Performed keratometry, A-scans and Humphrey visual fields.
Work history example #4
Oral Surgery Assistant
Tampa General Hospital
- Instructed Dental Students *Chair side and Instruments *CPR Certified *OSHA Standards *Radiology Certified Anatomy and Anesthesiology
- Completed 180 hours of hands-on externship experience.
- Expanded Function Dental Assistant role in General Pediatric and Adult Dentistry as well as Hygiene, Oral Surgery and Orthodontics.
- Coordinated with dental offices and employers to host students for externships and employment.
- Performed coronal polishing, oral examinations and charting.
Zippia’s AI can customize your resume for you.
Add an education section to your resume
- The highest degree you have achieved.
- TWhere you attended school, and the dates (Although if you graduated some time ago, leave the date off to avoid ageism)
- TField of study
- TAny honors, relevant coursework, achievements, or pertinent activities
Here are some examples of good education entries from surgical assistant resumes:
Some College Courses in medical technician
Pima Medical Institute, Albuquerque, NM
2002 - 2002
Highlight your surgical assistant certifications on your resume
If you have any additional certifications or education-like achievements, add them to the education section.
Start simple. Include the full name of the certification. It's also good to mention the organization that issued the certification. Next, specify when you obtained the certification.
If you have any of these certifications, be sure to include them on your surgical assistant resume:
- Medical Assistant
- Dental Assistant (RDA)
- Certified Surgical Assistant
- Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA)
- Certified Surgical Technologist (CST)
- Certified Phlebotomy Technician (CPT)
- Registered Medical Assistant
- Certified Dental Assistant (CDA)
- Certified Surgical First Assistant (CSFA)
- Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (NHA)