By nearly every measure, America’s healthcare industry is growing. That’s good news for job seekers.
In fact, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, roughly 2 million new healthcare jobs are expected to be created by the year 2031 — on top of the estimated 1.9 million existing jobs that need to be filled each year.
The more troubling news is the fact that fueling this growth is a perfect storm of an increasing population, an aging population, and a shortage of doctors.
To keep up with this trend, healthcare companies across the country have been actively seeking out new hires in every aspect of the industry. And thankfully, the wellspring of new talent in the healthcare industry is also growing.
In 2022 alone, more than 28,000 medical school graduates entered the workforce. And those were just the graduates of traditional medical programs. When you take into account all the other roles in healthcare — nurses, technicians, researchers, allied staff — that number keeps going up.
Getting noticed
Given all of the above, it’s no wonder that healthcare companies are increasingly leaning on recruiters to fill roles.
These recruiters are tasked with sifting through a large stack of potential hires to find the perfect fit for an organization. And while their criteria depends upon the specific requirements of a hiring manager, there are some common boxes that usually need to be checked off, such as:
- Education
- Level of experience
- Core competencies
- Candidate location (or willingness to move)
This is all basic information, of course, and any relevant applicant will meet the criteria. But the challenge for job seekers is getting noticed — standing out among the scores of individuals who share their commitment to healthcare.
Recruiters often have to scour through thousands of potential candidates, and they usually have to do this quickly. This means wading into sites like LinkedIn and other social media platforms or sorting through a stack of resumes on hiring sites like Indeed.
That means, in order to make an impression, job seekers need to offer more than the obvious criteria. And the first step in doing that is to look inward before you fill out your first application. You want to honestly answer questions such as:
- What do I know I do best?
- What’s missing in my experience?
- How could I be most effective?
- What is on my professional bucket list?
- What can prevent me from achieving what I want?
Answering these questions will help you identify and focus on the most effective areas to promote yourself. It will also help you craft an honest narrative about yourself — your dreams, your level of self-awareness, and so on — so you can build upon that narrative and present yourself as a better candidate.
Being proactive
We’ve already talked about sites like LinkedIn and Indeed, both of which are effective in finding open healthcare opportunities. But in many ways, these two avenues just scratch the surface when it comes to attracting attention from recruiters.
Beyond the visible job market is an invisible one, consisting of opportunities that can’t be found passively. Networking, targeting companies you are interested in, casual conversations — these are the types of actions that often lead to potential positions you may not otherwise hear about.
If you want to be even more proactive, consider contributing your ideas and solutions openly via social media, on a personal blog, or in replies to healthcare articles from others.
Your goal in doing this isn’t to build an audience — at least not initially — but to create a record that shows you care about healthcare, you’re knowledgeable about it, and you have ideas on how to improve it. This will help you stand out, particularly during the interview process, by showing that you have a real desire to help others — the very same passion that led you to pursue a career in healthcare to begin with.
This passion isn’t readily seen on a resume or application, but when combined with all the other steps you take to get a foot in the door, it will highlight what makes you and your perspective unique.
Make it happen
The healthcare industry, especially post-pandemic, faces a lot of challenges. It also presents a lot of opportunities for those who have chosen to devote their lives to helping others.
Seizing that opportunity takes more than crafting a resume and a cover letter, although both are obviously important. You also need to find the right opening — the opening that fits what you want to do and where you want your career to go — be proactive, and — above all else — be genuine with yourself and those you’re looking to impress.
The more you can communicate your enthusiasm for healthcare and the ideas you have to make it better, the more likely you are to land in the perfect spot. This is true not only for those fresh from medical school or other training, but also for those looking for a new opportunity in their chosen field.
apree health is hiring! Check out our open positions to see if one is right for you.
