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Physiotherapist Resume Example

Physiotherapist resumes must communicate specialisation, manual-therapy techniques, and measurable rehabilitation outcomes: not just 'assessed and treated patients'. Hospital HR and rehab clinic managers look for the settings you have worked in (ICU, ortho ward, sports clinic), the patient volumes you handle, and evidence that your interventions produce results. Post-graduate certifications in manual therapy, dry needling, or sports rehab meaningfully separate candidates at the shortlisting stage.

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Physiotherapist resume example

How to write a physiotherapist resume

  1. Name the specialisation in the first line

    Orthopaedic, neurological, cardiopulmonary, sports, paediatric and geriatric physiotherapy are separate practices with separate caseloads. A generic "Physiotherapist" headline forces the reader to guess; naming the specialisation and the setting resolves it immediately.

  2. List technique certifications with their level

    Manual therapy schools are specific and hiring managers know them. Maitland, Mulligan, Cyriax, McKenzie, dry needling and Kinesio taping each carry a level or a certifying body, and the level matters: Maitland Level 3 is not Maitland Level 1. Give the awarding organisation and the year.

  3. Report caseload and session volume

    Patients per day, sessions per week and the average length of a treatment episode tell a clinical head what pace you are used to. An outpatient sports clinic and an inpatient neuro-rehab ward run at very different tempos and the numbers make that legible without you having to describe it.

  4. Use functional outcome measures, not adjectives

    Physiotherapy has standardised outcome instruments and using them signals training. Range-of-motion gains in degrees, VAS or NPRS pain-score reduction, Berg Balance, timed up-and-go, 6-minute walk distance and return-to-sport timelines are all defensible and all more persuasive than "improved patient mobility".

  5. Separate the equipment you operate from the techniques you apply

    Electrotherapy modalities (TENS, IFT, ultrasound, short-wave diathermy, laser) are equipment competencies. Manual therapy, exercise prescription and gait retraining are clinical competencies. Splitting them into two groups makes the skills block scannable and stops the equipment list from crowding out the clinical judgement.

Physiotherapist resume example: full text

The same example as plain text, so you can read it without the preview and copy any line straight into the editor.

Kavitha Subramaniam

Physiotherapist (Orthopaedic & Sports)
Bengaluru, India · kavitha.subramaniam@email.com · +91 98860 43217 · linkedin.com/in/kavithasubramaniampt

Summary

BPT-qualified Physiotherapist with 6 years specialising in orthopaedic rehabilitation and sports injuries. Treated 25+ patients per day, achieved an 88% return-to-sport rate for ACL-reconstruction cases, and developed a post-operative knee protocol adopted across two hospital campuses.

Experience

Senior Physiotherapist
Manipal Hospitals, Bengaluru, India · Sep 2021 – Present
  • Managed 25+ daily orthopaedic rehabilitation cases including post-op TKR, shoulder reconstruction, and spinal surgeries, achieving an average functional-independence score improvement of 32 points (FIM scale).
  • Achieved an 88% return-to-sport rate for ACL reconstruction patients within the surgeon-prescribed 9-month window.
  • Designed a post-operative knee rehabilitation protocol now standardised across two Manipal Hospitals campuses, reducing re-admission for stiffness by 20%.
  • Supervised 2 junior physiotherapists and a rotating internship cohort of 4 BPT students per semester.
Physiotherapist
Narayana Health City, Bengaluru, India · Jun 2018 – Aug 2021
  • Treated cardiac and thoracic post-surgical patients in the ICU and step-down ward, performing chest physiotherapy for 15+ patients daily.
  • Reduced ventilator-associated pulmonary complications by 18% by introducing early mobilisation protocols in the cardiac ICU.
  • Delivered group exercise classes for 10+ chronic back-pain outpatients weekly, improving VAS pain scores by an average of 3 points.

Education

BPT (Bachelor of Physiotherapy)
Manipal College of Health Professions · 2014 – 2018
Clinical internship: Orthopaedics, Neuro-rehabilitation, Cardiopulmonary, Paediatrics · First Class with Distinction

Skills

Orthopaedic & Sports Rehabilitation · Manual Therapy (Maitland, Mulligan) · Electrotherapy (TENS, IFT, US) · Cardiopulmonary Physiotherapy · Exercise Prescription & Progression · Functional Movement Assessment · Patient Education & Home Exercise Programmes · EMR Documentation

Certifications & Continuing Education

  • Certified Sports Physiotherapist, Indian Association of Sports Medicine (2022)
  • Dry Needling Level 1 & 2, Physio Concepts India (2021)
  • Maitland Spinal Manipulation, Level 3 (2020)

Key physiotherapist skills recruiters screen for

  • Orthopaedic & sports rehabilitation
  • Manual therapy techniques (Maitland, Mulligan, Kaltenborn)
  • Electrotherapy (TENS, IFT, ultrasound)
  • Cardiopulmonary physiotherapy
  • Neurological rehabilitation (stroke, SCI)
  • Exercise prescription & periodisation
  • Functional & movement assessment
  • Patient education & home exercise programme design

Physiotherapist resume tips

  • State your specialisation (orthopaedic, neuro, cardiopulmonary, paediatric) in the title and summary: generalist descriptions are screened out for specialist roles.
  • Use outcome metrics: return-to-sport rates, FIM/VAS score changes, reduction in post-op complications: these translate your skill into business value.
  • List manual therapy certifications explicitly (Maitland level, dry needling, Kinesio Taping) because these are searchable keywords in hospital ATS systems.
  • Mention patient volume per day and the acuity of cases (ICU vs. OPD); private multi-speciality hospitals use this to gauge whether you can handle their caseload.
  • If you have developed any protocol or SOP that was adopted beyond your immediate role, highlight it: it shows clinical leadership even at non-senior grades.

Physiotherapist resume keywords an ATS looks for

Keyword matching is literal: a parser looks for these strings, not for synonyms. Use the ones that are genuinely true of your experience, spelled the way the job posting spells them.

  • BPT
  • MPT
  • Orthopaedic Rehabilitation
  • Sports Rehabilitation
  • Manual Therapy
  • Maitland
  • Mulligan
  • Dry Needling
  • Electrotherapy
  • TENS
  • IFT
  • Exercise Prescription
  • Gait Training
  • Range of Motion
  • Functional Movement Assessment
  • Home Exercise Programme

Common mistakes on a physiotherapist resume

  • Listing electrotherapy machines as though they were clinical skills. Equipment operation and clinical reasoning are read as separate things.
  • Writing "improved patient mobility" where a standardised outcome measure exists. The profession has instruments; not using them suggests unfamiliarity with them.
  • Omitting the certification level on manual therapy courses. Level 1 and Level 3 are materially different and an unlevelled claim is read as the lowest.

Physiotherapist resume FAQ

How do you write a physiotherapist resume?

Name the specialisation in the first line, because orthopaedic, neurological, cardiopulmonary, sports and paediatric physiotherapy are separate practices with separate caseloads and a generic headline forces the reader to guess. State the BPT or MPT with the university, then list technique certifications with their level and awarding body: Maitland, Mulligan, McKenzie, Cyriax, dry needling and taping are recognised by name and the level matters. Report caseload as patients per day and sessions per week so a clinical head can judge the pace you are used to. Replace adjectives with standardised outcome measures: range-of-motion gains in degrees, VAS or NPRS pain reduction, Berg Balance scores, timed up-and-go, six-minute walk distance, and return-to-sport timelines.

What should a physiotherapist include for a sports or rehab role?

A sports physiotherapy application needs evidence of working with athletes under time pressure and of return-to-play decision-making. Name the sport, the level (school, club, state, national) and the team or academy, along with the injuries managed most often and the average return-to-sport interval achieved. Pitch-side or on-field first-response experience should be stated explicitly, with any sports first-aid or emergency trauma certification. For a rehabilitation post, the equivalent evidence is programme design: the assessment tools used at intake, the progression protocol, home-exercise adherence tracking, and discharge criteria. Both benefit from naming any multidisciplinary team you worked within, such as with an orthopaedic surgeon or a strength and conditioning coach.

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