Resume template · Updated October 2026
Postdoctoral researcher resume template
Short answer
Henrietta suits a postdoctoral researcher who needs a resume rather than a full CV: it runs summary, appointments, then degrees, so the PhD sits right after the postdoc, and a short custom list carries selected papers. The fictional sample develops solid-state battery electrolytes as a postdoc in Austin and is applying for staff scientist roles at national labs and battery companies.
Download the postdoctoral researcher sample
Julien is a fictional postdoctoral researcher. Replace every detail with your own before you send it.
The files are made in your browser by Resumity's own exporters, from this sample. The builder opens it as your own resume: click any line to replace it. Free plan, no watermark.
Why Henrietta suits a postdoctoral researcher resume
Henrietta prints education straight after work experience, so the PhD, dissertation title and institution sit where hiring scientists look right after your postdoc. Its plain black-and-grey business layout reads as serious to both academic and industry panels, and the unlabelled skills grid fits a long list of short techniques.
Second choice: Leslie. Leslie keeps experience ahead of skills with one touch of blue; better for an industry application where the PhD can sit lower.
What goes in each section, in Henrietta's order
Henrietta prints its sections in a fixed order, the same in the PDF and the Word file. Here is that order for this sample, and what to put in each section.
- Professional Summary. Field and system, PhD plus years of postdoc, two or three core techniques, publication count with first-author papers, and the role you want. This is the only place a reader learns your direction, so state it.
- Work Experience. The postdoc and the PhD as two entries. Bullets show results (a material, method or finding), what you built that others now use, proposals and grants you wrote or won, and people you mentored. Leave routine lab duties out.
- Education. PhD with field, institution, year and dissertation title; then earlier degrees. Henrietta prints this right after the jobs, which is where postdoc readers expect it.
- Skills. The grid has no labels, so put the techniques your target lab or company uses first, then instruments and software, then mentoring and proposal writing.
- Selected Publications. Title it "Selected Publications" and list three to five papers, most relevant first, with your author position marked. Point to a full list on your profile for anyone who wants it.
The sample resume as text
The same content as the files above, so you can copy a line or compare it with your own.
Julien Marchetti
Postdoctoral Researcher, Battery Materials and Electrochemistry
Austin, TX | julien.marchetti@example.com | (512) 555-0149 | linkedin.com/in/sample-julien-marchetti
Materials scientist with a PhD and two and a half years of postdoctoral work on solid-state battery electrolytes. Synthesises and characterises sulfide electrolytes, builds and cycles pouch cells, and leads synchrotron X-ray experiments. Eleven peer-reviewed papers, four as first author. Seeking a staff scientist role in battery research and development.
Experience
Postdoctoral Researcher, Hill Country Institute of Technology, Energy Materials Lab, Austin, TX (03/2024 to Present)
- Developed a sulfide solid electrolyte with about twice the ionic conductivity of the lab's previous best composition, published as first author.
- Set up a glovebox pouch-cell line and test protocol now used by four graduate students, with cycling data on more than 300 cells.
- Wrote two synchrotron beamtime proposals that were awarded and led both 72-hour diffraction experiments.
- Co-wrote the technical sections of a funded federal grant on electrolyte interfaces.
- Mentor three PhD students and two undergraduates; one undergraduate project became a co-authored paper.
Graduate Research Assistant, Front Range University, Department of Materials Science, Boulder, CO (08/2018 to 02/2024)
- Studied lithium metal interfaces with impedance spectroscopy and cryogenic electron microscopy, leading to four papers.
- Taught the undergraduate materials characterization lab for three semesters.
- Ran training and bookings for the shared X-ray diffractometer.
Selected Publications
- Marchetti J. (first author) and 5 others. Halide-doped argyrodite electrolytes with high room-temperature conductivity. Peer-reviewed journal article, 2025.
- Marchetti J. (first author) and 3 others. Cryogenic imaging of lithium metal interphases. Peer-reviewed journal article, 2023.
- Nakamura S., Marchetti J. and 4 others. Pressure effects in solid-state pouch cells. Peer-reviewed journal article, 2025.
Education
PhD, Materials Science and Engineering, Front Range University (02/2024). Dissertation: interfacial stability of lithium metal anodes
BS, Chemistry, Bayou State College (05/2018)
Skills
Solid electrolyte synthesis, Pouch and coin cell assembly, Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and synchrotron methods, SEM and cryo-EM, Glovebox operation, Python (NumPy, pandas), GSAS-II, Origin, Battery cyclers, Mentoring students, Proposal writing
How to make the sample yours
Decide between resume and CV per application
Faculty and fellowship applications want the full CV. National labs and companies usually want two pages: this layout, with selected publications only.
Turn papers into results
Each bullet should say what you found or built: a material, a method, a dataset, a model. The journal list goes in the custom section, not the bullets.
Show independence
Proposals you wrote, beamtime or instrument time awarded, fellowships, projects you started. These separate a future group leader or staff scientist from an extra pair of hands.
Count the people you trained
Students mentored, courses or labs taught, new users trained on an instrument. Hiring scientists look for this as evidence you can lead a small team.
Translate for industry readers
Swap jargon for outcomes a product team cares about: faster cycling, lower cost, a scaled process. Keep one line on the underlying science.
Keywords to keep where they are true
Terms this kind of resume is usually searched for. Use the posting's exact wording, and only for work you have done.
- postdoctoral researcher
- PhD
- materials science
- electrochemistry
- solid-state batteries
- materials characterization
- X-ray diffraction
- synchrotron
- electron microscopy
- first-author publications
- grant writing
- research proposals
- mentoring
- Python data analysis
Mistakes to avoid
- Pasting a ten-page CV into a resume slot that asks for two pages.
- Bullets that list techniques without a single result.
- Hiding the role you want; readers in both academia and industry need to know.
- A full publication list with your name buried in long author lists and no marking of your position.
How the sample PDF reads in text extractors
We exported this sample with Resumity's PDF exporter in Chrome on 2026-10-29 and read the file back with three open-source text extractors. This shows whether software that turns a PDF into text can recover it; it is not a test of any commercial applicant tracking system. How we test templates.
| Extractor | Name, email, phone | Headings | Bullets intact |
|---|---|---|---|
| pdf.js 4.10.38 | All found | 5 of 5 | 8 of 8 |
| pdftotext (Xpdf) 4.00 | All found | 5 of 5 | 8 of 8 |
| pypdf 6.13.0 | All found | 5 of 5 | 8 of 8 |
Frequently asked questions
Should a postdoc send a resume or a CV?
Follow the posting. Faculty jobs and fellowships want a full academic CV; national labs, institutes and companies usually ask for a resume of about two pages with selected publications. Keep both and update them together.
How many publications should a postdoc list on a resume?
Three to five, chosen for the job, with your author position clear. State the total count and first-author count in the summary and link the full list.
How do I show independence as a postdoc?
Name what you started or won: proposals, beamtime, fellowships, collaborations you set up, methods others in the group now use. Supervisors rarely mention these in references unless you put them on the page first.
How do I describe my PhD on the same resume?
As its own experience entry with three bullets on results, plus the degree and dissertation title under education. Teaching and instrument management belong in those bullets too.
How do I move from a postdoc into industry?
Lead the summary with the problem you solve and the role you want, keep bullets on outcomes, and cut the publication list to three. Add any collaboration with a company, scale-up work or patents near the top.
Will applicant tracking systems read this Henrietta PDF?
The sample PDF read back with its contact details, all 5 section headings and all 8 bullets intact in three open-source text extractors (pdf.js, pdftotext and pypdf). Commercial systems such as Workday, Greenhouse or Taleo were not tested, and each employer configures its own.
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