Physical Therapist resume keywords
Most physical therapist applications are screened by software before a person reads them: the ATS ranks resumes by how many of the posting's words they contain. The lists below are the terms that show up most in physical therapist job ads. Use the ones that are true for you, with the same spelling the ad uses.
Hard skills and ATS keywords
- Orthopedic rehabilitation
- Manual therapy
- Exercise prescription
- Post-surgical rehab
- Sports injuries
- Patient education
- EMR documentation (WebPT)
- Outcome measurement
- Orthopedic rehabilitation
- Manual therapy
- Therapeutic exercise
- Gait training
- Patient evaluation
- Plan of care
- Documentation (EMR)
- Neurological rehab
- DPT
- State license
Soft skills recruiters look for
- Empathy
- Motivation
- Communication
- Patience
- Teamwork
Soft skills only count when a bullet proves them. "Team player" is ignored; "Treat about 70 patients a week, with 94% meeting their discharge goals." shows it.
Action verbs to start your bullets
- Treated
- Evaluated
- Designed
- Improved
- Restored
- Educated
- Reduced
- Documented
How to use these keywords
- Mirror the job ad: if it says "Orthopedic rehabilitation", do not write a synonym.
- Put the top 6–8 in a skills section and repeat the key ones inside experience bullets with a number.
- Never list a skill you cannot talk about in an interview.
- Keep the file text-based (no skills inside images or tables), or the ATS cannot read it.
Which ones is your resume missing?
Every posting is different. Paste your resume and the job ad — free ATS Match Score Score your resume free (0-100)
No signup. It lists the keywords from the ad that your resume does not contain.
Need the resume itself? See the physical therapist resume example and generate one free from rough notes.