Plant Breeder Resume Example & Writing Guide
Use this Plant Breeder resume example and guide to improve your career and write a powerful resume that will separate you from the competition.
Plant breeders are the people who create new varieties of plants that are more resilient, more productive, or simply better suited for their environment. Plant breeders may specialize in a particular type of plant or work with a wide range of them. And some plant breeders work for seed companies or nurseries, while others work for growers or farmers.
Regardless of where they work or what kind of plants they work with, plant breeders share a love of plants and a knack for identifying desirable traits in existing varieties. They also have an eye for aesthetics and are able to create new plants that are visually appealing.
Here are some tips and an example to help you write a plant breeder resume that hiring managers will love.
How to Write a Plant Breeder Resume
Here’s how to write a plant breeder resume of your own.
Write Compelling Bullet Points
Bullet points are the most effective way to showcase your experience and qualifications. But rather than simply listing your responsibilities, you can make your resume more interesting by using bullet points to describe the results of your work.
For example, rather than saying you “managed plant breeding program,” you could say that you “managed plant breeding program that increased yield of new potato varieties by 20%, resulting in $2 million increase in annual revenue for farmer partners.”
Notice how the second bullet point is more specific and provides more detail about the project and its outcome. It also includes a quantifiable result—a 20% increase in yield—which makes the accomplishment seem more impressive.
Identify and Include Relevant Keywords
When you apply for a plant breeder role, your resume will likely be scanned by an applicant tracking system (ATS) for certain keywords. If your resume doesn’t have enough of the right keywords, your application might not make it past the initial screening process.
The best way to make sure you have the right keywords on your resume is to read through a few job postings and take note of the terms that are used most frequently. Then, try to use those same terms throughout your resume.
Here are some of the most commonly used plant breeder keywords:
- Plant Breeding
- Breeding
- Genetics
- Crop Improvement
- Seed Analysis
- Agronomy
- Research
- Plant Physiology
- Plant Molecular Biology
- Plant Genetics
- Agricultural Research
- Plant Growth Chambers
- Soil
- Molecular Biology
- Plant Health
- Plant Tissue Culture
- Field Crops
- Plant Breeding & Genetics
- Plant Biotechnology
- Plant Pathology
- Crop Production
- Plant Disease Diagnosis
- Agriculture
- Cell Culture
- Molecular Genetics
- Genetics & Genomics
- Agroecology
- Biotechnology
- Sustainable Agriculture
- Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)
Showcase Your Technical Skills
As a plant breeder, you need to be proficient in a number of software programs and systems in order to do your job effectively. This might include plant breeding databases, plant management software, and data analysis tools. Additionally, you need to be able to use technology to communicate with other members of the plant breeding team, including scientists and engineers.
Some of the programs and systems that plant breeders are typically expected to be proficient in include: Plant Breeding Management System (PBMS), Plant Breeding Information System (PBIS), and Plant Variety Protection (PVP) software.