Tips For Getting the Best eRAS Medical Residency Headshot in 2023

Professional ERAS Medical residency headshot of a female wearing a white shirt and navy blue jacket

As a medical professional, the journey you are taking is both exciting and challenging. Your ERAS medical residency headshot is an important step in the application process. This is one of the most overlooked yet crucial steps to making a lasting impression during this process. In this post, we’ll talk about how to get it just right from size to attire, backdrop choice, and expressions.

Sizing and Format

Getting the size and format of this headshot right is important to make sure that it’s displaying correctly on your application. Make sure that your image is;

  1. 150kbs in size

  2. The image needs to be 2.5 x3.5 inches

  3. 150 dpi resolution

  4. You want to have the file in JPG format. Avoid using PNG, BMP or TIFF files as they can be very large.

What Background?

Neutral Background. Keep your background choices simple. Grey or white are great choices as these colors keep your face as the focus. Outdoor headshots or busy backgrounds can distract from your face.

What to Wear

Look Professional. Choose attire that makes you look like a professional. We’ve all heard it before, dress for the job you want. Business attire or a suit shows your commitment to professionalism.

Colors and Patterns. Stick to darker solid colors. Black, grey, and, navy blue are great options. Keep patterns simple. Avoid bold or busy patterns that can be distracting. Colors that are too close to your skin tone should be avoided as well.

Should You Smile?

You want to go for a fairly neutral expression for these types of headshots. We always want to have a confident and approachable expression as these can be used on your social media, LinkedIn, and your application. Avoid overly smiley or overly serious expressions.

Facial Expression Coaching

This is the area where most people are uncomfortable with having their photos taken. Most people don’t feel photogenic, they don’t think they know how to pose or how to “get it right”. It’s not up to you to get it right, it’s my job to get it right. I coach every client who comes in on pose, posture, and expression. So, don’t feel anxious about getting it right or being good at this. Again, that’s my job to get you looking amazing.