Nursing Resume Template

1. Here’s a step-by-step guide to writing your nursing resume, from start to finish. If you are starting from scratch, the first thing you’ll need to do is collect all the relevant information and list it by type and in chronological order.

At the top of your resume, list your name, contact information and earned designations (RN, LPN, ACNPC, CCM, or others). List these exactly as they are listed with your licensing body, so that it’s clear what those earned designations are.

2. Next, write a sentence or two describing you and your career in a nutshell. This is your “elevator pitch” that tells the prospective employer the overview and gets them interested in you as a candidate. It might be something like, “A compassionate, professional lifelong learner looking for continued opportunities to grow and contribute to a forward-thinking staff.” Or whatever fits your situation.

The next section on your resume should be about your education. List the schools you attended, the degrees you earned and your graduation dates. If you are a recent graduate, include your clinical rotations in the following order: unit, organization, date.

After education, you’ll want to list your certifications. Include the designations you’ve earned, the issuing body and dates of completion, including your license numbers and expiration dates.

3. Now it’s time to list your nursing experience. Start with your most recent position and move backward in time, listing the dates of employment, the organization name and location, and your major duties, honors and distinctions. You don’t have to list everything you were responsible for here, just the highlights. If you were promoted during your employment, mention that.

List any other experience you have that might help you get the job. This is especially true if you are new to nursing and need to show a reliable work history. List job titles, dates of employments, employer names and locations, just as you did with your nursing jobs. In your descriptions, try to focus on your transferable skills or those that are related to the job you’re seeking now.

4. Finally, list your continuing education activities (most recent to least recent) and professional memberships and affiliations.

If you want to, you also can list volunteer or community experience you think will help show you are qualified for the job.

Most resumes follow a fairly standard format: Contact information, career objectives, work experience, and so on. But nursing resumes are slightly different from those in other fields.

If you are looking for a job in nursing, you’ll want to make sure your resume includes some critical information specific to your field, and that it still reads clearly, concisely and with no errors. Some of the additional information you’ll be expected to include is: your profile, your certifications, your continuing education, professional memberships and affiliations.

You’ll also want to include a list of other types of skills that you’ll need in order to excel at the job, such as computer or telephone skills, for example.

A few other tips that may help you put your best foot forward on your resume:

1. Use a standard formatting and clear layout. You don’t want your prospective employer to be too distracted by the font, unnecessary items or other factors when she or he is trying to read your resume.

2. Make sure you are accurate in your dates of employment and locations. These details may seem small, but they indicate to an employer that you are accurate and thorough – two very important qualities for nursing staff!

3. Proofread, proofread, proofread – don’t let silly errors or omissions stand in the way of your making a great impression.

4. If you have let any professional membership’s lapse but find that you want to list them on your resume, renew them first. Never, ever lie on a resume. That’s a deal breaker for employers, even if you didn’t mean to cause any harm.