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Registered Nurse Resume Samples

If you want to get a nursing position and further your career, a great registered nurse resume will be essential to your job search. Nurses need to be intelligent, quick-thinking, compassionate, and capable of working under immense pressure. If you want to land the best jobs, you will need to create a resume that shows recruiters you have these qualities as well as the right skills and qualifications. Here’s what you need to know about writing a great registered nurse resume.

What Should I Highlight In A Registered Nurse Resume?

When you are applying to be a registered nurse, your academic qualifications will be of the utmost importance. Beyond this, you will need to showcase a range of hard and soft skills that show you have the right abilities to undertake standard duties and provide a high level of patient care. As such, you should optimize your resume to showcase your people skills and communication skills as much as possible.

Registered Nurse Resume Example

Structure Of A Registered Nurse Resume

A registered nurse resume should contain the following sections:

Contact information

Your resume header should contain your full name and contact information, including your phone number. You can also add professional links like your LinkedIn profile.

Resume summary

A resume summary or resume objective is next. The resume summary is a rundown of your most important qualifications and skills, and is best for people who have a lot of professional experience. In contrast, a resume objective focuses on your prime skills, and includes a statement of your career goals. This is best for nursing students seeking their first job.

Skills section

Your resume skills section should contain 8 to 12 bullet points detailing your most relevant hard and soft skills. This section is hugely important when your resume passes through applicant tracking systems (ATS), as ATS will scan your resume for skills that match what the employer is looking for. Take the time to consider relevant resume samples before you create your skills section. Examples of skills cited in nursing resumes include:

  • Medical administration
  • Emergency room management
  • Critical care (ICU)
  • First aid
  • Basic life support (BLS)
  • Advanced cardiovascular life support (ACLS)
  • Vital sign monitoring
  • Pediatric care
  • Patient care and care plan creation
  • Post-operative assessments

Work history

Your work history or work experience section should contain up to the last 10 years of experience, presented in reverse-chronological order. Ensure that you include the job title you held, the company name, and your employment dates, as well as a few bullet points for each job that spell out your most important duties and achievements.

Education section

Your education section should contain information about your top academic qualifications (e.g., college degree). Don’t forget to include qualifications relevant to the job, such as certifications and nursing licenses.

You can also create additional sections for unpaid work and professional certifications if you feel it would be helpful. Make the process of resume writing easier by using a nurse resume template to ensure that the design elements and formatting are perfect.

Do's and Don'ts

  • Use active language (e.g., “managed,” “oversaw”). Action verbs present an easy opportunity to show a hiring manager that you are passionate and have a take-charge mentality.
  • Consider nurse resume samples to get inspiration for writing your own.
  • Use the ResumeNerd resume builder to ensure the little details like font choice and margin size are correct.
  • List your GPA in your education section unless it is exceptionally high.
  • Forget to list other positions in healthcare teams. For example, if you worked as a nursing home care assistant while in college, you can list this to distinguish yourself from other job seekers.
  • Overload your resume with irrelevant skills and achievements. Remember to focus on qualifications that best fit what the specific job is looking for, and feature your strengths at the top of your resume in the resume summary.

FAQ: Registered Nurse Resumes

Yes. You should write a tailored cover letter for Nursing. A cover letter presents a unique opportunity to speak directly to the hiring manager and provide them with additional information about why you’re the best fit for a role.

Depending on the job description that you are applying for, you may not need a lot of experience to get a registered nurse job. After all, nursing students must be able to get their first job somehow! All you need to do is focus your resume on your academic qualifications and related achievements instead of your lack of work experience.

If you want to change your nurse practitioner resume to apply for other jobs, you should start by reading the job description thoroughly. Highlight your transferable skills and experience that can be useful in the new role. For example, nursing assistants need great communication skills and the ability to work under pressure. This is useful in many roles!

Cindi Cervone Carlson