13 Nursing Resume Examples for 2024

In this guide, we share proven resume examples for nurses, providing strategic advice tailored to this vital healthcare role. Learn to highlight your patient care skills and medical knowledge effectively. You'll find the essentials of what a hiring manager seeks in a nursing resume, from clinical experience to certifications.

  Compiled and approved by Grace Abrams
  Last updated on See history of changes

  Next update scheduled for

At a Glance

Here's what we see in effective nursing resumes.

  • Quantify Your Impact: Good resumes show your impact with numbers. In nursing, it's important to include metrics like patient satisfaction scores, medication error reductions, patient care hours, and staff training sessions led.

  • Match Skills With The Job Description: Include skills on your resume that you have and match the job description. Common nursing skills are patient assessment, wound care, EMR/EHR proficiency, IV administration, and infection control.

  • Understand Industry Trends: Good resumes reflect the latest trends. For example, show you are up-to-date with telehealth competencies as it is becoming more common in patient care.

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Where to place education

When you are looking for a job in nursing, where you put your education on your resume matters. If you are new to nursing or just finished your studies, show your education first. This tells your future employer that your training is fresh and you are ready to start. If you have been working in nursing for many years, your work history should come before your education.

Always make sure that any special nursing qualifications or licenses are easy to find. These are important and can set you apart from other applicants.

Highlighting nursing skills

As someone applying for a nursing job, show your clinical skills and your ability to care for patients. Use simple words to describe your experience with specific tools or procedures. This makes it clear you can do the job well.

Include any experience you have with electronic health records. Knowing how to use these systems is key in today's healthcare and makes you a strong candidate.

Optimal resume length

For nurses starting out or those with under ten years of experience, your resume should fit on one page. Focus on including relevant clinical experience, key skills, and necessary certifications. A concise resume helps you show your most important qualifications quickly.

Senior nurses or those with extensive experience may opt for up to two pages. This allows space for a detailed work history and notable achievements without overcrowding the content. Always start with your strongest attributes on the first page for immediate impact.

Focus on patient care

In nursing, your resume should show how you care for patients. Talk about times when you made a difference in someone's health. This could be through direct care or by working well in a team.

Also, if you have been involved in any patient education or health promotion, make sure to include it. These are valuable parts of nursing that involve more than just medical care.

Beat the resume screeners

When you submit your resume for a nursing job, it often goes through an applicant tracking system (ATS) first. This system looks for certain words and phrases to decide if your resume fits the job. To help you get past this step, follow these tips:

  • Include keywords from the nursing job description in your resume. Look for skills or tools mentioned in the job post and add these to your resume. For example, if 'patient care' or 'medical charting' is listed, make sure these are in your resume.
  • Use a simple format for your resume. ATS can read plain text better. Avoid using tables or images that can confuse the system.

Remember, a clear resume with the right words can help you get noticed. Make it easy for the system to see you are a good fit for the nursing role.

Tailor your resume

When you tailor your resume, show how your skills meet job needs. This helps hiring managers see you as a good fit. Focus on what you've done in past work that matches the job you want. Here's how to make your resume stand out for nursing jobs.

  • Highlight your patient care skills, use phrases like managed patient care for 20+ patients daily.
  • Include any specialized areas you've worked in, such as pediatric nursing or emergency care.
  • Show your team work and leadership by mentioning if you've led shifts or trained new staff, like supervised a team of 5 nurses.

Showcase your achievements

When you write your nursing resume, it's important to focus on what you've achieved, not just your job duties. Employers want to see the real impact you've made.

Instead of listing responsibilities like 'provided patient care', highlight your accomplishments. For example:

  • Before: Responsible for patient care during the shift.
  • After: Improved patient satisfaction scores by 20% through attentive care and effective communication.

This change shows how you made a difference. Remember, use clear numbers or outcomes to show your success.

Essential nursing skills for your resume

When you are crafting your nursing resume, it's important to highlight the right technical skills. These will show employers that you have the necessary training and experience for the job. Here's a list of common skills you may want to consider:

  • patient assessment
  • wound care
  • medication administration
  • medical terminology
  • life support
  • emergency care
  • charting and documentation
  • infection control
  • IV therapy
  • patient education

You do not need to list every skill above, just the ones that match your experience and the job you want. If you are a specialist, like a pediatric nurse or an operating room nurse, include skills specific to those areas. For example, add pediatric care or perioperative nursing to your list.

Place these skills in a dedicated section for clarity. This helps with Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) which may scan your resume for these keywords. Remember, it's not about having all the skills, but the right ones for the role you're applying for.

Quantify nursing achievements

Highlight your impact by using numbers. Numbers show the size of your contributions in a clear way. They help you stand out. Here's how you can think about your experience:

  • Think about the number of patients you care for in a day. This shows your ability to handle a busy workload. For example, 'Managed care for up to 20 patients per day.'
  • Consider how you have helped to improve patient care. Maybe you helped reduce patient wait times. You could write, 'Implemented a new triage system that reduced patient wait times by 25%.'

Remember to include any programs you started or took part in that improved the ward. For example:

  • If you led a team to lower infection rates, mention the percentage decrease, like 'Led an initiative that cut infection rates by 15% over six months.'
  • If you trained new staff, quantify it, 'Trained 35 new nursing staff in the latest care protocols, improving team efficiency by 30%.'

Use numbers to show how you save time or resources. For example, 'Streamlined patient reporting processes, saving 10 hours of staff time per week.'

Showcase leadership in nursing

When crafting your nursing resume, it's important to highlight your leadership skills and any promotions you've earned. Doing so shows potential employers that you have the experience and ability to take charge and manage situations effectively. Think about times you've guided a team or project and how you can demonstrate that on your resume.

  • Include specific roles like 'Charge Nurse' or 'Senior Staff Nurse' to show progression.
  • Detail any committees or task forces you've led, such as a 'Patient Safety Committee'.

Even if you're unsure about your leadership experiences, consider times when you've trained new staff or when you've been the point of contact for critical patient care. These instances can be framed to showcase your leadership abilities.

  • Mention training sessions you've conducted, e.g., 'Trained 10+ new nurses on patient care protocols.'
  • Highlight instances where you've overseen a patient care unit or scheduling, demonstrating organizational leadership.

Highlighting leadership roles

If you have taken on leadership roles or have been promoted, it's crucial to show this on your resume. Think about tasks or positions where you were in charge or helped guide a team. Even if you're not sure, consider times when you had more responsibility.

Here are ways you can show your leadership and promotions:

  • Include job titles that show progress, like 'Senior Nurse' or 'Charge Nurse' if you moved up from a staff nurse position.
  • List any committees or projects you led, such as 'Head of Patient Care Committee' or 'Leader of a hospital-wide vaccination initiative'.

Remember, these examples can make a big difference in showing you are ready for more responsibility and have the skills needed for the job.

Showcase leadership in nursing

As a hiring manager, I encourage you to highlight your leadership roles and promotions on your resume. This shows growth and the ability to take on more responsibility. Here are ways to show this:

  • Include any titles that show you have moved up, like 'senior nurse' or 'team lead'. Even if you are not sure, think about times you were in charge of a task or project.
  • List any awards or recognition you received for leading a team or improving patient care. These are strong signs of your leadership.

Remember to use clear language and keep your examples relevant to nursing. This will help employers see your potential quickly.

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