Writing A Nursing Resume: 10 Tips from Professional Writing Services
Tips from the best nursing resume writers
Nurses have one of the highest job growth prospects and low unemployment rates. In particular, the employment of nurses is expected to grow by 12% by 2028. This career path is also extremely rewarding, as nurses make a difference in other people’s lives. However, despite the positive career outlook, you still need a well-written, persuasive resume to land an interview.
Your resume should follow the general principles of effective resume writing. It should take no more than 2 pages, contain relevant keywords, and focus on your achievements in the first place. However, there are certain subtleties to writing a nursing resume. The creative resume writer of our team will gladly share a few tips for writing an interview-winning resume.
Get help from the top nursing resume company
Want to focus on your career and your patients instead of learning how to write a good resume? We totally understand. That’s why a resume creator from Resumeperk.com can create a custom, result-driven resume for you. An American or British writer will focus on your key qualifications, highlight critical skills and adapt the resume for a specific job posting. We guarantee that you’ll be happy with the new copy of your resume, otherwise we’ll rewrite it for free.
Writing a strong nurse CV: 10 tips
A good nursing resume should immediately make it clear what makes you different from the peers applying for the same role. Whether you are a neonatal nurse, nurse anesthetist or a clinical nurse, following the below principles will help you achieve this goal.
1. Research the employers and job requirements
Writing a good resume takes much more effort than adding the most recent job to your old resume and calling it a day. Pick a few job postings that you’re most interested in and underline the required qualifications. These are the skills and traits you will be focusing on when writing a resume. Also, take a look at their website to get a glimpse at their corporate culture, challenges and values. Based on this information, you’ll make a resume more targeted, hence will look like a perfect fit.
2. Add a compelling summary
The summary’s goal is to familiarize the reader with your top credentials such as area of specialty, certifications, and accomplishments. This serves the two main purposes. Firstly, it informs the hiring manager about your background in a second, and if you’re the right fit, your chances for an interview will skyrocket. And secondly, if the employer uses ATS, your resume will have more chances to pass the selection.
Nurses often have heavy workload and struggle to maintain work-life balance. Does it sound like you? Check out these tips: https://resumeperk.com/blog/achieve-better-work-life-balance-in-12-steps.
3. Highlight the relevant nursing skills
Depending on the specialty, all registered nurses, cardiac nurses, and mental health nurses should outline the job-related skills, both hard and soft. The best place to do it is closer to the top of the resume. You might want to present those skills in the form of a bulleted list. In this case, you simply list the skills and competencies you have: Medication administration, blood administration, electronic record keeping, injections, etc. However, the best way to mention the skills is to give examples when you put those skills into practice.
4. List all licenses and certifications
Relevant license or certification can become a decisive factor for hiring a nurse. Thus, don’t hesitate to list all your credentials. From the standard RN or LPN licenses to national or state certifications (NP, FNP-BD and more), they prove your qualifications and expertise to a prospective employer. Also, be sure to place this information somewhere in a visible place in the resume – in the summary, education section or create a separate Professional certifications section.
Have you lost motivation and passion for work recently? Learn about the reasons behind career crisis and how to overcome it.
5. Provide context for your nursing experience
When describing your work experience, simply listing the job duties is not sufficient. To give the target employer a better idea of your professional capabilities and background, consider adding the context. Specify the types of organization you worked in (clinic, hospital, birth center, etc.). Mention the caseload and the area of specialization either. These details will let the employer know whether you possess the right experience from the very beginning and thus save you time.
As a rule, nurses don’t need help to stay inspired as they find their job rewarding and fulfilling. However, if you need a burst of motivation, follow the above tips.
6. Put your accomplishments in focus
Resume accomplishments are the proof of your professionalism. They show that you’re willing to go an extra mile and exceed expectations. That’s why the hiring managers will carefully scan your resume to find your achievements with figures and percentages. If you’re good at your job, you can certainly think of several accomplishments. Here are some examples of how those accomplishments should sound:
- Developed and implemented a new patient care plan resulting in patient satisfaction increase by 25%.
- Constantly supervised a team of 10 nurses and developed new training procedures which increased the team efficiency by 20%.
7. Make it result-oriented, not task-based
Some resumes sound like generic job descriptions copied and pasted from the internet. However, a good resume shows results rather than lists tasks. Make sure to start each sentence with a strong action verb, such as Examined, Initiated or Chaired. Avoid simply listing the tasks which you were assigned. Instead, concentrate on the outcomes of your work and the difference you’ve made. This simple approach will make your resume better than the lion’s share of other nursing resumes.
Thinking of living and working abroad? Make sure you’ve taken all the aspects of moving abroad for a job into account.
If you are a member of any professional association, go ahead and brag this information. Employers value the nurses who are active members of the professional organizations or make a difference in their communities.
What if you have no experience?
Writing a resume for your first nursing job can get you frustrated. Everyone wants relevant experience, but what to do if you have none? In this case, simply follow these principles:
🔸Focus on unpaid experience. Clinical rotations, practicums, research work and internships are your biggest assets if you have no paid experience. If you have volunteered for a rehabilitation clinic or a rural medical center, list them either. Describe each unpaid experience as if you were describing a full-time job. List your responsibilities and achievements if any. If you’ve completed an impressive number of internships and rotations, only include the most relevant ones. A student resume shouldn’t exceed one page.
🔸Put your education in focus. As you don’t have experience, give your education the maximal exposure. Put this section closer to the top of the resume. List the GPA if high, and mention any special awards or scholarships. Also, it will do you any harm to list the major coursework you’ve completed. The extensive educational background and accomplishments will make up for the lack of paid experience.
🔸Capitalize on your skills. List all soft, hard and tech skills you’ve gained during the rotations or internships. These skills should include specific nursing skills (such as Pediatric care, EMR or Patient assessment) as well as standard skills for recent graduates (Time management, written communication, and flexibility). Mentioning the most relevant skills closer to the top of the resume will make it ATS-friendly.
That’s it! Incorporate these simple rules to make your resume more focused, result-oriented and appear as a suitable candidate for your target employers. Also, don’t forget to edit and proofread your nursing resume before sending it out. In nursing, attention to detail and accuracy matter a lot for creating a professional impression.
Get a professional nursing resume and cover letter
Need a resume that would reflect your nursing experience effectively? Want to receive a unique resume to stand out from the competition for the job? Say no more. Our resume writing services USA staffs experienced nursing resume makers. Let us impress your target employer with the focused resume content, persuasive writing, unique formatting and increase your chances for an interview.
We will deliver your brand new resume in 5 days or less – it’s you who chooses the deadline. Take a look at our prices and services offered to choose the suitable package.