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7 Nursing Student Resume Examples That Work in 2024

Nursing Student

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Nursing Student Resume

• Nursing Student Resumes by Experience
• Nursing Student Resumes by Type

Without registered nurses (RNs), healthcare as we know it would cease to exist. They’re the glue that keeps hospitals together, and nurses serve on the front lines in the service of their patients.

RNs are more in demand now than ever, but the road to becoming a nurse is still challenging. Whether you’re working toward your BSN or becoming a nurse practitioner, hard work is required.

You shouldn’t have to be an expert at making a resume or writing a nursing student cover letter .

After analyzing numerous resumes from nursing students, we’re sharing the best resume-writing practices along with  seven excellent nursing student resume samples that are succeeding in 2024 .

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Why this resume works

• If you’ve held multiple full or part-time nursing roles, you can omit your rotations, but otherwise, leave them in. They’re great experience!
• If those circumstances fit, add an objective! Just remember you have to tailor it to each job you apply for . If you don’t have time to do that, then skip this part.

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Beginner Nursing Student Resume

• Narrow down your focus on critical thinking, data gathering and analysis, and other skills that shore up your competency.

Nursing Student No Experience Resume

• This is especially true if you already have an RN certification. If you do have certification, make sure to list it in a separate section, along with the year you got certified!
• List any specialties you might have (like pediatrics or geriatrics), plus technical skills like clinical documentation.

Nursing Student for Externship Resume

• Volunteer experience is a good idea, especially if it relates to healthcare.
• If you can, include numbers. For example, how many people did you work with? How many rotations did you serve? Did you increase efficiency or productivity by a quantifiable amount? There are numbers there if you know where to look!

Nursing Student Clinical Experience Resume

• Show your research, communication, and problem-solving skills and crown them with adding your experience gained from clinicals on your nursing student clinical experience resume.

Nurse Practitioner Student Resume

• If you’re on the border between one page and two, try some handy  resume formatting tricks , like reducing the font size and page margins to fit more content (while keeping an eye on overall readability). Don’t make your text too small, or it’ll be hard to read.
• Also, include the state(s) where you’re certified since, sometimes, certification doesn’t carry over.

Graduate Nursing Student Resume

• When it comes to  checking your resume , consistency is key. For example, your work experience bullet points should end the same, either with or without periods.
• Instead, add a certifications section to prove you have an ALS, CPR, or EMT certification.
• Do you need a  nursing student cover letter ? Keep reading for a cover letter template you can edit and adjust as needed!

Need Help with Your Nursing Student Cover Letter?

It’s satisfying to finish writing your resume, but don’t forget about writing a cover letter , too! We’ve got you covered (get it?) with a cover letter template you can edit in Google Docs and Word.

Nursing Student Cover Letter Example

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Block Format

Why this cover letter works

• Always tie your skills to the organization’s values by pulling phrasing like “shape the future of healthcare” from their website’s mission statement.
• If you have stand-out experience, like exemplary bedside manner or familiarity with a specialized area like pediatrics, showcase these. 
• Always make sure you list your certifications in your graduate nursing student resume, of course—but it doesn’t hurt to mention them in your cover letter, too!
• It’s also ideal to establish how much experience you have alongside your qualifying certifications at the intro to your cover letter.
• An extra resume tip: your resume should be concise, but your cover letter should tell a story about your qualifying background.

Related resume guides

• Physician Assistant
• Pharmacy Technician
• Medical Assistant

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7 Nursing Student Resume Examples & Guide for 2024

Your nursing student resume must clearly demonstrate your commitment to healthcare and patient care. Highlight any clinical rotations or hands-on experience you've acquired during your studies. Additionally, ensure that your nursing student resume showcases your ability to work as part of a medical team. Soft skills such as communication, empathy, and adaptability are as crucial as your technical nursing competencies.

All resume examples in this guide

Nursing Student No Experience

Nursing Student For Externship

Nursing Student Clinical Experience

Nurse Practitioner Student

Graduate Nursing Student

Aspiring Nurse | Patient Care Enthusiast | Health Education Advocate resume example

Resume Guide

Nursing Student Resume Example

Resume Format

Resume Experience

Hard & Soft Skills

Certification & Education

Resume Objective Tips

Key Takeaways

By Experience

You’ve put in the time as a nursing student and know how to operate critical care machines and use other technical tools specific to healthcare.

You’re comfortable in complex, fast-paced environments and have learned in clinical settings.

Now you’re ready to get your first nursing job in the field, but how do you write a nursing student resume with no experience?

We’ve created a guide to help you write a nursing student resume that shows you have the right skills and qualifications for an entry-level nursing position.

In this guide, you’ll learn:

• How to focus on transferable skills so that recruiters can see you’ve developed the knowledge necessary for the job
• How to format your nursing student resume to take the focus off of your experience section and highlight other ways you’ve prepared for the role
• What skills hiring managers look for and how to find the right balance of soft skills and hard skills required for nursing
• How to present your certifications and education clearly so potential employers can see you have the right qualifications for the position

If nursing student resume examples aren’t exactly what you’re looking for, check out some of our guides in a similar field:

• Nursing assistant resume example
• Nursing student with clinical experience resume example
• Nurse practitioner student resume example
• Nurse extern resume example  
• Nursing student cover letter example  

Nursing student  resume example

Here’s what this applicant does well in their resume:

• Academic foundation : Highlights a strong educational background in nursing from Case Western Reserve University, emphasizing a robust base of knowledge.
• Practical experience : Showcases involvement in various health-related projects and volunteer work, like the American Red Cross and community health survey analysis, demonstrating real-world application of skills.
• Relevant skills and certifications : Lists specific skills and certifications relevant to nursing, such as patient care and medical terminology, aligning with the demands of the nursing profession.

How to format a nursing student  resume

As a nursing student you need to show hiring managers that you’re ready to work in the field despite your lack of work experience.

Have you gained hands-on clinical experience? Are you up to date on healthcare tech? Do you have the compassion and interpersonal skills to work with patients?

Focus on transferable skills throughout your nursing student resume so potential employers get a good impression of you at first glance.

Here are a few areas to focus your attention when formatting your nursing student resume:

• Functional resume: A functional resume highlights transferable skills  instead of your work experience. It’s important to show how you have developed industry skills during your time as a student.
• Header : The top of your resume should include a brief but important header  that provides professional contact information and a link to your online profile. Make it easy for hiring managers to contact you for any follow-up questions.
• Key achievements : Industry achievements demonstrate your strengths and show potential employers the kind of success you will bring to their company. Focus on tangible accomplishments from your time as a student or other roles.
• Keep to one page : Use space wisely on your nursing student resume so your information is limited to one page and has no unused white space. Include only the strongest and most relevant information and tailor every section to fit your target job .

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The top sections on a nursing student resume:

• Contact information : To ensure recruiters have necessary details to reach out for further process.
• Objective statement : To express career goals and indicate why you’re a good fit for the nursing job.
• Skills & certifications : To highlight relevant technical skills and medical licenses that qualify you for the nursing role.
• Education & training : To demonstrate your nursing education, internship experience, and specialized training.
• Work experience : To showcase your industry experience, hands-on skills, and contributions in previous nursing roles.

What recruiters want to see on your resume:

• Clinical skills : Recruiters prioritize these as they demonstrate the candidate’s practical, hands-on experience in performing nursing tasks.
• Certifications : These are given priority because certain nursing jobs require specific certifications like CPR, BLS, or ACLS.
• Communication skills : These are crucial in nursing for effective interaction with patients, doctors and other healthcare professionals.
• Attention to detail : As the nature of the job often involves administering medication and maintaining records, any mistakes could have serious consequences.
• Adaptability : Nurses often have to handle unexpected situations, so recruiters look for candidates who can adapt quickly.

How to write your nursing student resume experience even if you have none

Your resume experience section  is where you show your work history along with accomplishments from each job.

As a nursing student, your focus will be on transferable skills from school or outside experience. Keep your experience section short and highlight any relevant successes or use of industry skills.

If you’ve had jobs outside the field, demonstrate how they’ve prepared you for a career in healthcare. For example, a customer service position can highlight communication and active listening skills.

Let’s look at an example of highlighting transferable skills in a nursing student's resume experience section.

• • Provided direct childcare to children ages 3-12 with patience and adaptability
• • Used eCare software to manage confidential client records
• • Certified in CPR and First Aid

What works in this example:

• Use of soft skills:  "Provided direct childcare  to children ages 3-12 with patience and adaptability" shows how this candidate has experience with a particular age group and has exercised interpersonal skills that are important for nursing.
• Industry tools:  "Used eCare software to manage confidential client records" shows that this candidate has experience with record-keeping software relevant to the healthcare industry.
• Relevant certifications:  "Certified in CPR and First Aid" highlights a key skill and training in the field.

Alternatively, you may choose a different section of your resume to focus on if you have no previous work experience .

Let’s look at an example of a project section on a nursing student's resume.

• • Trained 75 students in basic first aid
• • Received 100% on satisfaction survey from teachers
• Highlights experience:  Including a project where you used relevant nursing skills outside of work history shows hiring managers how you have prepared for the role.
• Shows commitment:  Showing projects outside of work experience show a dedication to your career path and commitment to growth in the industry.
• Quantifies success:  "Received 100% on satisfaction survey from teachers" shows how this candidate achieved measurable success while using relevant industry skills.

How to quantify impact on your nursing student resume

Using real numbers and measurable outcomes on your resume shows potential employers how you will impact success at their organization.

It can be difficult to quantify impact as a nursing student due to the intangible nature of the work or limited hands-on experience.

Here are a few areas to consider when quantifying impact on your nursing student resume:

• Include the number of direct patient care hours during clinical rounds to illustrate the extent of your hands-on experience.
• Specify the volume of patients you handled per shift at past clinical experiences to demonstrate your capability to deal with workload.
• Mention the percentage or rate of patient satisfaction received in your previous nursing roles to show your effectiveness.
• List any quantifiable achievements such as a high-grade point average, a perfect attendance record, or any honors received during your education.
• Quantify the number of team collaborations or interdisciplinary team meetings at past experiences to highlight teamwork skills.
• State the number of medical procedures you assisted with or performed, emphasizing your practical skills.
• Indicate the number of health education sessions you gave to demonstrate your ability to educate patients/caregivers.
• Disclose any reductions in medication errors, falls or increased patient safety metrics you contributed to, showing your value to patient care and safety.

How to list your hard skills and soft skills on your resume

Nurses are skilled medical professionals with dynamic jobs. You have the interpersonal skills to provide compassionate care to patients and clinical knowledge required for healthcare.

Your nursing student resume will present your skills in two major categories.

Hard skills are the technical knowledge  and abilities needed to perform job duties, whereas soft skills are the interpersonal and communication skills  needed to interact with others.

Hard skills tend to be straightforward and can appear in a simple list form. Here is an example of hard skills on a nursing student’s resume.

Only include hard skills that you’re proficient in and are relevant to your target job. Show potential employers that you have the right combination of skills to fill the role.

Here are a few more hard skills to consider for your nursing student’s resume.

Best hard skills for your nursing student resume

• Clinical Assessment
• Patient Care
• CPR Certification
• Medical Software Proficiency
• Medication Administration
• Basic Life Support (BLS)
• Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS)
• Nursing Informatics
• Electronic Health Record (EHR) Systems
• Disease Management
• Anatomical Knowledge
• Emergency Room Care
• Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Experience
• Surgical Assistance
• Pediatric Nursing Skills
• Labor and Delivery Skills
• Oncology Care
• Proficiency in Siege/ Syringe Pumps
• Patient Education
• Medical Terminology

Soft skills can be open to interpretation and are most effective when provided with an example. Be specific in your soft skills and avoid overused buzzwords on your resume .

Here is an example of a soft skills section on a nursing student’s resume.

Here are a few more soft skills to consider for your nursing student’s resume.

Best soft skills for your nursing student resume

• Communication
• Active Listening
• Adaptability
• Decision-Making
• Time Management
• Multitasking
• Problem-Solving
• Stress Management
• Detail Orientation
• Critical Thinking
• Attention to Detail
• Cultural Sensitivity
• Professionalism
• Interpersonal Skills

How to list your certifications and education on your resume

Minimum education requirements for entry-level nurses typically include an associate's degree in nursing (ADN) or a bachelor of science in nursing (BSN). Qualifications also include being a registered nurse (RN).

Additional licensure and clinical experience requirements may vary by location and organization. Be sure to research the necessary qualifications for your target job.

Your education section should include :

• Name of institution
• Name of degree
• Years attended

Let’s look at an example of a nursing student’s resume education section.

Your nursing student certification section will include  any certifications in nursing and specializations.

Here is an example of a certification section on a nursing student’s resume.

Show a commitment to your career by continuing to gain certifications in the industry as trends and demand evolve. Increase your employability by keeping your nursing student resume up to date.

Here are a few more certifications to consider for your nursing student’s resume.

Best certifications for your nursing student resume

• Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS)
• Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS)
• Certified Pediatric Nurse (CPN)
• Oncology Certified Nurse (OCN)

How to write your nursing student resume objective

A summary or objective is a great way to introduce yourself to hiring managers and highlight your top industry accomplishment in 3-4 sentences.

Though the terms are often used interchangeably, there is a slight difference between a summary and an objective.

A summary is a brief introduction  that communicates your position and value in your industry. An objective looks to the future  and captures what you are hoping to achieve in your new position.

As a nursing student with no experience, it is optimal to choose an objective that looks to the future and highlights a goal you share with your target employer.

Let’s look at an example of a nursing student resume objective that doesn’t quite hit the mark.

What doesn’t work with this example:

• No quantifiable achievements:  Even with no direct work experience, it is important to highlight how you have achieved success. Show potential employers what you’re capable of.
• Not tailored for target job:  This candidate doesn’t provide any specifics on their training or areas of interest. Show hiring managers why you’re the right candidate for their specific organization.
• Unclear goal:  Having the goal of working at your target company is not enough. Show potential employers that you’ve done your research and will provide solutions to their problems.

Let’s make a few updates and try this nursing student resume objective again.

• Shows specific niche: "Aspiring nurse with 2 years of experience volunteering in pediatric hospital” shows that this candidate is familiar with a particular area of nursing.
• Highlights qualification: “ Certified in Pediatric Nursing” shows hiring managers that this candidate has the right qualifications for the job and is committed to their career path.
• Clear goal: “ Seeking a new position as Pediatric Oncology Nurse to apply my training and expand my skill set at Family Care Hospital" demonstrates how this candidate can use their relevant skills to support the organization and grow within the role.

Key takeaways for writing a great nursing student resume

Congratulations! You’re almost ready to send off that amazing nursing student resume that gets callbacks! Before you start applying to entry-level nursing jobs, let’s review a few key points.

• Format your nursing student resume with a functional layout that highlights transferable skills that have prepared you for the role instead of work history.
• Include additional sections on your nursing student resume like projects that highlight relevant achievements and commitment to the field.
• Show a wide range of hard skills and soft skills necessary for nursing so hiring managers know you can interact with patients as well as use medical tools.
• Clearly present education and certification requirements so recruiters can find the information they need from your nursing student resume quickly and efficiently.

Nursing Student resume examples

Explore additional nursing student resume samples and guides and see what works for your level of experience or role.

With a distinct link to healthcare, nursing roles are highly influenced by changes in patient care and medical advancements.

Consider the following tips to better apply for jobs involving Nursing Student Clinical Experience:

• Highlight your hands-on skills acquired from clinical rotations. Remember to focus on skills related to patient care, operating medical equipment, medication administration, and documentation.
• Make sure to stress your understanding of safety practices, like infection control measures and safe patient handlingand.
• Showcase your ability to collaborate with a multidisciplinary team, including doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals.
• Rather than listing these experiences, establish how these enhanced the overall patient experience or improved the unit's workflow, adhering to the 'skill-action-result' pattern.

Being a Nurse Practitioner Student involves becoming adept at the diverse patient care scenarios and medical technology.

To make your application for Nurse Practitioner roles stand out, consider these tips:

• Your advanced clinical experience should be front and center, especially in specialized areas like family health, pediatrics, or geriatrics.
• Show off your knowledge about patient assessments, diagnosis, treatment plans, and prescription medications.
• Display your experiences working with or under direct supervision of seasoned Nurse Practitioners or doctors, showcasing your ability to learn and adapt.
• Don't just enumerate these skills. Illustrate how they improved patient outcomes, quality of care, or healthcare delivery, using the 'skill-action-result' strategy.

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How to create a head-turning nursing student resume?

[ Click here to directly go to the complete nursing student resume sample ]

“To do what nobody else will do, in a way that nobody else can do, in spite of all we go through; that is to be a nurse” – Rawsi Williams

Being a nurse is a challenging task, but bagging the nursing job is even more challenging. To get the entry-level nurse job you have always wanted, you need a student nurse resume first.

Take a look at our sample nursing student resume to know what an ideal nurse student resume looks like.

• Registration Number: KK222YY33
• Performed suturing, splinting, and wound treatment for 10+ patients daily
• Assisted the Head Nurse in all day-to-day nursing activities, leading to effective care of patients
• Rendered assistance to patients with transfer, walking, and exam preparation
• Provided informed medical advice to all expecting mothers on possible side-effects of surgical delivery
• Received 92% positive response from patients for demonstrating compassion and dedicated assistance to their needs
• Top 3 percentile of the class

Writing a resume isn’t easy, and this is why you’re here. So let’s not waste your time, and hop into the learning bus already!

In this blog, you will learn the tricks and trades of building the perfect resume for nursing student, and we are here to walk with you through each step.

Here is a quick summary of the Nursing Student Resume 2022 Guide:

• Group every 2-3 points together under a unique subheading and highlight the key achievements to increase the readability of your resume
• Use the reverse chronological order to increase the relevance of your resume for nursing student. Ensure that your latest job experience i.e. your most relevant experience, is the first thing the recruiter notices.
• Your resume objective or summary should not exceed 3-4 lines.
• Be very specific about the accuracy of the information you provide in your student nursing resume.
• Only write one-liner points in new nursing grad resume.

If you’re ready to take a step ahead and learn how to write a job-winning nursing student resume from scratch, let’s get started!

But firstly, congratulations!

You have picked a selfless profession that prioritizes others over you.

To be a nurse is to help other people. To be a nurse is to prioritize your patient’s problems over your own. And not everyone has an appetite for such selfless care and devotion.

But you do. You opted for a profession that emphasises patient care over your own.

And that’s why you are here, scrolling through this page, to look for a way to become a full-time care-taker of the ailing and the diseased.

If you are reading this, you’re probably a fresh nursing graduate looking for an entry-level nurse job. You have probably applied to a dozen places and waited day after day to get a call-back from the HR.

And yet, you were not shortlisted, and you don’t seem to know why.

But don’t you worry. We are here to help you land your dream nursing job.

We have perfected the art of fashioning resumes and through this blog, we will tell you everything that you need to know to write a job-winning resume from scratch.

By the end of this blog, you will become an expert at curating a resume for nursing student

Here's a list of what you will learn in this blog:

• What is a nursing student resume?
• How to effectively communicate your professional experience in your nursing student resume?
• How to create the header seciton of your nursing student resume?
• How to communicate your personal information in an effective way?
• How to convey nursing student skills for resume?
• How to display your educational information in your new graduate RN resume?

...All so you can write an ideal job-winning new nursing grad resume!

The task at hand is to get you to the interview round and we have made it our life’s mission to get you to that platform.

Getting an interview call is not easy, but with us on your side, it can be done.

If you’d rather write your beginner nursing student resume yourself, then this blog is your one-stop destination. It is the ideal and only guide you will ever need to make the ultimate student nurse resume come to life.

What is a Student Nursing Resume and why do you need it?

Your nursing student resume is a summary of your professional capabilities in a one-page document. It helps the recruiter understand what your skills are. In other words, it tells the recruiter if you will be a good fit for the job.

Your student nurse resume is the first interaction channel between you and your recruiter. It gives the recruiter a broad overview of your professional expertise before you even get the chance to meet the recruiter.

This is why your resume needs to stand out and convey your nursing skills most effectively.

If your resume stands out, it will get you in the good books of the recruiter. Once you are in the recruiter’s good books, you’re already half-way into attaining the entry-level nurse job that you have always wanted.

But being in the recruiter’s good books isn’t easy. You need to rank well in the ATS (Applicant tracking system) first. It’s only when you rank high in the ATS that you will be able to grab the recruiter’s attention.

This can be done when your student nurse resume is ATS-friendly.

To write an ATS-friendly job-winning resume, you need to write your nursing student resume with no experience in a way that resonates with the keywords mentioned by the recruiter in the job posting.

And voila! Your ideal student nurse resume is ready to go!

Nurse Salary

According to payscale.com , the average hourly pay of an Entry-Level Registered Nurse (RN) is $25.47 .

According to the information given in Glassdoor , the average salary of a new grad RN (Registered Nurse) is $65,510/year .

According to salary.com , “the average Registered Nurse (RN) Level 1 salary in the United States is $62,370 as of June 27, 2019, but the range typically falls between $55,970 and $72,030 ”.

Factors like education, certifications, additional skills, and work experience play an important role in deciding the salary of a registered nurse.

The higher your work experience, the higher your salary.

Nursing Student Resume Sections

To write the perfect new nursing grad resume, arrange the sections in the order given below:

• Personal Information
• Profile Title
• Professional Experience
• Certifications
• Additional Information

Nursing Skills for Resume

An entry-level nurse job carries with it the following duties and responsibilities:

• Patient Education
• Patient Care & Discharge Planning
• Patient Transport
• Wound Dressing
• Medicine Administration
• Electronic Health Records (EHR)
• Recording Patient Vitals

How to write a Nursing Student Resume

Writing an impeccable student nurse resume is no child’s play. It needs detailed planning and execution of each aspect.

How to perfect the resume header, how to engineer the roles and responsibilities of your job in the correct format and order, how to arrange each resume section, and which points to highlight are indispensable aspects of resume making.

Master each step, and you will have perfected the art of writing your resume.

To simplify the process of resume-writing for your student nurse resume, follow the three stages we have mentioned below

Master Nursing Student Resume

• First Draft Nursing Student Resume
• Final Nursing Student Resume

This is a very important stage in writing your new grad rn resume. Skip this, and you are destined for doom.

As a rule of thumb, the first step you should follow in this stage is to compile all the relevant information for your new grad rn resume in one single place. This step ensures that you have all the information you need.

Going forward, this simplifies the entire process as the need to look for information gets eliminated.

All you need to do is compile all the information in a single document. This ensures that you can refer to the information you need without having to look for it elsewhere.

For instance, if the nurse job you want is looking for the below-mentioned skills:

Then your new grad rn resume must reflect these skills.

Your student nursing resume needs to objectively mention these skills in your resume. The best way to do this is to ensure that your master resume lists a detailed summary of these skills.

If you skip this step, you are approaching your resume the wrong way.

First Draft of your Nursing Student Resume

In the first draft stage of writing your new grad nurse resume, you need to fill the following sections:

• Certification
• Awards & Recognition

The Final Draft of a Nursing Student Resume

In the final stage of your new graduate nurse resume, you need to focus on three things:

• Make the key skills section: To write this section objectively, scan your professional experience section for relevant skills. After you do this, write them down in your key skills section.
• Make the summary/objective section : As you are a nursing graduate with no real work experience, you should write a resume objective. The objective section should highlight the key skills that you have picked up as a nursing student and the skills that you have picked up in your internship.
• Bold and highlight: Emphasize any relevant phrases, words, and numbers throughout your internship experience, education, certifications, awards and recognition, and additional information section by highlighting them in bold.

Moreover, the templates are professionally designed for smooth user experience by our industry experts. It has ready-to-use content, which you can edit according to your work experience.

This means no hassle! No dilly-dally! Your new nursing grad resume is ready-to-use!

In case you want to write your resume on your own, read-on!

Nursing Student Resume: Professional Experience Section

The professional experience section is the most important and promising part of your new graduate nurse resume.

To impress the recruiter, you need to communicate your roles and responsibilities effectively. This is what the professional experience section of your new grad nurse resume should do for you.

The professional experience section of your resume is your best opportunity to connect with the recruiter and get on the winning side of his/her good books.

This section of your graduate nurse resume is your chance to shine. And hence, you need to perfect it.

To make this an easy process, follow the guidelines below:

• Use the STAR format
• Use points to talk about your roles & responsibilities
• Use bucketing & bolding

Also read : How to Compose the Work Experience of Your Resume?

STAR Format

The STAR Format is widely recognized as the no 1 format for structuring the professional experience section of resumes.

• S stands for Situation : Talk about the situation in which you were assigned a task
• T stands for Task : Discuss the task that was assigned to you
• A stands for Action : Communicate the action you took to accomplish the task
• R stands for Result : Discuss the result using figures

When you write your resume, you need to establish a concrete cause-effect relationship in every one-liner point of your resume.

Ensuring a cause-effect relationship helps you emphasize the quantifiable impact of your contribution to the company you have worked for.

Quantifying your contribution grabs the recruiter's attention and makes your resume more attractive. This makes you an interesting candidate in the eyes of the recruiter, which further enhances your chances of a shortlist.

Framing Points

The professional experience section is your one shot at effectively communicating your roles and responsibilities.

This can’t be done if you get into the details of your work experience section in a paragraph that refuses to end.

You need to strictly avoid using long paragraphs to talk about the work you have done.

It will get you nowhere.

At most, it will bore the recruiter.

This is why you need to learn the art of writing short and crisp points.

You need to present the details of your work in simple effective points.

Here is an example of how to fill the professional experience section of your new graduate nurse resume the winner’s way:

• Performed suturing, splinting, and wound treatment for 10+ patients daily • Assisted the head nurse in all day-to-day nursing activities, leading to effective care of patients • Rendered assistance to patients with the transfer, walking, and exam preparation

By framing points, you are making this section more readable.

So, we advise you to discuss your work experience in the form of points.

Bucketing & Bolding

To make your new grad rn resume stand out, you need to make it irresistibly tempting.

Bucketing and bolding is the best way to do this. It re-directs the recruiter’s attention to the aspects of your resume that you need them to notice.

Bucketing and bolding also improves the readability of your resume. It sees to it that the recruiter goes over your resume all the way through.

It may come as a rude shock to you but, in real life, most recruiters don’t go through your entire resume. They don’t bother to do it because they don’t need to.

If you can’t effectively write your resume, the commonly held assumption is that you won’t be effective in your professional capabilities either.

So now that you know the need for bucketing and bolding, come take a look at the graduate nurse resume examples we have listed below.

Nursing Student Resume Example 1:

• Performed suturing, splinting, and wound treatment for 10+ patients daily • Assisted the head nurse in all day-to-day nursing activities leading to effective patient care • Rendered assistance to patients with the transfer, walking, and exam preparation • Provided informed medical advice to all expecting mothers on possible side-effects of surgical delivery • Received 92% positive response from patients for my compassion and dedicated assistance of their needs

Nursing Student Resume example 2:

Patient Care & Wound Treatment Performed suturing, splinting, and wound treatment for 10+ patients daily Assisted the head nurse in day-to-day nursing activities leading to effective patient care Rendered assistance to patients with transfer, walking, and exam preparation Patient Education & Satisfaction Provided informed medical advice to all expecting mothers on possible side-effects of surgical delivery Received 92% positive response from patients for my compassion and dedicated assistance of their needs

You will notice that new graduate nurse resume example 2 is more readable and organized. Using bucketing and bolding has significantly enhanced the readability of the new grad nursing resume.

Moreover, the recruiter can now absorb more information in lesser time.

Furthermore, by simply reading the buckets, the recruiter can easily identify what the applicant is skilled at without having to explicitly look for information.

Take a look at our sample student nurse resume professional experience section given below to learn what a professional experience section should look like using bucketing and bolding:

Nursing Student Resume Header

A header is the first thing that recruiters notice when they go through your resume. It tells the recruiter who you are and what your name is.

As a general rule, your name is always the de-facto resume header.

You need to write your name at the top of your resume. Writing your name at the top personalizes your resume and it protects your resume from getting mixed up with someone else’s.

The header of your resume i.e. your name should be written in the largest font size.

This is not negotiable. When it comes to the font size of your resume header, see to it that it is in the range of 16-20 font size.

Your resume header must have proper spacing. A simple spacing can make your resume that much tidier and easier to read, which in turn makes your nurse student resume that much more appealing.

Give a single space between your first name and your last name.

Hiration Pro-tip: If your name is Kit Charles Harington, the correct way to write it in your new grad rn resume header is: 'Kit C. Harington' .

As you can see in the example above, we have not written Kit’s full middle name in the resume header. This is done deliberately.

It is more than enough to write the first initial of your middle name, add a full-stop after that initial, followed by a single space and your last name.

Also read : How to Write the Perfect Resume Header? .

Nursing Student Resume: Personal Information

The personal information section of your new grad rn resume is a compendium of all your personal details in one neat section.

This is the section that is the easiest to compose.

And yet, most of us tend to go to great lengths to describe who we are, where we’re from, what our marital status is, what our religious orientation is, etc.

Details like these are unnecessary information that your should strictly avoid. They don’t contribute to your resume in any way. As such, it has no use for you, and should not be included in your resume.

You should exclusively mention the following details in the personal information section of your resume:

• Functional mobile number
• Professional email ID

Functional Mobile Number

Do you have multiple phone numbers?

If the answer is yes, which one is the right one for your resume?

Ideally, your resume should strictly mention only one phone number in your contact information. This phone number should be active and you should be available on it 24X7.

After all, you don’t want to miss out on a potential employment offer!

Moreover, you should also write your phone number in the correct format.

The correct format for writing your phone number is mentioned below:

• Use your country’s ISD code as a prefix before your phone number.
• Put a plus sign (+) before the ISD code.

Eg : +1 (654) 888 1111

E-mail Address

Now that you know how to correctly write your phone number in your new grad rn resume, let us now discuss how to write your email address correctly.

It is an unsaid rule that you should only mention that professional email ID in your resume which you actively use for official communication. No one tells you that, but it is important that you do.

And while you’re at it, you should make sure that your professional email ID also looks professional.

Childish names like [email protected] or [email protected] is a strict no! If you are using an email ID like the one we have mentioned above, it’s high time you discard it.

Your resume will be rejected the moment it reaches the recruiter’s desk because your email ID will present you as someone who is exceedingly unprofessional and childish.

You do not want to come off as unprofessional; after all, it is your career on the line here!

If you don’t know how to write a professional email ID, just write your full name followed by @xyz.com.

For eg, if your name is Kelly Clarkson, your professional email ID should look something like this: [email protected] .

This is the best way to write a professional email ID.

It conveys to the recruiter that you are a serious professional and that you take your professionalism seriously. And that is the whole point of writing a professional resume in the first place!

Current Location of Residence

[ Back to Table of Content ]

The final thing that goes in this section is your location.

Your resume should accurately mention the city you are living in, not the name of your hometown. This saves both your time and the recruiter’s time as the recruiter won’t bother to get in touch with you if the job location is in a different city.

Mentioned below is the correct format for writing your location in the personal information section of your student nurse resume:

{Personal Mobile number} | {Professional E-mail Address} | {Current Location}

Please note that:

• The location of your current residence should feature on the right corner, next to the e-mail address.
• Don’t write down the complete address.
• Mention the city and state you are living in if you are looking for a job in your own country.
• If you are looking for a job in another country, simply mention the name of the city and country you are residing in.

Take a look at our nursing resume sample to know what an ideal personal information section should look like:

Nursing Student Resume: Profile Title

Your profile title is a reflection of the job position and industry that you are interested in. It also tells the recruiter the industry you have worked in and what to expect from you.

The title is a skill-demonstration that a job applicant makes to a potential recruiter. It tells the recruiter what your seniority and level of expertise is in your functional field.

For instance, in your new grad rn resume, you need to accurately mention ‘Nursing Graduate’ in the profile title. Your profile title should be the second-largest text in your resume with a font size of 14-16 points.

Nursing Student Resume: Education Section

The next step in writing an impeccable new grad rn resume is to write the education section.

Mentioned below are the top points that you should write in your education section:

• Name of the school/university you have attended
• Name of the courses you have pursued
• The location of your school/university
• The dates of enrollment and graduation from each course in mm/yy - mm/yy format

Also read : 2022 Guide on How to List Education on Your Resume

We have attached a sample of what the education section of the ideal new grad rn resume should look like for your reference:

Nursing Student Resume: Certifications

The next step in crafting the perfect new grad rn resume is to list down the certifications in your resume.

Your Certifications are a practical demonstration of your skills as a professional. It marks you with the seal of excellence.

While writing this section, mention your certification in the order listed below:

• Certification Course Name
• Name of the Affiliating Institution
• Location of the Institute
• Dates of enrollment and completion of the course in mm/yy format

Write the certifications section in the given format:

{Name of certification} | {Affiliating Institution} | {Location} | {Date} (in mm/yy)

Also read : 2022 Guide on listing certifications on a resume

Nursing Student Resume: Awards & Recognition

Your new grad RN resume is incomplete without an endorsement of your achievements.

This is where the awards and recognition section comes into play. It is this section that does the bragging for you and your accomplishments.

Recruiters have a soft corner for those people who have achieved some kind of distinction in their work. This section is your shot at striking gold with the recruiter.

However, while wandering off to the wonderland of self-promotion, make sure that you list down only those awards that are relevant to the job position that you are applying for.

Also read : Understand How to Mention Resume Accomplishments.

Nursing Student Resume: Additional Information

The additional information section of your new graduate nurse resume is where all the extra information goes.

Most people overlook this section of their resume and discard it as irrelevant.

Not you, because you won’t make this mistake.

For instance, you can always manipulate your hobbies in your favor.

As an aspiring nurse, what are the hobbies that can strengthen your job application?

Think of that and include it as a hobby under the additional information section of your new grad nurse resume.

Nursing Student Resume Key Sections

Let's discuss the most critical sections in a nursing student resume one-by-one:

Nursing Student Resume: Key Skills

Now here comes the skills section.

This is where you will write your nursing student skills for resume.

This is the section that can dramatically shoot up your chances of getting shortlisted.

You should ideally write your skills section after completing the rest of your resume.

This way you can quickly scan your resume for the core skills that you are highly proficient in and objectively single them out in your resume’s key skills section.

This will dramatically elevate your chances of getting hired, especially if these key skills are something that the recruiter is looking for!

And here is another helpful tip: highlight your key skills in bold.

This will enhance the appearance of your resume and direct the attention of the recruiter towards your skills section.

But your skills section will fail to produce the desired result if it fails to keep the recruiter’s attention. The goal is to not only catch the recruiter’s attention but to keep it

To sustain the recruiter’s attention, analyze the keywords that the recruiter has used in the job listing, and then replicate these skills in the skills section of your entry-level nurse resume.

After you do this, draw a link between these key skills and your roles and responsibilities.

And that’s the secret hack for writing the perfect skills section for your new grad nurse resume.

Also read : What Skills to Put on a Resume in 2022?

Take a look at our nursing student resume sample below to know what an ideal skills section should look like:

Nursing Student Resume Summary

Your nursing student resume summary is a rough outline of all your roles & responsibilities and past achievements in 2-3 lines .

This is not of interest to you as you don’t have any work experience yet.

As someone who is looking for a nursing job, an entry-level nurse job to be more specific, you should write a resume objective instead of a resume summary.

Read on to learn what a resume objective is and how to write it.

Also read: 2022 Guide to Writing a Resume Summary. .

Nursing Student Resume Objective

This section is for those nursing graduates who are looking for entry-level nurse jobs.

You should make the objectives section if you are an entry-level professional with zero work experience or you have less than three years of work experience.

Your new grad nurse resume objective section communicates your goals to the recruiter and outlines any past internship that you may have done and any relevant skills that you may have picked up.

It is the section in which you have to convince the recruiter that you will be of great benefit to the organization.

Also read : When to Write Resume Objectives?

Check out the new grad nurse resume sample that we have mentioned below to know how the objectives section is objectively written:

Key Takeaways

• Always write both the month and year for enrollment and graduation in your education and certifications section.
• You should religiously mention past projects in your respective work experience section. This will add value to your resume.
• Do not use phrases in your key skills sections. Phrases like 'experienced in' or 'expertise in' are to be strictly avoided at all costs.
• The points in your work experience section should always begin with a power verb.
• Use power verb in the past tense for past profiles/projects and present continuous tense for present profiles and projects.
• Use bolding and bucketing in your work experience section to emphasize on the key highlights of your career.
• If you were recognized or awarded in any of your work profiles, make a 'Key Achievements' bucket at the end of that respective work profile and write your award or recognition under that bucket.
• Use a resume objective instead of a resume summary because you are a nursing graduate with no work experience yet.

So there you go, you have reached the end of our nursing student resume guide.

You have successfully learned the tricks and trades of engineering the perfect resume for nursing graduates.

Hiration provides you a personalized 360-degree career service platform with 24/7 chat support for all your professional needs - from building a shortlist-worthy resume and cover letter to optimizing your LinkedIn profile, preparing for interviews, and more!

For any queries or concerns, feel free to drop a mail at [email protected] .

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Is Your Resume ATS Friendly To Get Shortlisted?

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The Ultimate Guide to Nursing Resumes in 2024

How to write a nurse resume, nurse resume research, nursing resume readers & robots, choose a nurse resume format, nurse resume format & design, writing your nursing resume, common resume mistakes, nursing resume templates, nurse resume faqs.

Expert Reviewed by: Amanda Guarniere, NP, Founder of the Resume RX

In 2024, a vague, uninspiring nursing resume just won't cut it. Recent years have fostered growing competition for the best nursing jobs , creating a greater need for nurses to learn how to write exceptional nursing resumes. With vast opportunities and diverse requirements from various employers, every nurse must put their best foot forward to market themselves for the best positions. 

However, this ever-changing world of online applications and robotic resume readers makes it more complex for nurses to get to the first rounds of interviews. This article will help you tackle the daunting task of writing a nursing resume that stands out. We'll help you build a better nursing resume by giving you an inside look at how robotic resume readers work and providing tips on how to make your resume, things you should and shouldn't include, and provide examples and templates.

Think of your job search as your own personal marketing campaign. And the product is you! Your resume is an advertisement for your professional nursing brand. A brand is more than a logo - it’s the overall impression you give your audience. In this case, your audience is a potential employer. 

As with any advertisement, the goal of your nursing resume is to pique your audience’s interest in a limited amount of time. It’s commonly said that hiring managers will spend less than ten seconds reading your resume. And in many cases, it has to first be screened by a resume-reading robot before it reaches human hands.

So, you must carefully curate your brand for these employers. Captivate them with your professionalism, unique skillset, experience, and personality using your nursing resume. These tactics may help get your foot in the door for an interview, where you can close the deal by impressing them in person.

The first and most important step in any marketing campaign is the research phase. The more you learn about potential employers, the better you can tailor your registered nurse resume to their requirements.

Initial Employer Research for Nursing Resumes

Before you begin tailoring your resume for specific jobs, take some time to answer the following questions about each company:

• Who are they?
• What is their company culture?
• What do they struggle with as an organization?
• What qualities are they looking for in a potential candidate?
• Which of their desired qualities do you possess?

Researching Company Culture and Values

The internet has made it fairly easy to hop online and start your research right now from your mobile device. Employers' websites and social platforms will give you an inside glimpse at their culture and values.

Instead of simply reading a job posting, take a few extra steps to investigate the employer's online presence:

• Check out the company website - what does their mission statement say?
• See what they tweet about
• Investigate what photos they post on Instagram
• Learn about the articles they share on Facebook
• Check their LinkedIn - do you have any connections at the company?
• Look at their Google ratings

Examine Required vs Preferred Nursing Qualifications

The research phase isn't just about investigating the company - you also need to understand the job description. Specifically, understanding the difference between "required" and "preferred" qualifications will help you build a tailored resume for each job:

Required Qualifications

These are just what they say - requirements. Those who do not possess these qualifications will not be considered. 

Preferred Qualifications

Skills that are desired but are not deal-breakers for the employer. You may still be considered even if you do not possess these. 

As you personalize your nursing resume to different opportunities, these qualifications will, in part, guide what you do and do not include. You should include any and all required qualifications if you want an employer to consider your candidacy. 

If you do not possess some or all of the preferred qualifications, you can apply anyway and still be in the running. However, including the ones you do possess on your tailored nursing resume is always the best practice.

Build a Master Resume

You may want a solid starting point from which you can use your research to build a dedicated resume for each position you apply for. Queue the "master resume," a comprehensive working document that highlights everything you've accomplished and every skill you've fostered as a nurse thus far. 

We recommend starting with a foundational nurse resume so that you can alter it for each role you apply to. This way, you won't be rewriting a new resume for every single position. But you'll also avoid submitting "cookie-cutter" resumes that employers won't bother looking at twice.

Use Research to Personalize Your Nursing Resume

Dale Carnegie once said that “A person’s name is, to that person, the sweetest and most important sound in any language.” Personalizing your RN resume matters, with both how you mention and address the future employer and how to include your specific qualifications that match what they are looking for.

Using your research and leveraging your professional brand and personality to target your nurse resume could lead to the interview of your dreams. Not targeting it, however, could lead you on the fast track to nowhere.

The internet revolution transformed the hiring process, impacting the entire labor market in a very short time. 15 years ago, printing your resume on off-white linen paper and hand-delivering it to employers was the status quo. But as little as five years later, doing so might only get you some perplexed looks and urges to apply online.

Technological advances will continue shaping the job market in 2024.  USC Annenberg reports that up to 55% of companies are making investments in AI recruiting measures. But even now, many employers screen online applicants using resume-reading robots. 

This section explores how these bots impact the hiring process and how to get your nursing resume past them and into a real person's hands.

What Is a Resume Reading Robot?

ATS systems are highly technical but can only do what their program says, unable to come close to human discretion. So, knowing how ATS systems work can help you write a resume that passes their screening.

Here's a brief overview of how employers use ATS software to screen nursing applicants:

1. Knockout Questions

Recruiters can use an ATS to scan for keywords or "knockout questions" like "Do you have an active Washington State Nursing License?" These functions help them swiftly eliminate unqualified candidates.

2. Disqualifying Statements

They may also configure the ATS to include “disqualifying statements.” An ATS searching for these statements will automatically reject nursing resumes with certain keywords or phrases. 

For example, an ATS screening for bachelor's-trained nurses might reject resumes that mention an associate's degree. If you have both, consider listing only your BSN.

3. Keyword Screening

Finally, recruiters may use the ATS to find resumes with exact keywords or phrases. These may include qualifications listed in the job description, degrees, or skills. They can program the ATS to reject any application that does not include their specified keywords.

How Does ATS Work?

Not all ATS systems are created equally. They vary greatly in their functionality and behavior. Most ATS systems are programmed to score resumes according to keywords. However, they can be configured to search and score resumes based on various other criteria.

The results are imperfect. Some ATS systems can't differentiate between titles, such as Clinical Nurse II and Registered Nurse, or distinguish between the terms BLS and Basic Life Support. So how do you navigate these intricacies in your nursing resume?

Best Practice:   R ead the job description and use the exact wording for the qualifications listed that you possess.

If you use acronyms and abbreviations, make sure to spell out the entire word, followed by the shortened version. It would be disappointing to have all the requested qualifications but be filtered out by the ATS because you used only the acronyms when the robot was programmed for the full phrases spelled out.

What Are the Shortcomings of ATS?

The problem is that ATS does not ‘read’ a resume as a human would - it simply collects data. It doesn’t care about aesthetics, either. It is programmed by an employer to search for the right keywords, in the right order, on the right part of the resume.  

Also, the system can get confused pretty easily. For example, if the font is too fancy or if it encounters unrecognizable symbols, it may score the resume as ‘unqualified’ and move on to the next resume. It does what it is configured to do, nothing more and nothing less.

While ATS has streamlined the hiring process for employers, it’s also made job search extremely challenging for the job seeker. In fact, 94% of hiring professionals say that ATS has positively influenced their hiring goals, while 80% of job seekers say that their online job search is stressful.

What Other Hiring Technology Might I Encounter?

Recently, some employers have started to use artificial intelligence in a different way - during the interview process. Rather than having strict ATS filters, they offer more candidates the opportunity to interview, but there is a catch.

You don't interview with the employer but with a computer. In these one-way or “on-demand” interviews, you essentially get the opportunity to record your video response to interview questions. After you submit it, hiring managers or recruiters review the video responses before choosing the candidates for formal interviews.

Does Every Employer Use ATS?

While many employers use ATS, there are definitely employers who still rely on human resource professionals to screen resumes. In those instances, a human resources professional usually skims the resumes and invites the most qualified candidates in for an interview.

The problem here is that most employers will receive hundreds of resumes for a single opening. To get through the resumes quickly, the HR professional may resort to a simple scan of the resumes knowing that even qualified applicants may not make it. It’s simply a way to reduce the number of applicants.

In either case, the goal of the modern resume is to ‘sell’ yourself in an organized, targeted manner for a specific role. The best way to design an effective, attention-grabbing resume is by making strong assertions in the beginning followed by supporting evidence.

How to Get Past the ATS

• Target your resume to the specific position. Do this by reading job descriptions and selecting keywords noted in the descriptions - competencies, skills sets, education, and experience.
• Match individual experiences to keywords/key skill sets found within the job posting.  
• Research the employer and target the resume based on the facility's values and culture. 
• Make strong assertions within the top ⅓ of the resume.
• Follow those assertions with supporting evidence.
• Include a “ Professional Summary ” if you are an experienced Nurse.
• Only apply to roles that you match 100% of the “Required Qualifications.” 
• Use simple fonts such as Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri.
• Never use smaller than 10-point font. See Part 5 for more styling suggestions. 
• Use simple black bullet (dots) points, not special bullet symbols.
• Save your resume as a .doc, .docx, or .pdf format.
• If using an abbreviation, always spell out the words followed by the abbreviation or acronym. You never know how the abbreviation was entered into the ATS. 
• Use standard, simple section headers such as “Work History” or “Education.”
• Settings you’ve worked in 
• Patient demographics
• Policies/procedures
• EMR/EHR used
• Medications administered
• Equipment used
• Don’t use the same title as at your current employer if it is different from the title in the job description. Use the title in the job description. 
• Don’t overload your resume with keywords. Use them appropriately. Overusing keywords will flag a resume and could cause the ATS to lower your score.
• Don't forget to support the keywords you use with evidence throughout your resume.
• Do not put your contact information in the header section because ATS will not see it.
• Do not include tables because most ATS can’t read them. Other ATS can only read them if their operator programmed them to do so. 
• Do not use creative section headers such as “Where I’ve Worked” because the ATS likely doesn’t understand what that means.
• Don’t include a headshot, graphics, special fonts, photos, colored fonts, or unique bullets. 
• Do not state, “References available upon request.” It takes up too much space and is unnecessary. If employers want references, they’ll ask. 
• Don’t place skills at the bottom of the resume. Many ATS systems only scan the top ⅓ of the resume for keywords. If you have important keywords at the bottom, the ATS may not see them and could disqualify your resume. 
• Don’t use “I” statements; resumes should be written in the third person. 
• Do not rely on resume builder software. Stay in control of your registered nurse resume.

How to Spot an ATS

If you’ve ever visited a job posting and seen an “APPLY NOW” button, you’ve encountered the elusive resume-reading bot. ATS requires candidates to enter data on the front end. 

Maybe you’ve gone through the steps to create a login, complete the application and upload your resume. Perhaps you didn’t realize at the time that you were entering your information into an applicant tracking system.  

Raise your hand if you never heard back from an employer after applying online. Raise your other hand if you received an automated response “thanking” you for your interest and never heard back!

Now, keep in mind that it can be difficult to stand out when you are applying for a job online, especially when there is an ATS involved. As you consider your overall job search strategy, try to think of other ways that can increase your chances of getting a job. Don’t be afraid to ask your network connections for referrals and recommendations, or let friends and family know what type of position you are looking for and where. While your resume is absolutely important, it isn’t the only tool that can lead to you getting a job.

Prior to ever typing words onto your resume, it’s important to first decide on a resume format. There are three types of resume layouts. While we highly recommend the reverse-chronological layout for most nursing professionals, we’d encourage you to make the best choice for yourself.

Here’s a breakdown of the three most popular types of resume layouts: 

1. Reverse Chronological Nursing Resume

This layout focuses on career history and lists jobs in reverse chronological order. We recommend this type of registered nurse resume for the majority of healthcare professionals and will focus the details of this article on the format. It is best suited for:

• New nursing graduates
• Nurses with fewer than 5 roles within the past 5-7 years. 
• Travel Nurses with <10 completed assignments
• Nurses with experience in only 1-2 specialties
• Nurses applying for a similar role
• Nurses wanting to show vertical career progression 

2. Functional Nursing Resume

This nurse resume layout places emphasis on skills and deemphasizes work history. However, it does not pass the ATS test well, and hiring managers overall do not prefer it. We recommend against this layout for the majority of nursing professionals. Typically, people who use this format are: 

• Changing careers
• Have large gaps in employment
• Do have years of experience in the role in which they are applying

3. Combination Nursing Resume

This layout is a mixture of the reverse chronological and the functional resume. While it places emphasis on skill sets, abilities, and accomplishments, it also highlights applicable work history. We recommend combination resumes for nursing professionals with the following background, goals, and barriers: 

• Nurses with experience in multiple specialties and/or medical professions
• Seasoned travel nurses with >10 completed assignments
• Nurses with multiple small gaps in employment
• Nurses looking to change specialties
• Nurses interested in changing careers

Writing a nursing resume can feel overwhelming. It’s no easy task! Nowadays, nursing resumes must be able to pass through resume reading software before it even reaches a recruiter. That’s why we’ve put together THREE nurse resume templates to cater to your unique professional needs and employment situation.

By clicking download, you agree to receive email newsletters and special offers from Nurse.org. You may unsubscribe at any time by using the unsubscribe link, found at the bottom of every email.

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The first formatting and design consideration you should make when creating your nursing resume is how well an  ATS will read them. We recommend the following comprehensive design and formatting guidelines to appease common ATS systems:

Many experts believe you can achieve the perfect balance of text to white space in your nursing resume using the following margin settings:

• Top Margin: 1"
• Side Margins: .63"

Left alignment is standard since that’s how most people (and robots) read. You may think a justified alignment looks tidier, but it can leave uneven gaps between words and ultimately make text harder to read. 

In the nursing profession, length should not be the focus of the resume. While we recommend 1-2 pages, some nurses may have resumes with 3 (or more) pages.

Don’t stress over length too much. If the resume is slightly over the page amount by a few lines try changing the margin, font style, font size, or shortening statements. The bottom line is it should look visually appealing and should include keywords.

We recommend  Times New Roman or Arial to best utilize the functionality of the ATS. However, this is your personal preference. Take note that Times New Roman can be difficult to read if it is smaller than 11pt.

If you are striving for a resume that looks visually appealing when printed, there are great ways to achieve that without going overboard with design. For example, you could use the “small caps” feature for headings, which keeps the font the same but adds a bit more character and differentiation. Or, you could try a font pairing, using serif fonts for headers and sans serif for body text.

Important Note: Different font styles will take up different amounts of space. See how these identical statements look vastly different despite both being in 11 pt font:

Experienced Travel Nurse with 8 years experience in critical care nursing.

Throughout the resume, there should be different-sized fonts. We recommend the following for each section: 

It’s important to note that 10-point font should be the smallest size on the resume. 

While some ATS systems claim to read colors, we encourage you to simply use black. 

Special Characters

We recommend keeping the resume very simple. Basic bullet points (black dots) may be used when desired. Simple lines are acceptable as well. 

Design Features to Avoid

The following design features are best left off the resume: 

• Multiple font styles
• Special characters

As you’ve learned, ATS systems skim resumes and locate specific information in the correct order. We’d suggest using the following categories and section headers to optimize your nursing resume for ATS scoring.

Contact Information

This is the first section of the resume and does not require a title. Your name should be front and center. Don’t make the recruiter search for it. Make sure it’s the largest font on the page. While there are varying opinions on the exact placement of the name, we recommend a simple classic version in the following format:

Your name should be the first thing a recruiter, hiring manager, or ATS system sees on your nurse resume. It should share a line with your nursing credentials and be in a bold, readable, 18-22 pt font. If you go by a different name, make sure to list both in this section.

Nursing Credentials

Your nursing credentials should directly follow your first and last name on a nursing resume. The preferred order to list these in is Highest degree earned, Licensure, then National Certifications.

We've included a  credential quick reference guide below to help you fill out your resume perfectly.

The days of listing your home address on a resume are over - most employers don't need this information, and we advise against including it on your resume as a security precaution. However, this is a personal decision you can make at your own discretion.

You should never leave your location off completely because many employers have location parameters set in their ATS systems. Ensure you include your city and state in the contact information portion of your nursing resume.

Phone/Texting Number

Oh, technology! Yes, some employers will actually text their candidates. Make sure to indicate if you receive texts and whether the phone number is a cell phone or a home phone. This is a great time to make sure your voicemail message states your full name and is professional.

Email Address

It is in your best interest to ensure that you have a professional email address that does not reveal your age. Age discrimination is real, and listing your birth year or using an antiquated email service like AOL can definitely trigger it.

Your email address should include a variation of your name and some numbers if necessary. You can even make a totally separate email account and use it only for your job search.

LinkedIn Profile

If you have a LinkedIn profile definitely include it. If you don’t have a LinkedIn profile, you could be missing out on opportunities. Now is the time to create one!

In your settings, you can easily create a shortened LinkedIn URL that doesn’t have a bunch of random numbers and letters.

How Your Digital Footprint Impacts Your Nursing Job Search

Though you may not list it, you should consider your social media and online presence when you complete the contact information portion of your resume. Potential employers will likely look you up online. Many Recruiters tell us that looking a candidate up on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter is one of the first things they do. So, make sure everything you post online is what you would want an employer to see. 

Additionally, online behavior can benefit you. Do you have a nursing-related website or blog? Are you an Instagram celebrity? Maybe you created a successful YouTube channel when you were a newbie nurse. Include all this on your resume if it relates to nursing. This is all part of your unique brand!

Nursing Resume Credential Quick Reference Guide

According to the American Nurses Credentialing Center (AACN), the preferred order is Highest degree earned, Licensure, and National Certification.

Educational degrees include doctoral degrees (Ph.D., DrPH, DNS, EdD, DNP), master’s degrees (MSN, MS, MA), bachelor’s degrees (BS, BSN, BA), and associate degrees (AD, ADN).

Licensure credentials include RN, LPN, CNA, and APRN.

National certification , which is occasionally voluntary for nurses and obligatory for advanced practice nurses, is awarded through accredited certifying bodies such as the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), includes RNBC (Registered Nurse-Board Certified) and FNP-BC (Family Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified).

You may also choose to include awards and honors:

Outstanding achievements in nursing, such as FAAN (Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing).

Other certifications that recognize additional skills, such as the EMT-Basic/EMT, awarded by the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians.

Here is an example of contact information on a nursing resume that puts it all together:

Penny Lite, BSN, RN   Los Angeles, CA | Text/Call: (987) 654 - 3210 | [email protected] | www.linkedin.com/pennylitern

Professional Summary

Don’t make an employer (or ATS) search your entire resume for reasons to invite you to an interview. Tell them right off the top exactly why you are the best candidate for the role.

Every position is unique, and this is your first opportunity to optimize the resume for ATS and to also catch the employer’s eye. Spend a little time to target it and let your qualifications and accomplishments shine. 

While there is some debate about how to introduce your resume, we suggest using a professional summary as opposed to a career objective. The professional summary can be formatted in either a short paragraph or a bulleted list asserting qualifications and providing a concise career snapshot.

How to Write a Professional Summary for a Nursing Resume

Think of your resume summary as an “elevator pitch” - a quick, attention-grabbing, loaded statement that entices the reader to want to continue on. Your professional summary is unique to you and should be targeted to a specific role, just like the cover letters career counselors used to tell us about.

However, it could definitely include the following information: 

• Number of years of experience in a specialty 
• Common keywords found in nursing job descriptions e.g., excellent patient care, acute care, family education, compassionate
• Facility designations or info about facilities 
• Supervisory experience and number of subordinates
• Special certifications or awards
• Language abilities
• Soft skills such as patience, compassion, and a cooperative spirit

Nursing professional summary example: 

4+ years nursing experience with strong clinical background in critical care (CCU) and intermediate care nursing (IMCU). Proactively streamlines operations, initiates tasks, and supports the healthcare team while prioritizing excellent patient care. Champions patient and family education by providing compassionate, inclusive care that encourages self-sufficiency. Recipient of the Daisy Award. Bilingual in English and Spanish.

Nursing Skills and Areas of Expertise

List your nursing skills within the top ⅓ of the resume - Don't make the common mistake of adding them last. With the popularity of ATS, this mistake could cost you an interview. This is especially true in nursing, as the profession requires very specific skills. 

Additionally, your hard skills should be directly targeted to the role as expressed in the job description. Is the employer asking for a specific EMR that you are experienced with? List it! Are you an expert at starting IVs because of your five years of experience in the emergency room? List it!

This should not be a generic list of skills but a specific list that is as quantified as possible. It’s possible that if you are a newer nurse or are making a specialty pivot you may not have hard skills to include. In that case, it’s okay to omit this section and highlight your transferable  soft nursing skills within your job history.

While most nurses list their license titles on their resumes, it’s been our experience that they leave off a few very important details - most notably, whether the license is active and the expiration date. 

Why is this important? Including this information lets potential employers know that you are ready to start work ASAP. They don’t have to wait for the licensing process. Including your license number is optional, and you can make this decision based on your privacy comfort. The employer will likely be verifying your license online anyway (this is all public information).

If you are an advanced practice nurse, you may decide to leave off license numbers for privacy purposes, especially your DEA number or controlled substance registration number.

Here’s an example of how to list your licensure:

Registered Nurse - California, #RN00101, expires 4/17/2024.

Certifications and Credentials

This is another key section where some important details are typically missing on the nursing resumes we’ve seen. While most nurses list their credentials, it’s important to list them in a specific manner.

Don’t simply list acronyms, as some ATS systems may not be programmed to read shortened versions. Make sure to list the accrediting body, credential/certification number (where applicable), and expiration date. 

Here’s an example of how to list your certifications and credentials: 

Basic Life Support (BLS), American Heart Association, expires: 12/1/2021

Work History

Employers want to know what you can do for them, period.  Nurse recruiters we’ve talked to will zero in on this section. What are they looking for? Evidence, facts, quantifiable points - proof to support the assertions made in your resume summary.

Vague work histories are particularly frustrating to employers - especially when applicants copy and paste job descriptions. To avoid falling into those pitfalls, try incorporating these tips: 

Use simple section headers such as “Work History” or “Relevant Experience,” these are ATS friendly. “What I’ve Done” is not. 

List your experience in reverse chronological order.  If you have a lengthy employment history, you may consider only including the most recent 10-15 years of experience. This will shorten your resume and also limit the chances that you’ll encounter age discrimination. Looking at the big-picture experience from 25 years ago doesn’t necessarily speak to your recent nursing experience because employers care about what you can do for them now.

Work History Format

Adding your work history in a logical format can help your nursing resume beat the ATS and impress recruiters. We recommend using the following format for each work history segment:

1. Job Title and Specialty

This is a controversial subject, but we believe employers care more about what you’ve done than who you’ve worked for. Use the job title as it is listed in the job posting, or use a more industry-wide job title. Registered Nurse as opposed to Clinical Nurse II. 

2. Facility Name

Add the name of the facility or company you worked for after your job title. You can add this on the same line or a different line, but using the same line will optimize space.

3. Employment Dates  

These are important and can be listed in a number of ways. However, it’s been our experience that specific dates are not necessary for a resume. On an application, yes, on a resume, not so much. You can simply list the months and years (mm/yy - present).

4. Facility-Specific and Unit-Specific Information

This information is helpful and important to employers but is left off the majority of resumes we’ve seen, it includes: 

• Trauma level: level I, II, III
• Facility Designations 
• Total Hospital beds
• Total unit beds

Primary Duties and Accomplishments

This section looks best in a bulleted list of no more than six points and should include duties, noteworthy accomplishments, and achievements. It’s important to emphasize specific duties and not be too vague.

Also, try your best not to simply regurgitate basic nursing duties that would be assumed of your role. This will take up valuable space on your resume and not really tell the reader much about you !

Wondering what specifics to include? Here are a few questions to get those wheels turning:

• What illnesses, injuries, or traumas do you care for? 
• What cases do you work on? 
• What type of medications do you administer and how? 
• What therapies do you perform? 
• What equipment do you use? 
• How have you improved processes? 
• When have I been first or best?
• No. 1 achievement in each position?
• Which achievements have the most impressive numbers?
• When have I been publicly recognized?

Write Strong Nursing Resume Bullets

Wondering how to order your bullets and what to include? Try this: start with a verb leading to quantifiable data or a specific point and include a relevant duty.

Use our comprehensive tables to build compelling nursing resume bullets that make your achievements shine:

Here is a brief work history resume example for nurses that puts it all together:

Registered Nurse, Acute Care - Example Medical Center 09-19 - Present

• Supervised staff of 15 registered nurses, 8 certified nursing assistants, and 7 paramedics while multitasking excellent patient care. 
• Cared for up to 4 patients per shift with acute neurological disorders, including strokes, spinal cord injuries, and head trauma.

Education and Training

In the nursing profession, education and training are of utmost importance. If you have work experience, this section can be fairly brief.  You should list your relevant degrees in chronological order. 

There are varying opinions regarding the specific ordering of education. However, we believe that the degree or certification title should be listed first. Employers care firstly that you have the education requirement they need and secondarily where you obtained the requirement. 

We suggest the following format:  Degree or Certification Title (acronym), Institution Name 

Here’s an example: 

Bachelor's Degree in Nursing (BSN), University of Washington 

Should I Include Graduation Dates on a Nursing Resume?

You are not required to include your college or high school graduation dates on your nursing resume , as it could reveal your age. Age discrimination is the top form of employment discrimination and affects all age groups. If you graduated more than 10-15 years ago, it may be a good idea to omit the date.  But this is a personal decision you should make at your own discretion.

Should I Include My GPA on a Nursing Resume?

Including your GPA in your nursing resume is optional. If you are particularly proud of your GPA, by all means, add it! However, it is not required. If you graduated with honors that you are proud of, you can definitely include that as well. Again the resume is a unique snapshot of you!

Should I Include my Non-Nursing Degrees and Credentials?

If you possess other degrees not related to nursing, it is not necessary to include those on your nursing resume. Some second-career nurses like to list this information, especially if there has been an interesting career pivot or one that brings a lot of value to your role as a nurse. Remember, you are telling your personal, unique story, and you get to decide what to include.

How Do I Add In-Progress Advanced Education Programs?

If you are currently enrolled in higher education to advance your studies within the nursing field, that should be listed on your resume and state that the degree is pending or in progress. However, if you started a graduate degree program, never finished, and do not plan on finishing, it is unnecessary to include it on the resume. 

Should I Include my High School Education?

Nurses do not need to include their high school diplomas on their resumes. The nursing profession requires completion of higher education, and therefore, your higher degree trumps your diploma. 

Awards, Accomplishments, and Affiliations

Though this section is not required, we encourage including awards and accomplishments that are relevant to the nursing profession. These details will provide the potential employer with more proof and evidence of who you are as a nurse. 

In this section, you can include: 

• Awards and recognitions that are specific to the hospital or facility where you work, e.g. the Daisy Award, Employee of the Month, and Nursing Excellence Award
• Professional memberships and affiliations relating to nursing and/or healthcare
• Volunteer work, if it relates to nursing

We suggest the following format: Title, organization, year

Here are a couple of examples:

• Recipient, Nursing Excellence Award, Washington Medical Center
• Volunteer, American Red Cross - Haiti - 2012

Naming Your Nurse Resume Save File

One last thing, saving! Don’t just give your resume any old name! Hiring professionals sometimes receive multiple documents from candidates, and they don’t want to waste time sorting through every document to find the resume. Some prefer to organize resumes by specialty. Tell them exactly which document is your resume. 

We suggest the following format: firstlast_specialty_resume.doc

Here’s an example:

PennyLite_ICU_resume.doc

We’ve seen a lot of resumes over the years, and you might be surprised by the amount of strange information people have included on them. So, here are the top mistakes we’ve seen:

Woot! If you’ve made it this far you should have an excellent understanding of how to write a great nursing resume. We know it’s a lot of information right now, and we hope that you’ll use the information to advance your career.

For a little more help, try using our free resume templates. And when you’ve landed your next interview, check out the next part in this series, The Complete Guide to Nursing Job Interviews .

>> Download free nurse resume templates!

What should be included in a nursing resume?

• A nursing resume should include your education, experience, including clinical, work, and volunteer, any certifications you have, and skills. 

How do I write a nurse resume?

• You can use a template to fill out your nursing resume or fill out your own. 

How do I list my nursing skills on my resume?

• List skills that are in the job description or outline on the facility’s website. For instance, common nursing skills include critical thinking, teamwork, communication, team management, and high ethical standards. 

Do you put RN after your name on a resume?

• You can include "RN" or "RN, BSN"  if you have other credentials. If you haven’t passed your NCLEX yet, you can put G.N. for Graduate Nurse.

How long should a nurse's resume be?

• A nursing resume should be no longer than 1-2 pages. 

What is your greatest skill as a nurse?

• The most valuable skill you have as a nurse may depend on your exact role and specialty, but in general, communication, kindness, empathy, and critical thinking are highly valued traits as a nurse. 

How far back should a resume go?

• If you’re a recent graduate, you don’t need to go to high school, just include your college experience and degree. For experienced nurses, include all relevant experience. 

Amanda is an Ivy-league-educated nurse practitioner and career mentor who helps nurses find and land their dream jobs. She founded The Résumé Rx  in 2018 to help nurses with career and résumé strategy  Learn more about Amanda and her products at  www.theresumerx.com  and follow her on Instagram  @theresumerx.

Angelina has her finger on the pulse of everything nursing. Whether it's a trending news topic, valuable resource or, heartfelt story, Angelina is an expert at producing content that nurses love to read. She specializes in warmly engaging with the nursing community and exponentially growing our social presence.

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Resume Worded   |  Proven Resume Examples

• Resume Examples
• Medical Resumes
• Nursing Resume Guide & Examples

Nursing Student Resume Examples: Proven To Get You Hired In 2024

Jump to a template:

• Nursing Student
• Clinical Research Assistant
• Patient Care Technician
• Registered Nurse
• Clinical Nurse
• Nurse Practitioner
• Pediatric Nurse

Get advice on each section of your resume:

Jump to a resource:

• Nursing Student Resume Tips

Nursing Student Resume Template

Download in google doc, word or pdf for free. designed to pass resume screening software in 2022., nursing student resume sample.

As a nursing student, you’ll be relying less on traditional work experience to fill out your resume and more on the skills you’ve gained through coursework and student nursing placements. Even without much experience, you can distinguish yourself by listing your student nursing experience the same way you would paid experience, focusing on your accomplishments and making sure to include relevant skills and keywords.

We're just getting the template ready for you, just a second left.

Recruiter Insight: Why this resume works in 2022

Tips to help you write your nursing student resume in 2024,    emphasize student nursing experience.

If you’re still a student and don’t have any relevant paid work experience, that doesn’t mean your resume should be blank. You can list your student nursing experience in your professional experience section, listing the location you worked at as the employer and “student nurse” as your job title.

   Lists specific competencies relevant to nursing

Even without paid work experience, you’ll be graduating with plenty of the skills you’ll need in your first role. Include a skills section at the bottom of your resume where you list a few of the skills that are most relevant to the job you’re applying for — typically between 5-10 skills.

Clinical Research Assistant Resume Sample

Patient care technician resume sample, registered nurse resume sample, clinical nurse resume sample, nurse practitioner resume sample, pediatric nurse resume sample.

We spoke with hiring managers at top hospitals and healthcare organizations like Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins Medicine, and Kaiser Permanente to gather their best tips for nursing student resumes. Here's what they said will help you stand out and get hired:

   Highlight your clinical experience

Employers want to see the hands-on patient care experience you've gained during your nursing program. Be specific about the types of clinical rotations you've completed:

• Completed 12-week clinical rotation in pediatric intensive care unit, caring for an average of 5 patients per shift
• Assisted with wound care, medication administration, and patient and family education during 8-week clinical rotation on surgical unit

Quantify your experience where possible, like the number of patients you cared for or skills you performed. This gives a concrete picture of your capabilities.

   Showcase your technical skills

Modern healthcare relies heavily on technology. Hiring managers look for nursing students who are proficient with electronic health records (EHR) systems, medical devices, and other tools. Avoid simply listing the names of software or equipment you've used, like this:

• Familiar with Epic EHR
• Used Alaris IV pumps

Instead, provide context and specific examples that illustrate your technical abilities:

• Documented vital signs, medications, and nursing assessments for 20+ patients daily using Epic EHR during clinical rotations
• Programmed and monitored Alaris IV pumps to administer antibiotics, pain medication, and other IV fluids to post-surgical patients

   Include relevant coursework and academic projects

While your clinical experience is most important, you can also highlight relevant coursework and academic projects that have prepared you for nursing practice. Focus on classes and assignments that developed key skills:

• Completed Pharmacology course with grade of A, gaining in-depth knowledge of drug classifications, dosage calculations, and medication safety
• Developed patient education brochure on managing hypertension for Community Health Nursing project, distributed to 50+ patients at local clinic

These examples show your knowledge and initiative beyond basic nursing coursework.

   Emphasize your patient care and communication skills

Nurses spend more time with patients than any other healthcare professionals. Hiring managers want to see evidence of your ability to provide compassionate care and communicate effectively with patients and families. Use strong, specific examples:

Recognized by clinical instructor for ability to explain complex medical information in easy-to-understand terms, earning "exceeds expectations" rating in patient education

Also, highlight any experience working with diverse patient populations or communicating through language barriers:

• Provided culturally sensitive care to diverse patient population, using medical interpreters to communicate with Spanish-speaking patients and families

   List certifications, memberships, and volunteer experience

Certifications, professional memberships, and volunteer experience can all enhance your nursing resume. They show your commitment to the profession and your initiative to develop your skills beyond the classroom. Be sure to include:

• Any certifications you've earned, such as Basic Life Support (BLS) or Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS)
• Membership in professional organizations like the National Student Nurses' Association (NSNA)
• Volunteer experience in healthcare settings, such as hospitals, clinics, or nursing homes

These extras can help you stand out from other nursing students and demonstrate your passion for the field.

   Tailor your resume to the specific job

While it's tempting to use the same resume for every job application, hiring managers can spot a generic resume a mile away. Instead, tailor your resume to each specific job you apply for. Start by carefully reading the job description and noting the key qualifications and skills the employer is seeking.

Then, adjust your resume to highlight your most relevant experience and skills. For example, if the job emphasizes pediatric care, focus on your pediatric clinical rotations and any related coursework or projects. If the employer is seeking someone with strong critical thinking skills, include examples of how you've used critical thinking to solve problems in patient care.

By customizing your resume for each job, you'll show the employer that you're a strong match for their specific needs and increase your chances of getting an interview.

Writing Your Nursing Student Resume: Section By Section

  summary.

A resume summary is an optional section that appears at the top of your resume, just below your contact information. It provides a brief overview of your professional background, skills, and career goals. While a summary is not strictly necessary, it can be particularly useful for nursing students who are looking to provide additional context about their experience and qualifications.

It's important to note that you should never use an objective statement in place of a summary. Objective statements are outdated and focus on what you want from an employer, rather than what you can offer them. Instead, use your summary to highlight your most relevant skills and experiences, and to explain how they make you a strong candidate for the nursing position you're seeking.

To learn how to write an effective resume summary for your Nursing Student resume, or figure out if you need one, please read Nursing Student Resume Summary Examples , or Nursing Student Resume Objective Examples .

1. Tailor your nursing student summary to the job

When writing your summary, it's important to tailor it to the specific nursing position you're applying for. This means highlighting the skills and experiences that are most relevant to that particular job.

For example, if you're applying for a pediatric nursing position, you might mention any experience you have working with children, such as:

• Completed a clinical rotation in a pediatric ward, caring for patients ranging from infants to teenagers
• Volunteered at a summer camp for children with chronic illnesses, providing medical support and assistance

On the other hand, if you're applying for a position in a cardiac care unit, you would want to focus on any experience or training you have related to heart health, such as:

• Shadowed nurses in the cardiac care unit as part of my clinical rotations
• Wrote a research paper on the latest advancements in treating congestive heart failure

To ensure your summary is tailored to the job, carefully review the job description and look for key skills and qualifications the employer is seeking. Then, make sure to incorporate those same keywords and phrases into your summary wherever possible.

2. Highlight your nursing skills and qualifications

As a nursing student, you may not have extensive professional experience yet. However, you can still use your summary to highlight the skills and qualifications you've gained through your education and training.

Some key things to mention might include:

• Relevant coursework and clinical rotations
• Key skills such as patient assessment, medication administration, and wound care
• Certifications such as Basic Life Support (BLS) or Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS)
• Any honors or awards you've received related to your nursing studies

Dedicated nursing student with experience in patient assessment, medication administration, and wound care. Completed clinical rotations in pediatrics, surgery, and critical care. Certified in BLS and ACLS. Recipient of the Outstanding Nursing Student award for academic excellence and patient advocacy.

To make sure your resume showcases your top nursing skills, try using our free Targeted Resume tool. It scans your resume against a specific job description and provides instant feedback on which key skills and keywords you're missing.

  Experience

As a nursing student, your work experience section should showcase your clinical skills, patient care experience, and any relevant healthcare-related roles. This section is crucial for demonstrating your hands-on experience and proving that you're ready to take on the responsibilities of a nursing role.

When writing your work experience section, focus on highlighting your most relevant experiences and accomplishments. Use strong action verbs to describe your responsibilities and quantify your achievements whenever possible.

1. Highlight relevant clinical rotations

Include your clinical rotations in your work experience section, as they provide valuable hands-on experience in various healthcare settings. When describing your clinical rotations, focus on the specific skills you developed and the types of patients you cared for.

• Completed a 12-week clinical rotation in a medical-surgical unit, caring for patients with a variety of conditions including post-operative recovery, diabetes, and respiratory illnesses
• Developed skills in patient assessment, medication administration, wound care, and patient education during a 10-week clinical rotation in a long-term care facility

By providing specific examples of your clinical experiences, you demonstrate your readiness to take on the responsibilities of a nursing role.

2. Use strong nursing-related action verbs

When describing your work experience, use strong action verbs that showcase your nursing skills and responsibilities. This helps to make your resume more engaging and highlights your contributions to each role.

Examples of strong nursing-related action verbs include:

• Administered
• Collaborated

Administered medications, changed dressings, and monitored vital signs for post-operative patients in a fast-paced surgical unit.

By using strong action verbs, you paint a clearer picture of your responsibilities and make your resume more impactful.

To find the best action verbs for your nursing resume, consider using a tool like Score My Resume . This tool provides instant feedback on your resume, including suggestions for strong industry-specific action verbs that can help your resume stand out to hiring managers.

3. Quantify your achievements with metrics

Whenever possible, use metrics to quantify your achievements and responsibilities. This helps to provide context for your experience and demonstrates the impact you made in each role.

Examples of using metrics in your nursing student resume:

• Provided care for up to 6 patients per shift in a fast-paced emergency department, prioritizing tasks and managing time effectively
• Assisted with the admission and discharge process for an average of 10 patients per day, ensuring accurate documentation and smooth transitions of care

In contrast, here are examples of how not to describe your experience:

• Helped with patient care in a hospital setting
• Completed tasks as assigned by nursing staff

By using metrics, you provide a clearer picture of your experience and help your resume stand out to hiring managers.

  Education

Your education section is a key part of your nursing student resume. It shows hiring managers that you have the necessary knowledge and training to succeed in the role. Here are some tips to make your education section stand out.

1. Put your nursing degree first

As a nursing student, your education is your strongest asset. Put your nursing degree at the top of your education section, even if it's not complete yet.

Here's an example:

Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Expected Graduation: May 2024

If you have other degrees, list them below in reverse chronological order.

2. Include relevant coursework and clinical experience

Highlight specific courses, clinical rotations, or projects that are relevant to the nursing job you're applying for. This shows employers that you have hands-on experience in key areas.

Bad example:

• Completed coursework in various subjects

Good example:

• Relevant Coursework: Anatomy and Physiology, Pharmacology, Pathophysiology, Nursing Fundamentals
• Clinical Rotations: Pediatrics (CHLA), Medical-Surgical (UCLA Medical Center), Psychiatry (VA Hospital)

3. List licenses, certifications, and other credentials

If you have any licenses, certifications, or other credentials related to nursing, include them in your education section. This could include things like:

• CPR certification
• Basic Life Support (BLS) certification
• Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) license

Here's an example of how to list them:

Licenses and Certifications: Basic Life Support (BLS) Certification, American Heart Association, Expires May 2024 Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), California, Expires June 2025

4. Keep it short if you're a senior nursing student

If you're a senior nursing student with several years of experience, you don't need to include as much detail in your education section. Keep it short and focus on your most recent and relevant degree.

Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN), XYZ Community College, 2012-2014 Relevant Coursework: Anatomy and Physiology, Pharmacology, Nursing Fundamentals Clinical Rotations: Medical-Surgical, Pediatrics, Obstetrics Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), University of ABC, 2014-2016 Relevant Coursework: Advanced Medical-Surgical Nursing, Community Health Nursing, Leadership in Nursing Clinical Rotations: Critical Care, Emergency Department, Oncology

Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), University of ABC Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN), XYZ Community College

  Skills

The skills section of your nursing student resume is critical. It's where you showcase your qualifications and training. Hiring managers and Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) scan this section to decide if you have the right expertise for the role.

In this section, we'll cover exactly what to include and how to write your skills effectively. Let's dive in.

1. Identify your top nursing skills

As a nursing student, you likely have a range of clinical skills, certifications, and knowledge areas. It's important to identify and prioritize the ones that are most relevant to the specific role you're applying for.

Review the job description carefully and note any skills or keywords that are repeatedly mentioned. These are likely the top skills the employer is looking for. Some examples may include:

• Patient assessment
• Medication administration
• Electronic health records (EHR)

Make sure to include these high-priority skills in your resume, assuming you have them. This will help you get past Applicant Tracking Systems that screen for keywords.

You can use a tool like Targeted Resume from Resume Worded to analyze a job description and see how well your resume matches the skills and keywords it's looking for. It's a quick way to check if you're on the right track.

2. Categorize your skills

Once you have a list of your top nursing skills, consider grouping them into categories. This makes your skills section easier to read and helps highlight your expertise in different areas.

For example, you might have categories like:

• Clinical Skills : Patient assessment, Medication administration, Wound care
• Technology Skills : Electronic health records (EHR), Medical devices
• Certifications : Basic Life Support (BLS), Registered Nurse (RN) license

Grouping related skills together paints a clearer picture of your qualifications. It also makes it easier for hiring managers to quickly see if you have the specific skills they're looking for.

Avoid creating too many categories, which can make your skills section look fragmented. Aim for 3-4 key categories that capture the most important skill sets for the role.

3. Quantify your proficiency level

In some cases, it can be helpful to indicate your level of proficiency with a particular skill. This gives employers a better sense of your capabilities.

One way to do this is by using descriptors like "Proficient in," "Experienced with," or "Familiar with." For example:

Proficient in patient assessment and care planning Experienced with electronic health records (Epic, Cerner) Familiar with central line management

Another option is to use a competency scale, like beginner, intermediate, advanced, expert. However, be careful with this approach. Only use "expert" if you truly are one, otherwise it may come across as overconfident. Here's an example of what to avoid:

Expert in patient assessment Expert in all clinical skills Expert in hospital operations

As a nursing student, it's unlikely you're an expert in many areas yet. Be honest about your level of proficiency.

When in doubt, leave out proficiency levels. It's better to simply list the skill than to overstate your abilities. Hiring managers can assess your skill level during interviews and skills tests.

4. Tailor your skills to the job

One of the biggest mistakes job seekers make is using the same generic skills section for every job application. To stand out, you need to customize your skills to the specific role and employer.

Let's say a job description emphasizes skills in patient education and discharge planning. Compare these two examples:

Generic skills section Clinical skills Teamwork Communication Computer skills

Tailored skills section Patient education and counseling Discharge planning and care coordination Clinical documentation in Epic EHR Therapeutic communication

The tailored example directly addresses the key skills from the job description. This shows the employer you're a strong fit for their specific needs.

Tailoring your resume to each job takes extra time and effort. But it's worth it. Targeted Resume s are more likely to get past ATS filters and catch a hiring manager's attention. Tools like Score My Resume from Resume Worded can help by analyzing your resume and providing suggestions to better target it to the job.

Skills For Nursing Student Resumes

Here are examples of popular skills from Nursing Student job descriptions that you can include on your resume.

• Cooperation
• Microsoft Access
• Personal Development
• Public Health
• Nursing Education

Skills Word Cloud For Nursing Student Resumes

This word cloud highlights the important keywords that appear on Nursing Student job descriptions and resumes. The bigger the word, the more frequently it appears on job postings, and the more likely you should include it in your resume.

How to use these skills?

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Resume Guide: Detailed Insights From Recruiters

• Nursing Resume Guide & Examples for 2022

Improve your Nursing Student resume, instantly.

Use our free resume checker to get expert feedback on your resume. You will:

•  Get a resume score compared to other Nursing Student resumes in your industry.

•  Fix all your resume's mistakes.

•  Find the Nursing Student skills your resume is missing.

•  Get rid of hidden red flags the hiring managers and resume screeners look for.

It's instant, free and trusted by 1+ million job seekers globally. Get a better resume, guaranteed .

Nursing Student Resumes

• Template #1: Nursing Student
• Template #2: Nursing Student
• Template #3: Clinical Research Assistant
• Template #4: Patient Care Technician
• Template #5: Registered Nurse
• Template #6: Clinical Nurse
• Template #7: Nurse Practitioner
• Template #8: Pediatric Nurse
• Skills for Nursing Student Resumes
• Free Nursing Student Resume Review
• Other Medical Resumes
• Nursing Student Interview Guide
• Nursing Student Sample Cover Letters
• Alternative Careers to a Nursing Student
• All Resumes
• Resume Action Verbs

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Student Nursing Resume:Free Templates, Examples & Guide

As a Student Nurse, you know how to care for patients in a kind and professional manner. Now it’s time for your resume to receive the right medicine. Our Resume templates are the perfect remedy to cure any problems you are having finding work.

Student Nursing Resume Example MSWord® Give your resume the best treatment available with our Student Nursing Resume templates, available in Word format.

Your dream of becoming a nurse is almost in reach. It’s so close that you can taste it. But hold up! You can’t turn up to a hospital for duty just yet! That will very likely confuse the doctors, other nurses and administrators if you just arrive without warning.

You’ll need a job first!

With your student nursing studies underway you’ve already covered the valuable skills needed, to save lives and get patients back to good health.

However, there’s another valuable skill that even the best nursing courses don’t teach… And that thing is how to write a nursing student resume with no experience.

Luckily for you, you’re in the right place for guidance. This page will explain everything you need to know about how to make a resume for nursing students.

Your resume will need special care. This especially matters if you’re aiming for a specialized role such as being a Registered Nurse (RN) or Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) as these will of course require their own additional touches.

To help you become a pro resume writer, this guide will show you:

• How to write a nursing student resume with no experience.
• Entry-level RN resume examples.
• How to double the amount of interviews you’ve been getting until now.
• The essential resume skills for nursing students needed to make your profile totally irresistible.
• Tips, tricks and words of advice for nursing students looking for their first job.

We’ll also provide you with a nursing student resume template that you can use today. Writing a resume doesn’t have to take ages , with our resume builder we can help you prepare yours today in just a few minutes .

Nursing Student Resume Sample

To get started, check out this example of a good nursing student resume .

[Amanda Beischel]

[123 Main Street, Cleveland, Ohio, 11234  |   235-073-0006   |    [email protected]]

Licensed registered nurse with more than 3 years of successful clinical experience working with Cuyahoga County Clinic. Efficient in giving day-to-day care thanks to established skills in patient nutrition, exemplary infection control, as well as vital sign monitoring. Effective when responding to emergency situations. Achieved 30% improvement in patient satisfaction.

Nursing Assistant Cuyahoga County Clinic| Cleveland, Ohio

2018 – 2021

• Kept a secure, sanitary area for patients
• Monitored 5 patients, creating a caring environment for all
• Reacted promptly to requests from both patients and nursing staff
• Took correct vital signs, such as blood pressure and respiration rate
• Administered patient’s medicine

Nursing Intern

Cuyahoga County Clinic| Cleveland, Ohio

2017 – 2018

• Achieved 95% positive preceptor evaluations
• Assisted registered nurses with daily tasks
• Entered patient’s records in Word and Excel to keep on file
• Fulfilled HIPAA standards in all patient interactions

Bachelor of Science – Nursing

Ohio State University | Columbus, Ohio

2013 – 2017

• Achieved a 3.5 GPA
• Completed 2 semesters of internships

Soft Skills

• Extroverted personality 
• Compassionate with patients
• Excellent communication 
• Maintain records in an organized manner

Hard Skills

• Accurate vital sign monitoring
• Basic life support 
• Emergency and critical care
• Knowledge of Telemetry

Hobbies and Interests

• Listening to podcasts by Nursecasts
• Cycling 
• Learning to make vegan dishes 
• Volunteering at blood drives

What’s the Best Nursing Student Resume Format?

Have you ever seen just how many nursing students resumes Hospital HR managers get a day?

Well, it’s a LOT. This isn’t good news for anyone wondering how to find a nursing job with  no experience . Firstly the HR team is going to have  a tough time  on their hands. Secondly, it means your resume might not get the time it really needs  to be read properly.

You sometimes have  as little as 7 seconds  to impress the reader. What’s more, when you look at  nursing resume examples  as a new grad one thing always stands out.

No, not the amount of experience that’s on them – although we’ll get to that later. The format and the layout.

How Do I Choose The Right Format?

All good resume formats , whether they are a nursing school resume template, newly registered nurse resume template, or a student nurse resume with clinical experience, have to be  well organized  to get the job done.

In most cases, you’ll need a  reverse chronological  resume template. This puts your experience in a prime position.

What if you’re writing an RN resume with no experience ?

You might opt to try some nursing student bio examples with  combination or functional  format resume layouts. These put more emphasis on your skills and work best when there’s less experience.

However, these should only be used if  things get really desperate .

While nursing student examples for new graduates tend to focus more on your  training and qualifications , even they will use a reverse-chronological layout

Work experience is always your most important asset in nursing. Always make sure you promote it via the layout.

Don’t also forget that the file format you save your resume is a major factor too.

While a lot of people submit their resume as a Word document – which is fine in some cases – it’s much better to use a PDF or TXT file .

This can be crucial if your resume needs to pass through any machine reading filters like ATS when it’s sent to the employer.

Do I Need Resume Summary?

This is something that people don’t think much about, but you should never underestimate the importance of a good  professional summary .

It’s only a few sentences long, but in that  short text , you’ll communicate a lot to the reader – it is a  brief introduction to you .

It explains why a hiring manager should  take you seriously as a candidate  and – more importantly – gives the reader an incentive to look over your whole resume from start to finish.

What about a resume objective?

If you don’t have much experience to summarize, you should include a  career objective .

What it contains, usually  depends on the precise job  you’re applying for.

For example, if you’re applying for an LVN job you might talk up your credentials of  working with the elderly . Whereas if you’re  planning to work in a cancer ward  you might talk more about how good you are at monitoring vital signs and taking samples.

Let’s look at how we can make this work below.

Student Nursing Resume Summary Example

Writing a career objective for a nursing student role might  sound pretty easy  in principle.

It has some things in common with LinkedIn summary examples for nursing students you might have seen listed online.

However, the resume version is a little  more restricted by comparison  in terms of length. It also needs to communicate a lot about you succinctly without losing the reader’s interest.

Just stating the facts in your summary without making sure they link to the job at hand might  also leave you at a disadvantage.

Let’s see an example of  how NOT to write the summary  for a beginner nursing student’s resume first to get a clearer idea.

Nursing graduate looking for an entry-level position in a large city hospital. People dedicated individual with a patient-focused mentality and strong skills in handling decisions under pressure.

As you can see,  it’s fine . Yet it’s still kind of “meh”.

It’s got some of the right nursing graduation wording you’d normally expect.

Unfortunately, it’s unlikely to get much traction as it doesn’t tell us  how well you can do these things  you’ve listed. You need to go into a little more detail than this.

For a stand-out nursing school resume objective, you’ll need to  demonstrate measurable achievements  as well as the sort of skills wanted by the hiring team.

Below, you’ll see what the hiring person at the hospital  will really want to see  on a new graduate nurse resume summary examples.

Fully licensed LVN with over 1 year’s clinical experience working with Hudson County Clinic. Providing daily care with the help of proven skills in patient management, responding to emergencies effectively, and vital sign monitoring. Achieving 98% positive preceptor evaluations.

Now that’s a graduate nurse  resume objective statement  you can take to the bank! Quite literally in some cases.

As we can see here, there’s a lot more  specific information  about how long you’ve been working as a nurse and more insight into exactly what you did.

It shows a good combination of your  nursing licensing information , relevant experience , and skills all in that short paragraph.

As you can see new graduate nurse’s resume summary doesn’t have to be a writing masterpiece. Nevertheless, it does need to  hit all the right notes  to get the attention you crave from recruiters.

How to Write an Entry-Level Nursing Student Resume Objective

Jobs for nursing students with no experience are trickier to target with a nursing student resume objective statement.

But they’re not impossible!

You can find clever ways to  whip up a tight summary  even for specific situations like LPN student jobs, putting together a nursing student internship resume, or entry-level RN resume samples.

Getting in contention for the best entry-level nursing jobs may require you to  get a little more creative , but it can be done without too much effort.

Let’s look at how this can work below.

Entry-Level Nurse Resume Objectives

Even if you’re still studying there’s nothing stopping you from putting together an amazing summary for an entry-level nurse resume sample.

This might be needed for a  nurse intern resume,  or just a general pre-nursing resume you’re trying out before graduating.

Nursing student new to the profession. Eager to gain more professional experience via an internship.

The bad news is if you use a summary like that your  chances of getting hired  will be in critical condition.

We can glean plenty of what you want and need but the recruiter can’t see anything about your strengths as a student nurse.

That’s a major issue.

However, there are ways to make your pre-nursing student resume  objective look a bit healthier , as you can see below.

Dedicated student nurse, with proven clinical experience over 2 semesters. Demonstrating strong skills in vital signs and ensuring patient comfort. Receiving 98% positive grading from my preceptor.

A new nurse resume objective is obviously going to have to compromise with the fact you  won’t have much experience .

However, you will have had practical training with  measurable results  that you can use in your favor.

This will help you  stabilize your situation  and get you on the right track.

How Can I Describe My Nursing Student Experience?

Clinical experience on your nursing student resume is going to be your  key to getting noticed .

A nursing student resume with clinical experience can provide details about  your actual work in nursing via a few different sources such as:

• Internships
• Volunteering
• Practical clinical experience with your preceptor

Of course, even if you’re  fresh out of nursing school  there are plenty of decent no-experience-needed nursing jobs and internships out there. You can take advantage of these to get the working practice you need.

It’s not just what you feature in your experience section, it’s  how you talk about it  that counts too.

Right now you’re probably wondering  how to write  up your clinical experience on a resume?

Let’s look at some  examples of resumes  for nursing student graduates and the experience they normally highlight in a bit more depth.

Examples: Experience Section

When you have a bit of clinical experience on a resume as a nursing student  you’ll have a good shot  at getting on a hiring manager’s radar.

But, you’ve got to be careful  how you add the information  on the page. This is because the recruiter wants to see something that  fits their vacancy as exactly  as possible.

So in a way your resume is a bit like a shape being put into a kid’s shape sorter. It has to  fit the right-shaped hole  figuratively speaking.

This means that  generic resumes won’t do .

With that in mind, let’s see  how not to do it .

Nursing Assistant Hudson Medical Center

2018 – 2019

• Responsible for the care of numerous patients.
• Collected test samples.
• Monitored patient vitals.

While it lists  relevant activities  that a new nurse would do, it doesn’t go into nearly enough detail.

You don’t just want to be some other nurse in the hiring process. You want to be  the top nurse  that everyone wants to interview.

Let’s now look at  a more accomplished  new grad nursing student resume with clinical experience.

• Supervised 8 patients, providing a caring environment and safely administering medication and pain relief.
• Collected and reported test samples and updated patient charts promptly, receiving 96% positive feedback from my preceptor.
• Monitored patient vitals and planned care based on their condition.

Now this example, by comparison,  tells you a lot more  about what this candidate has done AND, crucially, what they’ve achieved.

There are  clear instances here of what you did  and how well you did them. This will give someone reading your resume more info to go on.

Even pre-nursing jobs for students want to see  clear examples .

This is a bit trickier but can still be  done like a pro . Let’s look at this in more detail in the next section.

Examples: An Entry-Level Experience Section

If you’re putting together a new grad RN resume  with no experience  to get your first practical nursing student job you might not know where to start.

Finding a nursing job with no experience can feel like a scary thought at the beginning.

If you’re writing a nursing student  resume for an externship , a nursing student preceptorship resume, or a nursing student resume for an internship you still need to be able to show some experience, while having very little.

What to do?

Luckily in nursing, you’ll already have some of the  clinical modules  of your nursing course to fall back on. These will fit most pre-nursing job descriptions.

Unlike getting into other professions with no experience, you shouldn’t dwell too much on pulling in evidence of  any or all practical work  you’ve done. Just stick to nursing.

Below is an example of what you shouldn’t do.

Student Nurse St John’s Nursing School

• One semester of nursing experience.

Other experience:

• Waiting tables
• Babysitting

A student nurse extern resume or any resume for a new nurse should  only be focused on nursing .

Instead of briefly paraphrasing your experience at nursing school, you should  get in-depth  and really explain what you’ve been doing there.

As you’ll find in most nursing resumes or nursing internship essay examples they tend to focus more on  pinpointing your clinical training  in depth.

Let’s now see how it should be done.

Nursing Intern Hudson Medical Center

• Shadowed RNs to gain experience in triaging, monitoring vital signs, and taking samples.
• Followed HIPAA carefully during all my duties.
• Achieved 94% patient satisfaction rate during my placements.

It doesn’t matter if you’re still at college.

Any and all practical  experience you get as a nurse  should be the only thing you focus on when you write a nursing student resume with clinical experience.

Does Your Education Section Need Emergency Treatment? Don’t Lose the Recruiter!

So you’ve got a  great experience section  in your entry-level RN resume. That’s a good start.

But, oh no? There’s still something missing.

As a new grad nurse with no experience, you’re going to be  relying heavily  on your education section to get noticed.

Most nursing resumes will need to, at the very least, add information about your college course . This should include:

• The name of the nursing course
• The name of the college or institution
• The number of years you studied there

But this isn’t all you should do with your resume for nursing school application. You should also add details about the coursework  you did, especially if it fits the general job description.

Examples: Education Section

No-experience-needed registered nurse jobs will always be interested in your  licensing and training  even if they aren’t so worried about your professional on-site work.

Therefore, your education section needs to give them  the info they want to see  and fast.

Let’s look over an LPN student’s education section below. They’ve got it right.

Associate of Applied Science Degree in Nursing with LPN Certificate Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College

2017 – 2020

• Completed 3 semesters of clinical experience and nursing internships.
• Achieved GPA of 3.6
• Commended for patient education, vitals observation, and wound dressing

Now, you might have to  check the vitals  of the recruiter after this as they’re going to be pretty pumped to see an education section like this from a registered nurse with no experience.

This version works for a lot of reasons, firstly because it’s  clear about the course  that was studied.

You don’t need to get over-detailed with your education when writing a nursing internship resume but it should show enough of your achievements to get noticed.

There are of course  lots of certifications  nursing students can get, so it’s super important to be specific and to ensure you’re showing the right licenses for the job available.

Not only that, the new graduate RN resume sample  gives a clear picture  of what the applicant achieved when they were studying.

There are explicit examples on this nursing school resume of  how well they did on their course  by demonstrating their nursing student accomplishments on their resume.

Yet, while the previous example is looking healthy, what about an example of a nursing student resume sample that might be in need of some urgent medical attention?

Let’s look over one of these below.

• Studied anatomy, biology, patient care.
• Passed the NCLEX

As graduate nurse resume examples go this education section is in sickly shape. It only gives the  most basic information  that the employer wants.

It doesn’t go into the  exact tasks  the candidate learned.

Whether you’re preparing a sample resume for  graduate nursing school application  or writing a graduate nurse resume in Australia you must always remember that these little details count.

Make sure you do what you can to  highlight your specific accomplishments  clearly in this section. It only takes a couple of bullet points.

What Are The Best Nursing Student Skills for a Resume ?

Training as a nurse equips you with a  whole toolbox  of skills. But,  which of those are best  for your student nursing application?

Firstly, you should focus on how the  student nurse job description  can guide your resume.

These will almost always list  desired skills that are wanted , which easy clues you can use to make your resume right for the job.

Nursing student skills can be  woven into your application  in lots of ways but what’s important is that they appear consistently in your finished resume. This can either be in the skills section, education section, or work experience section.

Check below for  more of a guide  on the nursing student skills to put on a resume, if you’re looking for some quick ideas.

Top Nursing Skills to Put on a Resume

As a new grad nurse, having skills on your resume really does pay the bills.

It’s important to include both hard and soft nursing skills when you write your resume .

This is because it’s  not just enough to list your technical abilities  on your resume – although you definitely should – you also need to list some intrinsic skills too.

Remember: Working with patients and other nurses involves teamwork, communication, and the ability to maintain a  friendly, welcoming persona  even in the most stressful situations.

You’re going to need to  get that across  when you apply for jobs too.

To give you some ideas for  additional skills  for a nursing resume, check out the lists below.

• Good bedside manner
• Organization
• Concentration
• Communication
• Decision-making
• Attention to detail
• Problem-solving
• Patient education
• Sample collection
• Wound dressing
• Electronic Health Records (EMR)
• Vitals observation
• Record keeping
• HIPAA Compliance
• Workplace safety
• Patient care planning
• CPR/First Aid
• Medicine administration

Do I Need Other Sections for an Effective Resume?

Good jobs for nursing students are competitive. Almost like  gladiatorial combat  at times.

However, fortunately, you  won’t need a sword  or to dress any wounds in a Colosseum anytime soon.

That said, your entry-level registered nurse resume or Nursing student CNA resume is going to need more than the  old reliable trio  of sections of work experience, skills, and education.

A resume for nursing school applications or graduate jobs can always benefit from  extra sections which will give the employer more of a reason to give you the thumbs up.

Examples: “Other” Sections

You’ll often find that the best recently-graduated nursing student resumes go that extra step  when it comes to other sections.

It’s hard to get any of those  eye-catching RN or LVN student jobs  out there without some extra touches.

However, you should be careful when adding additional information. There are obviously  some things you shouldn’t share  with an employer.

As we can see in the very sketchy example below.

• I enjoy going out to bars
• I like to play Xbox
• I’m passionate about cigar smoking

The things listed above are all well and good to do. Just, you  shouldn’t share them  with a recruiter.

This information is  mostly irrelevant  to anything you’ll need to do in a nursing job. Consequently, it shouldn’t really appear on a new RN resume template.

In fact, the stuff about bars could even  turn a recruiter off  your application entirely, if they have any worries you could have an alcohol problem.

Instead, an entry nurse resume should try and use experiences and hobbies that will  sell you best  as a nurse. Although, don’t be afraid to add something to indicate some personality

This might include personal interests or outside work like  volunteering for a medical charity  or similar.

Let’s see how these can be  squeezed onto your document  in the example below.

Volunteer Experience

• Red Cross Volunteer, First Aid
• Hudson Homeless Shelter, Patient screening
• Walking and hiking
• Listening to Everyday Emergency podcast by MSF

Now, that’s more like it!

This fits much more with what a person hiring a nurse  wants to see .

These sections can be used to explicitly show  how strong a candidate you are , which will put you much higher up the priority list for interviews.

Key Points to Takeaway

You know  how to be a great nursing student , now all you need to do is get that into your resume.

To make your nursing student resume PDF  look absolutely spectacular  to the reader, remember the following points.

• If you’re preparing a resume as a nursing student who’s about to graduate remember to focus on detailing your practical clinical experience from your work placements and your licensure.
• Don’t forget to check the nurse trainee job description before writing your student nurse application. This will contain juicy details that you can use to keep your finished template in good health.
• Make sure your graduate nursing student resume gives examples of things you did outside of school that tie in with nursing or healthcare.

Remember, we can help you prepare a nursing student resume for  someone with no experience .

We’ve got professional templates to start you off and  our resume builder  will help you through every step of the process. Why not give it a go-to save some time during your job search.

Happy job hunting!

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5 Amazing nursing student Resume Examples (Updated 2023) + Skills & Job Descriptions

Build your resume in 15 minutes, nursing student: resume samples & writing guide, larry carter, employment history.

• Providing emotional support to patients and families
• Documenting patient progress and care
• Administering medications and treatments as prescribed by physicians
• Assisting with patient care and medication administration
• Collaborating with other healthcare professionals
• Ordering and stocking supplies

Do you already have a resume? Use our PDF converter and edit your resume.

Quintin King

• Assisting with diagnostic tests and treatments
• Assisting with laboratory tests and procedures
• Educating patients and families on health maintenance and disease prevention
• Providing patient education on medication use and side effects
• Complying with healthcare regulations and standards

Professional Summary

• Monitoring patient vital signs
• Maintaining patient medical records
• Maintaining a safe and clean environment

Victor Turner

• Participating in continuing education and professional development

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Table of Content

• Introduction
• Resume Samples & Writing Guide
• Resume Example 1
• Resume Example 2
• Resume Example 3
• Resume Example 4
• Resume Example 5
• Jobs Description
• Jobs Skills
• Technical Skills
• Soft Skills
• How to Improve Your Resume
• How to Optimize Your Resume
• Cover Letter Example

nursing student Job Descriptions; Explained

If you're applying for an nursing student position, it's important to tailor your resume to the specific job requirements in order to differentiate yourself from other candidates. Including accurate and relevant information that directly aligns with the job description can greatly increase your chances of securing an interview with potential employers. When crafting your resume, be sure to use action verbs and a clear, concise format to highlight your relevant skills and experience. Remember, the job description is your first opportunity to make an impression on recruiters, so pay close attention to the details and make sure you're presenting yourself in the best possible light.

nursing student

• Psychiatric Mental Health, Ohio Health Marion: 60 hours
• Adult Health Concepts, Cleveland Clinic Medina, Medical Surgical: 78 hours
• Health Foundations 1, Brethren Care Ashland: 108 hours
• Health Foundations 2, Ohio Health Mansfield, Medical Surgical: 78 hours
• Complex Health Nursing, Akron General Cleveland Clinic, neuro/medical surgical: 120 hours
• Maternal Newborn Nursing, Knox Community Hospital, Obstetrics: 52 hours
• Pediatric Health, Akron Children’s Hospital: 52 hours 
• Educating the patients about the cause of their illness and ways to prevent it
• Documenting and monitoring the patients’ vital signs
• Community Health, LifeCare Hospice Wooster: 60 hours
• Preceptorship at Fisher Titus Medical Center: to be attained
• Worked alongside experienced nursing professionals to learn new procedures
• Administer medications or treatments as directed by supervisor or licensed nurse.
• Apply clean dressings, slings, stockings, or support bandages, under direction of licensed nurse or supervisor.
• Provide basic patient care or treatments, such as taking temperatures or blood pressures, dressing wounds, treating bedsores, rubbing with alcohol or performing catheterizations.
• Cared for patients on mechanical ventilators and with chest tubes 
• Analyzed cardiac strips 
• Provided patient teaching and discharge teaching 
• Performed tracheostomy care, catheterization, wound care, EKG monitoring 
• Observed inguinal hernia repair surgery and mastectomy 
• Therapeutic communication with patients and their family 
• Administered PO, SC, IV, IM and topical medications under the supervision of a clinical instructor 

nursing student, cardiovascular rotation

•  Performed basic physical assessments. 
• Assist in the removal of chest tubes.
• Monitor all aspects of patient care, including diet and physical activity
• Sisters of Charity Hospital St. Joseph Campus, Cheektowaga, NY

nursing student Job Skills

For an nursing student position, your job skills are a key factor in demonstrating your value to the company and showing recruiters that you're the ight fit for the role. It's important to be specific when highlighting your skills and ensure that they are directly aligned with the job requirements, as this can greatly improve your chances of being hired. By showcasing your relevant skills and experience, you can make a compelling case for why you're the best candidate for the job.

How to include technical skills in your resume:

Technical skills are a set of specialized abilities and knowledge required to perform a particular job effectively. Some examples of technical skills are data analysis, project management, software proficiency, and programming languages, to name a few. Add the technical skills that will get hired in your career field with our simple-to-use resume builder. Select your desired resume template, once you reach the skills section of the builder, manually write in the skill or simply click on "Add more skills". This will automatically generate the best skills for your career field, choose your skill level, and hit "Save & Next."

• Medical Terminology
• Pharmacology
• Patient Assessment
• Patient Care
• Clinical Documentation
• Infection Control
• Medication Administration
• Nursing Process
• Clinical Decision Making
• Vital Signs
• EKG Monitoring
• Nursing Diagnosis
• IV Insertion
• Tracheostomy Care
• Patient Education
• Bedside Nursing.

How to include soft skills in your resume:

Soft skills are non-technical skills that relate to how you work and that can be used in any job. Including soft skills such as time management, creative thinking, teamwork, and conflict resolution demonstrate your problem-solving abilities and show that you navigate challenges and changes in the workplace efficiently. Add competitive soft skills to make your resume stand-out to recruiters! Simply select your preferred resume template in the skills section, enter the skills manually or use the "Add more skills" option. Our resume builder will generate the most relevant soft skills for your career path. Choose your proficiency level for each skill, and then click "Save & Next" to proceed to the next section.

• Communication
• Interpersonal
• Time Management
• Problem Solving
• Decision Making
• Critical Thinking
• Adaptability
• Organization
• Public Speaking
• Negotiation
• Conflict Resolution
• Attention to Detail
• Self-Motivation
• Stress Management
• Collaboration
• Strategic Thinking
• Emotional Intelligence
• Flexibility
• Reliability
• Professionalism
• Computer Literacy
• Data Analysis
• Project Management
• Customer Service
• Presentation
• Written Communication
• Social Media
• Troubleshooting
• Quality Assurance
• Supervisory
• Risk Management
• Database Management
• Documentation
• Financial Management
• Visualization
• Business Acumen
• Process Improvement
• Relationship Management.

How to Improve Your nursing student Resume

Navigating resume pitfalls can mean the difference between landing an interview or not. Missing job descriptions or unexplained work history gaps can cause recruiters to hesitate. Let's not even talk about the impact of bad grammar, and forgetting your contact info could leave your potential employer hanging. Aim to be comprehensive, concise, and accurate.

Irving Ingram

Include your contact information and job descriptions, missing job descriptions lessens your chances of getting hired..

• Employers want to know what you've accomplished, so make sure to include descriptions for all of your previous jobs.
• Keep job descriptions short but don't just list your jobs.
• Never copy-paste a job description to post on your resume. Get inspired and use tools to help you write customized descriptions.

How to Optimize Your nursing student Resume

Keep an eye out for these resume traps. Neglecting to detail your job roles or explain gaps in your career can lead to unnecessary doubts. Grammar blunders can reflect negatively on you, and without contact information, how can employers reach you? Be meticulous and complete.

• Complying with healthcare regulations and standards,
• Monitering patient vital signs.
• Participating in continuing education and professional developement,
• Monitoring patient vitals signs,
• Documenting patient progresss and care.
• Assisting with laboratory test's and procedures
• Providing emotional support too patients and familie's
• Ordering and stocking supply's

Correct Grammar and Address Gap Years in Your Resume

Don't leave unexplained gaps in your work history..

• When explaining gaps in your employment section, start by being honest.
• Elaborate on the gap and show that you never stopped learning.
• Explain and elaborate any gap in your work history by highlighting new skills.

nursing student Cover Letter Example

A cover letter can be a valuable addition to your job application when applying for an nursing student position. Cover letters provide a concise summary of your qualifications, skills, and experience, also it also gives you an opportunity to explain why you're the best fit for the job. Crafting a cover letter that showcases your relevant experience and enthusiasm for the Accounts Payable role can significantly improve your chances of securing an interview.

Esteemed Recruitment Team

I am excited to apply for the Senior Nursing Student position at Humana. As a highly skilled Nursing Student with 7 years of experience in Healthcare & Pharmacy, I am confident that I can contribute significantly to your organization.

As someone who has always been committed to making a positive impact on the world, I have pursued opportunities to contribute to my community through my work wherever I may be. My experience in this field has equipped me with the skills and knowledge necessary to succeed throughout my life and I am confident that they will help me to bring my passion and expertise to your organization and help drive your success.

I appreciate the time and consideration you have given my application. I am confident that if we work together we could achieve great things and so I look forward to the opportunity to join your team.

Showcase your most significant accomplishments and qualifications with this cover letter. Personalize this cover letter in just few minutes with our user-friendly tool!

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Nursing Student Resume Example

Enhance your career prospects & learn creative tricks to use in your own resume with this modifiable Nursing Student resume example. Copy-paste this resume example free of charge or modify it in any way using our professional resume builder.

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Nursing Student Resume Example (Full Text Version)

Victoria reynolds.

Self-driven and passionate Nursing student with an extensive medical knowledge and great manual dexterity. Possessing exceptional critical thinking skills, excellent work ethic, and strong determination to perform great work, Victoria is looking for a Summer internship within a modern and forward-moving health institution.

Work experience

• Provided beneficial care and assistance to patients and helped them with basic needs.
• Supported Nurses and other Medical Professionals with various tasks and administered medications.
• Measured blood pressure, monitored vitals and weights, and maintained and organized relevant correspondence.
• Prepared and served meals, communicated with the patients' family members, and executed multiple clerical duties as assigned.
• Awarded the Intern of the Month for completing all duties within budget and schedule.

Clubs and Societies : Aerobics Club, Dance Club, Psychology Society

GPA : 4.0 (Top 2% of the Program)

The 2017 Headteacher's Award winner for achieving extraordinary results

Volunteering

Certificates.

Milan Šaržík, CPRW

Milan’s work-life has been centered around job search for the past three years. He is a Certified Professional Résumé Writer (CPRW™) as well as an active member of the Professional Association of Résumé Writers & Careers Coaches (PARWCC™). Milan holds a record for creating the most career document samples for our help center – until today, he has written more than 500 resumes and cover letters for positions across various industries. On top of that, Milan has completed studies at multiple well-known institutions, including Harvard University, University of Glasgow, and Frankfurt School of Finance and Management.

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Nurse Natural Sciences Student Veterinary Mental Health Therapist Humanities Student Formal Sciences Student University Student High School Student Dentist Physical Therapist Medical Assistant Professions And Applied Sciences Student

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