Registered Nurse Resume Example
Nursing resumes get screened by recruiters who read hundreds a week. They look for three things in the first ten seconds: your licenses, your unit experience, and the EMR systems you've used. Get those above the fold and the rest of the resume gets read.
What hiring managers look for
- ✓Active license info — state, type (RN, BSN, MSN), expiration. List it under your name, not buried in education.
- ✓Unit and specialty experience — Med-Surg, ICU, ER, L&D, Oncology, etc. Be specific.
- ✓EMR systems — Epic, Cerner, Meditech. Most hospital postings list which EMR they use.
- ✓Certifications — BLS, ACLS, PALS, TNCC, CCRN. Recruiters search resumes for the acronyms.
Common mistakes
- !Burying licenses in a paragraph. They belong at the top, in their own block.
- !Using vague unit names ('floor nurse' instead of 'Med-Surg, 32-bed unit, 1:5 ratio'). Specifics build credibility.
- !Listing 'patient care' as a skill. It's the job. Replace it with quantifiable contributions (Press Ganey scores, fall-rate reductions, charge nurse time).
Section by section
Licenses & certifications
Top of the page, right under contact info. State licenses (with numbers and expiry), national certs (BLS/ACLS/etc.), and any specialty certs (CCRN, CMSRN).
Experience
For each hospital: name, unit, bed count, nurse-to-patient ratio. Then 3–4 bullets covering responsibilities and outcomes (committee work, preceptor roles, quality metrics).
Template used in this example
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