Hiring managers often spend just a few seconds scanning a resume before deciding to read more closely. Your nursing resume needs to be clear, impactful, and demonstrate that you have the skills they need—immediately.
Follow these tips to create a resume that gets you to the next step:
Use a Strong Summary Statement: Start with a brief, powerful summary instead of an old-fashioned objective. Highlight your years of experience, a key specialty, and your biggest achievement.
Example: “Compassionate and detail-oriented Registered Nurse with 5+ years of experience in surgical intensive care. Proven ability to manage a high-acuity patient load and provide exceptional, compassionate care.”
Quantify Your Achievements: Don’t just list your duties. Use numbers to show your impact.
Instead of: “Administered medication to patients.”
Try: “Administered medication to a caseload of 5-7 patients per shift with a 100% medication safety record.”
Highlight Your Technical Skills: In today’s healthcare environment, technology is crucial. Create a separate section for your technical skills.
Examples: Epic, Cerner, Meditech (EHR Systems), IV Insertion, Wound Care, BLS, ACLS, PALS, Electronic Charting.
Tailor Your Resume for Each Job: A generic resume is a weak one. Take the time to customize your resume for each application. Use keywords from the job description to make sure your resume aligns with what the hiring manager is looking for.
A great resume isn’t just a list of your past jobs; it’s a strategic document that sells you as the perfect candidate for the role.
What got me more callbacks was opening with a single, punchy line like: “ICU RN, BSN - 4 yrs Level II trauma - ACLS/BLS - Epic - charge-trained.” Those keywords and numbers are scannable in a glance, and I moved license/certs into the header so they’re visible without scrolling on mobile.
What finally got me noticed was a punchy header — ICU RN (BSN), 4 yrs Level II trauma, Epic, charge-trained — then a first bullet with numbers: 1:2 ratios on an 18-bed unit and a QI project that cut CAUTIs 18%. Think billboard, not a novel, and keep BLS/ACLS and license right at the top.
Small tweak that bumped my callbacks: I moved licensure and certs (state, compact status, expiration) right under my name and mirrored 3 exact keywords from the job post in the first bullet — ATS and humans catch it fast. I also hyperlink LinkedIn and save as PDF with a plain file name (FirstLast_Nurse_Resume); yes, recruiters do search filenames . Anyone else see a lift after adding expiry dates?
. Anyone else see a lift after adding expiry dates?