Nursing (Entry-Level)
Resume Example

Entry-level nurses have an advantage over other industries when building their resumes for the first time because of the extensive internship and resident experiences they’re required to complete to graduate.

Nurses writing their resume for the first time will first have to write customized career objective, explaining their educational background and desired position within an institution or organization. For the full rundown on crafting an effective career objective check out our page that outlines the ins and outs of writing a great career objective.

These educational residence experiences are very similar to professional work experience listed on experienced Nurse resumes so starting with the education section first on entry-level nursing resumes is not only logical but simple to do.

1. Know & Include Common Skills for an Entry-level Nurse

2. Write an Effective Nursing Education Section

Writing the education section for an entry-level nurse is a little bit different than writing that of a general resume from another industry.

This is because medicine has so many different specializations and educational requirements that applicants must pay particular attention to detail. Below is an example of a perfectly written Education section complete with Relevant Coursework and Licenses & Certifications sections.

The beginning of entry-level nursing resumes can be broken down into three distinct sections, covering three areas that employers will want to see immediately when reviewing a resume. These three sections are the Education, Relevant Coursework and Licenses & Certifications sections. Each contributes to making the resume more attractive in unique ways.

Education

In the education section you will want to include university specific educational specifics such as the year of graduation, GPA average (only if above 3.0), and academic affiliations. For example:

• Bachelor of Science in Nursing, May 2013

• GPA: 3.7/4.0

• Student Nursing Association, Member 2011-2013

Relevant Coursework

It’s in the relevant coursework section you will include details about coursework most applicable to the position you are applying to. For example, if working in the radiology ward it would be highly advisable to include radiology related coursework in this section to indicate to the reader how you are qualified for this specific position. For example:

• Observational Methods

• Principles of Teaching Applied to Nursing

• Pharmaceuticals Oncology

• Qualitative Analysis

Licenses & Certifications

Including licenses and certifications are vital resume builders and should always be included when writing a resume in the medical industry since organizations are legally required to employ only licensed and certified individuals.

Not listing the correct license or certification could get a resume rejected instantly. Make sure to specify your individual license number and the issuing organization.

For example:

• Registered Nurse: New York State Board of Nursing, License #0000000

• Basic Life Support (BLS) certified by the American Heart Association

Including licenses and certificates is critical for gaining employment and can directly impact compensation.

3. Include Clinical Experiences and Other Work Experience

While the resume should be heavily focused on medical specific educational and internship experiences, there is often room for notable non-medical related work experiences as well.

Most of your work experience section should be focused on preceptorships, residencies and internships because these will most likely be the most relevant experiences to the position you are applying to. Some key things to include the following:

Three things you will want to avoid doing in your clinical experience section include:

Finally, don’t discredit non-medical related work experiences automatically. If you held a position that required the use of transferable skills consider adding it because employers can appreciate universal employability traits such as management skills, communication skills and organizational skills.

4. Implement Relevant Action Verbs

Administered	Evaluated	Observed	Scheduled
Applied	Explained	Performed	Shared
Assessed	Helped	Planned	Tracked
Communicated	Listened	Reported	Treated
Decided	Measured	Responded	Updated

Need more verbs to add to your resume? Check out the longest action verb list in the universe!

Didn’t get the specific answers you wanted from this page? Please leave a comment with your question or visit Resume Genius on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn to ask. And if you really liked the sample, don’t forget to pin it on Pinterest!