How to Create the Ultimate Nursing Resume
In today's health industry, a generic, uninspired nursing resume won't cut it in the stiff competition for the finest nursing positions. There are several prospects, various company demands, and individual differences among each nurse.
Writing a good nursing resume that effectively communicates your accomplishments and talents in this ever-evolving world of online applications and robotic resume readers might be challenging. Here's how to overcome those challenges in your job hunt.
Step 1: Establish your brand
Consider your job hunt as self-promotion, while you are the product! In a sense, your CV serves as an advertisement for your company. Your target audience in this situation is a potential employer.
Your CV should catch your readers' attention like any other kind of advertising. Being asked for an interview is a positive indicator since it shows that your application stood out. The responsibility is then on you to seal the deal by making an impression on them in person.
The reader of your CV has a certain amount of time to understand the value you bring to the table, just as an advertisement has a finite amount of time to attract their attention. It's a widespread belief that hiring managers won't read your CV for more than 10 seconds. Before it ever enters the hands of a human, it must frequently first be reviewed by a resume-reading robot.
Step 2: Research
The research phase is the first and most crucial element in every marketing effort. Discover more about your target audience, in this example, your prospective employer. Spend some time responding to the following queries:
What is the corporate culture there?
What issues do they face as a company?
What characteristics are they seeking in a potential applicant? Which of those traits do you have, then?
Going online and beginning your research right now from your mobile device is simple, thanks to the internet. Consider taking a few more measures in addition to reading a job advertisement to:
What does their mission statement say, according to their website?
Check out their Instagram posts and tweets to see what they are talking about.
What kind of content do they post on Facebook?
Do you know who works there on LinkedIn?
What is their Google rating?
Social media lets you get a behind-the-scenes look at company culture and ideals.
Where to begin? A Master Resume
Making a "master resume" is a fantastic start, especially if you've never written a resume. This won't be what you include in job applications; it'll be a starting point you can alter and customize as you go along.
Begin by following a core nursing resume so that you can later make minor adjustments for each position you apply for. According to Dale Carnegie, the sweetest and most significant sound in any language is a person's name. Personalizing your resume in terms of how you refer to and address the potential employer and how you list your relevant qualifications is essential.
Ignoring your CV can put you on the fast route to failure, but spending a few minutes tailoring it might earn you the interview you've always wanted.
Difference between Required and Preferred credentials
"Required Qualifications" and "Preferred Qualifications" are frequently used in job ads. The key is to comprehend the differences between the two.
Required Credentials: These standards are exactly what they claim to be. Those who lack these requirements won't be taken into consideration.
Preferred credentials are desirable talents that the employer does not necessarily require. Even if you don't have these, you could still be considered. Don't worry if you don't meet all the requirements; you may still apply and be considered for the position.
Step 3: Select a format for the nursing resume
It's crucial to select a resume format before you write a single word on your document. There are three different formats for resumes. For the majority of nursing professionals, we strongly advise the reverse-chronological arrangement; nonetheless, we would like to urge you to make the best decision for yourself.
The three most common resume layouts are broken down as follows:
1. Reverse chronological
This style shows occupations in reverse chronological order, focusing on career history. Most healthcare practitioners should use this kind, and this essay will concentrate on the format.
2. Practical
This layout deemphasizes employment history and highlights talents; thus, recruiting managers don't generally like it. Most nursing professionals should avoid using this layout, according to our recommendation.
3. Combination
The functional resume and reverse chronological resume are combined in this format. It displays relevant job history while emphasizing skill sets, skills, and accomplishments.
Step 4: The best choice for style and format
The following design and formatting elements are highly recommended:
Margins:
We advise setting the top margin to 1 inch and the side margins to 0.63 inches. Many professionals agree that this creates the ideal balance between text and white space.
Alignment:
Standard alignment is to the left since that is how most readers (and machines) read. Although justified alignment may appear neater, it might create irregular spaces between words and make the text more challenging to read.
Length:
The length of a resume shouldn't be its main selling point in the nursing industry. Although we advise 1-2 pages, some nurses may have resumes that are three pages or more. Do not overthink the situation. Try altering the margin, font style, font size, or condensing phrases if your resume is a few lines or so above the page limit. The bottom line is that it must be aesthetically appealing and contain keywords.
Font Style:
We advise using the fonts Times New Roman or Arial. However, this is a matter of preference for you. Be aware that Times New Roman, when smaller than 11pt, might be challenging to read. There are excellent methods to accomplish this without going crazy with design if you want your resume to seem aesthetically pleasing when printed. To make it as intelligible as feasible, use a typeface that is easy to read and keep the color of your font dark.
Step 5: Building the Sections
Contact Information:
There is no need for a title for the initial portion of the resume. Your name needs to be prominently displayed-the hiring manager should not have to look for it. Ensure that it is the page's biggest font. While there are differing views on the precise placement of the name, we suggest a straightforward, traditional version.
Name:
We advise bolding and putting your name in a font size of 18 to 22. Include both names on the CV if you go by another name.
Nursing Qualifications:
The desired sequence is the highest degree obtained, a license, and national certification.
City/State:
As a security measure, we advise leaving the street address. This, however, is a matter of choice.
Text/phone number: Yes, some firms do prospective text employees. Please provide if the phone number is a home or cell phone and whether you get SMS. Making sure your voicemail message sounds professional and includes your full name at this point is a smart idea.
Email: You should ensure that your email address is professional and does not show your age. Listing your birth year or utilizing a dated email provider like AOL can lead to age discrimination, a severe problem. Add additional digits to your email address and a name variant if required. Even better, create another email address only for your job quest.
LinkedIn profile: In the case that you have one, be sure to mention it. You can pass up possibilities if you don't have a LinkedIn page. The moment to do so is right now! You can quickly generate a shortened LinkedIn URL in your settings that don't contain many random digits and characters.
Here's a little aside on social media and internet visibility. There is a good chance future employers will check you up online. Many recruiters tell us that one of their first steps is researching a prospect on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Therefore, be sure that whatever you put online is appropriate for potential employers to see.
You can also gain from your online activities. Do you run a blog or website about nursing? Are you a famous Instagram user? Maybe you started a popular YouTube channel when you were starting as a nurse? If it's relevant to nursing, list everything here on your CV. This all contributes to your distinctive brand.
Professional History:
Make an employer look over your complete CV before inviting you for an interview. Let them know immediately why you are the best person for the job. Focus on it and let your credentials and accomplishments stand out.
We advise utilizing a professional overview rather than a career aim. The professional summary can be written as a brief paragraph or bullet points that state qualifications and offer a quick career overview.
Consider your resume summary an "Elevator Speech" – a brief, eye-catching remark that compels the reader to keep reading. Your professional description should be tailored to a particular position.
However, it may undoubtedly contain the following details:
Years of expertise in a particular specialization
Information about facilities or facility names
number of subordinates + experience as a supervisor
unique accreditations or honors
Language proficiency
Soft talents like tolerance, empathy, and a spirit of cooperation
Skills and Experience:
It is a typical mistake to detail hard skills at the end of a resume. This is particularly true in nursing, as the profession demands specific skills. Your hard skills should be directly targeted to the role as expressed in the job description and should be clear.
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 complex skills to include. In that case, omitting this section and highlighting your transferable soft skills within your job history is acceptable.
Licensure:
While most nurses put their license titles on their resumes, they frequently omit crucial information, most notably the license's active status and expiration date.
Why is this crucial? It indicates that you are prepared to begin working immediately with future employers. They are not required to hold out for the licensing procedure. You can decide whether to provide your license number based on your comfort level with privacy.
For privacy reasons, advanced practice nurses may omit license numbers, particularly their DEA or restricted drug registration numbers.
Certifications:
This is another crucial part where some essential data are frequently absent on the nursing resumes we've seen. While most nurses disclose their qualifications, it's vital to list them precisely.
Don't only mention abbreviations because specific systems might not be set up to understand them. Include the credential or certification number, the accrediting authority, and the expiration date, if appropriate.
Work History:
Employers are primarily interested in what you can execute for them. We've spoken to nurse recruiters who will focus on this part. What are they seeking, exactly? Evidence for your claims in your resume summary should include facts, figures, and quantitative arguments.
Employers are incredibly frustrated by hazy employment histories, especially employment descriptions that were copied and pasted. Avoid doing that.
Training and Education
Education and training are of the highest significance in the nursing profession. If you have employment experience, you may want to keep this area short. Your relevant degrees should be listed in chronological order.
Regarding the precise sequencing of instruction, there are differing viewpoints. But in our opinion, the title of the degree or certification must come first. Employers are more interested in your educational background than in where you received it.
We recommend the following structure: Title (acronym) of the Degree or Certification, Institution Name.
You could be unsure about whether to include your graduation date. This is a personal choice that is not necessary because it can give away your age. All age groups are impacted by age discrimination, which is the most common type of workplace discrimination. In this case, use your best judgment.
You might want to mention that you graduated with honors or earned a high GPA if it is something you are proud of. Remember, your resume should encapsulate who you are!
It is not required to list any degrees you hold that are unrelated to nursing on your nursing resume. Some second-career nurses like to include this information, particularly if their career has taken an unusual turn or has added significantly to their current work as a nurse. Always remember that you are telling your tale and that you get to select what to include.
On your resume, it should be noted whether you are presently enrolled in graduate school to advance in your studies in the field of nursing and that your degree is pending or in progress. However, it is not essential to put on the resume if you started a graduate degree program but never finished it or do not intend to continue.
Lastly, high school diplomas are not required for nurses to list on their resumes. Because higher education is a requirement for the nursing profession, your higher degree takes precedence over your diploma.
Awards and Accomplishments:
Although it is unnecessary, we advise including accolades and achievements pertinent to the nursing field in this part. These facts will provide the prospective employer with more significant evidence of your qualifications as a nurse.
This section can contain the following:
The hospital or facility where you work has specific honors and distinctions. (Examples include recipients of the Daisy Award, Employee of the Month, and Nursing Excellence Award)
Professional ties and memberships in the nursing and healthcare fields.
Volunteering, if it has to do with nursing.
We recommend the following structure: Name, company, and year.
Step 6: Save, save, save!
Just one more thing: save! Give your resume a relevant name. Sometimes job seekers will submit many papers, and hiring managers don't want to waste time reviewing each to find an overview. Some people like grouping their resumes by specialty. Name the precise file that contains your résumé.
We advise using the first-last-specialty-resume.doc format.
Takeaway:
Now that you know the steps to create the perfect resume to represent you as an ideal candidate for your employers, go ahead and send it out! Your ideal nursing career awaits you!