New Grad Resume Question

My recommendation is to put only the basics on the front page of the resume ... but to add a statement along the lines of: "See attached description of student clinical experiences." Then put the more detailed descriptions on the attachment.

I used to be among those who recommended that you not get specific with your descriptions of your student clinical experiences. I used to say that "We all know what you did as a student. So, please don't clutter up your resume with all those details." However, as an increasing number of new grads are coming to us with almost NO actual hands-on experience, those of you who have it should probably show it off. I think the idea of including the details in an attachment is a nice compromise. It doesn't clutter up the front page of your resume -- while still providing the information that may help you separate you from those who don't have that experience.

Also, if you're having trouble coming up with those oh-so-essential bullet points for each clinical experience, I've found that one of the best places to look is your clinical course syllabi. Usually, the syllabi will expand beyond the "assessed vital signs, provided nursing care, etc." and remind you of some great things you did (probably subconsciously).

Best of luck with your impending graduation and job search!

OK, look at the following page. Note that I don't support the provider, but simply pasting the first Google result:

http://www.free-resume-tips.com/resu...ealthcare.html

See out sticked post, top of section: Wondering why you can't get hired or promoted: Resume + Interview hints!

For real?

I am astounded that a school could actually be an accredited, approved school of nursing and yet turn out graduates with little or no hands-on experience.

That is astonishing to me. I guess I'm not so shocked that nobody wants to hire new grads, then.

Well, clinical is what you make of it: you can hang back and do the minimum possible to pass, or you can throw yourself in and really get dirty gaining hands-on experience.

Some schools require you to volunteer certain amount of hours in a local hospital/health facility before you graduate/get access to take the test.

Yes, some schools provide very minimal clinical experience. They meet the basic number of hours required by their State Board ... but much of that time is spent "observing" or in a learning lab. Simulations, observations, and class discussions about case studies are all very useful ways to learn -- but they are NOT a 100% substitute for actual hands-on experience.

Also, some schools will provide more (or less) experience in certain fields than others. I work in a children's hospital. Some students get 6-7 weeks (72-84 hours) of solid inpatient peds experience at my hosptial. Other schools just bring their students here for 2 or 3 days (of mostly observation) and that's all they get of inpatient peds. They may spend an additional couple of days in outpatient peds setting -- where I am sure that they are spending at least half of their time observing. So ... all of the students just described have "had peds clinicals," but they are in no way equivalently educated in peds.

That's why I have started recommending that students keep a record of these things for their resumes ... and then tailor each resume to highlight the stuent experiences that are relavent for the job you are seeking ... and/or present those experiences on a separate page of the resume. Savy employers are starting to be aware of the wide range of experiences that new grads are graduating with. It's not like the old days in which you could count on a graduate to have had certain types of experiences.