How to Report Graduate-Entry MSN on Resume

[vernonleon]

I just finished my M.S.N., and I'm one of those accelerated non-RN to M.S.N. people. I don't quite know how to report this on my resume. To date, I've written in M.S.N. as my only nursing education, all with an expected completion date. Now I'm done with my program, and it's time to get real about finding a job, so I'm asking for advice about this. Of course my transcripts will not show my degree until February/March, but the date should be December 2008. So that's another complicated part. Here's what I have :

M.S., Nursing, San Francisco State University, 12/23/2008, GPA x.xx/4.0.

B.A., Psychology, etc.

*Note: GPA is inclusive of coursework including pre-licensure courses.

Here's an alternative scenario I've thought of:

M.S., Nursing, San Francisco State University, 12/23/2008, GPA x.xx/4.0

R.N. Licensure Requirements, San Francisco State University, 12/23/2007, GPA x.xx/4.0

B.A., Psychology, etc.

*Note: M.S. GPA includes only coursework, R.N. Licensure Requirements GPA includes only licensure courses.

Maybe I'm just overthinking this, but I've had one call from a potential employer who was unclear about my education (and I can see why that would be). Aside from how to report my education, I also have some reservations about reporting my M.S. because my transcripts will not show it for some time. This particularly concerns me in the case of employers who want transcripts with the application (seems rare, but it happens). Any advice on this, particularly from managers, would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Vernon

[llg, PhD, RN]

I'd simply put a note after your MS entry. Something like ... "Direct entry Master's level nursing professional entry program for students with Bachelor's Degrees in other fields." I would also comment on it in my cover letter.

When in doubt ... explain it clearly and succinctly. Assume the reader might not know and help them out. They will appreciate the help.

[Rockhopper]

I had something like this on my resume which showed I was not a nurse already. Hope this helps.

Objective: To obtain a position in a Medical Surgical Registered Nurse New Graduate Training Program

Education/Certificates: School Name, Program Name, M.S.N. (Accelerated Entry Level Master’s Program), Grad Date. Overall GPA

Membership in student nursing associations/societies with dates

Certificate such as CNA license, BCLS, etc with cert #s & exp dates.

B.S./B.A. with Uni name, major (didn't put date because not as relevant & to avoid revealing my age).

Clinical rotations: dates, location, type of unit, # of hrs

In my cover letter I explained my resume (I had a section on skills (foreign language in addition to clinical skills), health related experience (both volunteer & paid positions) teaching & management experience, & research experience (to show that I know about evidence based research) - I wanted to include my non nursing work experience & show that I could apply it to the nsg world).

Some employers were still confused so I just had to explain it to them right up front.

Good luck