I need a new resume - Help!

[Nurse Beth, MSN]

Dear Nurse Beth,

Please help. I am an RN ADN. My 1st job is a nursing home. Been there 2 years and want to go to hospital. I am 52, I became a nurse late in life. I need to make a new resume and am afraid I stayed too long in the nursing home and hospitals won't look at my resume. I am not polished in making resumes either. Where can I get help?

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Dear Needs New Resume,

You can do this!

A good resume is simple and easy to read, with pertinent information. It should capture the reader's attention and make them want to meet you. In your case, let's focus on modernizing your resume, and positively framing your work history.

These tips will help to make it look more fresh and modern.

• Keep it short: One page in length, two pages tops
  
• Keep it simple: One font (can change size and/or bold strategically for interest)
  
• Liberal use of white space for visual appeal (no blocks of dense text)
  
• Use of bullets and italics for visual interest, readability and emphasis
  
• Skip the References Available on Request” (outdated and employers will ask if needed)
  
• Replace Objective Statement” with a short Summary”
  
• Avoid terms that are cliche, overused, and too general (dedicated, driven, team player)
  
• Avoid listing skills that are a given, or that don't serve to make you stand out (passed meds, IV skills)
  
• Modify your resume to the employer (use keywords from the job description)
  
• Close with a call to action (I will call you early next week to arrange a time to meet”)
  

Make the most of your relevant experience. Have you been promoted to Charge Nurse? Did your facility reduce urinary tract infections (UTIs) or pressure ulcers while you were there, and were you active in those gains?

Led unit based team to reduce UTIs (or hospital transfers, or pressure ulcers) by 50%”

Think back to any projects or process improvements you can speak to. Were you singled out for praise by families? Employee of the month? These speak to customer satisfaction.

Repeatedly singled out by families who were grateful for the compassionate care I provided to their loved ones”

It's a simple statement, but effective. In the interview, you could then build on your compassionate care giving skills by providing an example. (I was invited to the funeral”).

Have a simple email account for your contact information, such as first name, dot, last name @gmail.com to show that you are in touch. No aol account. Consider making a LinkedIn profile if you don't have one, and include the url on your resume.

There's no need to include any information that highlights your age, such as the year you graduated college (if you attended way back prior to nursing school).

Be sure and have someone reliable proof your resume for spelling and grammar. Just yesterday I read a resume where the nurse put persue” instead of pursue”. Do you know that is the main thing I can recall about her resume today?

I hope these tips help you. You can create a good resume, and help them see what a benefit you'll be to the organization.

There are a lot of posts about resume helps at Nursing Resume Help

Best wishes,

Nurse Beth

[tsm007]

Great suggestions! Since I just started doing nursing home work and ultimately want to move to the hospital you gave me some ideas on things to get involved with to help build my resume.