2nd career new grad - do you include "non nurse" experience?

[ro2878, ADN, BSN]

I am an "old" new grad!

I earned a Bachelor of Science in 1986 and worked about 10 years as a paralegal. I was then a stay at home mom and eventually returned to school and worked as a pediatric med asst before completing RN school. I don't know if I should include my paralegal experience but I don't want to just leave a gap from college until going back and becoming a med asst.

What do you think? Thanks for the advice.

[caliotter3]

I listed my non-healthcare experience until I had some healthcare entries to take their place. Once I had three or so healthcare jobs, I started to leave the other material off my resume. Of course, I will list whatever is called for on applications: last ten years, entire work history, last seven years, etc.

[scifihippie]

I am an "old" new grad! I earned a Bachelor of Science in 1986 and worked about 10 years as a paralegal. I was then a stay at home mom and eventually returned to school and worked as a pediatric med asst before completing RN school. I don't know if I should include my paralegal experience but I don't want to just leave a gap from college until going back and becoming a med asst. What do you think? Thanks for the advice.

I had a 15 year career before I went to nursing school. I had two jobs, one for 5 years another for 10. I listed skills from those jobs that applied to nursing, like supervision, delegation, time management, etc. It also showed long term loyalty to my jobs. I thought it helped me land my graduate nurse job before I even graduated.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

generally, you've learned some skills in your previous career that can be applied to nursing -- multi-tasking, for example, or customer service. you should list those jobs (you don't want to be viewed as someone who has never held a regular job before) and be prepared to discuss how the skills you learned in those jobs will make you a better nurse.

[llg, PhD, RN]

I recommend listing everything on your resume to show that you have been successful in your previous jobs. However, as some past experiences are older and less relevant to the jobs you are now seeking ... your entries about them should be brief and only highlight the relevant stuff. But list it all so that the door is open for the prospective employer to explore further if they would like.

[ro2878, ADN, BSN]

Thanks for the comments!

Next question (and especially with respect to today's job market with so many applicants): what about resume length and the old "the reader will lose interest if the resume is more than 1 page?"

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

you can just list your previous jobs, titles and then summarize in a single paragraph what you can bring from those jobs to nursing.

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

I did while I was searching for that first nursing job, and it did mean I had a 5 year period of unaccounted for time. In interviews, that's when I'd explain that I went to nursing school and (depending on the vibes I got from the interview) started a family.

After I got my first nursing job, I dropped the oldest non-nursing entry. As I get more nursing experience, the older non-nursing entries will also come off.

[RNtobeinSoCal]

I'm in a similar situation - 20 years of work experience in a variety of fields (and countries!) and I have no idea how to frame this experience without looking like a flake / job hopper. The only med skills I have are student clinicals and a summer internship at a doctor's office. Do you stick to the "nothing over ten years old" rule as well? Any ideas if employers prefer the chronological format, or prefer to see the skills listed or in paragraph form? Any advice you have is very, very much appreciated.