Resume arrangement

[__patiently_waiting]

Hello everyone!

Before I start off, I just want to say Happy Holidays to you all.

I have a question about how the arrangement of a new grad resume should be. Initially, I thought that it should be typically arranged;

Education

Licensure/Certifications

Clinical Experience

Volunteer Experience

Organizations and Involvement

I recently got some advice to put clinical experience last, because all new grads have similar experiences. I was told that this was the better arrangement:

Education

Licensure/Certifications

Organizations and Involvement

Work Experience

Volunteer Experience

Clinical Experience

The rationale given for that is that it will highlight what is unique to me first, and capture the readers attention.

It sounds like great advice, but I definitely would love more than one opinion. Do you guys agree or disagree with that?

Also, do you all feel as though non-nursing related work would be beneficial on a nursing resume?

Thanks in advance

[duaneconnell7, RN]

Resumes are always a little bit tough to organize - and there are always doubts and questions about what order to put things in. I think it depends on you personally and what other involvements you've had. If you feel you have very strong sections for volunteering, organizations and work experience, then put that before clinicals. Otherwise, put your clinicals first. Also- when you do your resume, be sure to highlight your skills and how you applied them in each situation. For example "I work well under stress. I continue to solve problems and motivate others" As far as non-nursing related work, include it if it still seems relevant or wasn't toooo long ago. It's always good to show that you can be professional and keep a job by showing you have prior experience. Good luck!

[llg, PhD, RN]

I agree with the general principles in the above post. Lead with your strengths so they are most likely to be noticed. If you have nothing special to say about your clinical experience -- and they were all routine -- I would not feature them prominently and mention them only briefly at or near the end. However, if you did special preceptorships or had other particularly pertinent experiences that other students don't have, I would feature them and put them in or near the top.