Should I Include Clinicals on my Resume?

[Nurse Beth, MSN]

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Dear Nurse Beth,

I had a question about what all to include in a resume. I have almost 2 years as an RN and have been at the same job since I passed my NCLEX. I'm looking to switch gears and move into a new branch of nursing. I was wondering if I should still include my experiences from my college clinicals or would it be best to leave them off, since I now have actual RN experience.

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Dear Should Student Clinicals Go on a Resume,

Once you've worked as an RN, you no longer include student experience. Here's an excerpt from my book (below):

• Purpose
  
• It may seem evident that the purpose of a resume is to land an interview, but resumes are commonly written in a manner that ensures you will be passed over for an interview. Avoid overused phrases- everyone describes themselves as "motivated". 'team player", and so on.
  
• 
  A resume is more than a laundry list of experiences; when effective, it's a compelling snapshot of you. If it's sufficiently compelling you'll get the call for an interview.
  
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  Given that the purpose of your resume is to answer the question "Why should we interview you?" it follows that everything you choose to include in your resume should answer the question "Why should we interview you?"
  
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  A common example of something that does not answer the question "Why should we interview you?" is a lengthy description of clinical hours. All qualified applicants attended and passed clinical rotations so it only serves to show that you are like everyone else, and that you have a student mindset, not an employer's mindset.
  

Best wishes,

Nurse Beth

Author, "Your Last Nursing Class: How to Land Your First Nursing Job"...and your next!

[llg, PhD, RN]

I agree with Nurse Beth ... but with one exception. If you did something really special as a student that is relevant to the job you are applying for, include that. For example, if your senior capstone experience was in a unique specialty and your first job was in different specialty -- and you are now applying for jobs in your capstone specialty. That student experience might get you noticed and give your employer some assurance that you are familiar with that capstone specialty.

[Have Nurse, ADN, RN]

You might discuss it during the interview if it comes up.