What's wrong with my resume?

[Aeterna, BSN, RN]

Throwing my resume up for critique because I can't seem to get any call backs - I've sent perhaps about a dozen job applications over the past couple of months and nothing! As a bit of background, I'm an RN living in Ontario, Canada. I've been applying to other hospitals in a variety of med-surg settings.

Obviously, all personal information was removed and the formatting didn't translate too well from Microsoft Word to here so I've edited the formatting/font/sizes a bit to give you the gist of what's emphasized (such as headings/subheadings). Altogether, it fits into a single page.

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[h=1][NAME][/h]

[Contact information]

Objective:

• To obtain a position as a registered nurse in an acute medical-surgical setting.
  

Work Experience:

Registered Nurse, Medical-Oncology unit, [Hospital Name], [City], Ontario,

July 2010-present

• Provided care and appropriate nursing interventions for clients with a wide variety of medical diagnoses, such as cancer, acute and chronic renal failure, complications of diabetes, complex wounds, and more.
  

Health Care Aide, [LTC Facility Name], [City], Ontario,

April 2008-August 2008 & April 2009-November 2009

• Assisted residents in performing activities of daily living.
  

Certifications:

• Registered Nurse of good standing with the College of Nurses of Ontario
  
• Basic Cardiac Life Support (BCLS)
  
• Non-Violent Crisis Intervention
  
• Gentle Persuasive Approach
  
• Chemotherapy administration
  

Clinical Skills:

• Administration of blood products (packed red blood cells, platelets, albumin, IVIg)
  
• Management and access of venous access devices, including peripheral IVs, PICCs, Hickman catheters, and Port-a-Caths
  
• Management and removal of chest tubes
  
• Complex wound care
  
• Pain management, including patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) and epidurals
  
• Total parenteral nutrition (TPN) and NG/PEG tube feeds
  
• Administration of oral and parenteral chemotherapy
  

Education:

[university], [City], Ontario, class of 2010

• Obtained Bachelor's of Nursing Science degree summa cum laude
  
• Dean's Honour List, 2006-2007 & 2008-2009
  

[High School], [City], Ontario, class of 2006

References available upon request.

[Lev, MSN, RN, NP]

The job market is tough! I would leave out your objective and apply to other nursing positions in addition to med-surg.

Put clinical skills before certifications (should be last). Put education before work experience. Emphasize your BS in nursing.

These points should not be under certifications. Unless you have a certificate in "gentle persuasive approach."

• Registered Nurse of good standing with the College of Nurses of Ontario
  
• Non-Violent Crisis Intervention
  
• Gentle Persuasive Approach
  

Put another section for your nursing license. If you are applying to US hospitals, add that you plan to obtain a US license as soon as possible.

If you are applying to US hospitals: Under clinical skills, leave out "removal of chest tubes" and clarify what you mean by epidurals - US nurses do not remove chest tubes or administer epidural analgesia.

If you decide to go to ICU, you wont have any issues with ports - you seem to have them covered!

Also, a good cover letter goes a long way. Make sure yours is up to date. Look up the hospital you are applying to and add some good things about the hopsital and the mission statement and tell them how you can help them.

[RNRAC]

Actually, I am pretty sure that if you are working already as an R.N. after you finish your license, then you put work before education. After awhile people are more interested in where you worked rather than where you went to school. So that part is correct. Its only the new grads that put school before work exp, because we dont have R.N. experience.

As for the rest of it, it sounds good to me...I think it has less to do with you and your resume, its more like the job market. As in, its not quite at its best at the moment.

Hope this helps :) good luck!

[Aeterna, BSN, RN]

Thanks for the pointers :)

As for my BScN, I don't necessarily have to emphasize it. Here in Ontario, nursing diplomas are extinct now, and even before I started nursing school, Ontario hospitals were already placing BScN requirements for entry-level nurses (i.e. if you're already a diploma nurse and have been working, you can still apply for the job; but if you are just starting out, you need your degree). Because I've graduated within the last few years, it's pretty much an automatic thing that I'll have my four-year degree rather than a diploma.

And yes, Non-Violent Crisis Intervention and Gentle Persuasive Approach are certifications. In fact, I should probably go for the re-cert courses now that I think about it, but I do have them.

And no, I do not plan on moving to the U.S. any time soon. When I first graduated, I considered it but I'd like to stick close to home (which is part of why I want to switch jobs - to be closer to my hometown/family), so removing chest tubes and managing epidurals are within my scope here - even if they aren't wherever I'm applying to, I can at least say I have those skills/competencies, no?

Maybe I will bump up my clinical skills over my certifications and maybe come up with a different name for "certifications"?

[Flnolegirl]

One of my professors said don't put references upon request. Don't know if that makes a difference.