Healthcare

Registered Nurse Resume Example

Nursing resumes need to balance clinical competencies with compassionate patient care. Whether you're an experienced RN or a new graduate, this example shows how to present your certifications, specialties, and patient outcomes effectively.

Sample Registered Nurse Resume

Sarah Mitchell

Registered Nurse, BSN

sarah.mitchell@email.com(312) 555-0198Chicago, IL

Professional summary

Compassionate registered nurse with 6 years of experience in medical-surgical and ICU settings. BLS and ACLS certified. Recognized for reducing patient fall rates by 30% through evidence-based safety protocols. Skilled in patient assessment, care coordination, and electronic health records (Epic).

Experience

Registered Nurse – ICU
2021 – Present

Northwestern Memorial Hospital

  • Provide critical care for 4–6 patients per shift in a 30-bed ICU, managing ventilators, vasopressors, and continuous monitoring
  • Led implementation of a nurse-driven mobility protocol that reduced ICU length of stay by an average of 1.2 days
  • Precepted 8 new graduate nurses during their first year, all of whom successfully passed competency assessments
  • Achieved 98% compliance rate in hand hygiene audits across the unit
Registered Nurse – Med/Surg
2018 – 2021

Rush University Medical Center

  • Managed care for 5–7 patients per shift across orthopedic and general surgery units
  • Implemented hourly rounding protocol that decreased patient call light usage by 40% and improved satisfaction scores
  • Collaborated with multidisciplinary teams for discharge planning, reducing readmission rates by 15%

Education

Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)

University of Illinois Chicago

2018

Skills

Patient AssessmentCritical CareIV TherapyEpic EHRBLS/ACLS CertifiedCare CoordinationPatient EducationWound CareMedication AdministrationTeam Leadership

How to write this resume

Lead with your certifications

RN, BSN, BLS, ACLS, CCRN — put these right in your header or summary. They're the first thing nurse recruiters look for.

Quantify patient outcomes

Use numbers: patient ratios, satisfaction scores, fall rate reductions, readmission rates. Outcomes-driven nursing is what hospitals want to see.

Specify your unit and speciality

ICU, ER, Med/Surg, L&D — be specific. A 'registered nurse' is too vague. Your specialty experience determines which jobs you qualify for.

Mention EHR systems

Epic, Cerner, Meditech — name the systems you've used. Hospitals invest heavily in these and want nurses who can hit the ground running.

Key skills to include

  • Patient assessment and triage
  • Critical care and ICU nursing
  • Electronic health records (Epic, Cerner)
  • Medication administration and IV therapy
  • Care coordination and discharge planning
  • Patient and family education
  • Wound care management
  • BLS, ACLS, and specialty certifications
  • Infection control protocols
  • Interdisciplinary team collaboration

Common mistakes

  • Not listing certifications and licensure prominently
  • Being vague about unit type and patient ratios
  • Forgetting to include EHR/technology proficiency
  • Writing a resume longer than 2 pages — keep it focused

Related examples

Build your Registered Nurse resume now

Use this example as a framework, then tailor each bullet to your own outcomes.