What Should I Include on a Nursing Curriculum Vitae?

Several key components should be included in a nursing curriculum vitae (CV) or resume. There are sections for education, licenses and certifications, and student and professional experience. You should also include awards and honors, professional activities, and notes on any research projects or manuscripts you’ve had published if you have several years of nursing experience. A professional references section is included in some nursing CVs.

The nursing curriculum vitae takes time to prepare because it is a document that is used to market your skills and experience. Your curriculum vitae should send a positive message about your previous nursing experience and should be clear, concise, and free of any ambiguous phrases or information. Start with an outline and work on individual sections before aligning them in the final document. In terms of format, Microsoft Word documents are simple to update, attach to e-mail, and submit to job-search websites on the Internet.

Show the names of the schools you attended, the types of degrees you earned, the years you graduated, and any academic honors you received in your education section. Note where you are licensed to practice nursing and any certifications you’ve earned through continuing education in the licensing and certification section. Include any certifications you’re working on in your nursing curriculum vitae, along with a timeline for when you’ll finish them.

The student and professional sections of your nursing curriculum vitae will give the best picture of who you are and what you’ve done as a nurse. Separate student and professional positions, and list all positions you’ve held under each heading with one to three concise, explanatory sentences. Include the years you worked in each position, and list them all in reverse chronological order so a potential employer can see what you’re doing now and read backward.

Include any scholarships and student honors you received in the awards and honors section of your nursing curriculum vitae, as well as recognition you received while working, such as honors conferred for professional nursing volunteer work. Include memberships in any nursing-related organizations, as well as any board positions you’ve held, in the section devoted to professional activities. Finally, in the academics section of your nursing curriculum vitae, list any published manuscripts and research projects to which you contributed. If you’ve worked on a lot of research projects or written a lot of manuscripts, you can divide them into sections.

Many job search websites employ screening tools to choose nursing CVs for further examination. When reading a job posting, take note of the key words and, if possible, incorporate them into your nursing curriculum vitae. This increases the chances of your CV passing an initial computerized screening. Include your complete contact information, including a street address, phone number, and email address.