Quick answer: A new grad nurse resume should lead with your nursing education (BSN or ADN), RN license or NCLEX status, and certifications like BLS and ACLS. Treat your clinical rotations as real experience: list the unit, facility, hours, and three or four bullet points about the patients you cared for and the skills you used. Add relevant jobs (CNA, patient care tech, or any customer-facing role), nursing skills, and honors. Keep it to one page.
You've survived care plans, med-surg rotations, and the NCLEX (or you're about to). Compared to that, a one-page resume should be easy. But many new grad nurses undersell themselves because they think "no nursing job yet" means "no experience." It doesn't.
This guide gives you a free new grad nurse resume template, shows you how to turn clinical rotations into strong experience, and covers the skills, certifications, and keywords hiring managers and nurse residency programs look for.
What to Include on a New Grad Nurse Resume
1. Header
Your name with credentials (e.g., "Maria Lopez, BSN, RN"), phone number, professional email, city and state, and LinkedIn URL. If you haven't passed the NCLEX yet, leave "RN" off your name and note your status in the licensure section.
2. Professional summary
Two or three sentences covering your degree, license status, clinical strengths, and the type of role you want.
Example: Compassionate BSN graduate and licensed RN with 600+ clinical hours across med-surg, ICU, and pediatrics. Completed a 144-hour capstone preceptorship on a cardiac step-down unit. Seeking a new graduate RN residency in acute care.
3. Education
List your degree, school, location, and graduation date. Add your GPA if it's 3.5 or higher, plus honors like Dean's List or Sigma Theta Tau membership. See how to list a degree on a resume.
4. Licensure and certifications
- RN license: state and license number status, e.g., "Registered Nurse, California, License #12345" or "NCLEX-RN scheduled for June 2026"
- BLS (Basic Life Support), required almost everywhere
- ACLS and PALS, a strong plus for acute care, ER, and pediatric roles
- NIHSS stroke certification, if you have it
See how to list certifications on a resume.
5. Clinical rotations
The most important section on a new grad resume. More on how to write it below.
6. Work experience
Healthcare jobs like CNA, patient care technician, medical assistant, EMT, or unit secretary are gold. Non-healthcare jobs count too: retail, food service, and customer service show communication, time management, and grace under pressure.
7. Skills
A mix of clinical and soft skills (see the list below).
8. Honors, activities, and volunteering
Scholarships, student nursing association leadership, health fairs, and medical mission trips. See volunteer work on a resume.
How to List Clinical Rotations on a Nursing Resume
The most common new grad mistake is listing rotations as a bare list of units. Hiring managers want to know what you actually did.
For each rotation (or your most relevant three or four), include:
- Unit or specialty (e.g., Medical-Surgical, ICU, Labor & Delivery)
- Facility name and city
- Dates and clinical hours
- Two to four bullet points with patient load, skills, and achievements
Medical-Surgical Rotation | Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
January 2026 – March 2026 | 120 clinical hours
- Provided care for 2–4 adult patients per shift under RN supervision, including post-operative and diabetic patients
- Administered oral, IV, and subcutaneous medications and monitored for adverse reactions
- Performed head-to-toe assessments, wound care, and Foley catheter insertion
- Educated patients and families on discharge instructions and insulin administration
Put your capstone or preceptorship first. It's usually your longest, most independent experience, so give it the most detail.
Where do rotations go? Either in their own "Clinical Experience" section right after education (recommended), or nested under your education entry.
Skills for a New Grad Nurse Resume
Clinical skills
- Head-to-toe and focused assessments
- Medication administration (PO, IV, IM, SubQ)
- IV insertion and maintenance
- Wound care and dressing changes
- Vital signs and telemetry monitoring
- Foley and NG tube insertion
- Patient education and discharge teaching
- Infection control
- EHR documentation (Epic, Cerner, Meditech)
Soft skills
- Communication with patients, families, and care teams
- Critical thinking and prioritization
- Time management
- Empathy and cultural sensitivity
- Teamwork and willingness to learn
Use the exact terms from the job description where they're true for you. For more ideas, see our skills for resume examples.
Free New Grad Nurse Resume Template
Copy this into Google Docs or Word and replace the brackets.
[FIRST LAST], BSN, RN
[City, State] | [Phone] | [Email] | [LinkedIn URL]PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
[BSN/ADN] graduate and [licensed RN / NCLEX candidate] with [X]+ clinical hours in [specialties]. Completed a [X]-hour preceptorship on a [unit] unit. Seeking a new graduate RN position in [specialty].EDUCATION
Bachelor of Science in Nursing, [University], [City, State], [Month Year]
GPA: [3.5+] | [Dean's List / Honors]LICENSURE & CERTIFICATIONS
Registered Nurse, [State], License #[Number] (or NCLEX-RN scheduled: [Month Year])
Basic Life Support (BLS), American Heart Association, [Year]
Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), American Heart Association, [Year]CLINICAL EXPERIENCE
Capstone Preceptorship, [Unit] | [Hospital], [City, State]
[Month Year] – [Month Year] | [X] hours
- Managed care for [X] patients per shift alongside preceptor
- [Skill or achievement]
- [Skill or achievement]
[Unit] Rotation | [Hospital], [City, State]
[Month Year] – [Month Year] | [X] hours
- [Skill or achievement]
- [Skill or achievement]
WORK EXPERIENCE
Certified Nursing Assistant | [Facility], [City, State]
[Month Year] – Present
- Assisted [X] residents per shift with ADLs, mobility, and vital signs
- [Achievement]
SKILLS
[Clinical skill], [Clinical skill], [Clinical skill], [EHR system], [Soft skill], [Soft skill]HONORS & ACTIVITIES
[Sigma Theta Tau / NSNA role / scholarship / volunteer work]
Want more designs? See our free nurse resume templates.
New Grad Nurse Resume Example
MARIA LOPEZ, BSN, RN
San Diego, CA | (619) 555-0172 | maria.lopez@email.com | linkedin.com/in/marialopezrnPROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
BSN graduate and licensed RN with 640 clinical hours across med-surg, ICU, pediatrics, and labor and delivery. Completed a 144-hour cardiac step-down preceptorship and worked 2 years as a CNA. Seeking a new graduate RN residency in acute care.EDUCATION
Bachelor of Science in Nursing, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, May 2026
GPA: 3.7 | Sigma Theta Tau International Honor SocietyLICENSURE & CERTIFICATIONS
Registered Nurse, California, License #95XXXXX, 2026
BLS and ACLS, American Heart Association, 2026CLINICAL EXPERIENCE
Capstone Preceptorship, Cardiac Step-Down | Sharp Memorial Hospital, San Diego, CA
February 2026 – April 2026 | 144 hours
- Managed care for 3–4 telemetry patients per shift, including post-cardiac catheterization patients
- Interpreted cardiac rhythms and escalated changes to the charge nurse and provider
- Titrated heparin drips per protocol under preceptor supervision
Pediatric Rotation | Rady Children's Hospital, San Diego, CA
September 2025 – November 2025 | 96 hours
- Performed age-appropriate assessments for patients from infancy to 17
- Used play and teach-back methods to educate children and parents
WORK EXPERIENCE
Certified Nursing Assistant | La Jolla Senior Living, La Jolla, CA
June 2024 – Present
- Assist 10–12 residents per shift with ADLs, mobility, and vital signs
- Recognized as "Employee of the Quarter" for patient satisfaction
SKILLS
Telemetry monitoring, IV therapy, medication administration, wound care, patient education, Epic EHR, bilingual English/Spanish
Tips for Nurse Residency Program Applications
Most new grad RN jobs are nurse residency programs, and they're competitive. None of the top guides cover this, so here's what helps:
- Apply early. Many residency cohorts open applications months before start dates and close when they hit volume.
- Tailor your resume to each hospital. Mention the hospital's specialty, Magnet status, or mission in your cover letter, and highlight rotations that match the unit you want.
- Lead with your capstone. Programs want to see you've handled a near-full patient load.
- Show you can learn. Mention leadership roles, research projects, or evidence-based practice work from school.
- Use the right keywords. Hospitals use applicant tracking systems, so mirror terms from the posting, such as "patient assessment," "medication administration," and "EHR documentation." See our ATS-friendly resume templates.
- Prepare for behavioral interviews. Residency interviews lean heavily on situational questions. Practice with the STAR method.
Common New Grad Nurse Resume Mistakes
- Listing rotations without describing what you did
- Leaving out your license status or NCLEX date
- Forgetting non-nursing jobs that show transferable skills
- Going over one page
- Using a generic summary like "hardworking nurse seeking opportunity"
- Typos in medical terminology (a red flag in a profession built on precision)
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I write a nursing resume with no experience?
Lead with your education, license or NCLEX status, and certifications. Then describe your clinical rotations in detail as your main experience, and add any healthcare or customer-facing jobs, volunteer work, and nursing skills.
Should I put clinical rotations on my resume?
Yes. For new grads, clinical rotations are your most relevant experience. List the unit, facility, dates, hours, and specific skills and patient care you provided.
How long should a new grad nurse resume be?
One page. Focus on your most relevant rotations, certifications, and experience.
How do I list my RN license if I haven't passed the NCLEX yet?
Add a licensure section with "NCLEX-RN scheduled for [Month Year]" or "RN license pending, NCLEX-RN passed [date]." Don't add "RN" after your name until you're licensed.
Should I include my CNA experience on my nursing resume?
Yes. CNA, patient care tech, and other healthcare jobs show hands-on patient care and are highly relevant for new grad nursing roles.
Do new grad nurses need a cover letter?
Often, yes, especially for residency programs. A short, tailored cover letter explaining why you want that hospital and unit can set you apart. See how to write a cover letter.
Build Your Nursing Resume in Minutes
Our Resume Builder helps you format your clinical rotations, license, and certifications into a clean, ATS-friendly resume, so you can focus on landing your first nursing job.