Medical Surgical Nurse Resume Example
Pursuing a career as a medical surgical nurse provides opportunities for career progression and responsibilities involving monitoring vital signs and assessing patient conditions. A strong resume for medical surgical nurse applications showcases your skills, experience and achievements and helps you stand out from other candidates. In this article, we'll outline how to write a winning resume to boost your chances of success in your medical surgical nurse applications.
The aim of this article is to equip you with all the knowledge required to create a resume that positions you to succeed in your medical surgical nurse applications. You'll find useful insights on constructing a resume that makes the most of your unique skills, experience and strengths. You'll also learn how to tailor your resume according to the job description, and depending on your experience levels. Read on to learn the tips Jobseeker careers experts recommend as the best for your medical surgical nurse resume.
Main elements of a medical surgical nurse resume
A successful medical surgical nurse resume will typically include each of the sections listed below, with some optional sections.
If you're applying for an entry-level medical surgical nurse role and have limited relevant experience, consider using a skills-based, or functional resume format. The layout emphasizes your skills and education above your work experience. Focus the content of your resume on your soft and transferable skills, and any hard or technical skills you've learned from your studies or career to date. You can also mention any relevant internships, training courses or voluntary roles you've taken on.
For those with some prior experience as a medical surgical nurse work experience is the most important element of a resume. Use a traditional, reverse-chronological resume format to emphasize your career timeline and achievements. In your resume work experience section, outline your relevant achievements and showcase the impact you've made in your career to date. Make sure everything you include is relevant to the job description.
Senior job applications require a slightly different approach to mid-level or junior medical surgical nurse roles. Use a reverse-chronological format focusing on your work experience, with a particular emphasis on the impact you've made. It's likely that your senior resume will be longer than a standard resume of one-to-two pages. This is because you'll be listing additional achievements beyond your work experience, such as awards, publications and professional memberships.
The order you present these sections can vary according to your career stage, but it's still essential to include each of the following:
Resume Header with Contact Details
Your medical surgical nurse resume header is the place to add your contact details. Start by adding your full name and underneath, include your email address, phone number and location. Adding your LinkedIn profile, if you have one, can help the employer get a better insight into your skills and industry expertise. You don't need to include any additional personal information or a photo. Be aware of the amount of space your resume header takes up. You don't want your contact details to take space away from the main content of your resume, so keep this section as brief as possible.
Opt for a professional-looking email address based on your name. If your email address could be construed as unprofessional or inappropriate because it contains nicknames or unsuitable language, create a new, more professional email address for your job applications. Always check your contact details to make sure they're up-to-date before you send your resume.
Justin Ortiz
justin.ortiz@example.com
(111) 222 33 444 55
10 Downing Street, London, CA
linkedin․com/in/justin–ortiz123
Resume Summary
Following your resume header, write a resume summary to introduce yourself and showcase some of your key skills and achievements. Alternative names for this section are 'resume objective' and 'personal profile'. While a resume summary focuses on your career experience, a resume objective covers your ambitions and career plans. However, make sure you keep your resume summary short and snappy, and focused on the skills and experience listed in the job description.
Alternatively, write a paragraph that concentrates on your career objectives and how this role fits with your wider ambitions and progression.
A great resume summary should highlight why you're an ideal candidate for medical surgical nurse roles by showing key skills and qualities that reflect the job description and provide evidence to support them. It should also introduce your personality and unique qualities to the reader, to help them start to form an opinion about you as a candidate. See below for some great examples of how to approach your medical surgical nurse resume.
Good example:
Detail-oriented and compassionate Medical-Surgical Nurse with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) and extensive experience in providing high-quality patient care in a fast-paced medical-surgical unit. Skilled in patient assessment, developing and implementing care plans, administering medications, and collaborating with multidisciplinary teams to ensure optimal patient outcomes. Proven ability to handle complex and emergency situations with calm and efficiency, while maintaining a strong focus on patient education and support. Dedicated to continuous professional development and committed to upholding the highest standards of nursing practice
Bad example:
Nurse with some experience in healthcare and patient care. Worked in roles where I helped assess patients and made care plans. Have worked with different medical teams and handled various situations. Focused on patient support and learning more about nursing practices
Alternatively, a poor resume summary would include bland, generic information that does little to prove your suitability for the role, while failing to provide any useful insights on you as a person or as a candidate. The visual above includes some examples of what not to do with your medical surgical nurse resume summary
Employment History
Under your work experience section, add any jobs you've had in the past that are relevant to the position of a medical surgical nurse. Add each previous employment in reverse-chronological order. This means starting from your current or most recent role and working back in time from there. Include your job title, the company name, the location of the job and your dates of employment.
Under each job entry, add several bullet points highlighting your responsibilities and achievements. Consult the job description for a list of the key requirements for the role and make sure your work experience section showcases how you meet these requirements.
The best resume work experience sections focus only on the most relevant previous jobs, and link each bullet point back to a skill or experience listed in the job description. It's also critical to provide evidence that shows the value you added to each role in a quantifiable way, such as project outcomes, key performance indicators or feedback from customers, colleagues or managers. There are some examples of strong resume work experience sections below.
Good example:
Registered Nurse, Medical-Surgical Unit, January 2022 - Present
MedSurge Solutions Inc, Columbus
- Successfully managed care for up to 20 patients daily, ensuring timely administration of medications and treatments
- Implemented a patient education program, reducing post-discharge complications by 30%
- Led a team to achieve a 95% patient satisfaction rate through improved bedside care and communication
Bad example:
Registered Nurse, Medical-Surgical Unit, January 2022 - Present
MedSurge Solutions Inc, Columbus
- Provided excellent patient care and support in a fast-paced environment
- Contributed to team efforts to enhance patient satisfaction and outcomes
- Played a key role in improving healthcare delivery and patient education
See above for some of the pitfalls to avoid with your resume work experience section. A bad resume work experience section might fail to address skills and achievements that relate directly to the job description. Falling back on clichés, vague descriptions and basic responsibilities, rather than showing the impact you made, is likely to disengage the reader.
Education
Your resume's education section provides space for you to list your highest and most relevant qualifications for medical surgical nurse roles.
To work as a medical surgical nurse, employers tend to require candidates to have a specialist degree, such as a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN). If you have this degree, focus on it in your education section, while also mentioning any educational achievements that show your wound care procedures or medication administration skills.
For each entry in this section, add the name and level of your qualification, the institution you studied at, its location and your dates of study. You can enhance this section by adding bullet points that show any outstanding grades, awards or achievements and any specialist subjects you studied. These details can make you stand out from other candidates.
If you organized or participated in any clubs or societies while at university, or you took part in any voluntary work, you could also mention these here.
Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), 2017 - 2020
Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA
Skills
The skills section of a medical surgical nurse resume is a chance to list any skills you have that match those of the job description. You could include electronic health records, critical thinking ability or any other skills that show you're a suitable candidate. Once more, review the job description and pick out any key medical surgical nurse skills listed that match yours. Focus on these skills and any other key transferable skills that make you a strong candidate for the job.
How to list hard skills on your medical surgical nurse resume
Hard skills are specific skills related to the job you're applying for. They include particular abilities, technical skills and industry knowledge that relate directly to jobs as a medical surgical nurse. Furthermore, an extensive list of hard skills helps to make a compelling case for your medical surgical nurse job applications, as they show employers your understanding of the medical surgical nurse role. Aim to include four or five key hard skills. If you have space, explain how and where you've used that skill to create successful outcomes in your career. These skills will demonstrate your credentials and show how you meet the job description.
Your resume hard skills list should reflect your unique and specific industry expertise and experience, while also fulfilling the requirements listed in the job description. See the examples below for an idea of what an effective medical surgical nurse resume hard skills list looks like.
- Patient care management
- IV therapy administration
- Electronic health records
Adding soft skills to your medical surgical nurse resume
Your soft skills are the core qualities and personal characteristics that make you a good employee. They tend to apply to multiple professions and jobs, though the soft skills you'll require may change as you move from junior to senior positions. In fact, as technology develops, soft skills are growing in importance for recruiters and employers, so be sure to add several of these to your resume. It's best to aim for four or five soft skills that match the job description and reflect your strongest personal qualities.
Your soft skills section should make the most of your unique personal qualities and strengths, while also reflecting the requirements laid out in the job description. See below for some examples of useful soft skills for a medical surgical nurse resume.
- Effective communication skills
- Critical thinking ability
- Emotional intelligence (EI)
Certifications
Your certifications section is the place to mention any relevant professional medical surgical nurse certifications, licenses or qualifications. These might be licenses that show you're qualified to operate certain equipment, or certifications that give you the edge over candidates with otherwise similar career history. Therefore, add any necessary licenses and certifications in this section, along with valid dates so employers can see you're still qualified for the job.
See below for some suggestions of relevant certifications for a medical surgical nurse resume:
- CNOR Certification, 2022
- CMSRN Certification, 2022
- CEN Certification, 2022
Expert Tip:
Optional Sections
In addition to the core sections of a medical surgical nurse resume, there are several optional sections you could include to enhance your chances. Pick from the optional sections below to help show the employer you have the skills and experience for the job.
Hobbies and Interests
Add any hobbies and interests that reinforce your credentials for the position. Hobbies can help you show different sides of your personality and make your resume more memorable to hiring managers. They're ideal to include if you're a junior candidate who might lack real world medical surgical nurse experience. Just make sure any hobbies and interests you include in your resume add genuine insight into your personality, in ways other sections of the resume can't.
Voluntary Work
Adding voluntary roles can be a useful way of showing relevant experience and skills for medical surgical nurse roles beyond your main employment history. List your volunteer job title, the organization you volunteered for, its location and the dates of your involvement, alongside a brief explanation of your responsibilities in the role.
References
It's not typical to include references in a medical surgical nurse resume, but some employers might ask for them. Don't add references unless requested by the employer. Include a maximum of three professional references, being sure to check with your referees before including them in your resume.
References are available upon request.
Best action words for your medical surgical nurse resume
Add strong verbs to your work experience section to show the hiring manager the impact you made in your previous roles. The suggested action verbs below will help the reader to understand your key qualities and the impact you made on the organization.
- Assess
- Monitor
- Administer
- Coordinate
- Document
- Educate
- Advocate
- Implement
- Evaluate
- Prioritize
Jobseeker's clean, attractive resume formats can help your applications make a strong impression on employers. Check them out for help designing a winning resume, and see our cover letter templates to help win over recruiters and hiring managers.
Example of a medical surgical nurse resume
The medical surgical nurse resume example below incorporates all the information from above into a full-designed resume template, so you can see how a final resume will look:
10 Downing Street, London, CA
•
justin.ortiz@example.com
•
(111) 222 33 444 55
•
linkedin․com/in/justin–ortiz123
Dedicated and detail-oriented Medical-Surgical RN with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) and extensive experience in providing high-quality patient care in fast-paced medical-surgical units. Proficient in patient assessment, developing care plans, administering medications, and collaborating with multidisciplinary teams to ensure optimal patient outcomes. Skilled in handling complex medical conditions, post-operative care, and emergency situations with a strong commitment to patient safety and satisfaction
Medical-Surgical Registered Nurse (RN)
2020
-2022
MedSurge Health Solutions (Jacksonville)
- Implemented patient care plans resulting in a 25% reduction in postoperative complications over one year
- Led a team to achieve a 95% patient satisfaction score in the medical-surgical unit
- Spearheaded a medication administration initiative, decreasing medication errors by 30% within six months
Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)
2017
-2020
Northwestern University (Evanston, IL)
Patient care management
IV therapy administration
Electronic health records
Effective communication skills
Critical thinking ability
Emotional intelligence (EI)
CNOR Certification
CMSRN Certification
English - Fluent
Spanish - B2
Key tips for a medical surgical nurse resume
Advice to help you craft a winning resume
- Adapt your resume depending on the job you're applying for. Take a look at the job description and make sure you reference all the required key skills and experience.
- Quantify your career achievements by including evidence of your impact throughout your resume.
- List your relevant work experience in reverse-chronological order, starting with your current or most recent job.
- Use a clear, professional resume format to make your document as accessible as possible, including a readable font and appropriate headings, margins and line spacing. This will make your resume easier for recruiters and hiring managers to read.
- Add key skills throughout your resume that match the job description, along with a dedicated 'skills' section.
Pitfalls to avoid with your resume writing
- Don't fill your resume with industry jargon or business-speak that could alienate the reader.
- Don't use elaborate formatting or layouts. These can make your medical surgical nurse resume less readable and harder for applicant tracking systems (ATS) to scan.
- Don't use an email address that contains unprofessional content, and if necessary create a new, more professional email address.
- Don't list irrelevant work experience as it will likely do nothing for your chances of success.
- Don't use passive language - steer away from phrases like 'I was asked to' and use action words instead.
Making an ATS-friendly resume
Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) are one of the key ways recruiters and employers manage the hiring process. The systems can screen candidates by scanning and ranking resumes based on each candidate's likely suitability for the vacancy. When drafting your medical surgical nurse resume, there are a few guidelines to follow to give you the best chance of passing the ATS screening stage and progressing with your application.
Follow these simple rules when writing your resume, to make sure it's ATS compliant:
- Use a traditional resume layout, such as a reverse-chronological or functional format. This will mean your resume includes all the necessary sections, in the expected order.
- Add keywords that match the job description throughout your resume, as ATS applications scan for these and well-placed, considered use can help your resume rank more highly.
- Use clear headings that break your resume up into readable, scannable sections that match the standard content employers expect from a resume.
- Utilize a clean, clear resume design that helps make your content more readable. Use simple fonts and subtle color accents and design elements that don't detract from the written content.
- Make sure your resume is as concise as possible, so ATS applications can easily scan and identify the required details.
For advice and guidance on creating the perfect resume, read our expert career blog and check out our detailed resume examples.
Frequently Asked Questions about a medical surgical nurse resume
Accompanying your resume for medical surgical nurse applications, you'll want to produce a cover letter that similarly leaves a positive impression on hiring managers.
Firstly, think about whether you want to write a full, formal cover letter or whether a brief email to introduce yourself and draw attention to your resume will suffice.
For a full, traditional cover letter, follow formal letter-writing conventions with your header, address line and greetings. The main text of the letter tends to be split into three short paragraphs. Firstly, introduce yourself, confirm the role you're applying for and explain why you're applying for the medical surgical nurse role. In the second paragraph, highlight your skills and experience that are most relevant to the job description. The third paragraph gives you the opportunity to express your enthusiasm for the role and your gratitude to the employer, while leaving a call to action which encourages them to make contact with you.
Jobseeker's tried and tested cover letter templates were created by experts to help you make a strong impression with your applications. Follow the simple steps to create a winning cover letter today.
If you have no experience, it's still possible to write a professional medical surgical nurse resume that makes a positive impression on hiring managers. Use a skills-based resume format to highlight your relevant skills and education. This is more suitable for junior or entry-level roles where you might not have much work experience to showcase. Use the additional information sections at the end of your resume as a showcase for relevant skills and achievements. These can be a particularly useful way of proving you have the skills necessary for the job.
If you want to create a strong first impression in your medical surgical nurse application, a resume headline can help. Resume headlines can also help you pass the ATS stage of the selection process, by highlighting the job title and one or two key details. Write a few words to set the tone for your resume, including the job title, your experience or track record and one or two key skills that make you stand out.
Here's an example of a strong resume headline:
- Junior Medical Surgical Nurse
- Experienced Medical Surgical Nurse
- Senior Medical Surgical Nurse Specialist
The best format for your resume depends on two key factors. Firstly, the amount of relevant work experience you have. Secondly, the type of role and its level of seniority. For roles where you're lacking experience, such as graduate jobs or career changes, you could use a functional or skills-based resume format. This places your skills and education above your work experience. For more senior roles where you have plenty of relevant experience, use a reverse chronological format. This resume structure places work experience at the heart of the document, using it as a showcase for your skills and achievements.
Key takeaways for your medical surgical nurse resume
If you want to catch the eye of employers and recruiters, you need a professional resume that showcases your best skills and career achievements. Choose the most suitable resume format for your experience levels, and focus on tailoring your resume based on the requirements listed in the job description.
Jobseeker has a wealth of resume tools, including resume templates and examples, to help you create a winning job application. Sign up today to get started. Whatever job you're applying for, a professional cover letter can make all the difference to your chances. Use Jobseeker's HR-approved tools and cover letter examples to inspire your applications.
Sources:
(1) Tips for Writing a Federal Resume, U.S. Department of Labor: https://www.dol.gov/general/jobs/tips-for-writing-a-federal-resume
(2) Resume Tips, Duke University: https://careerhub.students.duke.edu/resources/resume-tips/
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