Keys to the Kingdom
Well-crafted resumes give job applicants the edge in landing the interview

By Alicia Hugg, RN
March 4, 2003

Considering a job change? Consider this: Like an effective matchmaker, a good résumé can serve as your own personal agent and make the difference between whether or not you get that all-important interview.

How well does your résumé represent you? Experts agree that it is a good idea to review the document frequently and view it as a work in progress-a marketing tool that effectively frames a job applicant's work experience and special talents.

"Remember, a résumé is a self-promotional document that presents you in the best possible light for the purpose of getting invited to a job interview. A résumé is a marketing piece, not a career obituary," said Yana Parker, author of The Resume Catalog: 200 Damn Good Examples. After all, every day is a learning experience and each day presents at least one opportunity to learn new job skills or improve existing ones.

With the nationwide nursing shortage waxing critical, the demand for nurses continues. While many health care facilities take unprecedented steps to attract nurses, including generous sign-on bonuses, relocation assistance, training for new graduates and re-entry nurses and enhanced benefits packages, nurses still are expected to bring the required experience and skills to the job and be prepared to come on board running.

Not only can an updated résumé provide an edge in applying for that great job, but the process allows the job seeker to review existing skills for transferability, determine whether career goals are on target and pinpoint areas that need improvement to compete in today's health care marketplace.

Whether seeking a first-time position as a new graduate, looking for career advancement, craving a change of scenery or planning a job change for other reasons, job hunters will find that a well-crafted résumé is essential. Knowing what potential employers and nurse recruiters look for in a résumé can give an applicant the leading edge that lands the interview.

Getting started

With more than 10 years of health care recruitment and staffing to his credit, Lloyd Lombard, personnel analyst for San Joaquin County Health Care Services in Stockton, Calif., likes to see a résumé that is perfect in its visual presentation and quality of the written word. Lombard recommends that the résumé and accompanying documents be printed on plain white or ivory bond using a standard typeface such as Times and a type size in the range of 11 to 14.

"Reviewers take only a moment or two to skim a résumé and determine whether the applicant has what they're looking for. Résumés printed on colored paper or having graphics or shading are distracting. Some applicants don't seem to realize that interviewers must often sift through dozens of résumés a day. The candidate who makes the interviewer's job easier has the advantage."

Lombard advises résumé writers to start with a good job objective. "Nurse recruiters like to see some form of stated objective that defines the position a candidate is looking for. A clearly stated goal immediately informs the employer that you have a sense of direction." A portion of the résumé should reflect the job seeker's education, degrees, certificates, professional association memberships and evidence of continuing education in their specialty area. "When a candidate can demonstrate independent efforts in continuing education or training in their stated field of interest they stand out from the rest-it's like going above and beyond the call of duty."

Lombard cautions against résumés with more than two pages, unless applying for a director of nursing or other management position. Candidates with many years' experience should summarize it chronologically with dates. Job applicants who list experience without dates may be viewed as "trying to hide something."

Margaret Loper, RN, director of strategic recruitment with Memorial Hermann Healthcare System in Houston, often speaks to student groups about résumé writing. She agrees that résumés can be a candidate's best marketing tool and should create enough interest so that an employer will want to speak to the applicant in person. Loper stresses the importance of clarity in reflecting knowledge, skills and talents.

"I want to know what type of position the candidate is looking for. Many times on a cover letter the candidate will state they have skills that would benefit our organization. This shifts the responsibility to the interviewer to find a position. The interviewer will try to match up the candidate to an open position, but it may not be what the candidate is looking for."

A calling card

As vice president of nursing at Harrison Memorial Hospital in Bremerton, Wash., Kathleen Sanford, RN, is concerned that nurses do not take the time to write professional-looking résumés. She believes this oversight adversely affects how nurses are viewed professionally. "A lot of nurses show up without résumés. They come in and fill out applications very sloppily and are not careful about dates or other information. When dates don't match, that is an automatic turnoff."

Sanford observes that a résumé gives an applicant a "leg up" and speaks louder than an application, but estimates that only one in three walk-ins have a well-written résumé in hand. "A résumé is a calling card and not to have it denigrates our profession. I think we forget sometimes that the things that each of us does come back to all of us."

In addition to reviewing a résumé for appearance, Sanford uses it to evaluate an applicant's communication skills, including spelling and grammar, as well as experience and accomplishments.

"I want bullet points that say what made you a great staff nurse. Did you figure out a way to make patients safer? What special things are you proud of that you did on the job? Are you a team player? What are your career goals?"

Sanford sees education as another important aspect of the résumé and advises applicants with years of experience to list recent continuing education courses showing they have "kept up."

Helen French, RN, a clinician at the University of Virginia Health System in Waynesboro, Va., believes that many nurses have a hard time accurately describing their work experience and recommends they invest in having their résumés prepared by a professional. "There are a lot of things we are not taught in nursing school-including the reality of unethical behavior. Too many times, I have participated in panel interviews where candidates overrate or underrate themselves."

In reflecting on the electronic mailing of résumés, French said: "If someone doesn't teach you, it comes back to bite you. Realize that whatever you put down in writing is available to everyone in the world. Be careful not to say anything bad about anybody. I have been to meetings where I have heard nurse managers say they will disclose information about former employees on the phone that they would never write down. While this is illegal, it happens."

French encourages job seekers to be persistent. "If you are not accepted by one hospital, go on and continue to look. This may not be the right match for you, but don't give up."

New grads

Dolores Bower, Ph.D., RN, dean of the college of nursing at Niagara University in New York, oversees courses that prepare new grads for employment. Affiliated with Erie County Medical Center near Buffalo, the college serves diverse communities, including a large elderly population in rural and urban areas, making it difficult to attract nurses.

Bower is proud of the preceptorship where senior nursing students partner with a hospital staff person. She says local hospitals welcome their graduates because of the school's reputation for producing compassionate, caring nurses who use good judgment in providing patient care. "During the final five weeks, they are bridging into employment. It's wonderful that most have job offers at the end of their internship. They are evaluated not so much for how much experience they have, but how well they think on their feet. The trick is to convey this on a one- or two-page résumé."

Bower advises new graduates to "think about how you want to stage your career. Go through your own goals and strengths, likes and dislikes. Ask yourself: Have I ever done anything that would distinguish me from any other new grad? Where do I want to be in five years, 10 years? "Cite leadership skills acquired through volunteer work or service groups. Focus on service experience, like community health or hospice gained during the college years. Pick up letters of reference."

Bower observes that since Sept. 11, an increasing number of nontraditional students are entering accelerated nursing programs and choosing nursing as a second career. This group is showing the greatest growth across the country.

"I think many people started re-examining their priorities and looking at the deeper meaning of life. Most are extremely skilled with tremendously rich and diverse backgrounds. They have bachelor's [degrees] in other areas and many are going straight through MSN." She advises them to carefully examine skills, such as fund raising and office management, for incorporation into their résumés.

Contact Alicia Hugg at rosewind09@earthlink.net