Director of Nursing Resume Writing Tips and Sample

Are you excited about the potential for a new director of nursing (DON) position, but need more support updating your resume? If so, our director of nursing resume writing tips and sample will help you craft a well-written resume.

Creating a polished cover letter and resume are essential to standing out to recruiters and hiring managers. It’s your opportunity to showcase your nursing leadership and management skills. We’ve provided resume writing tips, answers to common questions, and a director of nursing resume sample to prepare for this crucial task.

Resume Writing Tips

Follow these tips to help your resume writing go faster and smoother:

• Create a list containing dates of nursing school graduation(s), work history, and nursing license and certification expirations.
• Reflect on your career and note significant achievements and their impact to include in your resume — the more specific, the better.
• Tailor your resume to the DON job posting you’re applying for by highlighting the requested skills and qualifications.
• Enlist help by asking someone detailed-oriented to proofread your resume and catch errors that would lead to a poor first impression.

Common Director of Nursing Resume Questions

The answers to common resume questions are not all-encompassing, as the DON role can vary by employer. However, they provide a strong foundation to build your knowledge base.

What Should Be on a Director Resume?

Your resume should contain the following sections listed below. Note, you can typically allow 1 page for every 10 years of pertinent work experience, but don’t exceed 2 pages.

• Header
• Professional summary
• Director of nursing objective (optional)
• Education
• Work experience
• Skills
• Licenses and certifications

What Are the Duties of a Nurse Director?

As the highest-ranking nurse for a facility, the director of nursing responsibilities are significant. The DON is the cornerstone of their organization, offering guidance and leadership to their staff, managing all nursing operations, and guaranteeing the delivery of exceptional care to residents and patients.

What Skills Should a Nursing Director Have on a Resume?

The DON requires a sophisticated skill set finely honed through years of experience. Here are a range of skills that complement this position:

• Excellent communication, organization, and leadership skills
• Working knowledge of government regulations and healthcare best practices
• Staff development, coaching, and mentoring
• Basic budgeting and financial management skills

Going through different nursing resume examples will help you brainstorm ideas for presenting your career in a way that shines. Once your application is completed, you can start preparing for your DON interview questions. Check out the next section for more inspiration.

Director of Nursing Resume Sample

Emilie Ford, MSN, RN, DNS-CT

Tampa, FL

555-555-5555 | eford@url.com | linkedin.com/eford

Professional Summary

Highly accomplished nursing director with 12 years of nursing experience, including 9 years of leadership. Adept at managing nursing services, ensuring high-quality care, and monitoring compliance with regulations. Proven track record in initiatives to improve patient outcomes and resident and family satisfaction. Skilled in staff development, quality improvement, and interpersonal communication.

Education

University of Central Florida, College of Nursing, Orlando, FL, 20XX

Master’s of Science in Nursing (MSN) in Nursing Leadership and Management

University of Florida, College of Nursing, Gainesville, FL, 20XX

Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing (BSN)

Work Experience

Director of Nursing, ABC Nursing Home, Tampa, FL March 20XX–Present

• Manage all aspects of nursing services, ensure high-quality care, and monitor compliance with government regulations for a team of over 200 nursing staff.
• Create and implement patient outcome initiatives, resulting in a 20% decrease in infections and a 35% decrease in falls.
• Implement initiatives to improve resident and family satisfaction, improving scores by 25%.
• Improve nursing home’s overall CMS star rating score from 3.0 to 4.5 in one year.

Nurse Manager, DEF Skilled Nursing Home, Tampa, FL April 20XX–February 20XX

• Developed staffing schedules to ensure adequate coverage for a nursing staff of over 100.
• Increased nursing staff retention by 15% and patient satisfaction by 23% by increasing nurse leadership diversity to reflect community demographics.
• Implemented SBAR across teams and decreased medical errors from 30% to 10%.

Charge Nurse, RST Assisted Living, Chase, FL August 20XX–March 20XX

• Supervised a staff of 10 CNAs, LPNs, and RNs on a 40-bed memory care unit providing patient-centered nursing care to geriatric patients with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

• Precepted and mentored nursing staff, resulting in a 12% improvement in staff retention.
• Provided direct patient care to a small panel of residents in addition to charge nurse duties.

Clinical Nurse, XYZ Hospital, Brandon, FL September 20XX–July 20XX

• Provided comprehensive, direct, patient-centered nursing care to medical-surgical patients, including pre- and post-operative care.
• Collaborated with the healthcare team to develop and implement patient care plans.
• Educated patients and families on disease process, treatment, and self-management.

Skills

• Leadership and team management
• Quality improvement
• Regulatory compliance
• Staff development
• Strong interpersonal skills
• Decision making
• Critical thinking

Licenses and Certifications

• Florida Multistate RN License Exp. 04/30/20XX
• AAPACM Certified Director of Nursing Services (DNSCT) Exp. 02/28/20XX
• AHA BLS Certification Exp. 09/30/20XX

Ready to Achieve Your Next Career Goal?

These director of nursing resume writing tips provide the necessary tools to create a successful resume. Search for director of nursing jobs on IntelyCare, tailor your resume to your ideal position, and apply today.