How to Write a Resume for a Licensed Practical Nurse

As a licensed practical nurse (LPN) you are authorized to perform regular nursing functions, as long as you are under the direction of a physician or a registered nurse. This career also opens up avenues for home health care work as well as the supervision of clinical office staff members and certified nursing aides.

Instructions

1. Pick up your pad and pen, and then start out by drafting your objective. It is here that you define your desired position; thus you need to know your audience. Custom-tailor your objective to explicitly state if you want to work as a full-time or part-time licensed practical nurse, desire supervisory duties, wish to work in a home health setting or a clinic, or if you wish to work in a hospital. Ideally the objective should be about one, or at most two, sentences long.

2. Draft your aptitude section next. In this segment you may highlight your educational background, licenses you received, and also voluntary certifications you earned. If it applies to your goal of obtaining work as a licensed practical nurse, list it here. Do not hesitate to also list your CPR certification. This section may be written in simple bullet points.

3. Outline your professional expertise next. This part of your LPN resume draws attention to the various nursing tasks with which you are familiar. It is a good idea to include the ones you can perform with only a minimum of supervision. Applicable skills could be your ability to initiate wound care, take vital signs, administer medications, start IVs, and also handle high impact triage. Other pieces of information to include here are the kinds of care settings--such as geriatric, hospice, or emergency room—in which you have previously worked. This section is also done in bullet points.

4. Follow this up with a section enumerating your actual work experience. It is important to show a solid work history, and if this is your very first nursing job, you may need to play up the responsibilities you held in other work environments that would translate well to a licensed practical nursing job. For example, if you used to be a shift supervisor in an eatery, you may translate this experience as being one that shows you can handle scheduling and the supervision of nursing aides with no problem. If you already have LPN work experience, be sure to list—with copious action words—the kinds of work experiences you have had.

5. Consider adding an awards or special recognition section if you are a bit light on work experience. This portion may point to an above average graduation grade point average, admission to the Dean’s List, and other honors. If you have a lot of LPN work experience, considering skipping the honors section. The one notable exception is the mention of military service in your past; even if it does not directly relate to your career goal, list your honorable discharge.

Resources

• An example of a resume for an experienced licensed practical nurse may be found at the JobBankUsa.com website.
• View a template for an entry level LPN position resume at the ResumeMagic.com website.
• Find out how much a licensed practical nurse could earn--depending on the length of experience in the career field—on the PayScale.com website.
• If you are still thinking of exploring practical nursing as a career option, read the career advice on the Career-Advice.Monster.com website.
• Consider joining the National Federation of Licensed Practical Nurses at the NFLPN.org website, and explore networking opportunities that might result in finding jobs.