Nurse CV example
Amina Cole is not a real nurse, and Severn Hospital is not a real employer. The pin, the bay and the sample week are invented. Use the order of the page, then write shifts you can explain to a manager or the NMC.
A UK nursing CV does not need a photo or your date of birth. It does need the register you hold, the setting, and proof you record and escalate care. Do not paste a patient story that could identify someone.
Full example CV
Fictional person, ward and figures. Do not copy the sample week.
Amina Cole
Bristol · amina.cole@example.com
Eligible to work in the UK · NMC pin current in this sample
Personal statement
Registered nurse with four years on a medical ward. I write the observation, the escalation and the plan in the same note, and I hand over what is still outstanding. Looking for a ward role where documentation is treated as part of the care.
Experience
Staff nurse
Harbour Ward, Severn Hospital (fictional) · May 2022 – present
- Take a bay of medical patients, record observations on time, and escalate a rising score using the ward criteria rather than waiting for the next drug round.
- In a made-up sample week, rewrote three handover lines so the night nurse could see the outstanding scan, the family update and the cannula review without reading the whole day.
- Explain a discharge plan in plain English, including the medicines the patient is taking home and who to call if the symptoms return.
- Support a student with one medication round a shift, and sign only the tasks I watched.
Staff nurse
Nightingale Assessment Unit (fictional) · August 2020 – April 2022
- Admitted patients from the emergency department, took a history, and flagged allergies before the first prescription.
- Kept a running list of who was waiting for a bed, and told the coordinator when a patient had been in the unit past the agreed time.
Education
- BSc Adult Nursing, 2020
- NMC registration, maintained in this fictional sample
Skills
- Observations, escalation and handover notes
- Medicines administration with a second check where the policy requires it
- Discharge explanations in plain English
- Supporting a student on a task I have watched
- Infection control on a bay
What to show
Name the setting and the task. “Compassionate” is not evidence until the note says what you did.
- The part of the register you are on, and that it is current
- Ward, clinic, community or theatre, and the patient group in general terms
- Observations, medicines and escalation, using the policy name if you know it
- Handover that another nurse can act on
- Students or new staff only for tasks you actually supervised
- Discharge explanations in plain English
Common mistakes
- A photo, age, or a full home address.
- A patient initial, bed number and diagnosis together.
- Calling yourself a sister or charge nurse because you held the keys once.
- Listing every task in the shift as one paragraph.
- A pin number you are not sure is still current.
- American spelling, or any title other than CV.
ATS keywords
Use a word from the advert only if you have worked in that setting.
- registered nurse
- staff nurse
- NMC
- observations
- medicines administration
- handover
- escalation
- discharge planning
- infection control
- documentation
Use it on your own CV
FAQ
Should a UK nurse CV include a photo?
No. Leave off a photo and your date of birth. City, email and your registration are enough.
Can I name a patient on my CV?
No. Describe the task and the setting without a name, initials, bed number or a rare diagnosis that could identify someone.
Where does my NMC pin go?
Say that you are on the register and that it is current. Do not publish the full pin on a public page. You can take proof to interview.
How long should a nurse CV be?
Two pages is normal once you have a few years of practice. Cut student placements that repeat the same task unless they are your only evidence.
Free job-ready CV checklist
A one-page checklist for any role. No name, and no account.