A strong LPN resume showcases your clinical competencies, patient care experience, and nursing licensure. Use this guide and example to build a resume that passes ATS screening and gets you interviews at hospitals, long-term care facilities, and outpatient clinics.
Licensed Practical Nurses are in high demand across healthcare settings, from skilled nursing facilities to physician offices. With employers screening hundreds of applications per opening, your resume must clearly communicate your clinical skills, certifications, and patient outcomes. This guide shows you how to create an LPN resume that highlights your hands-on care abilities and meets the expectations of nurse managers and recruiters.
Highlight your nursing license and state of licensure prominently at the top of your resume — recruiters look for this first
Quantify patient loads: 'Provided direct care to 20+ patients per shift in a 120-bed skilled nursing facility' is more impactful than 'Cared for patients'
Include certifications like BLS, IV Therapy, and Wound Care — these are keywords ATS systems scan for
Tailor your resume to the specific healthcare setting (long-term care, acute care, home health) mentioned in the job posting
Use clinical terminology accurately — hiring managers will notice if you misuse medical terms
Keep your resume to 1 page unless you have 10+ years of diverse nursing experience
Focus on your clinical rotations from nursing school, including the number of patient contact hours, types of facilities, and specific skills practiced. Highlight any CNA or medical assistant experience that preceded your LPN program. Include volunteer healthcare work and relevant certifications like BLS and First Aid.
Quantify your impact wherever possible — include patient-to-nurse ratios, accuracy rates, and any measurable outcomes you influenced. Highlight specialized training (IV certification, wound care, dementia care) and tailor your skills section to match the job description keywords exactly.
Include your GPA only if it is 3.5 or higher and you graduated within the last 2-3 years. For experienced LPNs, clinical experience and certifications carry far more weight than academic performance. Replace GPA with clinical honors or awards if applicable.
Use a reverse chronological format with clear section headers: License & Certifications, Clinical Experience, Skills, and Education. Submit as PDF unless the employer requests another format. Use standard fonts at 10-11pt and keep formatting simple so ATS systems can parse it correctly.
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