Nursing Cover Letter

A nursing cover letter is your opportunity to show a hiring manager more than your credentials. Whether you are a new graduate entering your first clinical role, a licensed practical nurse moving into a different specialty, or an experienced RN applying for a leadership position, your letter connects your training and patient care experience to the specific needs of the unit. Nursing covers a broad range of settings and experience levels, from bedside care to advanced practice. This guide applies across all of them. Start with how to write a cover letter if you want a general framework before diving into role-specific details, or browse the full healthcare cover letter hub for related positions.

What employers look for in a nursing cover letter

Nurse managers and healthcare recruiters evaluate cover letters on a combination of clinical competency and professional reliability. Addressing the following areas directly will strengthen your application at every experience level.

• Licensure and certifications -- State licensure (RN, LPN), NCLEX passage, BLS/ACLS/PALS certifications, and specialty credentials such as CCRN or CEN should be named early and noted as current. For new graduates, include your expected licensure date.
• Clinical setting and patient population -- Specify where you have worked or completed rotations: acute care, ICU, med-surg, pediatrics, labor and delivery, long-term care, or community health. Context matters more than job titles alone.
• Patient outcomes and care metrics -- Quantify your contributions wherever possible. Patient satisfaction scores, readmission reductions, protocol improvements, and infection control outcomes all signal that you track and drive results, not just complete tasks.
• EMR and documentation proficiency -- Name the electronic health record systems you have used, such as Epic, Cerner, or Meditech, and describe how your documentation practices support safe, compliant handoffs.
• Interdisciplinary collaboration -- Nursing requires constant coordination with physicians, pharmacists, therapists, and social workers. Show that you communicate across disciplines and escalate appropriately.
• HIPAA and compliance awareness -- Hiring facilities carry significant liability. Demonstrate familiarity with privacy standards, documentation accuracy, and any compliance training completed without deficiencies.

How to write a nursing cover letter that gets interviews

1. Open with a specific clinical achievement

Lead with a result, not a statement of intent. Mention a measurable patient care outcome, a quality improvement initiative you contributed to, or a clinical milestone from your training. An opening like "During my medical-surgical rotation, I supported a 12% reduction in call-light response times by implementing a structured rounding schedule" is far more effective than a generic "I am writing to express my interest." This approach works equally well for a nursing student cover letter entering the field and for a registered nurse cover letter applying to a senior position.

2. Tailor every paragraph to the posting

Read the job description carefully and identify the two or three competencies the facility emphasizes most. If the posting prioritizes telemetry experience, connect your cardiac monitoring rotations to specific patient outcomes. If the role emphasizes charge nurse responsibilities, describe your experience coordinating assignments or mentoring junior staff. Generic letters that could apply to any hospital rarely advance past initial screening. Differentiate your application by addressing the unit's patient population, acuity level, or care model by name.

3. Address your nursing education and clinical training

For nursing students and new graduates, clinical rotations are the equivalent of work experience and deserve the same treatment. Name the hospital or facility, describe the patient population, note the number of supervised clinical hours, and identify the skills you practiced. For experienced nurses applying to a new specialty, explain your preparation: certifications completed, continuing education credits, or cross-training you have pursued. A new grad nurse cover letter should place education and rotation experience front and center rather than apologizing for limited work history.

4. Close with a confident and specific next step

Avoid passive closings. End by naming one qualification that directly answers the role's primary requirement, expressing specific interest in the facility's patient population or care model, and requesting a conversation. Mention your availability and preferred contact method. A direct, confident close signals professionalism and saves the hiring manager time. For career changers entering nursing from another healthcare role, our no experience cover letter guide covers how to frame transferable skills persuasively.

Nursing cover letter example

Replace hospital names, units, and clinical details with your own experience.

Subject: Application for the Nursing position

Dear Hiring Manager, I am applying for the Registered Nurse position on the Medical-Surgical Unit at St. Catherine's Medical Center. With two years of RN experience in a high-acuity med-surg environment, active BLS and ACLS certifications, and proficiency in Epic EHR, I am confident in my ability to contribute to your unit's patient safety standards and care quality goals. In my current role at Harborview General Hospital, I manage a daily patient load of six to eight adults across a range of diagnoses including post-surgical recovery, COPD exacerbation, and diabetic management. Over the past year, I collaborated with the charge nurse and quality improvement team to revise our catheter-associated urinary tract infection prevention protocol, which contributed to a 22% reduction in CAUTI rates on our unit. I maintain a consistent 4.7 out of 5 patient satisfaction score for clear communication, and I complete all documentation in Epic with zero outstanding deficiencies on quarterly audits. I am experienced in coordinating care with attending physicians, hospitalists, pharmacists, and physical therapists, and I escalate changes in patient condition following SBAR guidelines. I also serve as a preceptor for new graduate nurses rotating through our unit, which has strengthened my ability to explain clinical reasoning clearly and support confident, safe practice. I am drawn to St. Catherine's because of your commitment to evidence-based nursing practice and your Magnet designation, which reflects a culture I have worked hard to contribute to. I would welcome the opportunity to discuss how my clinical background and quality improvement experience align with the goals of your med-surg team. I am available for a conversation at your convenience and can be reached by email or phone. Sincerely, Jordan Mitchell

Before you send your application

Use this checklist to review your nursing cover letter before submitting:

• Does your opening sentence include a specific patient care outcome or clinical result?
• Have you named the facility and referenced its care model, unit, or patient population?
• Are your active licensure, certifications, and any specialty credentials listed and current?
• Did you name at least one EMR system you have used and connect it to documentation accuracy?
• Have you addressed interdisciplinary collaboration or a compliance-related achievement?
• Is your letter one page, free of spelling errors, and saved in the format the posting requires?

Browse the healthcare cover letter hub for related examples, or review a nurse practitioner cover letter to see how the format shifts for advanced practice roles.

FAQ

How long should a nursing cover letter be?

Keep it to one page, roughly 280 to 380 words. Nurse managers review large applicant pools quickly, so a concise letter that leads with a clinical result and addresses the role's top requirements directly will perform better than a longer narrative. For detailed formatting guidance, see our how to write a cover letter guide.

What certifications should I list in a nursing cover letter?

Include every certification relevant to the role and confirm each is currently active. For most bedside nursing roles, the baseline expectations are RN or LPN licensure, BLS, and ACLS or PALS where applicable. Specialty credentials such as CCRN, CEN, OCN, or CNOR should be placed in the opening paragraph or immediately after your lead achievement so they are visible without scrolling. For a CNA cover letter or LPN cover letter, the credential list will differ, so tailor the placement accordingly.

How do I write a nursing cover letter as a new graduate?

Treat your clinical rotations as work experience. Name the hospital, describe the patient population and acuity level, quantify your supervised hours, and identify the skills you practiced under each preceptor. Reference your NCLEX passage or expected date, and highlight any nursing school honors, simulation lab achievements, or capstone projects. Our new grad nurse cover letter guide covers this format in full detail.

Can I use the same nursing cover letter for different hospitals?

No. Each application requires a tailored letter. A letter written for an ICU position at a trauma center and one written for a community health clinic position need different clinical emphasis, even if your credentials are the same. Reusing a generic letter is one of the most common reasons nursing applications are screened out before reaching a hiring manager.

How do I write a nursing cover letter when changing specialties?

Focus on the clinical skills that transfer between specialties and be transparent about your motivation for the change. If you are moving from med-surg to labor and delivery, describe your assessment skills, patient communication approach, and any L&D coursework or shadowing you have completed. Employers appreciate candidates who prepare deliberately for a specialty transition rather than simply applying broadly. See the nursing student cover letter page for guidance on framing limited specialty-specific experience, and the registered nurse cover letter page for how experienced RNs position a lateral move.