Circulating Nurse Resume Example and Writing Tips

First impressions are everything, especially in a competitive job market. That’s why your circulating nurse resume should reflect both your clinical expertise and your ability to stay calm, organized, and efficient in high-pressure surgical environments. It’s not just about listing your circulating nurse duties — it’s also about showing how you manage the operating room (OR) and support your team. A focused, well-written resume and cover letter can help you land top roles in the field.

This guide is designed to help you craft a standout nursing resume that highlights your most valuable traits and sets you apart in the eyes of employers. Plus, we’ve included a resume example to help bring your own to life.

3 Tips to Write a Great Circulating Nurse Resume

Anyone can list job duties — but if you want to capture an employer’s attention, you’ll need to go a step further. These tips are designed specifically for circulating nurses who want to highlight not only what they’ve done, but also how they’ve made a difference in the surgical environment.

1. Don’t Skip the Resume Objective

Start with creating a catchy circulating nurse resume objective. This short statement at the top of your resume sets the tone for the rest of your application — and when done right, it can immediately grab the hiring manager’s attention. Think of it as your elevator pitch in one to two impactful sentences. Check out the following examples:

• Experienced: CNOR-certified RN with 5 years of experience in orthopedic and general surgery. Contributed to an award-winning perioperative team; skilled in maintaining surgical flow and patient safety.
• Career changer: Dedicated RN with 6 years of med-surg experience, completing perioperative training to confidently transition into an OR circulating nurse role. Known for excelling in clinical judgment and steady leadership in high-pressure situations.

Interesting fact: According to an eye-tracking study by Ladders, recruiters spend an average of just 7.4 seconds scanning a resume. That’s why a strong, straight-to-the-point objective can make a difference.

2. Use Quantifiable Outcomes to Show Impact

People tend to write resumes that describe tasks. Exceptional resumes describe results. According to one study, resumes with measurable achievements are 40% more likely to get a recruiter’s attention. For a circulating nurse, this means going beyond “assisted in surgical procedures” and including statements like:

“Coordinated surgical flow for an average of 15 procedures per day with 98% on-time starts, contributing to increased OR efficiency and reduced turnover delays.”

Want to make your resume stand out? Highlight metrics like number of procedures, turnaround time, compliance scores, patient safety improvements, or teamwork recognition awards. These give hiring managers a clearer picture of your real-world impact.

Tip: Research shows that certain details on your resume can actually give employers clues about your personality — like how organized, open, or confident you are. So, present your experience with clarity and style.

3. Feature Your Specific Circulating Nurse Skills

Circulating nurses need a mix of technical knowledge, critical thinking, and communication skills — and your resume should reflect that balance. Therefore, when crafting your circulating nurse resume, skills focused on operating room efficiency, patient safety, and interpersonal collaboration under pressure should be highlighted to set you apart.

Here are some examples of skills to include in your resume:

• Maintaining sterile field integrity by monitoring for breaks in aseptic technique
• Performing instrument counts and sponge counts with a circulator to prevent retained surgical items
• Supporting intraoperative safety by anticipating team needs and troubleshooting equipment or supply issues as they arise
• Overseeing room turnover between cases, ensuring timely reset and readiness for the next procedure
• Ensuring accurate patient identification, surgical site verification, and informed consent prior to every procedure
• Coordinating room setup based on surgeon preferences and case requirements
• Managing intraoperative documentation in EMR systems, including Epic and Cerner
• Labeling and transporting surgical specimens with complete and accurate documentation

Keep in mind that your specialty matters when it comes to resumes. If you are writing a CVOR nurse resume, ensure you mention cardiovascular surgery-specific skills like assisting in coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) procedures, handling specialized cardiac equipment, and managing hemodynamic monitoring systems.

Interesting fact: Over 60% of hiring managers actually read a candidate’s entire resume, but what they find most important are skills (82%) and relevant years of experience (76%).

Circulating Nurse Resume Sample

Abigail Morley, RN, CNOR

Connecticut Avenue, DC | firstlast@email.com | 111-222-3333

CNOR-certified registered nurse with 8 years of clinical experience, including 6 years in perioperative care. Specialized in neurosurgical procedures, with a dual background in circulating and scrub nurse roles.

Key Qualifications

• Specialized clinical experience across neurosurgical circulating, general surgery scrub, and med-surg inpatient care settings.
• Selected to mentor and precept new perioperative nurses, accelerating onboarding in complex surgical environments.
• Developed preop and intraop checklist protocols that minimized instrument-related delays in the unit.
• Provided four years of intraoperative support as a general surgery scrub nurse, ensuring optimal sterile field setup and instrument management.

Education

Capital University, Washington, DC, 20XX

Bachelor of Science in Nursing

GPA: 3.9/4.0

Professional Experience

City Hospital Circulating Nurse, 20XX–present

• Manage daily workflow for up to 10 neurosurgical procedures, including tumor resections, craniotomies, and spine fusions.
• Verify patient identification, surgical site, and informed consent in compliance with Joint Commission standards and hospital policy.
• Develop and implement infection control protocols, contributing to a 20% drop in SSIs.
• Act as the primary troubleshooter for intraoperative equipment issues, minimizing downtime caused by device malfunctioning.

Suburb Hospital, Scrub Nurse, 20XX–20XX

• Assisted in over 1,200 surgeries across general, ortho, and cardiovascular specialties.
• Anticipated surgeon needs during complex procedures, ensuring optimal workflow and efficiency.
• Conducted thorough counts of sponges, needles, and instruments before, during, and after procedures to prevent retained surgical items.
• Participated in trauma call team, assisting in emergent procedures with rapid setup and instrument handling.

Village Hospital, Med-Surg Nurse, 20XX–20XX

• Delivered comprehensive patient care in a 30-bed medical-surgical unit, managing diverse patient populations with acute and chronic conditions.
• Conducted preoperative patient assessments and prepared patients for surgical procedures.
• Monitored and documented patient vital signs, medication administration, and response to treatments in accordance with nursing protocols.
• Educated patients and families on post-discharge care, medication management, and lifestyle modifications.

Skills

• Sterilization techniques and infection control
• Equipment preparation and surgical room setup
• Perioperative support across all phases of surgery
• Anticipate surgeon’s needs and respond quickly in high-pressure situations
• Language comprehension: English and Polish
• Software proficiency: Epic and Cerner

Certifications and Licenses

• Basic life support (BLS)
• Advanced cardiovascular life support (ACLS)
• Registered nurse (RN)
• Certified perioperative nurse (CNOR)

Professional Memberships

• Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses (AORN)
• American Nurses Association (ANA)
• International Federation of Perioperative Nurses (IFPN)

How Much Does a Circulating Nurse Make?

The typical circulating nurse salary in the U.S. is about $88,000 per year. However, factors such as your surgical specialty (e.g., plastic, cardiovascular, neurosurgery), years of experience, and geographic location play a major role in determining your actual income.

Looking to maximize your earning potential? Target your circulating nurse resume to employers in states that consistently offer some of the highest nursing salaries nationwide:

• California
• Massachusetts
• Washington
• Oregon
• New Jersey

Ready to Use Your Circulating Nurse Resume?

You coordinate surgical flow — let us help coordinate your next career move. Browse our nationwide job board to discover OR nursing job opportunities that align with your clinical strengths, specialty experience, and career goals.