Registered nurse job description template: licensure, unit, shift and certification lines

A registered nurse job description should let a nurse decide in thirty seconds whether to apply: which unit, which patients, what ratio, which shifts, what license and what pay. Nurses get many postings a week, and the vague ones ("RN needed, all shifts, competitive pay") are the ones they skip. Below is a copy-ready template, the licensure, pay and EEO wording with official sources, how each must-have becomes a screening question and scorecard row, and the mistakes that keep good nurses from applying. The general method is in how to write a job description that screens.

What the license line must get right

BLS summarizes the baseline: registered nurses must be licensed, and to become licensed they must graduate from an approved nursing program and pass a qualifying exam, with other requirements, such as a criminal background check, varying by state (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook). The exam is the NCLEX-RN, which NCSBN develops and every U.S. board of nursing uses (NCSBN). BLS lists three education paths: a bachelor's degree, an associate's degree or a diploma from an approved program.

Two points shape the posting. First, NCSBN's guidance is that practice is where the patient is, including telehealth and telephone care, and that a multistate license issued by the nurse's home state is valid in all compact states (NCSBN licensure guidance). Second, not every state is in the compact: the Nurse Licensure Compact site lists 43 participating jurisdictions as of October 2026, and links to a map with each state's implementation status. So write the license line for your state:

• Compact state: "Active RN license in [state] or an active multistate (compact) RN license."
• Non-compact state: "Active RN license in [state], or eligibility for licensure by endorsement before the start date."
• Telehealth roles: licensure in every state where patients are located, listed explicitly.

The registered nurse job description template

Registered Nurse, [unit: Med-Surg / ICU / ED / L&D / OR / Home
Health] — [Full-time / Part-time / PRN]
[Facility], [city, state]
Pay: $[min]–$[max] per hour, plus [shift differentials: nights $N,
weekends $N], [sign-on or other pay, with any conditions].
[Benefits summary, if required.]

SUMMARY
You will care for [adult / pediatric / post-surgical] patients on a
[N]-bed [unit], typically [N] patients per nurse on days and [N] on
nights. The unit sees [common diagnoses or procedures]. You will
report to the [nurse manager title].

WHAT YOU WILL DO
- Assess, plan, deliver and document care for assigned patients in
  [EHR system].
- Give medications and treatments as ordered, and monitor response.
- Educate patients and families, and prepare them for discharge.
- Coordinate with physicians, therapists and case management.
- [Charge: lead the shift and make assignments after [N] months.]

YOU MUST HAVE
- [License line for your state — see above], held by the start date.
- BLS certification [from an approved provider].
- [Experienced role: at least [N] months of RN experience in [acute
  care / the specialty].] [Residency: new to RN practice; licensed or
  eligible to sit for the NCLEX-RN by [date].]
- Availability for the schedule below.

NICE TO HAVE
- [ACLS / PALS / NRP / TNCC — or required within N months of hire.]
- Specialty certification such as [CCRN, CEN, CMSRN].
- Experience with [EHR system].
If you meet the must-haves and none of these, please apply.

FIXED CONDITIONS
- Schedule: [three 12-hour shifts, 7a–7p or 7p–7a]; [every third
  weekend]; [holiday rotation]; [on-call or float expectations].
- Orientation: [N] weeks with a preceptor.
- Physical demands: [moves and repositions patients with lift
  equipment and assistance; stands and walks for most of the shift].
- Offers are subject to license verification, [background check,
  health screening] as permitted by law.

[EEO STATEMENT]
If you need an adjustment to apply or interview, email [address].

Pay range and EEO statement

Pay. Post the approved hourly range and the differentials separately; nurses compare base rates and differentials across employers. Many states require a range in covered postings, and some also require benefits or other pay to be described; check pay transparency laws by state. If a sign-on bonus carries a repayment commitment, say so in the posting. For an outside check on the range, BLS publishes wage estimates for Registered Nurses (SOC 29-1141) through its OEWS program, by state and metro area; this page does not quote figures.

EEO statement. The EEOC says ads may not show a preference or discourage applicants because of race, color, religion, sex (including transgender status, sexual orientation and pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information (EEOC). A common closing statement:

[Facility] is an equal opportunity employer. We consider qualified
applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including
pregnancy, sexual orientation and gender identity), national origin,
age, disability, genetic information, protected veteran status, or
any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law.

From must-haves to screening questions and scorecard rows

The full RN screen, including compact questions, travel versus permanent terms and what not to ask a nurse, is in nurse phone screen questions. The interview guide for nurses and the interview scorecard for nurses take the same competencies into the unit interview. For contract roles, the posting and screen differ again; see travel nurse screening questions.

Common mistakes in registered nurse job descriptions

"All shifts" and no unit

A nurse cannot judge a posting without the unit, the patient population and the shift. "RN, all shifts, all units" reads as a float pool even when it is not. Name the unit and the schedule; post separate requisitions if needed.

Inflated experience requirements

"Two years of ICU experience required" for a step-down unit that runs a strong preceptorship cuts out nurses who would do well. Ask the nurse manager what a nurse must handle alone after orientation, and require that.

A license line that ignores the compact

Writing "[State] RN license required" in a compact state turns away nurses with a valid multistate license. In a non-compact state, failing to mention endorsement turns away nurses who could be licensed before the start date.

Age-coded new-graduate wording

"Recent graduates" and "young, energetic team" are the kind of phrases the EEOC warns about. Describe residencies as for nurses new to RN practice, which includes second-career nurses of any age.

Physical demands written as methods, not tasks

"Must lift 50 pounds unassisted" describes a method and is often untrue on units with lift equipment. Under the ADA, a written job description prepared before advertising counts as evidence of the essential functions (42 U.S.C. 12111(8)), so describe the real tasks and add an accommodations line.

Before you publish

• Unit, patient population, typical ratio and shift are in the first lines.
• The license line matches your state's compact status.
• Day-one and within-N-months certifications are separated.
• Base rate and each differential are shown, with any sign-on conditions.
• The EEO statement and an accommodation contact close the posting.

If you paste the posting into Interview Signal, it builds the RN screen's question guide from the must-haves, and the license and compact answers are quoted in the scorecard for verification.