What is a neonatal nurse and how to become one

Key steps to become a neonatal nurse

1. Explore neonatal nurse education requirements

   Most common neonatal nurse degrees

   Bachelor's

   56.7 %

   Associate

   28.9 %

   Master's

   7.6 %

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2. Start to develop specific neonatal nurse skills

   Skills	Percentages
   Patients	25.84%
   BLS	21.24%
   NRP	12.21%
   Direct Patient Care	5.60%
   Resuscitation	3.83%

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3. Complete relevant neonatal nurse training and internships

   Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New neonatal nurses learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a neonatal nurse based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real neonatal nurse resumes.

4. Obtain the necessary licensing

   Becoming a licensed neonatal nurse usually require a college degree. However, you need to pass an exam to become a licensed neonatal nurse in most of states. 43 states require neonatal nurses to have license for their work. You can see the list of states below.

   State	Education	Exam	License Url
   Alabama	Degree required	State exam required	Registered Nurse (RN)
   Alaska	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Nurse, Registered
   Arkansas	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Registered Nurse (RN)
   California	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Nurse, Registered
   Colorado	Degree required	Third-party exam required	Registered Nurse

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5. Research neonatal nurse duties and responsibilities

   • Manage infants in incubators, on conventional ventilators, oscillator, inhale nitric oxide, cooling cap therapy, phototherapy.
   • Implement nursing interventions using evidence base practice to achieve desire patient outcome in collaboration with the NICU interdisciplinary team
   • Manage patient pain relief and sedation by providing pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention, monitor patient response and record care plans accordingly.
   • Respond rapidly to codes & successfully administer CPR.

6. Prepare your neonatal nurse resume

   When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your neonatal nurse resume.

   You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a neonatal nurse resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

   Choose From 10+ Customizable Neonatal Nurse Resume templates

   Build a professional Neonatal Nurse resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Neonatal Nurse resume.
   

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7. Apply for neonatal nurse jobs

   Now it's time to start searching for a neonatal nurse job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

   1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
   2. Consult your professional network
   3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
   4. Watch out for job scams