RN BSN or BSN RN, that is the question. If you are a nurse and have trouble listing your credentials, constantly wondering which one goes first, know that you are not alone. Not knowing how to write nursing credentials is a common concern among nurses. You may see different orders being used without knowing which is the right one or the difference between them. That's where we come into play - ready to show you how to display your nursing credentials.

In this article, you can read about the difference between RN BSN and BSN RN and in what order to list your credentials. And if you have more than one credential of the same type, this is still the article for you.

Why Is It Important to Display Your Nursing Credentials?

In a world without credentials, it would be nearly impossible to know whom to hire. Credentials are crucial for most jobs, as they are used to show the qualification level of a person.

In the nursing field, the American Nurses Association (ANA) views credentials as essential to display nurses' education levels and achievements. By using your nursing credentials, you show your qualifications and skills to the people you work with. ANA states that when listing credentials as a nurse, you show the patients that you are credible and capable of doing your job. You display your level of competence.

Furthermore, displaying credentials indicates your dedication to the job, and it gives you a sense of professional accomplishment. You have a credential to prove and show what you worked so hard for.

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How to Write Your Nursing Credentials

Read on to find out how to write your nursing credentials - the order in which you should list your credentials and what you should do if you have more than one credential of the same type.

Is there a difference between RN BSN and BSN RN?

Let us start with the RN BSN/BSN RN case. In terms of right or wrong, there is no difference between RN BSN and BSN RN. You can list your license first, then add the education level, or you can start by the education level, and then add the license. They are both acceptable ways to list your credentials. However, the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) recommends listing the education level before the license. So, in this case, BSN RN would be the way to go.

In what order should you list your credentials?

According to the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), the favored order of credentials is the following:

Highest earned degree
Licensure
State designations or requirements
National certifications
Awards and honors
Other recognitions

ANCC argues that the education degree should come first since it normally cannot be taken from you. Licensure and state designation/requirements are required. And the ones that are left are voluntary. First on the list, "highest earned degree" can be a doctoral degree (PhD, DrPH, DNS, EdD, DNP), master's degree (MSN, MS, MA), bachelor's degree (BS, BSN, BA), or associate degree (AD, ADN).

Second, "licensure credentials" include RN (registered nurse) and LPN (licensed practical nurse). The following credentials "state designations/requirements" include APRN (Advanced Practice Registered Nurse), NP (Nurse Practitioner), and CNS (Clinical Nurse Specialist). "National certifications" can include RNBC (Registered Nurse-Board Certified) and FNP-BC (Family Nurse Practitioner-Board Certified).

Awards and honors can include FAAN (Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing). "Other recognitions" can be various.

What if you hold more than one credential of the same type?

If you have credentials of the same type, there is one rule to follow: the highest education degree goes at the top of the list. Start by listing the highest education degree, followed by the other degrees. So, a doctorate would be put before a master's degree, and so on (for example, Susan Smith, MSN, BSN).

The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) suggests that you only use one degree - the highest one (for example, Susan Smith, MSN). But, if you happen to have another degree in a related field, you can include that one as well. However, if you have non-nursing degrees, you should put the highest non-nursing degree before the highest nursing degree (Susan Smith, MEd, MSN). When you have a PhD and a master's degree, ANCC states that the bachelor's degree should not be used (Susan Smith, PhD, MSN).

When it comes to listing certification credentials, ANNC presents two order options that you can choose from:

last to first
order of significance

By the first option, you list the credentials in the order you obtained them, starting from the last one you earned. Meanwhile, by order of significance, you start from the most relevant credential to your practice.

Now, let's get back to 'Susan Smith', shall we? For credential listing purposes, let's consider one more example of a nurse with multiple degrees and the order in which they should be listed, according to the guidelines so far.

So, for example, if a nurse held the degrees below:

Master of Science in Nursing (MSN)
Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)
Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA)
Master of Business Administration (MBA)

Plus a license:

Registered Nurse (RN)

Then, the order in which these credentials should be listed would be MBA, MSN, RN.

Notice how we omitted the bachelor's degrees and we used the master's degrees. We first listed MBA since it's a non-nursing degree. The RN is the last one to be listed in this case, since it belongs after the higher education degrees.

When to Use Your Nursing Credentials?

Now that you know the "how", you need to know the "when": When to use your nursing credentials. Since you are a nurse, the obvious answer would be “at your job”. It is essential to use your credentials while signing prescriptions, patient records, or other medical documents.

You also need to use your credentials when writing a paper on nursing or some similar topic. So every time you deal with medical stuff, it is advised to use your nursing credentials. In other cases, use the credentials relevant to the context you find yourself in.

Wrapping Up

To wrap it up, displaying your credentials shows more about who you are. When you use your credentials, you present yourself as someone credible and capable of doing your job. While there is no wrong way of displaying the order of your credentials, there is a preferred way: the highest education before licenses and certifications. If you have more than one degree in the same field, only use the highest credential.

Remember that each letter in your credentials represents what you worked so hard for, so display them with pride!

RN BSN or BSN RN: How to Display Your Nursing Credentials