How to hire a nursing department chairperson

How to hire a nursing department chairperson, step by step

Here's a step-by-step nursing department chairperson hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a nursing department chairperson job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new nursing department chairperson
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the nursing department chairperson you need to hire. Certain nursing department chairperson roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect nursing department chairperson also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   The following list breaks down different types of nursing department chairpeople and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Nursing Department Chairperson	Description	Hourly rate
   Nursing Department Chairperson	Postsecondary teachers instruct students in a wide variety of academic and career and technical subjects beyond the high school level. They also conduct research and publish scholarly papers and books.	$21-65
   Instructor Nurse	Nurse educators are instructors in the medical field. Usually, they are a registered nurse with additional education in the area of teaching... Show more	$20-51
   Clinical Instructor	A clinical instructor is responsible for instructing and evaluating the clinical training of health sciences students. Clinical instructors identify each student's potential and areas of improvement to adjust the teaching approach as needed... Show more	$22-74

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • BSN
   • Professional Development
   • Patients
   • MSN
   • Educational Programs
   • Ccne
   • Curriculum Development
   • Program Evaluation
   • State Board
   • BLS
   • Community Health
   • Health System
   • Patient Education
   • Direct Patient Care

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Revise MSN courses to update them and bring them into compliance with CCNE standards.
   • Develop ADN to BSN bridge program.
   • Develop practicum evaluation and guide for MSN practicum courses.
   • Develop program for the retention and transition in-class NCLEX reviews for students at all medical surgical.
   • Provide medical care and emotional support to oncology patients undergoing treatment for cancer.
   • Monitor, evaluate and record treatment results and authore reports while explaining treatment procedures to patients.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your nursing department chairperson job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A nursing department chairperson can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, nursing department chairpeople' average salary in georgia is 52% less than in district of columbia.
   • Seniority. Entry-level nursing department chairpeople 67% less than senior-level nursing department chairpeople.
   • Certifications. A nursing department chairperson with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a nursing department chairperson's salary.

   Average nursing department chairperson salary

   $78,536yearly

   $37.76 hourly rate

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   Entry-level nursing department chairperson salary

   $45,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 30, 2026

4. Writing a nursing department chairperson job description

   A nursing department chairperson job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a nursing department chairperson job description:

   Nursing department chairperson job description example

   The hospital's primary care and specialty care departments offer the expertise of 100+ providers offering a complete continuum of care from care coordination, internal and family medicine services to advanced specialty care services like cardiology, general surgery, and neurology. The Cardiac Cath Department Nurse will be joining a hardworking team of professionals to maintain the hospital system's highly regarded rank.

   The Cardiac Cath Department Nurse is responsible for delivering safe nursing interventions in an organized, efficient, and prioritized manner to address identified needs. Another responsibility of the Cardiac Clinical Department RN Leader is to assist in the orientation and training of new and tenured personnel, reassigned nurses, student nurses, Patient Care Assistants, and faculty; serves as a preceptor when requested.

   Qualifications:

   • Graduate of an accredited program for nursing education, BSN preferred.
   • Current licensure to practice professional nursing in the State of Ohio.
   • Current American Heart Association (AHA) Healthcare Provider CPR (BLS) certification required.
   • Certification in specialty is preferred; other as noted below for specific units as indicated within 1 year of hire:
     • Cardiology: ACLS required; NAPSE required within one year for the Pacemaker Clinic.
   • Previous work experience in a patient setting preferred.
     • Cardiology: minimum of 1 year critical care experience required; 3 years preferred.

   The facility is located just a short drive to Columbus area where there is much to explore! From art, museums, historic sites, to parks, trails, and outdoor activities there is something here for everyone!

   The health care organization is eager and excited to welcome the new team member and will offer a competitive salary and generous benefits to the ideal candidate. Apply today to make a significant difference and join a reputable organization!

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find nursing department chairpeople for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your nursing department chairperson job on Zippia to find and recruit nursing department chairperson candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as k12jobspot, learn4good, serious teachers, teachingjobs.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting nursing department chairpeople requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new nursing department chairperson

   Once you've found the nursing department chairperson candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new nursing department chairperson. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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