Should You Apply If You Don’t Meet All Requirements? Nurse’s Guide to Crushing Self-Doubt and Remote Job Applications

Reality Check: Nobody’s a Unicorn (And That’s Good News)

Raise your hand if you’ve clicked on a juicy remote nurse job, only to hit a wall of bullet points: “Required: this, this, this, and btw, also 3 years of experience in everything under the sun.” Your brain automatically sings, “Well, guess I’m not perfect—never mind.” Sound familiar? You’re not alone. In fact, most nurses and—statistically—most women especially pause or pass when they don’t tick every single box. But here’s a secret: Meeting every requirement is rare. And wildly unnecessary.

Decoding Job Postings: Required vs. Preferred (and What Actually Matters)

Let’s spill some HR tea. “Required” often means must-haves, while “preferred” is the employer’s wishlist. But here’s the kicker: many ‘required’ skills are negotiable for the right nurse. For example, maybe they want 3 years of telehealth but you have 2 years on a triage line—your clinical judgment and adaptability might count just as much. If you hit about 70% of what they want, go for it.

• Required: Absolute hard stops—like must have a compact RN license for multi-state gigs or X years in med-surg if it’s a med-surg tele position.
• Preferred: These are nice-to-haves, like “Master’s degree preferred” when most of the remote jobs only really require a solid RN and some tech savvy.

Bottom line: Don’t count yourself out. The Telehealth Nurse Network Resume Starter Pack even shows you how to highlight your relevant strengths—turning almost-there into “call me for an interview.”

Why You Should Hit ‘Apply’ Anyway: The Employer Perspective

Newsflash—employers build their dream list, but they’re fully aware they probably won’t get someone with 1:1 experience in everything. Especially in remote nursing, where the industry is growing faster than most job seekers can keep up. Local employers like Sanford Health in the Midwest or Providence St. Joseph Health in the West often value your bedside skills and adaptability to tech as much as any specialized acronym after your name.

Strategic Application: Apply Like a Pro (Not a Perfectionist)

• Break down the requirements. Highlight 2–3 “deal breakers” you ABSOLUTELY need, and see if you match those. Don’t panic about every last buzzword.
• Tweak your resume smartly. Use the Resume Toolkit to pull out your transferable skills—think triage calls, EMR use, patient education via phone—anything that matches remote nursing duties.
• Show your learning muscles. If you don’t have the exact experience, owning your commitment to new tech or workflow protocols is a gold star. The Telehealth Nurse Mastery Suite is perfect for upskilling and feeling interview-ready.

Busting the Confidence Gap: Nurses, Let’s Back Ourselves Up

Remember: Many job seekers (especially men, the research says) apply when they meet just half the criteria. You’ve already crushed NCLEX and wrangled shift change on no sleep—surely you can stretch for a remote job, too. If you need a pep squad, check out our Telehealth Nurse Network Community for real talk, support, and resume vibes checks.

Your Next Step: Apply, Even If You Feel "Almost Qualified"

TL;DR—don’t let perfect be the enemy of ‘darn close.’ Review the job, trust your clinical instincts, and if you match most requirements, apply. Browse our Job Board for listings made for nurses like you. Who knows? The ‘almost’ candidate could be exactly what a remote team is looking for.