Would this be a good way to increase my chances at an ICU job?

[AesthesiaSeeker]

I love the ICU. I did my senior year practicum at a neurotrauma ICU at a Level 1 hospital and I learned SO much. I knew that's what I wanted to do.

So right before I graduate nursing school I apply to area hospitals with Critical Care/ICU internships for new grads.

Combine my semi-low (3.45) GPA and the highly competitive and saturated market of new graduate nurses (DFW area) and that = no dice.

Now I've been a nurse for a year and I'm stuck; I'm not a new grad so I can't apply for new grad internships and because of that I have to apply to ICU positions as a experienced nurse. And every ICU position I've run across requires previous experience in the ICU.

But I've learned from a friend in their ICU unit had an online program to complete. They're using the American Academy of Critical Care Nursing (AACN) program called Essentials of Critical Care Orientation (ECCO) which the hospital is paying for them to take.

So long story short, I thought if they can take this program what's stopping me from taking it.

I looked it up and it's $300.

If I pay for the program and complete it, would that increase my chances of getting hired for an ICU job?

[chacha82, ADN, BSN]

I think the bigger problem is that you have been unemployed for 7 months. If you want to work ICU, ultimately I am sure you will be able to do it. I would focus on getting a full-time job at a hospital and work that job, ICU or not. After a year or two at most hospitals you can put in for a transfer to the ICU.

[AesthesiaSeeker]

@CardiacDork: I've had to take a good, long look at myself and analyze what I can do to raise my self esteem because a lot of it is related to my HFA. Some of it is chemical imbalances but the majority of it is just the crappy inner self-talk. Obviously with getting fired that caused a considerable amount of strain on my life and I'm doing intensive outpatient therapy in addition to talking to a psychologist, something I thought was a waste of money until now.

@chacha82: I agree with you wholeheartedly; for quite an extended period of time the interviews I actually included a quite long and ridiculous story about a manipulative patient who said some things against me and ended up in my termination but I've since found a way to remedy that. I'm very positive that's whats kept me from getting positions thus far. My for-profit nursing school (that's a long story in itself) pays for this very accurate and elaborate job listing agent and I'm on that every day.

@Julius Seizure: Dang that's a bad-a$$ username and the fact that it's historically correct makes it even cooler in my perspective. I was saying earlier in my post about this job agent: essentially it's called liquid compass (google it and anyone whose looking for a job may be able to check it out for free based on what area they live in. It's called Liquid Compass. Essentially at 00:01 every night it searches for every single new job posting made by a hospital within a 50 mile radius of where my school is located. So Denton, McKinney, Plano, Frisco, Allen, Carrolton it looks everywhere. Me personally I'm at the Plano/Frisco border so Baylor Centennial, Medical City Frisco, Medical City Plano, THR Presby are just some of the hospitals that I jump on the moment they have an opening.

The only problem I've found with this is the recruitment process. Some recruiters are hungry and will call you at 8 PM on a Saturday night saying that you can text them if it's more convenient, others will take their sweet time getting back to you.

A glassdoor article says on average it takes 23 days from application to interview, a time frame that is significantly stressful and one that has increased since 2010 when the average time was just 10 days.

[melaninatedSRNA22]

That's so ridiculous. Please relocate to Houston. What the heck!!! NO ONE I know who wanted to work in ICU here ever had difficulties. I am so sorry you're going through this. Please message me

[Dohardthings]

Here in Savannah, you definitely have a shot in our Med-Surg Intermediate and that is a gateway to our Level 1 trauma ICU. There is a shorttage here.

[rhinoroc]

Sorry this happened to you. It sounds like that day manager felt he was a lot more important than he really is. Management positions in healthcare don't often last forever, so I would keep in touch with the night manager if at all possible and try again if anything changes. In the meantime relocating could help but that's not always so easy. Keep trying and you'll get somewhere. In just reading your post, you appear to have a lot more motivation than some ICU nurses I've worked with. Good luck!

[JcRNclin3]

Where do you live? Would you relocoate? Tge hospital where i work is in desperate need and willing to hire and train new ICU nurses

[EternalFeather]

Im sorry that you havent found your dream, job yet. I went through a similar interview, there was a test and i went through panels of interviews. However, I'm sure i failed that test, and my answers in the interview were wrong too or I took longer than expected.My interview was non stop and lasted 2 hours. I was just smiley and social and talked about life and whatever with the supervisor, coordinators and managers who interviewed me. i guess they hired me because I was cheesy lol

Im sure you have a brilliant mind, so besides doing more research and studying medical/nursing stuff, I think you should watch movies and shows about life or dramas. look and kinda dissect the likable characters like the social butterflies, understand the behavioral patterns or whatever. We know movies aren't real but there may be some things you can learn from them. then test the theories you learned from movies in real life. through this, you might be able to better manipulate social situations.

watch some youtube videos too, there are motivational and inspirational people who post vlogs other video contents, and maybe you could take something from those too. you might also find a positive person who goes through what you're going through. some people on youtube may be not so smart too but you can observe their social messages and possibly learn or take something from that.

Also you should consider relocating to a smaller town in texas. they are hiring a lot and you might find an icu position. try the border towns.

just stay for like a year or so, just enough time to reapply to your dream hospital in dallas.

dont tell the interviewers that you plan to leave like after a year though, cause they wont like that.

[AesthesiaSeeker]

@JcRNclin3: I'm in Plano, north of Dallas.