Thought I would have a job by now. Getting depressed

Nurses New Nurse

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I have been scrolling here and there on this website and I am sure this has been discussed, but I will ask for myself. I am a May graduate with my ADN and I am currently enrolled in the BSN program. I really thought by now I would have a job. I have applied to over 40 positions and I have even applied in the DFW area and still have not landed even one interview. I am really scared. I got into nursing school when I was 29, and here I am 31 now with a young child to care for and I can't get a job. If I go in person, they tell me to apply online. I leave my resume and nothing. I was top of my class and have experience and a trained phlebotomist and our instructors told us of this "nursing shortage" which I am realizing is either not here, or just bologna. I am starting to feel depressed as my student loans will be due to start in October and I just want to work. Any advice? I have applied to every single hospital within a 150 mile radius, 20+ nursing homes and home health agencies. I am starting to feel like you will not become a nurse unless you personally know someone who can hook you up, which is ridiculous!

Specializes in Clinical Research, Outpt Women's Health.

Just wanted to wish you luck. Hoping something happens for you soon.

Specializes in 4.

Nursing jobs are HARD to come by for ALL nurses. You've graduated just 2 months ago & I want to ask, didn't you research your options before graduating or before deciding on being a nurse? If so, you would've known before hand thus prepared yourself mentally. I worked in vaccination clinics & worked thru a temp agency. Call temp agencies in your area & it's just about vaccination time so you set up with that too. Try not to stress out & don't take it personally. We are all in this together. Keep your head up & keep applying.

Uh, it took me almost 2 years to find a job... and that's WITH volunteer experience and knowing people and having had BLS and ACLS certifications. I have a friend who's looked for longer and can't find a nursing job. So it's only been since May... you seriously shouldn't fret after that short amount of time looking for a job.

Specializes in Care Coordination, MDS, med-surg, Peds.

Don't forget Nursing homes, home health, dialysis. Keep looking, be available for any and all shift, floors, positions. Also consider Indian Health Services, the military, VA, rehabillitation/MD/DD facilities.................

Specializes in ICU.
Don't forget Nursing homes, home health, dialysis. Keep looking, be available for any and all shift, floors, positions. Also consider Indian Health Services, the military, VA, rehabillitation/MD/DD facilities.................

In addition to these, think about the county health dept, corrections nursing (look at state website) and federal jobs (usajobs.gov). They do take a while though to process applications so in the meantime, look into what other posters have said. Also try LTAC (long term acute care) hospitals, rehab hospitals, and sub-acute facilities.

Well there is always relocating.

From some recent media reports one has seen North Dakota is hungry for nurses, even new grads.

Study: Sky's the limit for nursing grads | Prairie Business Magazine | Grand Forks, ND

Specializes in Critical Care.

The oversaturation of RN's is because of the propaganda of the nurse shortage and every tom, dick and harry college setting up shop offering nursing programs. It's a win-win for govt, colleges, student lenders and hospitals and other health care facilities, lots of profit for colleges and lenders, risk free and ensures a steady supply of workers to keep wages down for hospitals and govt.

The true professions such as medicine, pharmacy protect their members by limiting schools and keeping competition down. Not so with nursing, schools are opening up practically on every block because nurses are not a profession, but rather a skilled, technical worker and creating a glut of workers is beneficial to employers and govt by keeping wages down.

This same phenomenom is happening with NP programs; they are sprouting up like weeds, unlike PA programs. Again this is a win for all concerned parties and the pay for NP's is half of an MD, what's not to love with this arrangement by all the powers that be!

If you loans are federal, you can defer them for 3 years due to unemplyment, so don't fret, there. Aside from that, you may also quailfy for income based repayment, which makes your payment about 10% (or even zero) of your available after tax income. Amazingly, they say less than 1/3 of eligible people are aware of that new program or take advantage of it? Here you go:

https://studentaid.ed.gov/repay-loans/understand/plans/income-based

If you are in financial crisis, this site will show you where you can help, to include possible jobs that can pay some of your loans for you:

Benefits.gov - Your Path to Government Benefits and another: https://www.benefitscheckup.org/

Also, everyone ought to check this out- I found $ for three family members and it took all of a minute?: NAUPA

And remember Obamacer starts in januray, so if you are in financial straights, you're more than likely to be eligible for free health care if you are un or underemployed, and free health care is akin to getting a huge raise, in and of itself? If you're not covered by an employer, the registration for the state 'marketplaces' starts October, 2012, to be effective January 1, 2013. Here's the site for that: https://www.healthcare.gov/

As far as the job situation? The Democrats can't seem to help in that department, despite all of the abive they have done to help people through this crisis. But als, I'm convinced the majority of Nursing Jobs advertised do not in fact exist. It's my opinion that there is a concerted effort to continue to drive down nursing pay, by simply collecting milions of resumes from ever more desperate unemplyed nurses, to find those that will work for less money, then less money, and on and on. I would like to think I'm wrong, so if anyone has any information, please share? Thanks

The oversaturation of RN's is because of the propaganda of the nurse shortage and every tom, dick and harry college setting up shop offering nursing programs. It's a win-win for govt, colleges, student lenders and hospitals and other health care facilities, lots of profit for colleges and lenders, risk free and ensures a steady supply of workers to keep wages down for hospitals and govt.

The true professions such as medicine, pharmacy protect their members by limiting schools and keeping competition down. Not so with nursing, schools are opening up practically on every block because nurses are not a profession, but rather a skilled, technical worker and creating a glut of workers is beneficial to employers and govt by keeping wages down.

This same phenomenom is happening with NP programs; they are sprouting up like weeds, unlike PA programs. Again this is a win for all concerned parties and the pay for NP's is half of an MD, what's not to love with this arrangement by all the powers that be!

Yes, there is that but something else is going on as well. Hospitals are fast loosing large sums of reimbursement funds from both the federal government and even private insurers. Just go over t the "News" section or "Google" and you'll see many notices of hospitals and or healthcare systems laying off staff and or otherwise cutting budgets.

When facilities do open anything new it is usually urgent/ambulatory care which does not require as many nurses to staff. Memorial Sloane-Kettering has been on a spree lately opening new sites in Westchester, Long Island, Manhattan and as of last week even in New Jersey. None of these are full service/in-patient beds.

Don't lose hope yet, it took me almost a year to find a decent job after two false starts at awful positions. There is no shortage, hasn't been in awhile. I should say that there is no longer the budgets to accommodate the ideal number of nurses actually needed or to fund new nurse programs. If you can move to another part of the country, you may have better luck. Also, as others have said, consider other areas of nursing. Good luck.

Thank you for the comments, and I know it takes time. I did search the job market before I got in school. I spoke with our college nursing director who assured me that it was a great market and "there will always be a need for nurses". Also, I get that some of you think that you should get into nursing because you love it and want to care for people. I do. I love feeling needed, but lets get real, if I didn't want money and didn't mind killing myself for slave wages, I would still be a CNA. I don't think it makes anyone less of a person to say that the main reason they got into nursing was for the money. Hopefully something will come my way but in the mean time, I will apply apply apply :) Thanks again!

"There will always be a need for nurses.."

Someone ought to embroider that saying on pillows.

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