Where's the tipping point???

Nurses New Nurse

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Hi, Another new nurse here who can't find a job. Sorry that I chose this path. Left one career for this one, knowing that "nurses are in short supply", "They're always looking for new nurses", "Nursing is a recession proof career"> Well I was wrong. After sending out about 30 resumes in 5 months, and getting called by one hospital for an interview that went great, and I knew I had the job, I still didn't get the job.

Now every nurse I speak to tells me, "well it's cyclical, you just have to be patient and it'll come around". So where's the tipping point, when hospitals come looking for us. I heard that before the recession, hospitals were so short that they recruited out of nursing schools. Will that day ever come again???

Many of the hospitals I applied to didn't even respond with a, "thank you for your interest..." type email.

Time to seek out some other future because I fear that by the time I do get that call, everything i've learned in nursing school will be forgotten.

I hope all of you are having better luck. I will not recommend this as a viable career option to anyone for a long, long time.

Specializes in Public Health.

Well if you insist on staying in New York..

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Well if you insist on staying in New York.

Thanks for your input, Slinkyhead.

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I always get a kick out of the posts that suggest you move to some other location. It assumes every new RN is 20 years old and has no commitments. This is not the case. I have three kids, one of whom is a teenager in h.s., a husband who would also require upturning his employment in an already risky economy, and I own a home. Most of my cohort had husbands, wives, kids, and family here. Not everyone can just pack up and fly away. Not unless they ALREADY have the ultimate job - which is certainly not an entry level position. I am in NY too. Too many hospitals closed down. Maybe the OP just likes New York or has a family here that they do not wish to leave. It's hard to just uproot yourself from everything you know. It takes a special set of circumstances and a special type of personality.

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Yeah, can't easily relocate here either! I did relocate, and screwed myself! We can all commiserate together. I have applied to more jobs than I have dollars in my bank account right now :p We can virtually drink a bottle of wine together!

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Specializes in Public Health.

All I'm saying is that the key to survival is adaptability. Times are tough for everyone, all anyone can do is work hard and network network network.

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I always get a kick out of the posts that suggest you move to some other location. It assumes every new RN is 20 years old and has no commitments. This is not the case. I have three kids, one of whom is a teenager in h.s., a husband who would also require upturning his employment in an already risky economy, and I own a home. Most of my cohort had husbands, wives, kids, and family here. Not everyone can just pack up and fly away. Not unless they ALREADY have the ultimate job - which is certainly not an entry level position. I am in NY too. Too many hospitals closed down. Maybe the OP just likes New York or has a family here that they do not wish to leave. It's hard to just uproot yourself from everything you know. It takes a special set of circumstances and a special type of personality.

Sorry that's just what it takes and is why 20-25 year olds have less difficulty getting a job. 1/4 of my class roughly moved out of state to get a job. I had no qualms at 23 in moving across the country to get a job if need be. If a person has circumstances where they need to stay put in a tough area then prep for a rude awakening. Fortune favors the bold.

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Specializes in Forensic Psychiatry.

I agree with Dranger on this one. If you want that awesome Acute Care hospital job - you're going to have to be willing to make sacrifices. In many areas, if you want ANY job - even the least coveted of all Nursing Jobs - you are going to have to be willing to make sacrifices. I love 2nd, 3rd, 4th - however many different prior career nurses, I think they bring an awesome perspective to the field of nursing - but facts are this: when you're older, married, and have kids it's a heck of a lot harder to start a career than when you're younger and have less attachments.

Here is the advice I give to all new graduates:

  • Lower your expectations. You've applied to 30 hospitals and called it quits. Have you tried non-hospital nursing? Many new grads HAVE to put their time in to less desirable areas of nursing in order to get that hospital gig later on down the road. Try Long term Care, Clinics, The Government (Prisons, Jails, State Hospitals), Rehabilitaion, Subacute care, Mental health (Addictions & Eating disorders) and Public health. If the same 30 hospitals are not even giving your application a cursory glance - then it is time to look outside the hospitals.
  • Look outside your city. I commute about an hour and a half to my nursing job. I hate the commute - especially when the roads are icy - but it's the only place that offered me a job and I need the experience so that I can move onward and upward. There are many other nurses that I work with that live anywhere from 4 - 8 hours away (many with kids and a family). They rent an apartment, or park their trailer in the parking lot and work their three 13's and then go back home.
  • Move. Sometimes that's the only option. I know people get upset about this one. Truth is: The economy bad out there for many, many professions. That's too bad that people are still sold the "never be without a job as a nurse" line. However, I've found that compared to many of my friends in other professions - I actually have it quite good. Even though my Job Search was long an frustrating, I was able to land a job (many of my friends with other degrees are still looking or woefully underemployed 3 years later). I would have been willing to live in a freaking tent in rural Alaska for a year just to work a LTC job if that's what it would have taken to get me that golden 1 year of hospital experience.

Thing is, new graduates have to be flexible (Any Position, Any Schedule, Anywhere) and you have to think outside the box (there are more types of nursing out there than just hospital nursing). I wish you luck.

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I think most of us that graduated in the last five years had to pound the pavement for a while. In my metropolitan area, only a handful of hospitals were hiring new grads. I applied to every hospital in a 200 mile area. After a few months, I got an interview at a very nice community hospital within driving distance and got the job. I have since moved on, but all you can do is keep trying, don't give up, and stick it out. After putting in my requisite two years, I had no trouble moving to my preferred area of nursing. If too many months goes by, apply as a CNA or do volunteer nursing. Look at LTC as an option, or hospice, or surgical centers . . . there are lots of options. Even if you don't get your idea job now, the most important thing is to start and start gaining your experience.

I wound not discourage anyone from being a nurse who wanted to be one. It is too special of a job. Job availability for new grads varies greatly by location, but there are jobs out there and I would say please try not to be discouraged.

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Hi,

I know exactly how you feel. I was not getting lucky with Job Search myself, then finally I found work in home care. Then I got pregnant and in Nov started to look for work again. I am starting my new job in the hospital in January 2014 and here is how I did it. Go online on the hospital website, see if there are any positions listed that you like. Then, dont even waste your time submitting your resume online, chances are slim. Go directly to the floor and speak to that manager. If you do get an interview, make sure that you email her afterwords as well as call to follow up. I would also find out who is the director of Nursing in the hospital and try to come in and speak with that person. Its hard for new grads to get their first job so you must knock on doors and be extremely persistent. Hope this helps.

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30 resumes isn't very many.

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" But of course, it seems that academia is so insulated that very little reality tends to penetrate their defenses. " so true.

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