Hi everyone,

I am strongly interested in working in the NICU upon graduating from my BSN program in May 2013. I currently work as a nurse tech in a level III NICU in a large hospital in the city I live in, however, I plan on relocating once I graduate. I am well aware of the competitiveness in this specialty and I feel being a new grad doesn't quite make things easier. The city I plan on moving to is not too far away from where I live now (about 3 hrs) but I was wondering how I could increase my chances of landing an interview, how to make connections in a new city, organizations to get involved with before graduating, etc.

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

A few tips that could help:

-If you get to choose what unit you will be at during your senior preceptorship, choose NICU and make as many contacts as possible while there. This is the best thing you can do to get a NICU position. Give it your all. I had two nurses (who worked registry at different hospitals) give me their contact information and tell me to call them after I passed NCLEX because they were impressed by my enthusiasm and work ethic. Also, get a reference letter from your preceptor.

-HIGHLIGHT your NICU tech experience (and preceptorship experience if you get it) in your applications. Any experience is beneficial.

-Make a list of hospitals in the area and then research and find out who the DON/NM of the NICU is. E-mail them your cover letter and resume (Introduce yourself, tell them what you're looking for)

-Don't apply to a million jobs at one hospital. HR will notice and will think you're looking for just ANY job. I only applied to one position (NICU) at the hospital I was just hired at and the HR recruiter commented on that favorably.

-Go to any job fairs in the area and get the business cards/contact info of HR recruiters. E-mail them your resume and cover letter after the fair.

Good luck!

I, too, felt the same passion as you and followed all the advice given below. I got assigned to nicu in the biggest hospital in town for my preceptorship experience and got on well with the DON on the unit, as well as the other nurses. I was in heaven! It felt like it was going to work out perfectly because they only hired new grads who had precepted on the unit. The one thing that got in the way of my securing a job there was the hospital budget. The nicu unit was told they were overstaffed, census had been down, and none of the women's and children's areas were going to be allowed to hire. Big time bummer!! Especially since I had really started b onding with the babies, the unit, the staff...well, not much more I could do. I stay in touch and try to keep myself fresh in their mind. I asked the DON what new grad like me could do, that wanted to gain experience in the areas not hiring...she suggested higher acuity areas for the best transferrable experience. I got two offers, one in an acute care cardiac unit, the other in an emergency department. I just accepted the emergency department position and start in a few weeks. I still have my eye on nicu though...good luck to you, the advice given to you was spot on and if the hospital hires new grads in nicu and is not on a hiring freeze, that will give you your best shot! Best wishes :)

Hi everyone,

I am strongly interested in working in the NICU upon graduating from my BSN program in May 2013. I currently work as a nurse tech in a level III NICU in a large hospital in the city I live in, however, I plan on relocating once I graduate. I am well aware of the competitiveness in this specialty and I feel being a new grad doesn't quite make things easier. The city I plan on moving to is not too far away from where I live now (about 3 hrs) but I was wondering how I could increase my chances of landing an interview, how to make connections in a new city, organizations to get involved with before graduating, etc.

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

Thank you so much for the advice! I am kind of in the same dilemma, the NICU at the hospital I work at appears to be on a hiring freeze as well as having a consistent low census. However I have been able to make a lot of good connections in my unit as well as gain experience. Part of relocating once I graduate is to go to an area with more job opportunities in the childrens hospitals, another part is that there is just more to offer in a bigger city in general. I am nervous that when I start applying for jobs (using references from my current job) that it will look obvious my first choice is not at the hospital I work at.