[maggiofliore]

Yesterday my boyfriend mentioned to me how he had a class with a whole bunch of student nurses who were complaining that it is hard to get hired as a new grad in South OC (where I live).

They said there is no nursing shortage and I should move to the bay area (hell no, been there done that--no offense to anyone who still lives there). He also shot down my goal to work at the new Kaiser opening up soon in Irvine, saying "well dont you think Kaiser would already hire everyone there before you get out."

Anyway, I just wanted some reassurance. I know my boyfriend knows nothing about nursing but I get scared sometimes--scared that I wont make enough money to live here, scared that I wont get a job after all that schooling, etc.

I just want to be able to be a nurse and help people and go home at the end of the day and know my job matters and I'm needed.

So bring on the reassurance

[Sheri257]

I don't live in OC anymore, I'm in the Inland Empire but ... I organized our school's job fair and I literally didn't have enough room for all of the hospitals that wanted to attend. I had hospitals coming from all over ... even two hours away. I told them it was unlikely that our students would travel that far for jobs but, they wanted to make contacts just in case people moved to their area.

Now, all of the hospitals are taking us out to lunch to make their pitches. We all have a bunch of job offers. I put in an application today with one of them and the hospital asked which area I preferred because they had openings in virtually all of the units.

So ... while I can't specifically address the OC area ... I can't imagine that it would be much different since San Bernardino County is right next door to OC.

[AviatrixRN]

Hello there!
I know for a fact that Saddleback Memorial is hiring new grads right now and the other hospitals in the area are as well. I wouldn't be concerned about finding a job once you graduate.
Good luck!

[maggiofliore]

Thank you.
It just gets intimidating when I see how many people are trying to become nurses. There is a lot of competition.
It's great to hear such reassurance from someone who planned the career fairs.

Thank you both

[Sheri257]

Originally Posted by maggiofliore

Thank you.
It just gets intimidating when I see how many people are trying to become nurses. There is a lot of competition.

I guess that's why they're claiming there's no nursing shortage ... maybe they're trying to discourage other people who are trying to get into the program for competitive reasons.

The nursing shortage is a complicated problem and, while the argument can be made that technically there may not be shortages in other areas of the country, that's definitely not true of California.

For one thing, the ratio law ... which reduces nurse patient loads ... has forced the hospitals to hire more nurses. While many nurses have moved to California because of the ratio law, in 2008, nurse to patient ratios will go down even further to four ... which will require even more hiring.

On top of all of that ... there are two new hospitals planned in my area alone so ... I don't see any end in sight as far as job opportunities.

[RNLeavingTheOC]

No, it is not hard to find a job in OC, even as a new grad. While you are in school try to find a student worker job to get your foot in the door. I got my first RN job by applying for a CNA position at a smaller hospital in north OC, the unit manager saw that I was graduating and had applied for my RN-IP license. I was floored when she called to interview me for a RN position that I didn't even apply for! That was back in 1994 when RN jobs for new grads were very difficult to find-no new grad training programs, no way a new grad could jump into a specilaty, low starting pay. Looking at the job ads in Nurseweek and the OC Register it seems a new grad these days has the world of opportunity to explore. Be resourceful when you are ready to find your first RN position. Many hospitals have walk-in days where you can go see the nurse recruiter and have new grad luncheons. Talk to your classmates who have recently graduated, they can be a valuable resource about the new grad market. Down in South OC area you have many facilities that are worth looking into. Good luck to you.