[nfrasure]

Hi Guys!

I am a 5th semester nursing student graduating in December. My husband is being transferred to the Bay area with his job, and therefore, I will be a new grad in a new city.

I started nursing school here in New Mexico because I love it so much and because here, it is easy to get a job as a new grad. Making this move, though, I am terrified. All that I keep hearing is that it is impossible to get a job as a new grad (especially from an ADN program) and that all the nursing markets in the Bay area are saturated. I'm an A student working an externship in a PICU specializing in Pediatric Cardiology, and have worked as a tech in a busy ER here for years, but I've heard that doesn't make a whit of difference.

I'm terrified. Not only is this the first time in my life i will be away from home (28 years in NM), but i will be looking for a job in a city where I hear it is near impossible to find a job. Please can someone help me with suggestions of hospitals to try calling for info or with suggestions of their own? This move is inevitable, but I don't want to lose sleep over it.

Thank you,
Natalie

[love-d-OR]

Apply for new grad programs early, work as a student worker (nurse assistant) while in school if possible, and keep your grades up. This will not guarantee you a job, but it will surely help. I was offered a job at UCSF but turned it down for UCLA, so I speak from experience when I say that it is possible to find a job there you just need to wear your competitive shoes on while you work a it, cause their are more new grads than job openings. Good luck!



Oh,

[nfrasure]

I would love to do that, but I am staying in NM until I graduate.... because i am only 6 months away from graducation here, by the time we sell our house and actually move I will be in my Final semester with preceptorship.

I guess my biggest question is, "is the only way to get hired as a new grad to be hired into an actual grad program?" I am just super scared that I will graduate and move out there and not be able to find a job.

Thank you for the welcome, and sorry if I sound whiney. I am just scared and emotional right now. Moving is a lot to handle, especially if it's as a new grad.

[PACIFICWHALES]

Hey its looking like I'm moving to Northern Ca too. I am a new rn grad scared to pieces too. The only problem is the job finding. THe pay is absolutely above 30 hr, but is it worth with the traffic and 0 free space and no high skies? Yes and no. The ocean, clear lakes, and redwoods are relatively near. The pay is great, but the rn new grad programs are few and far between. They only start at certain times of the year. I hope this helps. I sympathize with your feelings, because currently I live in a small town Ohio. I use to live in Northern CA with my parents, and through college, I loved it. It is a hard and difficult decision to move back to CA, traffic, crime and busy streets. Yet, you can find your peace there, I promise. Most folks in the area are human and environmentally and culturally conscious. You will make double the money; my parents told me that they will drag me by my ears back to CA, because of the opportunities. Currently, I'm having a hard time deciding between the offers, but now I am looking at Northern CA by the Oregon Border, Crescent City, because of their relocation package. Write back, please, and I will keep you in my prayers, so you won't be scared.

[Nurse Salt]

When you graduate (in December?) there will be new grad positions available, but they are competitive. My best advice is to apply (online) early and maybe even speak to someone at your precepting hospital about contacts they may have and definitely get letters of rec. I'm not sure what city you will be moving to, but it is possible to find a job you just have to be a little (or maybe a lot) more diligent than you had anticipated. UCSF, Oakland Children's Hospital, and Kaiser and Sutter Facilities are all great places to work and you have tech experience which will help. I'm not sure if ADNs have a more difficult time getting hired, but it seems to me it shouldn't matter... I know we post here about the lack of new grad jobs around here, but I can attest to the fact that my hospital alone has at least a dozen IP positions still posted...

If you want to PM me and let me know where you will be moving, I may be able to suggest some more facilities that are more specific to your specialty.

Good Luck, concentrate on finishing school and doing well in your preceptorship. You may have a difficult road ahead of you, but don't let that hinder your performance in your last semester of school, I imagine you have worked very hard to get where you are...

[nfrasure]

Thank you to all of you. I feel a little better now. I guess that all i needed to hear was that it was not completely hopeless. This move will be exciting I am sure once it starts to happen, and I know that moving to the Bay area from NM will be amazing culturally for my kiddos. You guys have restored my faith. Thanks a million.

[krypton]

It looks like I am also in the same situation. May I know which facilities still have openings for new grads or Staff nurse 1? Actually I already moved to Santa Rosa, CA but I am willing to relocate to SF or San Jose. I graduated from Central Coast ADN and already passed my NCLEX. I am frustrated that I can't find the opportunity for the new grads now.

[PACIFICWHALES]

Hello which hospitals in Bay Area?

[Nurse Salt]

Look into the Kaiser system... Especially Oakland and Santa Clara. Like I told the OP, you REALLY have to be diligent! Start with an online app (with cover letter), and you CANNOT stop there! Because the new grad positions have a ton of applicants, you HAVE to stand out. Several days after you submit the app, send an email or make a phone call. The job will no longer pursue the applicant, so the applicant MUST pursue the job. Email and call to the point of (almost) annoyance , if you drop the ball they will move on to next next applicant... Good Luck!

[suzanne4]

Originally Posted by krypton

It looks like I am also in the same situation. May I know which facilities still have openings for new grads or Staff nurse 1? Actually I already moved to Santa Rosa, CA but I am willing to relocate to SF or San Jose. I graduated from Central Coast ADN and already passed my NCLEX. I am frustrated that I can't find the opportunity for the new grads now.

Santa Rosa hires new grads, easier to find work there than closer to the Bay Area. Also in surrounding cities to SR.

Right now is a bad time all over the Bay Area, the new grads are already hired for existing positions that are starting this month or next. It is going to be a few more months before there are openings again in most cases.