Hello all!
I am a new grad just graduated on May 16th. I have been applying for RN jobs since February. I have been on 4 interviews and no offers. I left a very stable and well paying job in corporate america to attend nursing school full time. During the last 2 1/2 years, I had enough money saved from personal savings and student loans to keep me afloat.
I am a single mother with a mortgage and car payment. I had enough money to last me through May. I have contacted all my creditors to let them know I am unemployed and currently looking for a job. I have put in over 50 online applications for RN jobs in and out of state. I get the same rejection email daily: we have decided to go with someone who's a better fit/has more experience for our needs.
I am scared to death of losing my home. I've been in my house for 10 years and it's the only asset I have, considering I used my 401-K and pension to get me through nursing school. I attended a nursing school who is affliated with a hospital network and they agreed to pay for my schooling if I agreed to work for them 3 years after graduation. Although I have this scholarship, they have turned me down and this hospital system was 3 of the 4 interviews I've been on.
The dean claims she is gonna get to the bottom of it, and my contract says I have 30 days from graduation to find a job within their hospital organization or payment starts. In the meantime, I am dead broke, and doing the best I can to keep my household afloat. I've had to borrow money from a friend to pay for my state boards.
Today, I went to a job fair and was offered an interview right on the spot for an insurance company. I am currently taking Kaplan and decided to take boards in July. If I get this job at the insurance company, I have decided I will not return to nursing. I am already behind my classmates as far as on the job training and skills are concerned.
Although I will miss the bedside and patient care, my main priority is keeping my house and getting my financial status in order. I had NO debt prior to nursing school, now I'll owe about 40K in student loans, considering I'll have to pay back the scholarship to the school. My credit is now shot, because I have a 30 day late on my mortgage and all of my credit cards. I can't sleep at night and I find it hard to concentrate on studying Kaplan. I figure once I get myself out of this financial mess, I'll return to nursing and take a refresher course.
Any suggestions on how to keep my license updated and active while I am working outside of nursing? Any help would be greatly apperciated!