Job Hunting - I don't understand

Judy1958 · Oct 10, 2006

I think when going on a job interview or even to pick up an application you should dress like a professional.

perfectbluebuildings, BSN, RN · Oct 11, 2006

While I do see your point, maybe some organizations want to see how you would present yourself when you did come in and pick up an application. A cruel tactic maybe, but it does have some validity.

Hm, while I disagree with this tactic I think I see your point too... You have made me think alot on this thread.

rn undisclosed name · Oct 11, 2006

They are doing YOU the favor, not you doing them one.
Now you can believe that you are doing them the favor by deigning to interview with them, but you will find quickly that attitude burns bridges.

Now I agree with a lot of what you say but the statement about how the employer is doing the applicant a favor...please. I think that reasoning is totally backwards. I personally wouldn't want to interview where they thought they were doing me a favor. That is wrong thinking on anyone's part. I also don't think the prospective applicant is doing the employer a favor by giving an interview.

CapeCodMermaid, RN · Oct 11, 2006

As a few other people have said it goes both ways. I had an interview at a facility close to my house. I met with the DNS. She had food down the front of her shirt. OKAY I thought to myself, it is right after lunch. So the interview went well and she asked me back to meet with the administrator. I arrived on time and when the DNS came to get me, she had food on her shirt...it was NOT anywhere near a meal. I was so turned off by her slovenly appearance, I said thanks but no thanks to the job. I was hired by another facility a few weeks later.

The DNS called to say she wanted to come to screen a pt for her facility. She walked onto my unit and...you guessed it...food on her shirt!!! Yuck.

Anyone who is coming for an interview needs to make some sort of effort to look neat and clean.

The latest thing around here is for applicants to either call continuously to ask if they have the job or if we tell them we are not offering them a position for whatever reason, they start hollering at us. Makes me wonder where we are heading.

twotrees2 · Oct 29, 2006

I am just curious and I don't want to sound evil, but recently I have had nurses come into my facility in jeans and t-shirts asking if we have any jobs available and then want to interview immediately.
I also receive calls from individuals looking for jobs who often speak to me in a rude manner as if I owed them something.
Keep in mind I try to be as pleasant as possible - REALLY! But is this something that a nurse, or any professional is now doing? I understand that there may be a shortage, but professionalism still counts for something, doesn't it?
Please help me to help you.
Thanks.
P.S. I have been recruiting for 9 years now, but mostly corporate, this is my first time in healthcare.

i recently had an interview - i wore nicer jeans ( had no choice had nothing else but scrubs that fit me due to surgery and couldnt afford anything nicer) and a nice top - i had just had surgery the few days prior so i looked a bit haggard - but explaining things the interviewer seemed to understand - i never got the second interview but i dont think it had anything to do with my appearance but that i have some very stern terms to working ( i work when i want not when they want - i dont do weekends and holidays unless i want to and a few other things lol) they sent me a very nice letter in regards to my "exemplary performance reviews " but they were looking for a full timer and chose someone else to go on to he second interview- personally as long as the outfit is clean and well kept ( not some ripped fad jeans and goofy saying tshirts) i see no trouble with jeans as like the one pair i wrote were very nice and look very nice.

i do feel it is inapprorate to expect a immediate interview - i have picked up apps in the past - i feel that personally going in looks better than asking them to mail it - buti take it home and take it back. some jobs i have had immediate interviews and been hired on the spot - this last time they unofficially hired me on the spot but i had to wait near 3 weeks cause they had to make a new job descrition to cover my demands - works out good for both of us usually - i get my hours easily and they ahve less the boses have to work cause they are short staffed ( though they are trying to get me full time which i dont want lol) as they do not use agency - bosses take turns coming in which has been a lot lately due to increased sensus.

twotrees2 · Oct 29, 2006

This type of unprofessional behavior has become more common in recent years and many people are upset about it. It seems as if some people assume that because there is a nursing shortage, they no longer have to "sell themselves" when job hunting. Unfortunately, some hospitals are tolerating such behavior, which encourages it.
While I agree that there are sometimes legitimate reasons for an unprofessional appearance, it should not be acceptable unless there is indeed a special reason for it. We should not allow such things to become the norm for our profession.
llg

i own a few outfits - about 20 pair of scrubs lol - and a few nicer jeans and shirts - besides work , home and church, thegrocery store i do not go anywhere so fancy clothes are unneeded in my opinoon ) i dont feel the need to dress up for an interview ( though i also dont feel nasty sayings or sexy etc clothes are approriate either) when my performance is going to be in scrubs. i do feel the rudeness is coming more often - i have seen some aides apply and they even look rude in the stroll through the facility ) and that is not good. i suppose i could go to interviews in scrubs lol.

twotrees2 · Oct 29, 2006

Maybe it's because of the way I was brought up, but I always wore my best clothing even when doing nothing but INQUIRING about jobs. It never hurts to be prepared to interview, and that's happened more than once when I've gone into a business to pick up an application........not only got interviewed, but hired on the spot!
By contrast---and I'm sorry, but I have to confess this---when someone walks into MY building to ask for an application looking as though they just crawled out of bed, their app sort of gets "lost" in transit from my desk to my boss's.
I'm not talking about applicants who get their clothes from Goodwill instead of Macy's. I don't care about that---heck, I buy some of MY stuff there as well! I mean those who wear pajama bottoms and T-shirts, don't bother to comb their hair, and walk in barefooted........or worse, bring their children in with them! That tells me they a) don't care how they look, b) probably won't care how the RESIDENTS look, and c) have child care problems that may interfere with their work. There are too many people out there who really WANT to work, for me to go to the trouble of hiring and training people who are too lazy even to make a good first impression.

yeah id have to agree the unkempt and pj like pants and nasty saying tshirts are not cool but i would not fault someone bringing thier kids in with them. sure theyprobbly DO have choldcare issues right now - if they are looking for a job they probably odnt have oone and cant pay a sitter. i guess id not fault them on that reason. personally i have never ecxept this last interview been NOT hired on the spot - my personality and reviews speak for themselves ( i alwasy have a half dozen written references as well sq another 12 or more which they can call if they so desire. this last job was my first experience with a 2 step interview - guess im just meant to stay where i am ( was going to try to get a closer job and cut drive time in half due to gas ) and keep doing well there :)

twotrees2 · Oct 29, 2006

pupnshnooter wrote:
Absolutely!! I agree wholeheartedly whith everything said on this post. But . . may I make another observation? Professionalism needs to count on both ends . . on the end of the prospective employee and end of the prospective employer.
Let me explain:
I have been a nurse for a little over a year and am currently in the process of transferring to another job within the system. I was a stay at home mom for 18 years before going back to college so I was out of the loop regarding interviewing etc. My husband has been in the corporate world for over 20 years and has experience with recruitment and interviewing. Everything my husband told me to expect regarding how the prospective employer should act in an interview/job opportunity situation has not held up one bit in the "nursing/healthcare" world. My husband is completely perplexed by the lack of professionalism on the part of HR and recruiters I have dealt with and basically throws up his hands and says "nursing obviously is different".
Here's some examples:
1. In my first position I was never given a written offer to consider, I was simply given some generalities regarding the job and expected to accept or decline over the phone. Once the job was accepted then I would receive a written offer. This offer came one month after I started my orientation period?
2. The current job I am transferring to has been a nightmare of unprofessionalism when working with HR/recruitment.
-After interviewing on the spot at an RN open house I went away with the expectation that the NM, HR and others would confer together and let me know if they where interested in me as a candidate. If so I would then talk to my current NM regarding a transfer. When the recruiter received my thank you note from the interview she called and asked if I had spoken to my NM yet about a transfer? She just assumed I knew they were going to go ahead with me as a candidate based on their "enthusiasm" at the nurse open house.
-Once I spoke to my NM and requested a transfer the phone tag began. It took me a week of unanswered phone messages before I finally got in touch with the recruiter to confirm that she had gotten my message and that the transfer process had begun.
-Three weeks after the interview at the RN open house I still did not have a formal job offer or tentative start date. My current NM was requesting a resignation letter with effective termination date so that he could go ahead with the hiring process of another candidate waiting to take my position. After a week of unaswered phone messages to the recruiter in which I explained my situation and how things were being held up, in desperation I called the NM at the new job and asked him to help me out. The ball got rolling after that and two days later I was given a start date and a verbal offer which I accepted. I was told that the written offer was in the recruiter's hand and would be mailed that day.
-On week later I had to play phone tag again because the written offer never showed up in my mailbox. A couple of days later I got a call back and was told to "wait a couple more days" to see if the written offer came in the mail,(because the recruiter had given this responsibility to her assistant) if not call the recruiter . . .again. The written offer didn't come, I called again . . and as of this moment I have received an email of the formal offer but nothing in the mail.
My husband thinks it is "totally unacceptable" that I have to hound this recruiter to keep things on track and I agree. This non-professional behavior of the recruiter reflects badly on the entire facility. I'm trying to keep positive regarding the new job position though.
Unfortunately, in general, both my experiences with hospital/nurse recruiters have been that they need to be hounded and tend to leave the prospective employees in the dark regarding protocols for hiring.
I hope you will bring corporate professionalism into your nurse recruitment role . . because it is sorely needed! You can help your prospective employees through clear and consistent communication regarding the hiring process. Good Luck!!

i have to admit that the place i currently work at though they said i was hired they had to do some paper work - after 3 weeks i figured it was a ruse to get me out of the office- and bad manners to not tell me i di dNOT have the job - was going to call them on mon but was quite surprised when i got a call sunday night from the administrator saying come in tomorrow ( on mon) to start - i was in shock as really though i did not have the job. turns out they really had to set up toatlly new rules for my position but they could have let me know what was going on in the meantime. lol

twotrees2 · Oct 29, 2006

I don't know anything about applying for a nursing job as I am an 18 year old nursing student, but I see the same types of people in retail. I work at a children's clothing store, and have since I was 16. Even when I went to pick up the application or drop it off, I dressed nicely! I would never wear jeans, tank tops, flip flops, etc. You can go anywhere from Walmart to Good Will to find nice clothes. We have a free clothing drive at the homeless shelter I volunteer at which has nice clothes for people to wear to job interviews and get themselves on two feet.
And I know what you mean about bringing kids with them (to whoever said they see people bringing kids in)! We had one lady actually bring her daughter (about 2 years old.) to the interview, and then when my manager asked if she wanted to do it at another date when she could find someone to watch her daughter (it is a long interview process, he was only asking because the child, about 2 years old, would obviously become restless.) she said she could go and get her grandmother to watch her, who was shopping in the store. Well the grandmother is very very old and doesn't seem able to watch a 2 year old. Well, she wasn't. Grandmom ended up loosing the little girl and banging on the manager's door during the interview screaming that she lost the baby. I mean obviously we expected the mom to go find her daughter and wasn't mad that she left the interview to find her (I actually found the little girl crying hysterically hiding under a rack of clothes!) but she decided she wanted to bring her daughter and grandmother with her in the rest of the interview! Needless to say, she wasn't hired. I mean I understand that some people may not have someone to watch their children or can't afford day-care, which is why they might be looking for a job, but what do they do when they get hired? Bring their kids to work? Again, at the homeless shelter I volunteer at we do offer babysitting when you are out looking for a job..

second to last interview i had the DON brought her kid in after school and had her in there - while i interviewed the kid was all over the plce and i felt it was kinda weird - not that anything was being said she cared about or that was bad i just hthought it was pretty weird lol.

rngrad2009 · Oct 29, 2006

Well, last week I went into a LTC facility simply just to fill out an application. I had on a pair of black jeans and a casual sweater. I was so surprised when the DON came out to interview me. I immediately apologized for my appearance and told him that I was not expecting a same day interview. he said that i looked nice, the interview was done and I got the job:balloons: That was a close call!!

CapeCodMermaid, RN · Oct 29, 2006

i recently had an interview - i wore nicer jeans ( had no choice had nothing else but scrubs that fit me due to surgery and couldnt afford anything nicer) and a nice top - i had just had surgery the few days prior so i looked a bit haggard - but explaining things the interviewer seemed to understand - i never got the second interview but i dont think it had anything to do with my appearance but that i have some very stern terms to working ( i work when i want not when they want - i dont do weekends and holidays unless i want to and a few other things lol) they sent me a very nice letter in regards to my "exemplary performance reviews " but they were looking for a full timer and chose someone else to go on to he second interview- personally as long as the outfit is clean and well kept ( not some ripped fad jeans and goofy saying tshirts) i see no trouble with jeans as like the one pair i wrote were very nice and look very nice.
i do feel it is inapprorate to expect a immediate interview - i have picked up apps in the past - i feel that personally going in looks better than asking them to mail it - buti take it home and take it back. some jobs i have had immediate interviews and been hired on the spot - this last time they unofficially hired me on the spot but i had to wait near 3 weeks cause they had to make a new job descrition to cover my demands - works out good for both of us usually - i get my hours easily and they ahve less the boses have to work cause they are short staffed ( though they are trying to get me full time which i dont want lol) as they do not use agency - bosses take turns coming in which has been a lot lately due to increased sensus.

what amazes me is not how people dress, but how they think they can dictate to the people hiring them. i've had many people come in saying they are applying for the full time 7-3 job i have advertised only to tell me 10 minutes later that they only want part time and why can't i change the job hours...or they have a kid and can't get to work till 8:15 and have to leave by 2. is there something about "full time 7-3 every other weekend" they don't understand?

twotrees2 · Oct 29, 2006

what amazes me is not how people dress, but how they think they can dictate to the people hiring them. i've had many people come in saying they are applying for the full time 7-3 job i have advertised only to tell me 10 minutes later that they only want part time and why can't i change the job hours...or they have a kid and can't get to work till 8:15 and have to leave by 2. is there something about "full time 7-3 every other weekend" they don't understand?

well if that is what one applies for- full time - i agree - however i have never answered an ad - i just send apps in when i need a change and or more hours lol- however on any app i put i wish to work per diem part time casual call. i have a disabled son , an unreliable alcoholic bipolar hubby and bad health issues that prevent me from working full time-so i work kinda like agency without the agency cost and i am reliable and compassionate and my skills are good. i wont go agency as i dont believe in it ( for me) as you switch around to ofetn and it in my brain would be to much to keep up all the rules and difference between so many employers - so i stick to one or two and exclusively work for them. so far it has been one employer and when we got low census i applied for a second but i should have been patient as god always comes through and all of a sudden there are the hours i need due to increase census - i do my best to work the schedule around thier needs but this way i am not tied down if psychiatrist or docs wish to deal with my kid and or hubby. or if hubby has a bad week i need not worry about letting anyone down cause i was scheduled and need off all week cause he is emotionally incapable to take care of the boys.

working at one or 2 places allows me to know the residents better, and know where stocks are kept better and know when changes are made cause tisnt months between times working there. it also allows me to know my resident's hx and not have to look so many up each time i work unless they are new since i was last there. as a matter of fact the place i work for made a special contract and changed job description for me because they dont believe in agency either - i am sorta thier agency lol. if they are low ( which we are 2 nurses short on pms ) the bosses don, adon, admissions nurse , etc all have to take call, taking turns ,and if not enough nurses or cnas they have to come in and fill the spot, above and beeyond their dutiesas don, etc - so i have saved them a lot of grief taking up some of the slack. i work approx half time right now as hubby and son are stable - but the contract allows me to not pick up days when they aren't stable.

the only problem i have had is the scheduler would not come to me as soon as the schedule came out "in case they hired someone and then they could give them the hours" and by the time they would ask all appointments etc would be made so i would do my best to rearrange but it did not always work. we have a new scheduler - now she gets me on the schedule right away.

perhaps you could offer them that sort of thing , per diem - however make them sure of the following - it does not contain benefits including sick days or vacation paid nor insurance - ( of course if not scheduled i can take vacation when i want but nothing is paid to me) and the biggest risk is that the hours are not guaranteed - only hours i am guaranteed are the ones they get me on the schedule for ( why the other woman did not want to put me on right away) if they hire someone - they hire them full time i am not taken off the schedule- they usually work it so i orient them and we both get the hours, but the next schedule if there are no hours to bad for me. its a big risk but so far rarely have i been without hours enough to pay the bills but it could happen. it could be very beneficial for both you and someone you would hire.