Nursing Recruiters and Portfolios

Your license.
A vial of blood.

When I first started looking for jobs, I carried around transcripts, reference letters, all kinds of stuff. All they really wanted was a copy of my license and my CPR card. Maybe there's just a bigger shortage here than in other parts of the country, but most of my interviews have kinda gone like this:

You have a license? When can you start?

This is for LPN positions, which is a tighter market than the RN market. I see so many posts on how bad the economy is and how hard it is for RN's to find work. But, right now there are 145 RN postings at Methodist Hospital here, 42 at St. Francis, and I'm not going to bother checking the 4 or 5 other hospitals here.

Good luck

Hey there! I think you are missing the basics :-) Resume and reference list!
A former employer that I had an excellent record with cannot give a reference due to hospital policy. They can only say that they would or would not rehire that person, so I offer copies of performace evaluations from that job.

Hey just a little advice to you...long shot, but hey? I cannot get work as a new grad so I sent an email asking to volunteer or just learn to two different recruiters at my first choice hospital. They did not take any new grads. One told me no (they did not have that type of opportunity for an RN wanting to do patient care, etc.) Today I got called from the other recruiter saying that they can hire me as an RN, paid the new grad rate, prn, for a short term period doing flu shots! It's a foot in the door. If you can't get work, which I have not in addition to this, offer to volunteer. Show initiative. Even if you don't end up working there after, it's a resume booster for a little down the road when you filling out applications.