Need advice about job hunting...I am burnd-out!

[Mentalageis16]

I am so tired of sending resume and fill out the same questions over and over for the last 200 and more applications. No hospital contacted me yet. I need advice on how to proceed, this is very discouraging, I wish I am still optimistic, but the reality is...

I was at a local hospital to fill out application, overheard this manager called on the phone and spoke to a person and told that he/she got the job, she sounded so nice and friendly on the phone so I thought why not give it a try and talk to her... but when I asked her, she said there's no jobs for new grads (and she looked at me like I am very rude). She said I have no experience but my resume looks good...she also commented that I only applied for 7 months and I should keep trying even if it takes 7 years. Then she commented "you should apply online for jobs, I've never seen anybody coming here to fill out an application." She looked at me like I am a complete idiot... I felt very bad afterwards. I was polite when I put my foot into her office and knocked and smiled. I almost cried but I was tough enough not to do that.

All the HR offices I visited so far are very unfriendly. Like...seriously, I don't mind you telling me that I may not be quailified, but can you put it in a way that you don't hurt a person's feeling? I don't care how many people you need to say "NO" on a daily basis. But if it was me in her situation, I will never treat new grads like that.

Anyway, that was last Friday. I visited 2 hospitals in one day. Another hospital simply asked me to drop my resume and that's it...

So...I have no good news so far. will try harder...

[jemerald]

Congrats on landing a job

[xiu713]

Hi

Best of all to your new chapter in your nursing career!

[LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN]

Congrats!

[RunBabyRN]

Congratulations!!! Woo hoo!!

[Concerto_in_C, BSN, RN]

If you live in a very large metropolitan area (e.g. NYC, LA, Seattle, etc.) you are experiencing the big city glut effect. The big cities have a localized glut of college-educated people (including nurses) who have terrific educational credentials but their careers are not doing very well. This is typical in a big city right now-a huge talent pool, limited career options.

I succeeded in finding the job I wanted by moving to an area that's more rural. The demographics are different here-for a majority of people a high school diploma is the limit of their education. Having a BSN, I was very marketable here. A couple of managers at the hospital were in a bidding war trying to get me for their unit. Also...new grads are just as likely to get hired as experienced nurses. In fact, we don't have any experienced nurses applying...they are not available for hire. We have to take new grads for med-surg. This is an awesome unit for a new nurse. There is so much to learn. The hospital is a very good company.

The lesson the I learned from trying to find a job in a big city is that while there was incredible competition, probably hundreds of applicants for each opening, all this frantic Job Search activity was confined to a small geographic area where all the nursing colleges are, but beyond that those people didn't have any desire to relocate or drive long distances. People will drive for maybe 30-45 minutes and after that they start getting frustrated and discouraged. They are very unlikely to move to a distant address because that takes them away from friends and nightlife.

Nursing is a very geographically mobile profession, we have nurses from LA practicing in Florida and Arizona right now because LA hospitals had a lot of layoffs. This reflects the uneven and sometimes unpredictable distribution of nurse shortages.

[JustAdmitToObs]

I have called HR with the kind of result you mentioned. I've have used my networks to find the email addresses of unit managers, clinical educators, directors, etc. I spend hours putting a lot of thought into writing my emails to them. And then they never respond.....

[Mentalageis16]

Thank you everybody~ just found out my Orientation day is 25th, I will start soon! yeah! Good luck with those who are still trying. I honestly think I was lucky this time. But, every effort counts toward landing a job, do everything you can, and think outside of your box is the key!

[Mentalageis16]

I have called HR with the kind of result you mentioned. I've have used my networks to find the email addresses of unit managers, clinical educators, directors, etc. I spend hours putting a lot of thought into writing my emails to them. And then they never respond.....

Silverpointe, I wish you best of the luck, this is the least I can do for you. It's not easy for me to find a job, all my friends who are RNs are also struggling, some of them even has BSN. We are from NYC, just to let you know, a lot hospitals in our area are closing down so the competition is fierce. I was very very discouraged initially until I find a way to vent my stress out first, and then I engaged in communicating with ppl who were successful to land jobs. It's a learning process just like going thru the program at school. Therefore, don't ever gets discouraged like me and always be positive. There's light at the end of the tunnel. As a matter of fact, I spoke to some one who is ADRN, according to her, she thinks that the nursing job market is still growing unnoticably. There's always a need for nurse, think about it....it makes sense . I will keep doing the things you did, and on the other hand, I will also self - evaluate to check what I could have done to improve the next time. All it takes, is that you know someone who happen to know someone who can give you an opportunity! Network it! You can do it! :)