Sorry Nurse Recruiters/Nurse Managers!

OnlybyHisgraceRN, ASN, RN · Apr 18, 2012

I may get flamed for this but take this opportunity to continue your education. Get the BSN, MSN, or DNP while you are looking for a job. Become an advanced practice nurse. Many on here will tell you not to do that without experience but they are completely different roles. Good Luck!

Easier said then done. She is a BSN and can't get a job. I'm a ADN and got a job right out of school. All of these fancy degrees don't matter at times. It is all about how the person presents themselves. I had to compete with 200 other new grads with BSN degrees and fancy certifications however they chose me, an ADN. I was chosen for ICU. Ha ! Favor isn't fair.

knoregrets · Apr 18, 2012

OP: I hope the job front has treated you better since this was first posted. I can't read through all the comments, so I'll just say that every turned down application is an opportunity to examine your methods.

Get feed back on your resume, then redo it. Get feedback on your cover letter, then redo it. Practice interview questions with your friends/family. Try to shadow in hospitals so that you can get some face time with nurse managers. Have some business cards ready. Use your nursing network to find leads for openings, then apply to those hospitals and do your best to get your resume in front of him/her so that he/she will put up your application from HR.

OCNRN63, RN · Apr 18, 2012

On another note: we do need to allow the OP to vent. There are a ton of things we vent about on AN that never come across in our work life. Everyone offered great advice and tips but some people are a little harsh on the OP. She is venting, let her vent.

I also thought people were allowed to vent here. I guess you may only vent if you're employed.

OCNRN63, RN · Apr 18, 2012

Unfortunately your situation is NOT unique. It's too bad the nursing programs aren't being more factual about job prospects for new grads. It's too bad future grads didn't research their chosen career BEFORE starting school than they wouldn't be broad-sided after graduation with the lack of job prospects.When there are so many applicants to choose from its only a given that the ones with experience be chosen first.

They may have researched it; unfortunately, they probably saw nothing but "nursing shortage" and "health care careers are good employment opportunities." I got an issue of Money magazine a few months ago, and guess what career was on their list of growth industries? Nursing.

tcvnurse, BSN, RN · Apr 18, 2012

This is a myth. My personal experience in home health and the experience of my new grad classmates in home health points says otherwise.

Really? The home health agencies I worked for would never hire anyone without at least one year, and preferred two years of med-surg but at least hospital background. A new grad is not prepared for the numerous things that can go wrong in the home health setting.

I have met and worked with some incredible home health nurses, but I also knew a great many who were terrible nurses, co-dependant with their patients, and just plain didnt know what they were doing.

Having worked in that field for 6 years I would be very very afraid of a graduate nurse who starts in home health.

Genu9ine · Apr 18, 2012

i totally feel you on this original post!

KeyMaster · Apr 18, 2012

*** there has never been a nursing shortage in the 17 plus years i have been in nursing. yes i remeber when there where plenty of nursing jobs with bonuses being offered. even at that time there was no nursing shortage. there were plenty of rns, just a shortage of rns who were willing to work for the pay and working conditions being offered. plenty of nursing jobs is a very different thing that a shortage of nurses. the nursing shortage myth is only self serving propaganda put out by cynical people who stand to gain financialy from a glut of nurses. and it worked splendidly for them. nursing wages seem to be moving lower and nurse working conditions and getting worse.

:yeah:well said!! the total truth in a nutshell.

there is no nursing shortage. there never has been and with the number of new grads cranked out every year there will not be a nursing shortage in any forseeable future. do not be fooled into thinking that healthcare is doomed because of a lack of nurses when the information is generated from those who profit from the propaganda.

Isitpossible, LPN, LVN · Apr 18, 2012

Thanks to all who responded with real suggestions!! That is very appreciated. I do not have entitlement issues, or arrogance issues. And I would I never think to express these feelings other than here! It was a vent, and thankfully most members understood that - and many are experiencing this same difficulties securing that first position. I am applying everywhere, not solely hospitals. I will not apply to home care, b/c I believe one needs strong, solid, experience to be in a home setting. I will keep trying and not give up!

oneaware · Apr 18, 2012

Yep, you and me both my friend. GN spots are so rare it's like trying to compete for an internship with 200 other very smart nursing students.... It is sucking, but despair can wait awhile.

rikergirl · Apr 18, 2012

As I receive rejection after rejection for nursing jobs, I feel the need to apologize to nurse recruiters/managers who overlook my BSN because I lack patient care tech experience.
I am sorry I could not afford to take a job as a tech making 7 an hour. You see while attending school part-time, I needed to maintain a home, equipped with mortgage payments, children and all the other responsibilities of wife and mother.
I m sorry you cant see that I carried a gpa over 3.0 even with the all the responsibilities I have.
I'm sorry that you cant see that for past 2 ½ years of nursing school, I stayed up late each night studying or preparing care plans while working 40 hours a week.
I'm sorry that you can't see how I worked tirelessly in every aspect of my life to obtain a second degree.
I'm sorry that you can't see that despite a lack of patient care experience I am mature, driven, focused, ambitious and hard working.
I'm sorry that you can't see that I passed by NCLEX exam with 75 questions in under one hour. Not because of exceptional knowledge, because I studied tirelessly!
I'm sorry that you can't see how I was complimented time and time again by not only my clinical instructors but more importantly the patients who I cared for. I wish you could hear the amount of times a patient or the family said "you are going to be great nurse."
I'm really sorry you can't see past this lack of experience and have formed a judgment against me before knowing me.

I am not sure what state you are in because have not ever heard had to be a CNA. most nurses have never been one.

i have been an LPN since 1986 and an RN since 2008. when i became a nurse you did not start at the top. if you want to get experience apply at a nursing home. work there for a year or 2. then apply at a hospital.

think of it this way. if you or family member is very ill and in a hospital would you want a nurse who has been taking care of patients for years or one who has done some supervised clinical hours but never stood on thier own 2 feet and made important decisions before on thier own with no teacher there to guide them.

i know it seems like you spent eons of time but what you learn in the classroom doesnt begin to touch it. i learned most of what i know from other nurses while working in the nursing homes. good luck and congratulations!!

CrazierThanYou · Apr 18, 2012

In my area, teacher's assistants are the ones who automatically get hired as teachers when they finish the degree. They've been in the classroom, they've worked with children, etc. With CNA's, I do feel they should get hired first. They've been in the hospital/other care facility and they've worked with the patients. In fact, it seems odd to me that someone who has zero experience whatsoever with patient care would decide to be a nurse.

I go to school with several people who have no experience working with other people. Some have no experience working at all. They're all clueless. They have no people skills, they don't know how to communicate with the patients, they're always "scared" of something.

Now, in our area, one must have taken the CNA class and obtained certification before they can apply to the nursing program. Unfortunately, that didn't go into effect until the class after us. I think it should go a step further and mandate that one must WORK as a CNA. A college in a neighboring county requires 2 years of full time CNA experience to be a radiology tech.

I worked as a CNA all the way through nursing school and for years before. If I am up against some of my classmates who have no experience, I absolutely think I should be hired first. Of course, it might not happen, due to the "connections" we keep hearing about...

interleukin · Apr 18, 2012

Nothing trumps experience.

While you cannot teach at a university without a PhD, all you need is an associates degree to get in the nursing door.

Nursing schools that hand out rose-colored glasses during orientations need a good dope slap.

Hospitals are businesses and nurses are commodities. If they can find someone less costly and more safe, they will.

Were I king, I would not allow a student to go from BA to MA or PhD , regardless of the branch of nursing , without at least 5 years actual experience.

Students simply do not know what they do not know. And handing out degrees without broad fundamental base of knowledge and experience only dilutes the entire profession.

I hate diploma mills.

OK...I'm done.