Only hiring new grads that are "cream of the crop"?

)The article suggests for new grads to go back to school and advance their education if they can not find work, I am very grateful for my job; I was so burnt out on school I could not imagine going back for my masters this soon!

One of the problems I see with this is mentioned in the article. Will going back for more education necessarily guarantee a job? It would certainly be advantageous, in terms of increased job opportunities for unemployed or underemployed new grad ADN or diploma nurses to get their BSNs or or new grad LPN/LVNs to go back to school to become RNs. By the time those nurses would finish their educational programs, the job market might be very different and they would increase their chances of finding positions.

I'm less enthused about the idea of unemployed new grad BSNs going back to graduate school. I think the idea of funneling inexperienced nurses into MSN programs because they cannot get other nursing jobs is unwise. Those nurses will still be inexperienced at a MSN level. I think there are some individuals who are very motivated and extremely capable of pursuing an advanced practice role, particularly the nurse practitioner role, either in an ELMSN program or immediately after finishing a BSN program. However, nursing experience is always helpful and most benefit from having bedside experience first. I am definitely against having new graduates go on for advanced education to become nurse educators or nurse administrators because again, while theory is important, experience makes that theory relevant. I think it would be very difficult to go directly into nursing education or administration without some sort of clinical experience first.

There's a thread here on AN http://allnurses.com/general-nursing...ce-409123.html debating whether or not nurses wishing to pursue careers in advanced nursing practice need bedside experience before going back for master's degrees in nursing. There are some very interesting comments from advocates on both sides of the issue. Again, I think there are people who are exceptional, but most nurses need a foundation in learning how to be nurses before going on for additional education and advanced practice roles.

Another downside of having unemployed new grad BSNs go directly to graduate school is that, because most MSN programs are specialized, the new grads would end up getting "stuck" in a specialty area that maybe isn't right for them.

Lastly, if institutions are indeed hiring only new grads who are "cream of the crop", then does that mean that the nurses who are not the best of the best would get funneled into higher education if they can't find jobs? Oh, and that's insulting as well---some new grads who ARE the "cream of the crop" are not able to find jobs because of geographical location, maybe a lack of interviewing skills or because someone who was more qualified applied for the same position. One cannot say that they aren't getting jobs because they aren't good enough. But as I see it, that's what this article implies...

"Nursing is the ONLY profession that eats their young"...

Michael