Do you want to be jobless after nursing school? I didn't think so...

[Manny92]

We all hear the horror stories of fresh nursing grads who can't find jobs after school. Well, I don't want to be one of those people and I thought I'd share the steps I have taken as of now and for the future to hopefully prevent that from occuring:

I got my CNA license last October but haven't found a job because I wanted to focus more on acing my prerequisites. After having finished all my classes this past Fall 2013 semester, I got a job at my local community college as a student assistant, at the very school I applied for nursing school.

After my first semester of nursing school, I plan on applying to a hospital as a Patient Care Technician (I am qualified for this because I previously got my CNA license), and I will be even MORE qualified because I will have completed the "Nursing Fundamentals" course. The experience from this class combined with the clinicals will be very good.

While at the hospital, I will network with the nurses and staff (hopefully unit managers, too), and let them know how serious I am about my motivation, career goals, and ambition.

After getting my RN license, I will immediately apply to my local university's RN-BSN bridge program....... The catch is that I will still do PCT work undercover (to make sure I get some money).

Once I get my BSN, I should have absolutely no problem finding a nursing job, right?

[Manny92]

Hey thanks everyone for the great responses!! I'm gonna see if I can start working as a CNA at my clinical site. Hopefully it all works out.

[klallen]

"Once I get my BSN I should have absolutely no problem finding a job right?"

This is what I was addressing.Working as a PCT will not make you any different than thousands looking for work.

This might not be the case where you work, but where I work it makes all the difference. If you are on the unit working as a PCT and you are good at your job and work hard there is a good chance when you become an RN and there is an open position you will get the position. Most of the RN's on our floor worked as PCT's. Almost of our PCT's were hired after they did clinical on our floor for school and if they did well they would get hired for a PCT job. Also PCT experience is still better than no health care experience at all. Everything the PCT does, a RN also does. Like other people have said, its all about networking. If your good at your job and work hard, people will notice and want to hire you or help you become an RN. Dont get me wrong it might still take some time to find an RN job, but becoming a PCT will help.

[klallen]

You still have to keep in mind that even the best PCA/CNA/Corpsman/Medic is not taught to think like a nurse. They're taught to do nursing tasks, and therein lies the real difference.

There is definitely benefit in learning how to manage your time, give a bed bath, and turn a patient. However, in the end, those skills are moot if you're not pairing those skills with prioritizing your tasks, doing a skin check, and understanding the importance of turns, respectively. There's knowing how to do something, and then knowing why.

I disagree with this. As a PCT I'm not a robot that goes around and just baths and turns my patient because my nurse says so. We work together to take care of the patient. I know why i do these tasks and I know what to look for. I may not chart an official skin check but I still do skin checks on everyone of my patient. When a patient starts to go down hill or their status is changing half of the time the PCT is the first person to catch this. I'm not saying I know as much as a nurse but I do know more about nursing than you are giving PCT credit for and I do think like a nurse because the Nurses I work with teach their PCT's to think like them.

[AmyRN303, BSN, RN]

I disagree with this. As a PCT I'm not a robot that goes around and just baths and turns my patient because my nurse says so. We work together to take care of the patient. I know why i do these tasks and I know what to look for. I may not chart an official skin check but I still do skin checks on everyone of my patient. When a patient starts to go down hill or their status is changing half of the time the PCT is the first person to catch this. I'm not saying I know as much as a nurse but I do know more about nursing than you are giving PCT credit for and I do think like a nurse because the Nurses I work with teach their PCT's to think like them.

YOU may know why you do certain things, but it isn't in the PCT scope to need to. Critical thinking and knowledge is certainly not limited to nurses. Though I can't speak for SoldierNurse, I read her post in the vein that assessment and prioritization isn't required for CNA/PCT certification, and isn't taught in the curriculum.

[vw74vw]

I just wanted to share my experience as a PCA/CNA. I attained a PCA position during the last year of nursing school in hopes to gain an RN position once I finished. In my market it is very difficult to get a acute new grad position without networking. So I worked very hard, treated the time as a PCA as an extended job interview and it has paid off with an RN position within a month of passing the NCLEX. So for those who care about doing well and studying endless hours for that "A". I would rethink your plan...no one cares what your grades are in school...they care about how you work within a team, are you able to multi-task, and can you see the big picture. Working as a PCA taught me so much more then clinicals in respect with talking to patients, working with other staff and dealing with MD (on a limited bases). I feel comfortable within the environment which is half the battle learning a new job. So if you are able to work DO IT. It will save you months of saying to yourself "why can't I get an interview" Its not a guarantee by any means but it does give you a way to network, which is how you land a job now days. Ok I'm done with my soap box...:)

[Keightypie]

OP, I think there is great value in a CNA position, especially throughout nursing school. I was not licensed as an STNA, but rather my hospital hires nursing students PRN to fill a CTA position with phlebotomy and EKG competencies. I thought of it as a great supplement to my education, however. Being a part of a healthcare team in a student capacity is so much different than In a working capacity, and I learned a lot in my job position.

That being said, I will also say that where I'm from (Cleveland), my classmates who were CTAs (mostly) have jobs and my classmates who were not mostly do not have jobs yet. I think it depends on your health systems in the area though. Our hospitals are big on internal hires and first dibs for new grad RN positions go to those in the system. Right now my friends wishing to be hired externally are having trouble finding positions because of the saturation of students graduating internally.

While I most definitely won't tell you a position will get you a job when all is said and done, I will say it could be a valuable experience either way. Perhaps look into PRN work at the very least if you are hesitant about the time commitment.

Good luck to you!

[scrubgirl16]

I think working as a patient care tech not only gives you experience, but where I'm at you have a very good chance at getting a RN job after graduation. I know of so many people that are still looking for a job. I think it helps to have a foot in the door and if not what are you getting from it experience, and knowledge.