Houston GN internship?

The best time for Spring grads to apply for internships was Jan. to April depending on the hospital. Hospitals typically only hire new grads for internships during set application periods generally about 4-6 months before you will graduate applications will open up. Applications for December grads are now opening and you can try to apply for those.
I know in Houston they do hire new grads into NICU, specifically at Hermann, TCH, and Woman's but, spots are limited and internships are competitive based on GPA, hesi, experience, and interview. Recruiters have mentioned there will be a few more GN positions in December than there were in May so your chances may be better.
Maybe consider something like PICU if your can't get into NICU directly and working there a while for the experience.

It looks like Hermann internships for January 2010 closed on September 11th. Please someone correct me if I'm wrong? I'm so disappointed in myself for missing the deadline. I just didn't think it'd close that early, I checked like 2 weeks ago and they weren't even accepting applications yet.

Also, can anyone tell me what TCH is? I'm not from Houston, but hoping to relocate.

And if anyone has any info on NICU please let me know.

Thanks everyone, good luck!!

The deadline was on September 11. They posted around the 1st, so it wasn't up for very long at all. Sorry you missed it. I have a list of bookmarks that I check on a daily basis, from all over the state. I am in Austin, and the GN outlook is very, very grim. I'm just looking for someone to give me a chance, and I'll move there!

I believe TCH is Texas Children's Hospital.

St. Luke's Episcopal Health System also has Jan intake open, interviews start Sep 21st

Hello. I'm just starting to consider going into nursing as a second career. I'm curious about internships. Is this something you have to do in order to work in NICU/OB/L&D areas? Thanks! Michelle

Yes, the Hermann application opened and closed in 2 weeks. I was able to anticipate its opening due to them coming to our job fair Sept.28 and giving those that came that info. Maybe they are trying to make the applicant pool smaller or maybe they have something going on with our school? We have also been told when interviews will be in early Oct. It was hard getting the two reccommendation letters in 2 weeks. St. Lukes is open but, they don't have pediatrics, OB or NICU (St. Lukes OB is actually TCH owned). The rep. from Ben Taub stated apps will be opening in October. I can't remember when Methodist will open it's application period but, I'm sure very soon.

Mks1014, most hospitals will require some training period for new graduates even for general med/surg. Specialty areas like OR, CVICU, ICU, Labor and Delivery, ect. generally require longer periods of specialized training. The interships are paid full RN salary (or at least close) and you can usually start with your NCLEX test still pending as long as you have your GN permit.

Thanks!

I just wanted to let you know that I graduated in August and found a job in the medical center...will start this month (September). I went through a series of 3 interviews before they made the decision. It was pretty stressful just because a lot of this happened while I was still in my last semester, but overall it was a very smooth process.

Applying to work in the medical center wasn't a hassle at all, but you do have to know your recruiter. For example, one recruiter wanted you to be completely flexible about where you wanted to work; another one wanted you to know where you wanted to work, and also to be able to articulate why. It just depends.

From what I can remember off the top of my head, Memorial Hermann, Methodist, St. Luke's, Ben Taub, LBJ, and Menninger have GN internships. MD Anderson has a GN program, as well. There are more, but basically just surf around the hospital/clinic's website and look for "nurse residency", "internship", "GN", etc. You may want to figure out if the hospital you're applying to puts a big emphasis on what specialty you're going for. For instance, it doesn't help to ask for "women's health" at a hospital that focuses primarily on something completely different. There are internships that start at different times during the year. The most common times I know about are January, June, and sometimes September.

Also, a couple of things I learned: It sometimes helps to put your clinical experiences on your resume, and also remember to be persistent and cheerful...they really want you to succeed! It's also important to remember that many successful nurses didn't even participate in GN programs. Best of luck to you. You'll find the perfect job for you!

There are some NICU job postings for nre grads on http://www.gsmc.org/careers/ in Longview, TX