i begin my story by explaining that when i was contacted by st. luke's to interview for their fall 2012 gn residency program, i was thrilled! i graduated in december 2011 with my bsn, i quickly scheduled my nclex exam, and passed with flying colors. i did originally want to work in nicu, l&d, or pediatrics. however, i do know that those jobs are extremely difficult for a new grad to get into. so, i always knew i may have to work med/surg for a year to aquire some expereince first.
after trying to find something in nicu, l&d, or pedi, and not having much luck i decided to apply to st. luke's fall 2012 gn med/surg residency program. i figured, while it may not be my dream job, it would be a wonderful starting point. i was contacted by a recruiter within one week of submitting my application, at which time she set up an interview for the following week. i was very excited to be given the opportunity to interview for a position, considering i had been searching for 7 months with no real leads or jobs to show for my persistence and hard work (i had been calling and visiting hr departments quite frequently since graduation). i spent several days prepping for my interview, and polishing up my portfolio. i collected 3 letters of recommendations from former professors who all said they were pulling for me.
on the day of the interview, i arrived early, and good thing too. they had me fill out some paperwork, and had me complete a psych assessment on the computer before i was taken back for my interview. once in the office of the hr rep, she asked me why i wanted to work for st luke's. i began to explain why i wanted to work for their institution. i could tell the hr rep didn't seem too interested in what i had to say, and she interrupted me within the first minute of my explanation. she then asked me when i graduated. i kindly informed her, december 2011. however, she should have known that info from my resume and cover letter that i had submitted. after all, it is the first line on my resume. she informed me that the gn residency was only open to april/may/august graduates, and wondered why i even bothered to apply? i informed her that i did see that on the job listing, but never thought it would be limited to a certain class of graduates. she told me that is in fact how st. luke's operates. she told me that they had already given the december 2011 graduates two opportunities to apply and interview for the position that began in june.
i apologized for not understanding the process a bit better, but urged her to still consider me for the residency program seeing as how i did graduate from a bsn program, and already hold my rn license. she refused to interview me, and kept informing me that i had missed my opportunity to work as a gn with their hospital. i couldn't believe my ears! a completely qualified rn was sitting right in front of her for a position that was open, and i was being denied because i graduated 6 months earlier than the newest new grads? i was very upset, but knew i had to remain calm and professional at all costs. i asked why this rule even existed when the demand for nurses is so high, especially in med/surg. she informed me that they do not open up their gn residency program to any and all graduates because according to her, "they don't want to hire someone who has been sitting around for a year or more doing nothing." this upset me even more! i couldn't believe the ignorance of this woman! i know many nurses who have worked very hard to find employment after graduation, but have yet to find anything. how dare she say that those who don't have a job lined up immediately after graduation are sitting around doing nothing! i have been diligently searching and spending hours trying to improve my resume through earning additional certifications, volunteering, and attending professional organizational meetings to make connections. i was very insulted by her ignorance, even much more when she looked at me and said, "i can interview you for any rn position in this hospital once you have 6 months of professional nursing experience." i with all the pride i could muster said, "that is why i am sitting in front of you today, to earn a position at your hospital to gain that much needed experience." she then began to tell me about the gn program, but i stopped her because there was no real point in telling me about it if i had, "missed my opportunity".
at that point, i ended the interview, and walked out of there with my head held high. i didn't want to give her the satisfaction of seeing me upset. as soon as i was back in the safety of my car, i cried harder than i ever had in my entire life. i am very upset by what happened. they should have never allowed me to get that far into the interview process without checking when i had graduated! a simple phone call would have been nice instead of making me sit in front of them and deny me the opportunity to interview for a position. if this is how hospitals are treating new grads, then the healthcare industry is in much worse shape than i even feared! i wanted to warn new grad nurses of this possibility happening to them if they are to interview with st. luke's. the hr rep did say this was not the first time for this to happen, and she may want to make the job posting a bit more clear to prevent confusion in the future. i know for me anyways, st. luke's will never have me as an employee of theirs regardless of my experience level. i will take my passion and talent elsewhere.
