Parkland residency and babies...

[mommyRN09]

Hello all!

Ok, so I graduated in Dec. '09, but had a baby two weeks later so I couldn't exactly do the Jan. internships. (believe me, it was all I could do just graduating at 9 months pregnant...) My question has two parts...

1. I'm wondering if my taking off a semester after graduation to be with my son is working against me in my job hunt. It's so competitive out there right now, especially in DFW. Just curious if anyone else has felt at a disadvantage/discriminated against for something similar.

2. Also, I REALLY want a Parkland nurse residency, particularly L&D or ER. I applied online as soon as they posted, and have been stalking the recruiters ever since. Anyone get interviews at Parkland in the past and have to wait a long time before they contacted you? And just how long is long?? I'm just super frustrated and worried that I'm going to have to gamble and accept something else I don't really want before I even hear from Parkland one way or the other.

Thanks!! :)

[twentytenRN]

I certainly would not put all my eggs in Parkland's basket. Especially not for their L&D or ER internships. For their January one in L&D they had literally hundreds of applicants for only a few spots in L&D. These jobs are hard to find in DFW right now as a new grad. Explore your options and if you're committed to staying in DFW, certainly don't count on getting your first job in a specialty. If you haven't already, I'd look at the other hospital systems in DFW and start applying and contacting recruiters about the June internships. The area May grads are getting ready to find their jobs about now.

[mommyRN09]

Very true...Believe me, while that may be my ideal job situation, I am not at all being picky. I'm very aware that jobs are scarce at the moment, I've applied to literally 20 different internships with nearly every hospital system in DFW. I will take what I can get and pay my dues for now. I was just curious if anyone else had had success with Parkland right out of the gate and if so, what they had done to get there and how long they had to wait for an interview.