Application process/Job opportunity for VA

monkeyhq · Sep 10, 2014

Some VA jobs can take nearly a year, some are filled in less than 3 months. It depends greatly on whether or not the hospital/position you applied for specified a 'term' for applying. If you applied through the USAJobs portal, the opening for the position should have had an open and close date for applications, and the minimum entry level requirements for the open position. Usually, you can find this just beneath the contact information for the position, located in a column on the right side of the page.

It is also important to ensure all the paperwork submitted with your application is 100% correct. If they find any discrepancies, you are on the wood pile. On your resume you should have included not only contact name and number for previous employers, but the exact dates of employment, how many hours worked per week, and salary. What the government considers 'incomplete' can be any information they want that you have not provided.

I did an extensive rotation at the VA when I was a student--I loved it. But when you are being considered for a full-time post licensed position, it takes a good deal of time to get through the process.

I know that at the particular location where I worked, nurses new to the system spend a full year rotating between departments/wards before they are settled in to their designated department/ward.

I can also tell you that getting a nursing job at a VA hospital is highly competitive for most locations, and that they use a points system to filter applications. If 150 people apply for the same position, it will take some time before you are notified.

The job that you applied for will have a contact person listed in the right hand column of the listing--you can always call them to check the status of your application.

Best wishes!

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Sep 10, 2014

...snip......
I know that at the particular location where I worked, nurses new to the system spend a full year rotating between departments/wards before they are settled in to their designated department/ward.
...snip....
Best wishes!

Above is good information, but wanted to address this part. It is NOT the norm to rotate anyone (new or otherwise) through various departments before settling them somewhere. Perhaps you are referring to student rotations?

When a nurse (new or otherwise) is hired for a specific position (and they are always specific), THAT is where they go. Aside from an orientation period in which policy, procedure, and facility set-up is addressed, new employees work where they were hired to work. After all, that's why the job was announced in the first place: they need someone there!

Also, to the OP: there is a board listed under "Specialties" entitled "Government/Military Nursing". You'll find a lot of VA info there :)

monkeyhq · Sep 10, 2014

Above is good information, but wanted to address this part. It is NOT the norm to rotate anyone (new or otherwise) through various departments before settling them somewhere. Perhaps you are referring to student rotations?
When a nurse (new or otherwise) is hired for a specific position (and they are always specific), THAT is where they go. Aside from an orientation period in which policy, procedure, and facility set-up is addressed, new employees work where they were hired to work. After all, that's why the job was announced in the first place: they need someone there!
Also, to the OP: there is a board listed under "Specialties" entitled "Government/Military Nursing". You'll find a lot of VA info there :)

To clarify, NEWLY LICENSED GRADS hired by the VA (nurses with no experience) Hospital in my city do the one-year rotation throughout the hospital before being seated in their final position.

I don't know if the OP is in my city, but I do see that they are not a new grad. My bad! Thank you for pointing out that this is not the norm. I can certainly see the confusion in my statement. :confused:

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Sep 10, 2014

To clarify, NEWLY LICENSED GRADS hired by the VA (nurses with no experience) Hospital in my city do the one-year rotation throughout the hospital before being seated in their final position.
I don't know if the OP is in my city, but I do see that they are not a new grad. My bad! Thank you for pointing out that this is not the norm. I can certainly see the confusion in my statement.

No biggie....just didn't want him/her to think that taking a VA job meant having to float around for a year before getting into the job they were hired for! I can only imagine...

Guess for a new grad it could be good or bad....I'd think the unit would want the new person to be ON that unit from the get-go, but I'm going with the idea that there's method to the madness

monkeyhq · Sep 10, 2014

No biggie....just didn't want him/her to think that taking a VA job meant having to float around for a year before getting into the job they were hired for! I can only imagine...
Guess for a new grad it could be good or bad....I'd think the unit would want the new person to be ON that unit from the get-go, but I'm going with the idea that there's method to the madness

You are correct in the pointing it out...I didn't make it explicitly clear and I certainly don't want to misinform.

We have quite a sizable hospital that offers a comprehensive range of services, outpatient clinics, and an enormous campus that includes LTC, and Rehab. As you know, government facilities have their own way of doing things. They even have their own proprietary EMR and MAR (which does make it easier to adapt from one federal facility to the next), and customs for charting (like addressing patients as 'veteran' in all documentation). In our particular facility, the reason brand-new grads (entry at G2 level) are rotated throughout the various wards and departments is so that they have a comprehensive understanding of the facility and the functions of each ward and department.

(I should also note, for clarity, that the 1 year rotation policy in our hospital was in effect as of 2 years ago--there is the possibility that this has changed for this location).

I see the plus to rotation in that it can help the brand-new nurse identify the areas where he/she prefers to work (surgical, mental health, hospice, ER, GI lab, clinic, etc.). I think the immersion does help educate them about the range of services offered within the facility and on campus (which also helps them serve the veterans), familiarizes them with the different policies and procedures of each ward (ex. the nurses on the in-patient mental health ward operate under a different set of rules than nurses on the endocrine ward), gives them an advantage when requesting internal transfer to jobs open on other wards/clinics, expands their skill and knowledge about nursing for multiple medical conditions, and makes them float status eligible. Another big advantage is the exposure to mental health services. As you know, a mental health condition is a frequent co-morbidity among the veteran population.

I also see the potential negative. Having a feeling of permanence is important to a lot of people. New nurses bouncing around to various areas could make one feel like they are not grounded, and still in nursing school (I still feel this way sometimes and I am two years in). Who you answer to could get quite confusing. And a whole other host of potential issues.

On balance, for the fresh out of school rosy cheeked new grad who has no experience working in healthcare or for the government, this induction method is probably not a horrible thing.

firstinfamily, RN · Sep 11, 2014

I applied through USA.Gov for some VA positions and like you am a little mystified at how they notify for an interview or rejection etc. My son works through a contractor for another government position and he told me it usually takes longer than average, so I am waiting, waiting and applying at other places while I am waiting. Maybe I am already on the rejection pile, I don't know!! Good luck!!