Are May 2021 grads applying yet?

rileyjw90, RN · Jan 26, 2021

I have applied to a couple nurse residency positions. One was just a straight up residency and really no different than a regular staff RN. It's a huge health system through the state university and it says right on their website that all new grad hires are automatically enrolled into the nurse residency program. I applied several days ago but have not heard back. The other one I submitted my information to was for a new grad nursing fellowship, and is unit-specific. They have med-surg, surgical, ED, and critical care fellowships. It's also a large health system, though private, and have several large hospitals in the network, so I'm fairly certain there will be multiple fellowships available. I actually submitted the information at the tail end of December and then heard back a couple days ago. Emailed back and forth a little with the program director to clarify some qualifications and then she formally invited me to submit an official fellowship application and sign up for an interview slot to take place the second week of February.

The fact that the interviews are only a few weeks away tells me that you should definitely already be looking and applying if it's something a little more competitive you're going for, like a fellowship. Otherwise, in my general searches, I've seen tons of job posting for regular staff RNs that do not list any specific experience requirements. Right now with the pandemic, I think may places that might have been more stringent before are loosening their requirements in favor of getting warm bodies in to work. I also know that many systems actually like hiring in new grads, because it's like cracking open a fresh container of play-doh that they can mold into any shape they want. They don't want established bad habits, they want someone they can build from the ground up to fit their unit's needs perfectly.

I will say, I am in a very large city. If you're in a smaller city or town and not finding a lot of opportunity, expand your search to the closest bigger city. Some places are offering higher bonuses to people driving from further away, or are paying more to make up for travel expenses. If you don't have young children at home and can devote a little more time to driving, or can even move closer to a bigger city, then that might be better for your job prospects.

Good luck! Can't wait to graduate in May!!