best way to improve resume as a new grad?

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Specializes in Cardiothoracic ICU.

I will be graduating in june 2011 with a BSN and am trying to become as marketable as i can before i graduate. I have gotten letters of recommendation from clinical instructors, am taking ACLS in a few days, speak spanish at a moderate level. My GPA is low at 3.1 but i am confident in my clinical performance. I will also be working as a CNA in a hospital during my last year of school. Is there anything else i can do to become more marketable in this tough time for the new grad.

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Specializes in Pulmonary med/surg/telemetry.

Have you applied for an externship? That's an excellent way to get experience as well as your foot in the door at the facility that you'd like to work...not to mention that it looks very good on a resume :)

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Seems like you've been doing all the right things :) Only other thing I can add is to Network your butt off.

Get to know recruiters & managers and definitely apply EARLY for new grad programs. Best of luck!

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Seems like you've been doing all the right things :) Only other thing I can add is to Network your butt off.

Get to know recruiters & managers and definitely apply EARLY for new grad programs. Best of luck!

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Specializes in med/surg/tele/neuro/rehab/corrections.

I agree with the other posters. Get a job at a hospital! Externships are valuable and CNA is good too. But if they don't have a position open then CNA will do no good. But nursing experience will be invaluable! I've seen externs get hired right off the bat as soon as they passed NCLEX. Some institutions New Grad Programs won't even consider you unless you externed there in that department. Silly because it is suppose to be a New Grad Program but jobs are just harder to come by these days.

The best thing I ever did was get my EMT license in the summer. That got me an ER tech job and I really wanted to work in the ER. I did dressing changes, splints, and other things. :) Looks good on my resume and now for new grad programs for ER they are really considering me because I have that license and experience in the ER.

Good luck!

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Specializes in Pediatrics.

Wish I could offer you more advice, but you seem to be doing all the right things.

If your school has a career counsling office go there and see if someone could help you write your resume.

That is what I did, I went from no interviews to 3 in one week after we tweaked my resume.

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Sounds like you're headed in the right direction. Find out if hospitals have a Nurse Tech position or something similar. This was available as a job to nursing students who completed a certain amount of clinicals. In the case of one ED here, ER Techs can't do IV's, but a Nurse Tech can (so they can work on many nursing skills). This was beneficial to several of my classmates.

If doing ACLS, why not include NIH stroke scale cert. You can do it online for free & print off a certificate. I guess there are several, but you can google nihstrokescale or nihss-english & it'll lead you to some. Good luck!

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It think you're dong great so far. I agree with what the other posters have said. I would add learning another language, specifically spanish. Many employers are looking to hire staff who are bilingual. I think that will boost your resume a great deal. Best of luck.

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Externship will be better than a CNA job, IMO. It will look great for you to be working with a nurse directly, rather than doing the CNA duties.

While it won't give you nursing experience, volunteering 2 times a month or so at a hospital will allow you to network, which may help you in finding a job.

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Do not be so concerned with a low GPA per say, as most places do not have a bare minimum (unless you are trying for very large teaching hospitals in places like LA aka Cedars-Sinai) but as the others said, get a nurse-intern/extern/etc. position ASAP....I work in an ICU as an Student Nurse Intern and I was offered a job in my 4th semester, which Im about to finish! Do not wait and think passing an NCLEX will get you hired, because plenty others have prior healthcare experience, etc. Goodluck!

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