Can not find a job!

Mr G · May 7, 2010

where city are you applying in for these jobs?

Nurse_Tricia, LPN · May 7, 2010

I may be new to nursing but I have several years in management and recruiting. Here are some tips I hope will help you....

1. Don't say you try to avoid conflict. Employers know that conflict will occur and what they want to know is how you would handle it. Refer back to doing whatever it takes to make sure that excellence in patient care is carried out. They don't want to hear "well I try to compromise". When it comes to excellence in patient care, there is no compromise. If I had to choose between a nice bubbly nurse who avoids conflict and a nurse who gets the job done,( although I want 1/2 and 1/2), If I had to choose, it's the nurse who gets the job done.

2. As to what people would say about you, I sure wouldn't tell them you don't have any friends. Hardworking, go -getter sounds much better.

3. Practice in the mirror your answers. Make sure they sound smooth so they are believable. I know it sounds silly but when it is asked and it rolls off your tongue- you will be surprised.

4. Be proactive. For example, "Given the opportunity, I know I would be an asset to your facility."Restate why. "I am a hardworking, dedicated employee." Practice this as well.

5. Above all BE CONFIDENT in yourself and your abilities.

6. . They always ask for strength and weakness. For example, "I would say I am conscious of my organizational skills." Don't say my weakness, but that you are conscious of what you know you need to work on daily. My strength is my people skills. Def. good to have strong people skills.

Again. Practice, practice, practice. ....... Have a friend or relative mock interview you.. Why you want to work at this facility? What do you think you have to bring to our facility? Strengths and Weakness? Tell me of a time you had to handle conflict...( If you don't have one, Find one) but again... Above all.. BE CONFIDENT!!!! hope this helps and good luck!

fungez · May 7, 2010

And if you do have a great interview, and still don't get the job, don't take it personally. I've applied for jobs where they already have the winner picked out (in one case the BFF of the manager) and they still had to post it and make a show of interviewing. Nice waste of my time, right?

Cahoon BSN RN, BSN, RN · May 7, 2010

Not to be mean, but maybe have someone proofread your resume. You have a ton of typos and grammar problems in your post. I'm not sure if English is your first language, but that could be an immediate turn off for most employers. Maybe you were just typing fast in your post and didn't notice. Again, not trying to pick on you, just giving a suggestion.

Cheers

RN1980 · May 7, 2010

realize there are a ton of new nurses out there now lookin for jobs and hospitals are using the poor economy to cut back in nursing. back a few yrs ago when there was a great need for nursing you would have probably been snapped up no matter how bad your interview or resume looked just as long as you had that magical rn card. i know of 5 nurses that graduated may 2009 that took atleast 6-8months of soild looking to finally get decent fulltime jobs with bennefits. 2 of the five left the state completely. and for all these people that just pile into nursing schools every yr is just making a bad situation worse. only advice is to pound the streets, keep looking, network and take anything right now just to get your foot in the door. good luck.

sassy_cassie · May 7, 2010

Network, Network, Network. I know you said you don't have a lot of friends, but even if there is someone who works at the facillity that you don't know very well ask them if they can put in a good word for you. It could be a nurse you worked with during clinicals, a clinical instructor, a old classmate, or even your personal doctor. Just get the word out there that you are looking and you may be suprised who comes forward to help you.

Orca, ADN, ASN, RN · May 7, 2010

It might also be helpful to know what you meant when you said that the interview for the full time position "went wrong". That is too vague for me to help you identify the problem.

Don't say you try to avoid conflict.

I completely agree. You may be implying that you had rather avoid addressing a problem than risk having a conflict over it. One of our standard interview questions is to have the applicant detail a situation in which he/she had a conflict, and state what the approach to resolution was. If a nurse is to be a patient advocate it is important for him/her to be assertive, which may include butting heads with a supervisor or doctor. If you come across as being too timid, a prospective employer might not believe that you are up to the task.

Not to be mean, but maybe have someone proofread your resume. You have a ton of typos and grammar problems in your post.

This is also important. Your resume or application is in effect a sales brochure for you and your services. If there are a lot of errors in it, an employer may get the impression that you don't pay attention to detail and that you make a lot of mistakes. You can never undo a first impression, and it should be a good one.

linzz · May 7, 2010

I used to work in Human Resources and my spouse is still doing hiring from time to time. I must echo what the above posts have said. All have given great advice.

The one thing about your post that stands out to me is the fact that you say you are outgoing and hardworking. Why not tell an employer that, and sound like you really do believe this about your self. Also, drop the part about disiking conflict and replace it with a more positive tone like saying that you are able to work with others in a courteous, but professional manner and will have no difficulty advocating for safe patient care at all times.

Turn those negatives to positives and I'll bet you will have the job you want soon.

savotina · May 8, 2010

Thank you all and I really appreciate all the suggestions, I will for sure incorporate all and will try my best once the opportunity will be available.