Have you been able to find a job eaily after taking the CNA course?

Nursing Students CNA/MA

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I was wondering how long it took to find a job after taking CNA course/exam. Do alot of employers hire with minimal experience?

I took my class in Feb. & got my temporary license in March. I wanted to work in a nursing home, but in MD you have to be licensed as a GNA. Well my test wasnt until April, so I called around & most places wouldn't even talk to me until I took my GNA test. So I took the test on April 4th & thank God I passed on the first try! But still I was waiting for my background check & fingerprints to come back from the FBI, so still no license number. Meanwhile I applied at a couple of agencies but the pay was soo low& they were so unprofessional so I didn't even bother with them. Then in late April I applied at a nursing home & did a drug test, so I thought I'd be hired there. But nvr heard back from them :-( So now its May & I'm at wits end ..so I decided to apply at this assisted living facility for retarded adults. The pay was even lower than what the agencies were offering but at this point I was ready to take whatever. So things went well & they said they'd definitely call me in the next coupe of days. Also that day I applied to the facility, I FINALLY got my license number from the board :) So over the weekend I was looking through the classified section & an assisted living facility for people with dementia & alzheimers had an ad about a job fair they were having that Monday. So I went, had an interview & got hired on the spot :) And the pay is way higher than what I was being offered at the other places I applied to. So now I've been at my job for about 2 months & I enjoy what I do. All in all it took about 2months for me to find a job.

The proper term is MRDD not "retarded adults" as you stated above. I know we all say things without thinking but it's unfair to those who have friends/family members with MRDD to call them retarded adults. Mental Retardation is a developmental disability and should be respected as such.

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Specializes in Med-Surg/urology.
The proper term is MRDD not "retarded adults" as you stated above. I know we all say things without thinking but it's unfair to those who have friends/family members with MRDD to call them retarded adults. Mental Retardation is a developmental disability and should be respected as such.

Just for your FYI the name of the I applied to is Christian Assisted Living for Mentally Retarded Adults (CALMRA) & that is why I phrased it the way I did. And for the record I have family members who are mentally handicapped so in no way would I try & insult them or anyone .

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Just for your FYI the name of the I applied to is Christian Assisted Living for Mentally Retarded Adults (CALMRA) & that is why I phrased it the way I did. And for the record I have family members who are mentally handicapped so in no way would I try & insult them or anyone .

But you werent referring to the name of the facility when you used the phrase. You were talking about a group of people. And you cant say retarded adults when referencing a group of people, " ...I decided to apply at this assisted living facility for retarded adults....". The "retarded adults" listed above are only two words used in the facility's name which actually consists of six words in total. The name of the facility isn't "Retarded Adults" it's "Christian Assisted Living for Mentally Retarded Adults ".

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it should simply be "developmentally disabled" as the law states when placing them into a guardianship. in florida, it falls under FSS 393 - i should know - i work for a judge that handles these cases each and every day. she would never say at the hearing, "i'm ruling on this retarded person." she would say, "i'm ruling on this developmentally disabled person ......" i'm surprised the facility's name is still named as such.

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it should simply be "developmentally disabled" as the law states when placing them into a guardianship. in florida, it falls under FSS 393 - i should know - i work for a judge that handles these cases each and every day. she would never say at the hearing, "i'm ruling on this retarded person." she would say, "i'm ruling on this developmentally disabled person ......" i'm surprised the facility's name is still named as such.

So am I, I was looking at it like, "That doesnt seem right." It was probably named that awhile ago and they havent gotten around to changing it yet. They should because it gives people the impression it's okay to use the term when it's not.

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Specializes in Med-Surg/urology.
But you werent referring to the name of the facility when you used the phrase. You were talking about a group of people. And you cant say retarded adults when referencing a group of people, " ...I decided to apply at this assisted living facility for retarded adults....". The "retarded adults" listed above are only two words used in the facility's name which actually consists of six words in total. The name of the facility isn't "Retarded Adults" it's "Christian Assisted Living for Mentally Retarded Adults ".

I didn't say "oh I applied to this place for retarded adults" I said assisted living facility for retarded adults (which is six words in total btw as well) & the full name of the place is Christian Assisted Living for Mentally Retarded adults. The point I'm trying to make is I would not go around referring to someone with a mental disability as retarded in my every day life & I take offense to someone I don't know trying to imply that I would. I was only referencing the place I applied to & I don't have any control over what they named their facility.

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I assume staying on topic is impossible on a website full of professionals. I too am curious about the job finding success of recently licensed CNAs.

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I live in the Tampa Bay area, just passed the state exam a week ago. I have not found a job yet, been searching for a little over a month. I don't see hardly any ads for CNA's and if I do, they want minimum 1 year experience. It sucks, but I will keep trying, any job is a good job right now. I also need something a little flexible because I am in school. Good luck to all.

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I was hired on at my clinical site on the last day of class and started as soon as I got my test results. However, it is 30 minutes from my house. I have been trying to find a job closer to my house but haven't had any luck yet.

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Hello,

I run a STNA training program in Cleveland,Ohio and my students are hired most of the time before they even take the state exam.

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i'm having/had hard time finding a job...

:[

i wanna work in hospital *sob*

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There was supposed to be a recruiter there on the day we did our test, but they couldn't meet us there for whatever reason. It's too bad because about half of us were ready to talk to them and see if they were able to hire us.

I want to work in a hospital too, which is why I went on after the CNA and got my PCA certificate. So now I'm qualified, but I don't have any experience outside of my hospital clinicals. Most of the positions I see advertised want experience. Same with CNA. I'm not sure how to get experience without working. Hm, it's a conundrum. I'm still looking, though.

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