Do we feel entitled to a job just because we're nurses?

[MesaRN]

I am in the grad class of May 09 as many of you are. As a class we are facing difficulty in finding jobs. As I hear the stories on this forum and the complaints of my classmates I am starting to wonder if nursing students have taken on a seance of entitlement.

This is my second degree, my first was in Biology. When I was in my first degree program we all found every opportunity we could to secure a job upon graduation. We took unpaid internships, worked after school, TA'd, networked, what ever it took. What I have scene in my class is that paid externships from the local hospital have gone unfilled. When I attend out of class lectures and seminars at the hospital there is not a single other nursing student there.

I had two full time offers upon graduation, both in the department I wanted to be in, due to the extra effort I put in. Only one other student in my class has a job. However most did not even start applying until recently and are complaining of the lack of jobs. Jobs are not entitlements, often they must be earned. I know that many of us, my self included, entered nursing in part because of the security and good pay, but when did that mean we stopped working hard to find a job and just put in a bunch of applications and hoped for the best?

An article in our local paper showed a grad nurse with a stack of scrubs with price tags still on stating she graduated last semester and still no job. Why did she go out and purchase scrubs without a job yet? A job is not a guarantee, not should it be. Nursing as a profession should be billed more as 'it takes a smart, strong person to get in' and not 'anyone who graduates has a guaranteed perfect job'. Most professionals do not expect to get the perfect job in any place they want immediately out of school, so why should nurses?

I am not try to anger anyone by making statements, I am just putting some thoughts down to see what other have observed. Think critically of the current situation facing new nurses. How does are attitudes affect how we go about obtaining jobs? Are we expecting to much, are we expecting more than other professional new grads do? What do we want the image of nursing to be? Not passing judgment, just asking questions that I really am trying to figure out.

Advice that was given to me by nursing directors is to first call the organization you are applying for and find out who will be reading your resume. Address your cover letter to them directly. DO NOT put to whom it may concern or nursing director, a fast way to get it thrown out in a competitive market.

Don't do blanket applications, take time and care to each one. Your cover letter needs and resume to address each position individually. This takes time and care and a little research.

Keep in contact with the orgs you are applying for. Call and ask questions, show enthusiasm for the position. Don't bug them, but keep in contact. Always reply promptly and formally. If you have a funny signature on your e-mail make sure to delete this before sending. Every contact should be professional.

Check the local hospital website for free educational opportunities. These are a great chance to network with hospital administration. Find out what the local status is from you area hospitals by asking directly, not through hearsay.

The first job may not be anywhere near where or the department you want to be in. That's OK, this is just the start. Gaining experience starts at the bottom and works up. The recession in temporary, these hiring cycles have been in existence long before we sought out jobs. It will get better. Hard work, a good attitude, and the willingness to work up will go a long way to securing a good future in a great profession.

Good luck to everyone out there, and go that extra effort to get that job you really desire!

[caliotter3]

When I started nursing school there were three schools within commuting distance of my home. I asked a supervisor at work why I hadn't met anyone from one of the nearby schools and she said she didn't know why. After awhile, I figured out why. There were no jobs available in the area and new grads headed for the hills as soon as they graduated. I had been very lucky to get the job I did, and when I lost that job, I too, had to leave the area. If you want to work you have to go to where the jobs are unless you want to remain unemployed.

[dblpn]

MesaRN, you as so on point. i'm in lpn school and will go into an rn bridge and hope to work in the ICU. you do make some valid points. we as nursing students do feel a sense of entitlement when we graduate. we think employers will be breaking down school doors when we graduate to offer us jobs and that is clearly not happening.

i can't tell you how many times i've heard students saying "i'm gonna work at this hospital or on that floor" like they can just go in a hospital and say 'i'm a nurse give me a job in the icu" and expect for the employer to accomadate them just because they are nurses. it doesn't work that way. we're just like any other graduating profession, we get our degree and the next day we go out and start putting in applications and hope for the best.

[melsman1904]

For many, the motivating factors for pursuing nursing as a career come directly from the info fed to them by the media. They see and hear all this great stuff on the news about how there is such a HUGE nursing shortage and how the hospitals will be begging for nurses. And, in my area, that was true when I began nursing school. Now that I have graduated, the job market just plain sucks. I'm sure this is true all over the country. Fortunately for most of those people who seem to feel entitled to a job upon graduating from nursing school, reality has a knack for setting in with a profound thud. Personally, I don't mind those people being lazy about their pursuit of a job because I will be busy working those connections while they whine on here about the trouble they're having. Maybe it's insensitive, but life's not fair...and the sooner they learn that, the better.

[Wsmith16, ADN, BSN]

The OP, should consider herself lucky. But most are not. Many were fed the 'you will have no problem finding a job' speech so they have a right to be upset. Nursing was dubbed a secure profession, & all you have to do is make it through nursing school & things will be ok. Plus there is a so called nursing shortage. I don't think new grads have a sense of entitlement I think they are very concerned right now about their future.

It's easier to criticize others when you haven't walked a mile in their shoes or when things fall into place for you.

[Crux1024]

The OP, should consider herself lucky. But most are not. Many were fed the 'you will have no problem finding a job' speech so they have a right to be upset. Nursing was dubbed a secure profession, & all you have to do is make it through nursing school & things will be ok. Plus there is a so called nursing shortage. I don't think new grads have a sense of entitlement I think they are very concerned right now about their future.

It's easier to criticize others when you haven't walked a mile in their shoes or when things fall into place for you.

I completely agree with this statement. Its sad though...I managed to secure a job at my schools affiliated hospital, but a large percentage of classmates havent been able to get jobs anywhere. And most have begun looking out of the area and in different states to get the money back to pay off student loans. Those that were offered jobs, were usually offered them on a very part time basis.

I dont feel theres a sense of entitlement at all...just confusion and probably anger.

[MesaRN]

It's easier to criticize others when you haven't walked a mile in their shoes or when things fall into place for you.

There was not meant to be criticism, I just wanted to open up the a discussion on the attitudes and views of nurses entering the profession. I have noticed a huge difference between my nursing class and my previous classes in terms of how they approach getting a job. This is just my observation and I wanted to gain an understanding by asking questions. I really want to hear those who have seen the same thing and those who have an entierly differant perpestive.

Did we all fall for the hype of the shortage by the media? Is it the media's fault?

Things did not "fall into place" for me. I often put in 20+ hours days between school, working, and doing externships. Many of the classmates did not take a single opportunity and all I heard about was their partying on the weekend and how much drinking they did. I was there at the meetings, the lectures, the classes, and I never saw another classmate. Now I hear the complaints of no jobs. Again, this was MY expierence and only mine. I WANT to hear those of other to gain a better understanding the current situations and attitudes of new grads.

I want to learn and do not mean to critize, I am just putting one expeirence out there to talk about.

I wanted to know if other students were feeling the same or differanlty. From the posts on this forum it sounds like many are trying the approach of just sending out a lot of applications and waiting to see what happens.

I wanted to see what others were doing. What is working, what is not? Are you getting interviews? What are you doing to get those interviews? Are you doing something more than putting in an application?

I really want to stress from my OP:

"I am not try to anger anyone by making statements, I am just putting some thoughts down to see what other have observed. Think critically of the current situation facing new nurses. How does are attitudes affect how we go about obtaining jobs? Are we expecting to much, are we expecting more than other professional new grads do? What do we want the image of nursing to be? Not passing judgment, just asking questions that I really am trying to figure out."

[SummerGarden, BSN, MSN, RN]

op: in my area people saw the writing on the wall when the december class was not being hired as much as the past may 2008 class. this may '09 class only saw a handful or so hired on to the hospital (i literally mean about 10 people out of 100s of applicants). most were techs and nurse externs... however, many of the nurse externs and techs were not given job offers due to the lack of positions for new grads. so to answer your question, though i have seen people who do not try and do not go above an beyond, there are students who were getting good grades, worked jobs as techs, and were nurse externs but have found him/her self out of work in my area .... on the other hand, if you are an experienced nurse... employers seem to be hiring ....

[Tsiasn]

I think it's difficult to accept this situation now because less than a year ago, it used to be like this: sign on bonusus, relocation bonuses. Hell, the year before I entered my school, they offered you a job (in a Level I Trauma Center) guaranteed along with free tuition so long as you agreed to work for the hospital for 2 years.

I'm sure many of us, myself included, went into nursing becuse you knew could get a job in the field you wanted without having to worry about losing your job. It seems that this years graduating class, and maybe last years, went into NS with that assumption and are finding that the job market is now like every other... so new enrollers take note....

[NightOwl0624]

I think you are partially right - those graduates that are not putting in their time may have a hard time landing a job right now. However, there are not nearly enough jobs out there to accomodate the graduates. Period.

I don't know if it's a media issue. I can tell you that I'm sick to death of hearing about the nursing shortage. I don't believe it anymore. I think it's more of an economic issue right now.

If the hospitals have hiring freezes or just aren't hiring as many new grads, then there will be a lot of unemployed new grads out there - even if every one of them was busting their behinds (like you and I did) to find those jobs.

It's easy to sit back once you have the offer. I'm betting that there are many more people out there that put in just as much effort as you did and are still looking.

But I do think you are right about the entitlement factor. I think this caught most of us by surprise.