Does anybody know a facility, hospital who is welcoming new nurses

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Feb 1, 2011

Hi! Welcome to these forums!

I'm going to be straightforward and state that you have several things going against you. First of all, the national economy is horrible, and nursing jobs have been affected. Secondly, HR managers and recruiters are going to be very suspicious of the nurse who graduated two years ago and has never actually worked as a nurse. Unfortunately, you are no longer considered a new nurse, even though you do not have experience.

In addition, the DFW job market is flooded with new nurses because there are so many nursing programs in the area that pump new grads into the employment pipeline every few months: Texas Christian University, UT Arlington, TWU, El Centro, TCC, Weatherford, TVCC, Hill College, Southwestern Adventist, Collin County College, Dallas Nursing Institute, and many more.

I will also mention the fact that nurses who are originally from out-of-state have been flooding into DFW over the past two to three years, which further saturates the job market around here. I'm originally from California. Since I have been living here, I have met nurses who moved here from Iowa, Virginia, New Mexico, Oregon, Mississippi, Georgia, New York, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Missouri, Utah, Oklahoma, Kansas, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Florida, Louisiana, Ohio, Arkansas, Arizona, and Colorado.

In this brutal economic climate, it is unlikely that you'll find an internship since two years has elapsed since you completed school. I didn't say that it was impossible, but it is highly unlikely. I'd personally start applying at home health companies, nursing homes, hospices, private duty agencies, clinics, doctors' offices, psychiatric facilities, and group homes because these settings are more welcoming to inexperienced nurses.

Good luck to you!

txspadequeenRN, BSN, RN · Feb 2, 2011

i tried to get a position in a major hospital when i had a associates....no luck. i am going to try this again with a bsn to see if it makes a difference.....we will see.....however, its my overall impression searching and applying is useless....

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Feb 3, 2011

Also what kind of pay can I expect as base? Thank you so much...

I forgot to address this question in my previous post, so I'll answer it now.

New grad RNs can expect to be paid between $22 and $25 at most Dallas/Fort Worth area hospitals. The pay is so low because there's an abundance of nursing schools in the area that create an excess of new nurses. Too many nurses in one geographic area can contribute to watered-down pay rates.

Nursing homes will pay between $24 and $33 hourly to a new RN. Clinics will pay between $19 and $25. Home health agencies will pay in excess of $30 hourly.

ijuanabhappy, ASN, RN · Feb 5, 2011

If you are willing to move, I would try Scott and White in Temple, Texas. This is a large teaching hospital between Waco and Austin. They hire new grads a lot. They have internships in June and January, but occasionally on the career web site, they will have positions listed for Nurse Interns or Graduate RN's. Actually I see these quite frequently. They just might work with you being out for two years with the economy and all. For the internships that start in June, you must go online and submit an application by the end of March, but there are some nurse intern positions available now in med surg as I type this, so call HR and give it a try!!! Good Luck!!

puffi77 · Feb 21, 2011

Thank you all so much on the info, I am waiting for the internship spaces to open up and I will start applying...Hopefully somebody will call me and give the chance to interview at least. I would take your advice to look into physician;s office, home health care and hospice...I just cannot believe that it would be so hard to get a job as a Nurse. I got a call from Care Now but the $18/hr as prn did not look very promising..I will keep you updated on how things go with my search!

Faith2012, ASN, BSN, RN · Mar 22, 2012

how is the job market for you now?

allnurses Guide · Mar 22, 2012

Tighter than ever.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Mar 22, 2012

how is the job market for you now?

Based on the original poster's last-known posting activity, it appears as if she's planning to relocate back to Virginia. It appears as if she never found employment in the D/FW area.

kaycedee · Mar 22, 2012

This kind of post worries me like crazy. I will be moving to Fort Worth after graduating an ADN program in Oklahoma and I'm getting concerned that once I do I won't be able to find a job. I realize that hospital jobs are scarce and am certainly not above working in a nursing home, but are those jobs readily available right now?

allnurses Guide · Mar 23, 2012

No new grad jobs are "readily available" right now unless you have inside connections/networking connections. There are jobs in home health (not recommended for new grads) and there are places hiring that are an hour to 1.5 hours outside of the major metroplexes (ie: Texoma Medical Center in Sherman, north of Dallas). The suburbs and major city hospitals are not hiring enough new grads for every new grad to get a job. The LTACs and SNFs and dialysis clinics can't absorb them all either. I graduated in December. About 40% of my class is still trying to find their first RN position. About 30% of the class that graduated last May is as well. Some have gone back to work waiting tables or whatever they were doing before going to nursing school. The job market for new grads in DFW is very, very tight.

kaycedee · Mar 23, 2012

I'm going to be on the fringe of DFW so looking into employment outside the major metroplexes will be doable. I know that job searching with no inside connections in a tight market will not be a walk in the park, but you've made me feel a tiny bit better about it. Thank you. :)