Frustrated...sigh.

strytellerchayka · Mar 30, 2012

In the same boat... I'm fearful I'm not going to find anything at all.. With new grads coming fresh out school soon that puts me in a worse position.!! Not so new grad!!! I really just don't know what to do anymore!! I would have never thought it would be this hard to find a job especially because I'm so outgoing and friendly!! Well probably not anymore!!! Wasted three years for I hope something...I left a good paying non rewarding job because when I left work I felt like I could be doing more and I'm not I'm unemployed miserable all the time and struggling to make ends meet and have my 2 kids and husband living in my childhood bedroom all because I wanted to be a role model to my children!!! Great Plan---backfired... Now what ... How much longer do i torment myself ignoring my kids because mommy has just one more application to fill out online or mommy wants to drive an hour away to fill out applications that no one is going to call her back!!! As I cry myself to sleep every night regretting the choice I've made!!! I hope that this is not the end?

KATRN78 · Mar 30, 2012

Ugh, that really sucks Stryteller! Ugh! I am so sorry for you.

I am putting off having a baby until I can secure a good paying job (hence nursing).

Now I wait, wait to get a job, wait to get a baby, wait to have my wedding. Wait, wait, wait. All because I went to nursing school instead of just sticking with my dead end job.

The people who told me "Go to school, you will earn more money and have a better career!" They were WRONG! Nursing school did not improve my life. It has left me even more broke now with student loans. Every night I cry myself to sleep too. Yesterday I cried so much that my eyes are now swollen today. Before this I rarely ever cried.

OnlybyHisgraceRN, ASN, RN · Mar 30, 2012

Don't give up. Keep looking. Keep calling this recruiters and unit managers.

mama.RN · Mar 30, 2012

Don't give up...it took me almost a year to find a decent job. It will happen.

KnitAndPurl · Mar 30, 2012

I am so sorry. Just keep in mind, if you made it through nursing school you can make it through the job hunt. I am rooting for all of you! :yelclap:

Eric Cartman · Mar 30, 2012

I remember my first devastating experience with a potential job. I really thought that I had landed the position. I had 1 telephone interview and two in-person interviews. In addition, after the second interview, I was asked to fill out and submit all of the usual HR documents, background check and all the other hoopla. I was so excited! Then a week went by and I heard nothing. I decided to call the manager at the facility and find out what the hold up was. Well to my surprise I was informed that while my interviewing skills were excellent, a better suited candidate was chosen to fill the position. :sniff: My heart sank. It took me 6 months to get even one call back and then to have this happen, I felt like I was starting all over again.

Then, devastating experience number 2. I had applied, interviewed, and received conformation that I was accepted into a nurse residency program. I was told by the recruiter that I would receive information regarding my placement and that I needed to complete all of the documents and submit them ASAP, in order to have my place held. So I waited for the documents. They never came. After about almost 2 weeks, I called the facility to find out where these documents were. The representative stated that the documents were sent the last day I spoke with her. She suggested that I check my spam folder in my email. Sure enough, there was the email containing my documents. I told the representative that I could have everything completed within the hour, but I was informed that the deadline was the day prior and my spot was filled. I was informed that another program would begin in 6 months and I would be guaranteed placement, but 6 months is a long time to wait without a source of income. So I had to go back to looking once again.

I'll admit, at this point I cried. Yes, men do cry sometimes and it feels damn good to let it out!

I did eventually land a job, but it was a not so desirable job. It was a contract position for 6 months. I was told that if I did well, I would be considered to be hired on full-time after the contract had expired. For six months I worked, making $8 an hour less, than the regular staff nurses there, but if paid off. The happy ending is, I was hired on full-time, but this occurred 1.5 years after passing my nursing boards.

The job market right now is god awful, but don't give up just yet. Cry if you have to, but don't give up. Good luck and I know you will succeed!

tokyoROSE, BSN, RN · Mar 31, 2012

Please keep looking, because you never know what you can get. Here's my story. Graduated in December 2011 and got my license February 15th. Did not apply to many places until I got my license, and even then I felt defeated because lots of my classmates had gotten jobs. When I started, I applied everywhere I could. Either got no response or rejection letters. Finally I got an interview. I was very excited because the pay and benefits were good. I went on three interviews, devoted a lot of time to this process, only to find out after a month that I hadn't gotten the job (this organization is a government agency so they are very thorough, and very slow in the hiring process). I was devastated, but kept going. Applied to many more places, then came two more interviews. One was LTC and the other was home health. Although the interviews went well, I got rejection letters in the mail. What a hit to my self esteem; I graduated near the top of my class and could not even get a LTC position. Finally, I realized that I needed to change my strategies because this was not working. I started contact DONs of a couple hospitals in my area asking for interviews. Even though I was rejected by HR when I first applied to these places, I landed three interviews seemingly over night. Then came the calls: I got three job offers! The position that I accepted, I had two interviews with 10 people total (DONs, supervisor, charge nurse, staff nurse, you name it). It was hard earned! Moral of the story is, everything happens for a reason and things will work out in the end. If I had gotten that first job I interviewed for, I would never have landed my DREAM job! Although I was rejected on my first three interviews, I was able to strengthen my interviewing skills and knew what to expect. It is all a learning experience. The job search was exhausting emotionally but I wouldn't have traded that experience for anything.