Can't find a job

Nurses General Nursing

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I am looking for a pediatrics position and cannot seem to find one. I am an RN with a BSN, graduated May 2008. I have a little over 1 year of experience on a pediatrics and adult med/surg floor. I recently quit the job because it was med/surg more than pediatrics, and has transitioned into an all med/surg floor now. I was told after graduation to get experience on a med/surg unit for at least a year, and then apply to speciality floors, but now when I apply I am either told that I do not have enough experience, or I get a phone interview and then am told the same thing. I have been applying to all sorts of units (even though I don't want to) and continue to get rejected. New grad programs will not accept me bc I have "too much experience" and other positions tell me that I do not have enough experience. I am starting to lose hope and do not know what to do. Please help =(

Specializes in Hospital Education Coordinator.

How awful for you. I would try to negotiate with HR about paying you a new grad salary the first year. That way they would have someone with some exp and pay less.

The lesson to be learned here is that the job in the hand is worth two in the distance. Never leave a job until you have a start date for the new job. Only the most dire circumstances should force you to leave a job without another job lined up.

Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.

OK. Hopefullly, you understand what caliotter3 was saying. Never quit a job until you have another job lined up -- unless you absolutely have to.

Now that you've made that mistake ...what can you do about it?

Is there any chance of your going back to your old job, telling the manager that you made a mistake in quitting and asking for your old job back? Did you leave on good terms? Did you burn your bridges and say things to offend people? If you are on good terms, you might be able to get your old job back because they would not have to pay to orient you. Try there or on a similar unit in the same hospital.

Be humble, say that you regret leaving, etc. I'm sure that would be a humbling experience for you, but it's better than being jobless. If you are lucky enough to get your old job back, then stay put for at least a year before looking to leave again -- and don't resign again until you have a new job lined up!

How awful for you. I would try to negotiate with HR about paying you a new grad salary the first year. That way they would have someone with some exp and pay less.

That is a great idea. Do you think I can talk to HR and suggest they not pay me or even pay me a nurse aide salary for the time I am being oriented/trained to the unit? At this point, I would just like to start getting some pediatrics experience and can afford to get oriented without pay. Please let me know if that sounds ridiculous, or If i should suggest it

have you applied at franciscan children's in brighton?

leslie

Specializes in Med Surg.

Next time try not to quit one job before seeking another one. Recruiters want us to have experience first, but they also probably look at other things. I think they become very suspicious whenever they come across applicants who have some experience but are not currently working, because it may appear as if they got fired at their last job. Not trying to be mean or anything, because I don't know the details of your circumstances, so its just a word of advice.

With that said I would advise you to just keep looking and don't lose hope. I know that that statement may sound cliche, but you have to continue applying for jobs until you get something. Rethink your job hunting strategies and make sure you have a good explanation as to why you left your last job before applying to another one.

I have a friend who got graduated in January 2009, got her first nursing job in an ICU I think around August, then after 8-10 weeks of orientation got fired and once again had an extremely difficult time finding a job after that. In December 2009 she got a job offer for a school nurse position which she will begin in March 2010. In addition to that she got a job as an evening and weekend job as an adjunct professor at a university teaching a science course (with her Masters in Biology), which she started two weeks ago at almost $70 per hour part time (more than double what she will be making at her nursing job beginning in march).

Like I said I don't know the details of your circumstances, but the moral of the story about my friend is: keep on keeping on, think of every disappointment as an appointment for something far greater than you can ever imagine. Trust in God and he will see you through. Cry if you have to but keep searching no matter how you feel and don't lose hope.

There are tons of advice on this website relating to nurses who can't find jobs, do a search of these posts for more specific tips. My message to you is about keeping the faith and not giving up, hopefully others will see your post and offer you more specific tips.

Best wishes

Thank you all for your advice/words of encouragement. I left the position for a few reasons aside from the fact that I didn't like the job. 1) i got a volunteer opportunity in India (which i thought would help my job search upon my return), and 2) I have relocated to California. Yes, I still have a very good relationship with my old job, and could return to work there, but It is in Connecticut and I would have to move in with my parents. I guess if worst comes to worst, I can always do that. BUT what I am really hoping for is to get trained on a pediatric ICU/NICU or any other type of critical care pediatrics unit. I am willing to do as much as I need to in order to get the training to be this kind of nurse. I am wondering if I can suggest to HR that I am willing to go through the full orientation without pay. Please let me know if that sounds crazy.

Specializes in ob, med surg.

Hi I'm interested in this thread as well but I think we would both be more interested in helpful tips like the one about negotiating with HR rather than "Ya should da lined up a job first!"- This is not advice it is criticism.

I am a med surg nurse with 3 1/2 years experience and stellar references. I have some L & D experience and peds experience but not much. We were told in nursing school (5 years or so ago) that you should get med surg experience and then you can go anywhere. I would like to change specialties as I never wanted to be a med surg nurse. But I am finding the following, some of which has been discussed before.

1) Nurses with some experience are lower on the rung than new grads. Though I realize that at the moment, not many hospitals even have new nurse residency programs, I have been told during my job hunt that there are even fewer internships. I guess the reasoning is that a new nurse is trained and will stay with the hospital many years, but my experience has been at my old employer that the new nurses come get trained, and leave within the year, while the old fogies like me who want additional training but are denied, are still there.

2) I really don't want to get back into med surg because I think it will kill me. I really need a break but don't think I want to go outside of the hospital because then the hospitals don't want to hire you back because you don't have recent acute care experience. I'm thinking of trying for an ICU or ED position, not because I have that much interest in them but because I have found that ICU and ED nurses are the "flavor of the month" where just a few years ago, med surg nurses were.

3) I was told by a floor manager during an interview at a children's hospital in a large city that they would rather train a new nurse with some peds experience (read CNA) than an experienced nurse (me-name the skill and I can probably do it). They do not want med surg nurses.

My question is, is this a trend? Or is it because of the economy? How long are you obligated to stay in a job? Sometimes I think that if I had not felt loyal to my employer, and moved on when I asked for more training, but was denied, I wouldn't be in this boat. (PS-I have done some training on my own-PALS, chemo course etc.) I apologize for the long post but does anyone have any idea about what is going on in the field?

Specializes in Med Surg.
thank you all for your advice/words of encouragement. i left the position for a few reasons aside from the fact that i didn't like the job. 1) i got a volunteer opportunity in india (which i thought would help my job search upon my return), and 2) i have relocated to california. yes, i still have a very good relationship with my old job, and could return to work there, but it is in connecticut and i would have to move in with my parents. i guess if worst comes to worst, i can always do that. but what i am really hoping for is to get trained on a pediatric icu/nicu or any other type of critical care pediatrics unit. i am willing to do as much as i need to in order to get the training to be this kind of nurse. i am wondering if i can suggest to hr that i am willing to go through the full orientation without pay. please let me know if that sounds crazy.

now i understand your circumstances a little more. i don't think it is a crazy idea to suggest going through orientation without pay - i'm all for nontraditional ways of getting jobs, but i'm not sure if any hospital would even allow that, if they did it would be great. you don't want to come across as desperate either, so you would have to put a lot of thought into attempting that route. as far as i'm concerned you won't know the answer to your idea until you at least try.

as you continue to search, try to set up an appointment to meet and speak with someone in the hr of the place you are trying to get a job. for some of these places you can walk into hr and try to set up a face to face meeting with someone or get an email address. then you can ask the hr rep for tips on the best ways to get a job in that hospital, at that time you can also ask them about the possibility of working during orientation without pay. i had the opportunity to communicate with someone in hr who gave me tips which i followed and was able to use to land a job. it would probably help if you are willing to work a permanent part time position, for example, apply for positions that are .6 fte or .8fte. people leave jobs all the time, so you may start part time and end up moving to full time due to other nurses leaving their positions for whatever reasons. the most important thing is to get your foot in the door.

another thing you could do (if you have not done so already) is join a nursing association within the area in which you live. for example the california nurses association meetings/functions may offer opportunities for networking with other nurses and nurse managers. if you attend different functions put on by the california nurses association you never know if and when these meetings my end up giving you a good job lead.

i can only give advise based on my own experiences and others that i know of. i don't want to come across as if i am using this forum to focus on myself instead of others who are asking for advice (i have been indirectly accused of this on this site before), but i will go ahead and give you another personal example in the hope that you will get some motivation from it: before i got hired for my current job, i did all that i suggested to you (contacting someone in hr etc.), the nurse manager who finally interviewed me said she would call me within one week and she never did. two weeks passed and i heard nothing. as god would have it i was invited by my old school to a nursing association function about 1 hour from where i lived. i went because i had the time, and sitting across the table from me at the function was the nurse manager who interviewed me two weeks prior (who knew?). we were both shocked to see each other. we greeted and hugged each other, spoke about the function and everything else except the interview. i never asked her why she didn't call me back. within a week of seeing the nurse manager i was called by hr and offered the job. a part of me believe that her seeing me at that nurses association banquet helped her make that final decision to hire me.

it is clear to me that you are already "thinking outside the box" about other job hunting strategies and i think that is good. the fact that you are even getting to the point of having interviews is a good sign. just continue trying different tips offered on this site.

think about the length of time it took you to complete nursing school and finally receive your degree in your hand. similarly, your job hunt journey may be long but it will not be forever, i'm sure that as you continue to persist in your search you will eventually attain success.

best wishes

Thank you for your input and your advice! It is very helpful.

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