I need help.....plssssss.

[Tatycare]

I am a New grad nurse looking for a job. I have my BLS but yet to get ACLS. Would getting ACLS put me on a better edge of getting a job soon?

Thanks in advance for your response.

[tokmom, BSN, RN]

My opinion is acls would hopefully make you stand out. Good luck!

[noctanol]

No it would not, employers(hospitals) offer it for free to their employees(nurses), its just a plus nothing major.

[B52-H]

Everyone is trying to get an edge over competition so ACLS has probably become the norm with applicants.

Won't make you standout but every little bit helps

[janice_c67, BSN, RN]

most of us in my class (actually I think all of us) and the classes that graduated before and after us all have our ACLS. While it is definitely desirable to an employer to already have it, most new grads have that and so far the job search for most of us has been a total bust

I would definitely get your ACLS done now though, you will need it if you get a job and you won't have to stress about having to get it done while learning a new job

[tyvin, BSN, RN]

Yes; anything that pumps up the resume.

[kalami08]

I don't know... I got ACLS and no one seemed to care at my interviews. I got much more feedback about the number of letters of recommendation I had, my GPA, the school I went to, etc.

[LoveMyBugs, BSN, CNA, RN]

I don't know either, I got ACLS and PALS because I really want to work in the ED and I have been applying to internships, but never get any interviews, where I work now I don't need them

I think having them may have hurt me, at I interviewed at a LTC and the DNS asked, because I was a CNA in the ED, if I had already gotten ACLS and PALS and I said yes, and basically it was " Oh then you are not going to stick around long"

[BluegrassRN]

Having ACLS and PALS doesn't mean squat unless you have the experience to support it. Anyone who has worked as a nurse in these settings know that. Even if you have ACLS or PALS, you aren't going to really make the connections and be able to lead a code until you have some experience under your belt. Just because you have an ACLS certification doesn't mean you are able to interpret rhythms, for example.

I say save your money. Your facility will pay for it after you get hired. All of us who do any sort of hiring know that those certifications in the absence of clinical experience are meaningless.