NO job in houston. inactive for 2 years.desperate...

PeachPie · May 13, 2009

Also, apply around at the smaller, less advertised facilities like LTACs and rehabs. The big hospitals are always going to get more applicants, but the smaller places aren't as famous. For my first job, I called an LTAC, and it went like this:

Nurse Manger: "Do you have any nursing experience?"

Me: "No."

Nurse Manager: "Can you come in for an interview tomorrow?"

Yeah, a place that desperate might not be the best place to work, but we all have to pay our dues. I worked 6 months at an LTAC before I went off to a major hospital. LTAC wasn't great experience, but it gave me an advantage over the new grads when I applied to bigger places with more experience.

caliotter3 · May 13, 2009

Always be on the lookout and carry those business cards with your name and contact info on them. Talk to strangers even. I've discussed employment in the women's restroom at the mall. One of my clients in home health told me he found a caregiver for his son at church. Talk to people in the grocery store, at church, at the gym, at the mall. Good luck.

EcyRN · May 13, 2009

To Beachbum:

I'm glad you found a job.. You made me more hopeful since you did it despite the long time that you were inactive. I really appreciate your suggestion. thanks.

To Peachpie:

Thanks for the enlightenment. I barely started driving so at first i kind of shy away from the idea of driving far, but now that i'm in this situation, i guess i can always practice more on the road. so yeah, i'm starting to look for jobs in the woodlands and sugarland... i've submitted resume on kingwood hospitals too.

i'm so thankful for all your replies. i'm hoping to hear more from y'all. :redbeathe

regards,

a.nurse.soon

AtomicWoman · May 13, 2009

Also, apply around at the smaller, less advertised facilities like LTACs and rehabs. The big hospitals are always going to get more applicants, but the smaller places aren't as famous. For my first job, I called an LTAC, and it went like this:
Nurse Manger: "Do you have any nursing experience?"
Me: "No."
Nurse Manager: "Can you come in for an interview tomorrow?"
Yeah, a place that desperate might not be the best place to work, but we all have to pay our dues. I worked 6 months at an LTAC before I went off to a major hospital. LTAC wasn't great experience, but it gave me an advantage over the new grads when I applied to bigger places with more experience.

I'm glad to hear this. I keep hearing that once you work LTC, hospitals see you as not having enough acute experience, and then you are pigeon-holed into working LTC. It's good to hear that you were able to get into a bigger (acute?) facility with your LTC experience.

EcyRN · May 15, 2009

TO everybody: i thank you so much for giving me hope and supporting me in this thread.. i'm super glad to tell you that i finally ended up in a job in a long term care facility. it is not ideal.. i know.. il be handling 16-32 patients, for 25 dollars per hour. i think its not that bad since its so near my area (like 14 minutes) and also soo close to my husband's work which means he can drop me off and pick me up (i dont have a car yet,will get soon).

again, thank you thank you so much for your help. best regards and good luck to everybody! :)

NEWGRADNURSE75 · May 15, 2009

Magsulfate,

If you do not mind can you send me a PM with those hospitals. I am also desperate for a job! I graduated last May and had a baby and in October and I having a lot of trouble finding working. I live in NJ and have been applying for work since January. I am BSN RN graduate, 3.3 G.P.A. passed boards in July on first try bare min of 75 questions. I will greatly appreciate it! I am thinking that me and my family will have to relocate!

sunray12 · May 16, 2009

hello to everybody.
i get it. there is a scarcity of jobs for new graduates. and i think i have that bad luck right now... but mine i guess is worst than what the others have.
i graduated in the philippines last march 2007. that's right. 2 years ago. before you throw me a lot of questions what i did next after my graduation, let me go ahead and tell you. as soon as i graduated, i reviewed for the philippine board exam and passed it by june 2007. i had my license december 2007...my visa arrived february 2008 so i arrived here in the us april 2008. unfortunately, it took awhile for me to get everything ready for me to apply for nclex. i finally got my license last month. april 07, 2009. and since that time, i have been applying all iver houston area and could not find a job. i'm losing hope.
now my question is, how do i go about this unemployment? i'm pretty sure my being inactive for 2 years is big turn-off to employers. so what do i do now? i cant bring back the past and either way, i couldnt have it changed. i am currently unemployed and just thinking of throwing my bsn degree in the trash and do something else but i know i'm better than that. i'm taking trainings right now since my shot for graduate nurse positions seemed impossible now that may graduates are here.
so, how? what should i do? iv tried everything from hospital to ltc to nursing homes..nothing.what should i do to make up for the lost time? i am so wrecked...

according to your post you have only been licensed since april 2009 - i.e. just over a month. no one throws a degree in the trash because they can't find a job in a month. you need a little more fortitude than that to go job hunting. your average job search can take several months in good job markets. if you've only been applying for a month you've barely given recruiters time to read your application. get on the phone and call to follow up on some of your applications. and bottom line, hang in there and be persistent.

eta - just saw your follow up that you have a job now. congrats!