Getting A Job After Getting Eaten With A Dysfunctional Life In Between

[nursesnowflake]

I had difficulty in nursing school, not with the academic part but the clinical part, well really only my first two of seven clinicals. I got a "memo of concern" passed on from my first to my second, then from my second to my third clinical rotation. I beat it in the third clinical, that clinical instructor even called the student advocate managing my case to let her know

that I was really okay and not a problem or a danger to the patient. The second clinical instructor was fired, in part due to the academic instructor's knowledge of the clinical instructor's behavior to certain students; the academic instructor stated to me that "we (the academic institution) are well aware that she singles one student out each rotation". Yes, there were things I could have improved on, (is there anything that couldn't be improved?), but really, the punishment did not fit the crime.

During nursing school and to this day I am VERY involved with an apartment building and tenants in it. The majority of ownership is by my family and a minority owned by me. Although I was always involved with the building, because of the clinical hurts and the timing of events, it became very easy to become very involved with the building. Let me describe very involved, I have replaced a load bearing wall, make repairs to garbage disposers, re-wire telephones from the NID box, repair cable TV cables, read/understand technical heating manuals and implement new configurations to the system that has resulted in thousand of dollars of savings. I clean gutters 100 feet from the ground, installed air conditioners, handled plumbing emergencies and still find time to call 911 more than once after finding a diabetic tenant bottoming out. I have shoveled snow at 04:00 and then gone to clinicals. I almost eliminated the need for heavy duty topical steroids for a tenant with severe psoriatic arthritis and osteoporosis, implemented an exercise program for him with the outcome of 50% increase in bone mass. There is more but you get the picture.

The apartment is one hundred percent of my family's livelihood and I don't regret helping but I am at a point of exit from this situation and want to transition into my real career, being a nurse. Did I mention becoming a certified asbestos abatement contractor for my ex-boyfriends business?

I graduated with a BSN May 2006, took the NCLEX February 2007 and passed it the first time around. It is now April of 2008 and I am a STILL a new grad, with a huge gap in employment and no way to explain what I have been doing. I had a great, successful, senior practicum experience in the operating room and that is where I want to peruse a career, but have been completely out of touch with the clinical instructor since 2006 and I don't know what to say to her, or any of my other clinical clinical instructors about what I have been doing since graduation, or why I am asking them for a recommendation now. I need to explain myself in a favorable fashion to clinical instructors and come up with an acceptable resume timeline and accomplishments for HR let alone a department head.

Help! With this history what do I do now to save my career? If something I have said does not make sense please still reply, I will clarify.

Thanks to everyone who replies. I really do want to be a nurse.

[racing-mom4, BSN, RN]

I really dont think you need to explain the gap except to say that you worked for your family buisness. You have basically been out 1 year. That is not too long. I would put my application in as many places as possible and dont hold out for your dream job, just take a job that you would be happy with for now to get your foot in the door. As far as references, you would not need to contact your former instructors unless maybe the one that helped you the most, you could drop her an email telling her your ready to hit the job market and ask if she knows of any places she would recomend and then ask for a letter of reference.

Best of luck--I hope your job search is short and sweet.

[bagladyrn, RN]

To explain the time out: "I was managing my family's business during a time of need. Now that their need has abated I want to get back to my chosen profession of nursing."

You don't need to supply any more detail than that. You may be asked if family business would interfere with your employment in the future. A simple answer would be that others in the family are now trained/able to manage it. Keep it simple.

[bollweevil]

To explain the time out: "I was managing my family's business during a time of need. Now that their need has abated I want to get back to my chosen profession of nursing."

You don't need to supply any more detail than that. You may be asked if family business would interfere with your employment in the future. A simple answer would be that others in the family are now trained/able to manage it. Keep it simple.

I agree and wish you the best.

[TazziRN, RN]

I think Bag Lady's response is perfect.