Having trouble....

Nursing Students CNA/MA

Published

...finding a job. :madface: I'm in Dayton, OH, and it seems like so few places are hiring...I applied to what I COULD find, and haven't heard back from any of them, because I'm (admittedly) not that hire-able. I have no work experience, and all of the places I applied to PREFERRED, not required, a year of experience...which means some experienced aide probably got the job. I have a friend who works at a local nursing home, so I'm going to dress up a bit and go apply in person, and I'm also going to apply to my clinical site, even though they're only currently hiring part-time...a job's a job, right? And maybe they'll let me pick up hours after my probation period, ya know? But still, I'm a bit discouraged. I thought the hard part was over, and in a way, it is...if I hadn't passed my state test, I wouldn't even be here applying for jobs. Is any one else having the same trouble? Is there ANY THING I can do to compensate for my lack of experience?

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How long ago did you apply? I applied for a new job a month ago, and employers are just calling me now.

If someone offers you a part-time job, take it! Experience is experience, and it could lead to full-time work. And it doesn't hurt to politely call a place you haven't heard back from and ask if they've received your application, if they want you to interview, etc.

Good luck with your job search.

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Specializes in LTC, Rehab, CCU, Alzheimers, Med-Surg.

I found a few websites to check out.

http://www.indeed.com/q-cna-nursing-assistant-cna-l-Dayton,-OH-jobs.html

http://www.simplyhired.com/a/jobs/list/q-stna%2Fcna/l-dayton,+oh

And this is something that always works.

http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en-us&q=nursing+homes+near+dayton,+oh&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

Apply to every nursing home in the area! Don't fill out the online applications, go into the facility. That way you can ask "Are you hiring?" and get an answer almost always right away. Don't give up, you will get something!

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Specializes in LTC, Rehab, CCU, Alzheimers, Med-Surg.

Oh, one other thing. You were saying the facility you wanted to apply to was only hiring part time, right? The same thing happened to me. They said "Sorry, we are only hiring part time." And I said "Well, I will consider part time, but I am really looking for a full time job." And guess what, they gave me full time! Some facilities hire a lot of part timers so they don't have to give benefits, and so they won't be as bad off if one or a few of them quits.

So don't be afraid to ask for full time even if they don't SAY they are offering it! And one other thing to consider. Take any job that is offered to you, you can always keep looking, or get a new one later. Seeing what different facilities have to offer is great! Makes you thankful when you find a good one! Straight out of my CNA class I got a job at a really low staffed, crappy nursing home. The pay was bad, the cares were bad, the residents weren't given nearly enough attention. I only ended up working there 5 weeks. But in those weeks I learned how to manage my time really well. Sometimes diving in head first is the best way to go! At this NH I had 13 residents, and at the one I work at now I have 8. So basically work now is EASY compared to what I had! I learned how to keep calm, and work fast. And now I secretly laugh a little when we are short staffed and all the aides complain about having 10 residents :p

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Thanks everyone...I'm finding that last google link especially helpful; I DID google "stna jobs ohio," but I didn't think to just look at nursing home websites, whether they're advertising a job or not...I'm going to start applying in person; I feel that if I do that, I'm dressed nice, I give off a good impression, etc, they might give me some instant feedback, especially at the ones that I reaaallly want. I'm definitely now going to start applying for part-time positions as well; I'll just tell them that in the long run, I wish to work full time, but part time is better than NO time, right? I also thought about taking a phlebotomy course at my school, just to increase my marketability. What do you think, good idea? or a waste of time and money?

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Specializes in LTC, Rehab, CCU, Alzheimers, Med-Surg.

I am going to be taking a Patient care tech job to increase my marketability. Any skills you can learn make you more employable!

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Hey I'm in Dayton! I don't want to say where I work but what I did was look up EVERY nursing home near my house there are tons in Dayton ...you may be surprised. I printed out a resume for each place and had my stna card in case they wanted my reg. # got up early in the morning ..like 8 and got dressed up like an interview and handed my resume in with the application. The job I have now its funny it was my number one choice b/c it's on my street and it seems nice I just walked in applied while I was a cna...the nurse manager saw me applying and asked if I was an stna I told him no - he said when I pass the test to call him ...I wrote down the date I was taking my test on the application and he actually called me the next day after I took it I didn't even know if I passed or not....basically what I'm saying is it helps a whole lot if you go in in person and look professional. A lot of nursing homes don't post open positions online. Good Luck!

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Everyone has some great advice. It's worth it to check every nursing home in your area. I took out a phone book and wrote down all the nursing homes and home health agencies in my area. I spent a whole day going from place to place and I had a job before I went home. It just takes lot of patience and persistence. Don't get discouraged, you will get a job before you know it. Keep us posted on how it goes!

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