Hospital Job???

BusiestBSN · Mar 3, 2014

What is your resume like? I know I tailored mine around how my previous experiences fit into nursing type duties. Example: I was a daycare teacher for awhile. So on my resume, I put something like "Promoted safe and hygienic environment for students" and "Delegated age appropriate recreations while providing care" and even "Administered assistance for activities of daily living".

Also, from what I hear, getting a tech job at a hospital without experience can be hard in some cities. Have you tried nursing homes? At least to get your foot in the door?

mikasa · Mar 3, 2014

mikasa · Mar 3, 2014

Why didn't you get your nursing assistant certification? Maybe you need to fix your resume. Your school should have someone to assist you with that. I met with someone at my school and they opened my eyes about my resume. I changed a lot of things and formatted it a different way. Did you put your clinical experiences? Don't forget to put your school experiences and your knowledge about medical terminology, medical administration, etc. I agree with what ^^ said about trying nursing homes just so you have some experience. After graduating, I think it is possible to find a job. At least in my area there seems to be a lot of open positions. Good luck

rawilso1 · Mar 4, 2014

I have my clinicals listed with the skills I learned from them. My instructor told me today that I may count as a CNA regardless of licensure, so I should try local nursing homes. I think nursing homes might be my best bet to try next. I wish I would have gotten my CNA license right out of highschool but I didn't even know for sure that I wanted to go into nursing then.

I actually heard that many employers won't hire me possibly because I'm so close to my grad date. They don't want to throw money into training me if I'll only be there for a short while.

RunBabyRN · Mar 4, 2014

That right there may be the biggest issue- they see that you're just trying to get a foot in the door, and that you have little interest in a long-term position as a CNA. Keep trying, but also rest assured that CNA experience is not the ONLY way to get a foot in the door. How are you doing in clinicals? Have you met any nurse managers? Have they heard about you? The nurse manager on the med/surg unit where I spent half of each semester the first 3 semesters of school is now on the unit where I want to work, and lined up my preceptorship there so she could see how I perform in that environment. Advocate for yourself- you are your own best promotion tool! Put it out there to everyone and anyone that you're looking for a medical position, and start making connections now, even if it's not necessarily WORKING in a medical environment. Do you know any nurses personally? How has the feedback been from nurses on the units where you've been doing clinicals? Have they mentioned you to their managers?

Lev, MSN, RN, NP · Mar 4, 2014

If you don't have your "official" CNA certification you should get it. It's really hard for new grads right now, especially those without hospital experience. Usually after taking a fundamentals clinical and passing the first semester you can apply at the BON and not have to take a CNA class. It's hard to get a tech job at the hospital. I put out 30-40 applications with only 2 callbacks when I was in nursing school. Take the resume to the career center at school and have them tweak it for you. Hospitals love customer service types jobs, especially if you have held the same job for longer than a year. The key is to make your clinical rotation experience shine on your resume. That you have the skills needed to be a tech in the hospital because you are in nursing school and are learning tons there.

applesxoranges, BSN, RN · Mar 4, 2014

There is no guarantee that the hospital will keep you on after you become an RN. I know one hospital system that let go most of their techs even if the unit wanted to keep them as an RN because they cut their residency program back.

It does not hurt to have a tech job however, they may not hire you due to your graduation date being so close. I recommend people start looking in the middle of their first semester if they plan on getting one at all. That way the hospital will be more likely to hire and train someone. It takes a lot of money to train a person and usually they want at least a year of a person in that role. I was passed over for being so close to graduation (this was April and I graduated in December). They went with a girl who was 2 semesters behind me specifically because they could use her longer.

I don't think it is the customer service issue as a lot of places want customer service due to patient satisfaction scores but it is because you are close to graduation. I would keep on applying to a variety of hospital spots as if you do get in, you will be able to access internal postings earlier which may give you an edge. I had an ICU and an ER offer before I walked for graduation because I was a tech whereas my classmates are freaking out about jobs.

Stephalump · Mar 5, 2014

I started as a tech 6 months before graduation. I was shocked when someone hired me knowing I had an expiration date rapidly approaching, but I'm glad she went out on a limb for me.

In my case, working in the hospital has helped tremendously.

I've learned more about patient care in 4 months of full time work there than I've learned in 2 years of clinicals

I have a job waiting for me when I graduate.

I know everyone I'll be working with - including the people who'll be orienting me, so I can make sure I'm not being trained by a boob.

I know the computer system.

I know where to find everything (and let me tell you, little things like that matter when you're trying to learn a billion things!)

And I've gained confidence in myself.

I also had the potential to burn bridges, I suppose. I recently put my 2 weeks notice in due to trouble working full time and all the demands of these last couple months, and if my boss hadn't been so understanding I probably could've kissed working at this hospital ever again goodbye. There's also the potential that you could be a god-awful tech and not be hired, even if you'd be a great nurse.

THELIVINGWORST, ASN, RN · Mar 5, 2014

I started as a tech 6 months before graduation. I was shocked when someone hired me knowing I had an expiration date rapidly approaching but I'm glad she went out on a limb for me. In my case, working in the hospital has helped tremendously. I've learned more about patient care in 4 months of full time work there than I've learned in 2 years of clinicals I have a job waiting for me when I graduate. I know everyone I'll be working with - including the people who'll be orienting me, so I can make sure I'm not being trained by a boob. I know the computer system. I know where to find everything (and let me tell you, little things like that matter when you're trying to learn a billion things!) And I've gained confidence in myself. I also had the potential to burn bridges, I suppose. I recently put my 2 weeks notice in due to trouble working full time and all the demands of these last couple months, and if my boss hadn't been so understanding I probably could've kissed working at this hospital ever again goodbye. There's also the potential that you could be a god-awful tech and not be hired, even if you'd be a great nurse.[/quote']
AMEN.