How can I get an ICU job out of college?

[Jsmall56]

Hello! I am a freshman in college and I would like to be an ICU nurse (preferably CICU) as soon as possible after I graduate. Are there any precursor jobs I can apply for that will help me get my foot in the door for applying when I graduate? Any advice in general would be extremely helpful, thank you!!

(P.S. I do not mind taking courses over the summer for me to get a specific job, as long as it would aid me in getting an ICU position when I actually graduate nursing school.)

[NICU Guy, BSN, RN]

PCA or Unit Secretary position in ICU at a local hospital.

[mrsboots87]

Fairy dust and luck.

[Rocknurse, MSN, APRN, NP]

If you're a BSN student with a high GPA you might be lucky enough to get into an intern graduate program. If not it might be possible, depending on your state, to be hired as a new grad into a small community hospital ICU with a lowish acuity. The chances of being hired into a high-acuity level 1 facility ICU are probably quite low but if that's your desire then it would serve you well to get your first job on either a general medical or general surgical floor or telemetry unit after graduation so that you can get some experience and make yourself look more attractive to prospective employers. Another option is to try and get hired in an ED. In my facility we often hire transfers from the surgical, medical floors and/or ED. We have a new grad intern program but only take a couple graduates a year.