How to get hired if experience is necessary

applewhitern, BSN, RN · Jul 11, 2015

You will most likely end up having to take a job on a medical-surgical unit to obtain that experience. You might even have to take a night-shift position. It can be hard to get into a specialty like that without any experience at all. You will learn time management skills, IV skills, etc., on a medical-surgical floor, which will make you a more desirable candidate. Good luck with your studies.

Qteapi · Jul 11, 2015

Start looking at New Grad Residency programs. With these programs you earn while you learn with some hospitals requiring a signing contract after doing a 1 year residency program.

Coffee Nurse, BSN, RN · Jul 11, 2015

I agree with Qteapi, a good supportive new grad program is the way to go if you want to get into NICU. I don't particularly hold with the old maxim that everyone has to do their year of med/surg straight out of school; it'll help you get some general nursing skills under your belt, but NICU is a completely different beast from adult nursing, from diseases to vital sign parameters to the way you interact with your patients. I went into NICU as a new grad and, while it was a very steep learning curve, I had good mentors and coworkers who helped me to flourish. The downside is that good new grad programs, especially for NICU, are incredibly sought-after and competitive. As you're a student now, you'll want to make sure that you keep your grades as high as you can, and try to get into NICU or postpartum for your final clinical placement if you can manage it.

adventure_rn, MSN, NP · Jul 11, 2015

If you're hoping to start as a new grad, you have to look for hospitals that have new grad residency/orientation programs that will hire new grads into the NICU. It's definitely easier if you have the ability to move around. I wanted to start my career in NICU, and applied to 16 new grad NICU positions in my region; got offers at 2, and relocated. (For reference, I did not complete a capstone in NICU--which really improves your odds!--but I did graduate with a 4.0 from a top 10 nursing school, and had 6 months experience volunteering in a well baby clinic in South America.)

If you aren't able to get a job in NICU right out of school, there are still ways to position yourself to get in. Two paths I've heard NICU managers suggest are med/surg-->peds-->NICU and mother/baby-->NICU. Of note, the manager who suggested the former worked in a NICU housed in the peds service line, and the manager who suggested the latter worked in a NICU housed in the Women's/OB service line.

cracklingkraken, ASN, RN · Jul 11, 2015

I have a thread that I actually started regarding new grad residency programs, if you want to take a peek at some of those. I posted a list in my most recent posts.

adcinhae · Jul 12, 2015

Thanks for all the great advice. I checked out the grad residency post and got some good info from there, too. I think I may also go to my local hospitals and talk to them and see what advice they may have to offer. I'm guessing I need to go to HR?

adventure_rn, MSN, NP · Jul 13, 2015

I'd ask about shadowing opportunities for students (either through HR or the unit). Earlier is better, since some hospitals won't let people who are about to graduate shadow--they basically say, "tough, if we select you for an interview you can shadow after that."

I just wrote some similar advice on another thread to a new grad, might be helpful:

1) I interviewed a nurse manager on a unit I was interested in as part of an assignment for my nursing leadership course. Gave me a chance to learn more about the unit, demonstrate my interest in her unit, and also put my face to a name. You can even say after the interview, "I'm so impressed with your unit and I'd love to join your team. Do you mind if I send you a follow-up email when I submit my application my last semester?"

2) Attend a local chapter meeting of an NICU professional nursing organization (probably NANN, maybe AWHONN) and be prepared to network. Be professional, demonstrate a genuine interest, and ask good questions! Bring your resume.

3) If available, attend any 'Nursing Grand Rounds' or other events at the hospital related to Women's Children's; you could meet people from the NICU (or people who can introduce you to people in the NICU). Same advice as point 2: network, and make a great first impression.

Hope this helps.

adventure_rn, MSN, NP · Jul 13, 2015

And 4) Find NICU-specific ways to bolster your resume and demonstrate that you're serious about NICU. You can actually join the professional organizations that I mentioned in point 2 as a student (usually at a significant membership discount); wish I'd done that during school. Also, you can get your Neonatal Resuscitation Protocol (NRP) certification, which is basically ACLS for babies; it's a little bit pricey, but may be worth the investment.