How to get a job in the ER as a new grad??

[Laurenslovely]

I am in a BSN nursing program now and I am really interested in working in the E.R. On Thursday I shadowed an instructor of mine who works at the E.R. at NYU. I LOVE the energy and I know I have the attributes and qualities it takes to work there.

So my question is... A lot of nurses say you need to get experience on a med-surg floor. Do you think this would help for in the future to work in the E.R.? I want to be confident in being an E.R. nurse, so I know it might not be the best decision to try work there straight out of nursing school. A nurse in the E.R. had told me she had the opportunity to get a job right out of nursing school in the ICU so she worked there for 5 years. Do you need experience in the ICU to be an E.R. nurse or vice versa? What steps should I take to get there sooner and prepare myself? (a nurse recommended taking the ACLS and PALS before i try to get a job to better my chances). I'm def interested in being in a setting where it is fast-paced and I will always be learning. Also, is it that hard to get a job in an E.R. everywhere else as it is here in NYC?

Thank you!!

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

I don't work in an ER but several of my classmates did get ER positions right out of school. This was in Boston, which is also a competitive city for nurses, but this was also 5 years ago. The best thing you could do now, IMO, is to try to get a job as a nurse's aide or tech in an ER. Places are much more likely to hire people who've worked for them as aides/techs than they are to hire someone off the street who they don't know from a hole in the wall.

It's not required to work Med/Surg before working in an ER nor is it required to work ICU. It would certainly make your life in the ER easier if you went in with experience and certain facilities may require experience before they'll hire someone into the ER, but it's not an across-the-board rule.

I imagine it's easier to get a job in an ER as a new grad at a community hospital in, say, Nebraska than it would be to land an ER position at NYU or Presbyterian, but I'm guessing.

[Laurenslovely]

I imagine it's easier to get a job in an ER as a new grad at a community hospital in, say, Nebraska than it would be to land an ER position at NYU or Presbyterian, but I'm guessing.

Hehe, probably true. I'm looking into volunteering in the ER. I hope that will give me some exposure! It might be what I have to do because the hospital externships are so competitive and they're not really placed in the ER, where I want to be.

Thank you :)