How long did you stay at your first job?

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  1. How long did you stay at your first job?

    • 29
      One year or less
    • 19
      Three years or less
    • 6
      Five years or more
    • 8
      Six years or more
    • 5
      10+ years

67 members have participated

I just reached the magic "1 year" a few weeks ago and am wondering how long everyone stayed at their first job?

Specializes in PACU.

I left my first nursing job within 2 weeks.... so short of time that I rarely talk or even think about it. The environment was so unsafe and I was asked to do things I didn't feel right about ethically (expired meds, instruments not properly cleaned, leaving a new LPN with a treadmill stress test while MD left the building to goto lunch)that I refused to do. So I walked away from not just the job, but nursing for several months.

My instructor came and found me waitressing and told me to get my butt back out there and be a nurse. :yes: Thank goodness for her!

My next job (which for all practical purpose was really my first nursing opportunity) I was at for about 3 years.

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

I'm still at mine. :sofahider

I like it most days. I like my coworkers- we're a great team who help each other out. And, in general, with OR nursing it's either you're a lifer or you hate it and get out ASAP.

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Specializes in OR Nursing, Critical Care, Med-surg.

1st job, 9 months. Been at my current job for 3 years now though not my dream job.

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8 month. I am glad I left.

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Specializes in public health, women's health, reproductive health.

I left after 7 months for another job. It was one of the best exits I've made in my life.

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Specializes in Med-surg, telemetry, oncology.

4 Months. It was awful. I never regretted leaving that job.Schedule

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Specializes in Pedi.
Your answers don't make sense. You wrote "3 years or less" and the next answer was "5 years or more". therefore, I did not answer.

I was at my first job for almost exactly 4 years. I would most likely still be there (6+ years later) if we had not relocated to a much larger city.

I also cannot answer the poll for this reason. I was at my first job for 4 years and 7 months.

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Specializes in Mental Health.

1.5 years - I wanted to do 2 years but it was an awful place to work!!!!

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Specializes in NICU, PICU, CVICU, PEDS PRIMARY CARE.

8 years... I picked up an additional per diem job at a nearby hospital after 4 years. Worked NICU in both hospitals.

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Specializes in L&D.

3.25 years.

I was lucky and got L&D as a new grad.

If I was in med-surg I may not have made it a year...

After about 2 years I was pretty sure L&D wasn't for me. Very frantic pace and stressful with not knowing what's going to walk in the door or how that baby might come out.

But I felt a bit trapped because I was on day shift.

I stuck it out for another year and glad I did just to have that on my resume.

In the end I left after I had a baby and we moved.

I stayed home for 2 years, floated between 2 PRN jobs in L&D (again confirming it's not for me) and mother/baby and teaching maternity clinical for a nursing school.

I just started a new job last week. NICU! So far I love it! I have to pinch myself because I can't believe how lucky I am to get a part-time day shift job in a great level IV NICU.

I hope it's a job I'll have for many years - if I left it would likely be to switch to PRN status, maybe transfer to another unit in the children's hospital, or start a travel nurse career.

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Quite to the contrary in many areas of the US. For most areas, many applications for more desirable jobs require 1 year of experience with preference of that year being in acute care. But, generally 1 year of full time employments means you are no longer considered a new grad for hiring purposes and it opens up doors for more/better job opportunities for many nurses.

Nope, that's my point. This is one of the many myths about nursing jobs. The job postings may SAY one year, but that doesn't mean you'll get hired for them. In particular, many/most people will still find it difficult to switch to a desirable specialty from any med/surg type job (OB, ICU, ER) with only one year of experience. It helps if you're just looking for a transfer in your own hospital, but even that isn't a sure thing. In my current hospital it's the unwritten expectation that a new grad will stay two years on the same floor before trying for an in-hospital transfer; an experienced nurse is expected to stay at least one year. If you're going to a specialty program with an extensive training (here, ICU and OR), it's generally written in that you must do two years before moving on--otherwise you're risking your reference.

Beyond the actual logistics of getting hired in the first place, I tend to agree with some previous posters--I think one year in acute or critical care is just getting your feet wet. Unless the job situation is bad (I totally understand that) or you have some reason you need to move, such as a spouse's job, parents in ill health, etc, for personal development I would encourage all new grads to stay at least 18-24 months.

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thanks everyone for your responses! I am sorry about the wonky years with the poll. thank you for all of the input!

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