I feel truly sorry for new grads

[Concerto_in_C]

Just wanted to say that. I've been a nurse since 2008 and did ok, first in sub-acute rehab and now in med-surg, did not experience any unemployment and had very stable finances that whole time. I guess I got lucky because I graduated just as the industry was going down the toilet.

I just want to share my observation that this is no longer the industry of opportunities it once was, it has really changed for the worse, the attitude of employers has changed for the worse, and opportunities for young people have disappeared.

This industry has never been about making x or y amount of money, but it's been about opportunities for young people. Now the opportunities are in jeopardy.

Young talented BSNs can't even find work in med-surg nowadays because new grads are not welcome.

If you can't at least do med-surg because new grads are not welcome, you are setting yourself up for failure in later career because something like med-surg is the foundation, and they're denying you even the foundation you need to get started.

My advice for young people interested in a career in health care is to stay clear of nursing but do something like physical therapy. A PT degree may require 3 years more in school (because it's a PhD or a Masters) but the extra 3 years will be worth it because everywhere you go employers will accept you, nobody will give you a hard time because you're a new grad, and companies will be glad to take you under their wings and train you.

I got back from the website for the Norther Illinois University PT program and their employment rate for new PT grads is 100% (this means 100% of new grads are welcome in physical therapy).

Just my 2 cents.

[firstlight]

Yes, it is very cyclical.

[OCNRN63, RN]

You are corret. I was a BSN new grad in Dec 2012 and never landed a job in the hospital. I needed to pay my bills STAT so I accept the ONLY job that was offere to me - School Nurse. I have lost most of the nursing skills we learned in school, and don't even ask me to insert an IV or chang out trach straps. The dreams i had of becoming a big shot expert RN are down the drain because no hospital will hire me now due to my "lack of clinical experience"

OK, so you can't be the "big shot expert RN" in your dream specialty. Why not try to become "expert" in the field you're working in? Is there a certification exam for school nursing you can take? Have you joined your specialty's professional organization? Is there a local chapter in your area? How about networking with other school nurses?

I've been an RN for

Don't take the victim mentality. If you want to be a hot-shot nurse in an ICU, WORK at it. If it were me, I would cold-call the nurse manager(s) where you would really like to work and ask what it would take to get a position on that unit. Let them know why you want to work there. Just because you're not working in that area doesn't mean you can't do CEUs. Go to conferences and meet nurses working in your desired specialty. If you really want this, you're going to have to move heaven and earth to get it. It's probably not going to be in the unemployment section of the newspaper. If you get professional magazines related to the specialty that interests you, you may see ads from hospitals that don't appear in the paper.

As an aside, I can vouch for saying it pays to talk to people and network. I babysat for doctors/executives while I was in nursing school. I wound up being a last minute substitute for a family I didn't know. The husband sat down to talk to me while waiting for his wife. He started asking me about my Job Search (I was getting close to graduating, and this was the time when most people had a job to go to before they graduated). I told him I wanted a job in a particular specialty but was having trouble finding something. He said, "Have you applied to "X" hospital? " and I told him I hadn't, because I'd heard there were no jobs there. He said, "Really? I happen to know they are hiring." I asked him how he knew, and he said, "I'm the CEO of the hospital."

​I was mortified, but he liked me, and I got the job.

[HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD]

Nursing employment has been cyclical, you are right. But what is different this time is the number of nursing school graduates. Look it up, twice as many people graduate from nursing schools today than 10 years ago. 5,178 people graduated from nursing school in California in 2000-2001. In 2008-2009, that number was 10,570 (The BRN school report shows more nurses graduating from California nursing programs. | Samuel Merritt University). That is 100% increase! In the same period, the population in California increased by only 10% (California's Population (PPIC Publication)). You have a tenfold increase in nursing graduates versus population growth. This is unsustainable. I bet this is the picture elsewhere in the country, with the exception maybe of North Dakota. This unchecked growth in nursing school graduates without regard for demand and population growth has led to the sorry of nursing we have today, with low wages, low moral and poor working conditions. It is destroying nursing.

Wonderful analysis of the crux of this problem. In my part of the country, commercial (investor-owned) nursing schools have sprung up like dandelions... capitalizing on the public clamor for 'high-paying, stable' Nursing Jobs (still being hyped by the media). Sure, why not - nursing education has become a hot commodity with hordes of 'buyers' paying ridiculous amounts of money to obtain this 'product'.

This phenomenon doesn't quite match what happened in the Philippines - where 'nursing education' has become a huge product line: in 1990, they had 170 nursing schools & 429 schools in 2013! (Why are there so many Filipino nurses in the US? | Inquirer Global Nation) The effect on the quality of education has been well documented. But the US is following a similar trajectory... when graduates outnumber the available jobs, strange things begin to happen; including a reduction/stagnation in wages as it becomes a 'buyers market' for employers & greater numbers of unemployed nurses.

It's time to stop the magical thinking. Today's environment is unprecedented - a convergence of factors including unique phenomena that have never before occurred. We don't know how this is going to end, but it is NOT just a repeat of previous cycles.

[Nonetheless]

Because of Obama Care, the job openings are no longer in the hospital setting. Clinics, nursing homes, etc are the way of the future because they are cheaper for a patient to stay at. I spoke to a number of clinics for undeserved populations and they are hungry for nurses, including new grads.

Hospital work still is out there but it takes 6 months to a year for new grads to find, and not always in the nicest states.

And you don't HAVE to go straight into med Surg. You can do pretty much any unit in the hospital and get your acute care experience.

It's a brutal market but I don't think it's any better for physical therapists.

[Nonetheless]

You are corret. I was a BSN new grad in Dec 2012 and never landed a job in the hospital. I needed to pay my bills STAT so I accept the ONLY job that was offere to me - School Nurse. I have lost most of the nursing skills we learned in school and don't even ask me to insert an IV or chang out trach straps. The dreams i had of becoming a big shot expert RN are down the drain because no hospital will hire me now due to my "lack of clinical experience"[/quote']

School nursing sounds exciting. It's for the state so it must be stable and the pay must be okay. You don't need to be a big shot as long as you can afford to live somewhere safe and clean. In my area, school nurses make a good income and are happy.

[RNlove17]

I graduated in Dec 2012 - age 26, second career. I already had a BA degree and had been working for $12/hour for a mortgage company. There are no jobs in any field, hence why i went to nursing school. I think the trend is just part of the overall employment landscape - lack of jobs, lack of advancement in any jobs, low pay, poor treatment by companies, etc. It's not unique to nursing.

I was lucky in that I was hired in Jan 2013 for a med-surg/rehab unit as a new grad with a 1:10 nurse patient ratio... talk about overextended. Then I was VERY lucky and started fulltime this past August 2013 as a school nurse at my old high school. I still work per diem at my old hospital job to maintain clinical skills, and hate it. My job at the school is so cushy and nice... I see how horrible the hospital management and work environment is in comparison. They are so short staffed but don't hire more people (sometimes it's just me with 10 pts, no tech or aide!), don't provide us with neccesary supplies, equiptment, training, etc just yell at us staff that we suck, basically. Not at all what I imagined working at the hospital would be like. But the money lets me live... at least it's a living wage, compared to the $10-12/hour many college grads are stuck with. Thank god for my full time job at the school though, i don't know how I got so lucky because I honestly love my job. I thought it'd be boring but you know what, not having insane stress every time I go to work is just nice.

I am honest with nursing students or those contemplating. It's not as wonderful as others will tell you. There aren't many Nursing Jobs for new grads - I always tell them that. Literally 50% of my class is still unemployed almost a year later. There's still that false belief that there's all these open nursing jobs for the taking. I see many employment ads that blantently say "NO NEW GRADS." Whether they like the actual job/field or not is their personal preference, but the lack of jobs is just a fact, so that's why I tell them that.

[ThePrincessBride, MSN, RN, NP]

Probably because the projections are full of crap? Probably because it's pure speculation and nobody really knows for sure as the job market and the economy are unpredictable? Hey, let's backtrack about 10 years and remember the computer programmer projections or real estate/finance/banking projections as they were in 1999 or 2000, which turned to be completely unreliable, and were followed by massive downsizing in those industries. It is extremely risky, in my opinion, to project industry growth in the next 20 years, because that's a very long time. This country was turned upside down in the space of a month (2008) and 20 years worth of projections turned out to be just wishful thinking.

You really think that America's economy took a month for it to go downhill? Try eight years (thank you Bush!)

I live in a highly competitive area, and I know plenty of new grads who have gotten jobs BEFORE passing the NCLEX at some very prestigious university hospitals. However, they also worked as PCAs for 2+ years and graduated with BSNs at accreditted schools.

If you have a BSN from a well-respected school, previous and current healthcare experience, and aren't too picky in where you apply, it shouldn't be TOO difficult to get a job. It may not be a dreeeaaaammm job, but it will pay the bills. I don't know of any other field (besides Engineering) where new grads can start making more than the average American combined household.

[RNlove17]

I'm a new grad school nurse (with about 7 months acute care exp too) and i love my school nurse job. VERY stable, it's at my old high school, 5 mins from my house, low stress, fun, wonderful hours (7:20-2:45 and out on time), amazing scedule (I work 185 days a year!), I'm in the teacher union, low cost health insurance, I am a state employee and can retire in 30 years on a full pension. My hourly rate is actually higher than at the hospital, although I am salaried, and since I worked less hour the yearly income is less. But the pay cut was worth it. There are worse jobs.

[NurseGirl525, ASN, RN]

Guess I really don't get the point of this post. You want to discourage people from becoming nurses? The average age of a nurse right now is 46. Within the next few years, there will be many nurses retiring. Someone is going to have to replace those nurses. Also, as the baby boomers age many more LTC facilities will be opening up and hospitals will be expanding especially into suburban areas. We just had 2 brand new hospitals built in the areas outside of Indianapolis and it is a growing field here. Plus, yes in some areas it is an employers market. That is not a bad thing. It means those who prepare and know how to interview well will get the jobs. That more than likely means you will have top quality people looking after you when you are in the hospital or go to a doctors office. I want the best of the best looking after me. Not everyone can hack being a nurse and not everyone should.

As for the part about Physical Therapy. A doctorate is not required. My sister is a physical therapist. She does happen to have her doctorate in that. She has about $250,000 in student loans and when I graduate I will have paid less than $10,000 for my education and will make slightly less than what she does. She gets job offers all the time from Johns Hopkins and The Mayo Clinic. Those are places you can work with your doctorate. A regular degree will get you into an orthopedic place. Sorry you are having issues with jobs but not all of us will.

[Carrie RN]

The experienced RNs are having trouble as well finding full time work. While I would like to be positive and tell you all to go network it isn't helping the unemployed either. If you have not started into the nursing curriculum I would go have an honest conversation with your adviser about the declining job prospects. Nursing was hard work in 1986 and in 2013 it hasn't gotten easier. Ask yourself why am I a nurse? If you can't say anything positive maybe it is time to leave the profession. If you have something that drives you to be a nurse maybe we could agree on something. Everyone do their best at work. Arrive on time. Be polite to coworkers even when they are not polite back. Quit complaining. We are all on our feet the whole 12 hours without breaks, and 7 out of 10 patients or their families are uncommonly mean to us. Trust me we have all been there. Leave work at work and enjoy your time with your family or friends. If we all were proactive maybe nursing wouldn't be so hard. Control your shift don't let it control you.

[Concerto_in_C, BSN, RN]

While I can appreciate you want those uninformed students who may be considering nursing, to know the truth about the current climate and the lack of job opportunities, this post is discouraging for us new grads.

We are disheartened too. I promise you will be in demand when you have 2 years of medical-surgical experience, telemetry experience, epidural certification, art line certification, medical-surgical certification, ACLS, etc., except I don't have the faintest idea how you will get there in the present job climate.

Discuss this with your school counselors.

[Discourged RN]

My daughter graduated in May. Studied very hard for the NCLEX and passed. We were all so proud. Now she can't find a job. Over a 100 applications and all want 1 year experience. How is she going to get experience if no one will hire her. It is so upsetting because we are feeling that it is a wasted degree and she doesn't know where to go from here. She has tried everything from hospitals, nursing homes, rehab centers. She is open to any position, any shift, any location. What shocked me is that she can't work as a nursing assistant. She continues to apply for jobs every day but feels nothing will come her way and now her student loans have started so it falls on us to help her pay them. She isn't qualified for any other job except minimum wage positions. How can this be?