Is 54 too old to get hired as a new RN?

Emergent, RN · Mar 22, 2019

9 minutes ago, rn&run said:
No. Protected class, as mentioned above, same as asking "am I too black for this job? Too female? Too ex-military? Too Jewish? Too Guatemalan?
You get the point. Some might discriminate against you, or hold an implicit bias, but don't let that keep you from applying. It might help to consult an employment lawyer just to review what age discrimination can look like, and how to document it if needed.

Being old and decrepit isn't the same as being Jewish or Black. I'm over 60 btw, and fitter than most, if not all, of my colleagues. As people have said, if you are robust, then you'll be fine. If your health is falling apart, that's another matter

Sour Lemon · Mar 22, 2019

1 hour ago, WannabRN-GA said:
I have been out of school for a while, graduated in 2011. For the last 3 years, I have cared for my husband after he was hit on his motorcycle Jan 2017, 11 months later found out he had sarcoma, now a year later found out it's back. He just finished radiation for the second time in a year. So the last three years I haven't even attempted to test until recently which was on the same day as his first radiation this go around. He didn't want me to change it, although I know I should have. My mind was not totally on the exam. I know I would have passed had I my mind not been elsewhere. Thanks for all the input. By the way, I don't look my age and I'm pretty active. Also, I do live in a rural area and they always have positions at the nursing home but it seems that the hospital RNs are required to have experience. There is another hospital 40 mins from me if I wanted to go that far.

A 2011 graduation date is going to work hard against you. You've been caring for your husband for the past three years, but what was going on for the five(ish) years before that?
It sounds like you might have had multiple NCLEX failures, as well?
In any case, I wish you well. Expect an uphill battle, though.

WannabRN-GA, ADN · Mar 22, 2019

8 hours ago, Sour Lemon said:
A 2011 graduation date is going to work hard against you. You've been caring for your husband for the past three years, but what was going on for the five(ish) years before that?
It sounds like you might have had multiple NCLEX failures, as well?
In any case, I wish you well. Expect an uphill battle, though.

Yes, taken more than once. After I didn't pass the first two times I had decided I wasn't going to humiliate myself again by failure, so I refused to test again. Life went on. After caring for my husband, I decided to try again. I have been studying since December and I was ready. I should have changed the date due to my husband having radiation however, I listened to him and didn't. That was my mistake. Thats why I wanted to know how difficult it would be to get a job at 54.

BSNbound21, BSN, RN · Mar 22, 2019

20 hours ago, Sour Lemon said:
You'd be surprised at how valued pliability is. Being "old", wise, and experienced can actually work against you.

Being older does not mean a person is unable to be molded. This is discriminatory thinking.

Jedrnurse, BSN, RN · Mar 22, 2019

2 hours ago, BSNbound21 said:
Being older does not mean a person is unable to be molded. This is discriminatory thinking.

Actually, I would take it as a compliment (not a discriminatory remark) to be a mature, experienced adult who isn't too quick to drink the Kool-aid.

guest974915 · Mar 22, 2019

On 3/20/2019 at 10:17 AM, Hollyhocks720 said:
It is NOT too old and you are in a protected class, they can’t discriminate based on age. I started in my 50’s. I have offers right and left. Bedside can be exhausting, for all ages. Nurse Residency is required by many hospitals for all new hires but isn’t what nany people think: It’s not line Dr. Residency, at my hospital, it just means an extra 3-4 hour meeting once per month on a special topic. Most of my classmates were young enuff to be my kids and are equally or more exhausted, remember, our generation has a work ethic that is less common in the generations that followed! There are other areas besides just bedside that are lesz exhausting. You can do this.

Sorry, but with all due respect, I have to disagree. I have been a nurse a long time in a lot of different places and this 'protected class' is a lot of bunk. Just so that you're aware, discrimination based upon age is difficult, if not impossible to prove. Sounds good in theory and I wish it were otherwise, but believe me, management would rather have a naive, pliable twenty-year old something with low salary expectations and a fresh face, than us fifty plus years old, with gray hair, wrinkles, and with their best years behind them. I'm not trying to be controversial, just brutally honest.