Its not what you know, it's who you know

[Devie06]

I am pre-nursing and work as caregiver/medtech. A co-worker just graduated from a private college and will be taking the NCLEX soon. She applued to several positions for mom&baby unit and said within an hour she got the rejection email. However her mom works @ the hosputal and is good friends with the hiring manager. He1r mom took he1r resume directly to hiring manager and now she has an interview. I was telling my husband how much iworry aboyt finding a job and how I need to really meet people and do amazing during clinicals. I explained about my co worker and je freaked. He says its bs that ppl get jobs when they arent qualified because they "know someone"and it is unethical and conflict of interest for my co worker to be hired by her moms good friend. Just curious your thoughts???

[linearthinker, DNP, RN]

It isn't unethical, as long as she is actually qualified.

[caliotter3]

Just because your husband doesn't believe it happens, does not mean it does not happen.

[CaliforniaRNnow]

No... it's not even who you know. They say you should network.. get connections. IT'S NOT TRUE!!! I had 5 people put in a good word for me at a hospital. AND NOTHING HAPPENED. And at another hospital, I knew somebody who knew the director of nursing. AND NOTHING HAPPENED. An interviewer told me how amazing one of my references said I was. And a doctor told me my resume was very impressive.

Here I am, an RN, with no job who knows people. What you know and who you know are worthless.

[caliotter3]

An opening for a CNA became available on the unit where I was doing a clinical. I didn't even know about it, but my preceptor told me and introduced me to the nurse manager. I was on good terms with every nurse on the unit and they wanted me there. I beat feet down to HR to apply for the job, only to be told the opening had closed already. How different my life might have been if I had gotten that job. So, yes, it pays to impress people who have the connections, either people-wise or information-wise, to help you get a job.

[netglow, ASN, RN]

I hear ya wanabe, I got some recs from some top docs in their fields. But, they now work for THE CORPORATION and guess what? they get treated like dirt too. Kinda felt bad when they had asked for an update, I actually felt that they were a bit stunned and embarrassed to find out that nobody cares a hoot about them anymore. These are good guys too.

[medsearcher1, BSN]

if you get in to a hospital because of who you know, you still have low performance and do badly. i would rather get the job by my own. However for many new nurses the job sector is tight , so i created a facebook group to assist new nurses finding that new job its called {Great, i became a nurse and now there's no jobs] . check it out it may help you .

[wazeout]

Honestly speaking, networking is the way of the world. That's why all these communication corps are fortune fives. It's no accident that these companies have found a way to make lots of money. The thing is, most business minded people know that word of mouth can make or break you. So, networking and knowing someone that knows someone is a big part of sales (cold calls or leads from somebody), and to be quite honest, it is yourself and skills that you're trying to sale to the employer.

Bill Gate's mother introduced him to the execs at IBM, which allowed him to pitch his idea to them, and they obviously loved it. So, networking and knowing someone that knows someone does not mean that you are unqualified--making it through nursing school and passing the NCLEX qualifies you--but rather that you've been given a priviledged opportunity to represent yourself and what ever it is that you're selling.

BTW, I support networking and not nepotism.

[Lucky724]

Knowing someone may get you in the door and even a position..but as others have posted..once in, you better know how to play ball or you will be out quick. NO facility worth anything, regardless of who is related to/knows who, is going to risk a nurse screwing up and creating a mess given the economic and litigious times healthcare is in. This is how it works - not just in healthcare but all business. Sign of the times.

[Bobbkat]

if you get in to a hospital because of who you know, you still have low performance and do badly..

May I ask why you say this? I know many people (myself included, as stated above) that have relied on networking to get into a hospital job, and I don't find them to have 'low performance' at all.