Job market- ADN students being warned?

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Specializes in LTC, Psych, M/S.

Ok so I oriented a 4th semester nursing student from the local community college last week and this was for her "trends" class. I work in a state facility for DD population. We got to talking and she of course wants to work in a ER. I told her it is really competitive to get into the ER as a new grad and they are hiring mostly BSN's. she said she was going to work on that ... also eluded to being a single parent "so it might take me a while" she said. We are in a rural area and she said based on her clinicals she didn't want to work on the M/S units in the local 2 hospitals. She then said she might relocate to another state and I told her to check into the local job market - some places it is really difficult - if not impossible- to get nursing jobs. I told her that is why I relocated was b/c if the saturated job market in the neighboring state. She was like "really?" She said she didn't know that - she thought nurses could get jobs anywhere. She also stated that she was graduating from a class of 36 students - the class size had been increased from 24 previous year. Later she quietly asks me "so you think I'll have a problem getting a job?" I said "honestly, I'm not sure this area will absorb that many new grad nurses - a lot of times they only want to hire nurses with experience. She was a nice girl and I wish her the best. I told her my facility has a opening coming up and I would put in a good word for her if she was interested - however my manager just hired an experienced RN.

I know some schools are warning students - I worked with a BSN new grad last year who said the instructors warned the class "your best options right now for employment are the rural areas" as they knew most of the students wanted to move to the city.

Do you all think nursing students/ potential nursing students are being misled about the job market? Oh and I do say ADN students because we hear so much how hospitals are only hiring BSNs.

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As a current nursing student about to graduate, I don't think my instructors have really put any illusions in our minds, but they haven't really said it will be hard to get a job. I, however, have no illusions about how hard it may be. A lot of my classmates though do. Most believe they will be getting a job as soon as they graduate without a problem. Most also believe they will be hired into units other than med surg. I don't really know why they feel this way. Of course, I am going to try to for my dream job. That doesn't mean I think I will be getting it though.

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My ASN school graduates approx 100-120 new RNs a year and most of them have jobs lined up before graduation. The Dec 2012 graduating class all passed NCLEX the first time (which is typical for the school) and all have jobs already. It really helps that my school is hospital-affiliated so, even though it's "only" an ASN, we're the grads the system wants and we get priority over all other schools --including the 2 BSN schools in the area.

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I'm in my last semester of my LPN to RN program. Sadly, I often overhear many students talking about how they can't wait to get a job and that there is a nursing shortage so they will pretty much be able to get work anywhere. I want to scream from the top of my lungs there is NO shortage! My school hasn't ever said there was a shortage, but then again they have never mentioned that finding a job as a new grad is very, very difficult. I knew going into it there was no shortage. When I got my license in '08, there were always a lot of job postings for both LPN's and RN's. Over the years I've watched the trend become less and less postings and they now required more and more experience.

I have heard a radio ad from another college that states the 'nursing shortage' and the 'demand' for RN's. Very sad. I have several friends who's daughters/sons are interested in persuing nursing in college who send them to me so I can explain as nicely and as gently as I can that if they do persue the degree, jobs will be difficult to come by. The high schools are still pushing the whole 'nursing shortage' and 'demand for nurses'. :(

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Specializes in LTC.

What states are y'all working in? I'm currently a LVN in TX and am enrolled for courses to complete my ADN. I have some experience and will be working PRN/PT through school so it shouldn't be so hard to find a job when I get done. I feel like starting at LVN is going to work out well IMO because it is much easier to get a job as an LVN (you may have to start out in LTC, but it teaches time management and you get to use a lot of skills depending on the facility). Therefore I will have experience behind me when I start looking for a job as a RN. I think as the Obamacare plan rolls out we will see the demand in nursing increase since they are expecting an influx of new patients who were not previously insured.

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Specializes in Peri-op/Sub-Acute ANP.

Call me crazy, but I honestly don't think it's the school's job to warn students about potential job markets years down the road. Nobody knows what the job market will be like 2 or 4 years from now. When selecting an academic pursuit it is up to the individual to do their own research and make a decision based on their own desires, academic goals, financial limits, and research about potential job markets once they graduate. The schools have no control over the job market, nor are they able to predict the future. The same principle applies to education as it does for any large purchase - buyer beware!

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Specializes in LTC, Psych, M/S.
My ASN school graduates approx 100-120 new RNs a year and most of them have jobs lined up before graduation. The Dec 2012 graduating class all passed NCLEX the first time (which is typical for the school) and all have jobs already. It really helps that my school is hospital-affiliated so even though it's "only" an ASN, we're the grads the system wants and we get priority over all other schools --including the 2 BSN schools in the area.[/quote']

I take it you haven't graduated yet? Keep in mind how quick things change in the world of health care hiring. Hospitals often go on hiring freezes or decide not to hire any more "new grads"

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My ASN school graduates approx 100-120 new RNs a year and most of them have jobs lined up before graduation. The Dec 2012 graduating class all passed NCLEX the first time (which is typical for the school) and all have jobs already. It really helps that my school is hospital-affiliated so even though it's "only" an ASN, we're the grads the system wants and we get priority over all other schools --including the 2 BSN schools in the area.[/quote']

That is a lot of new grads. My class will be graduating with 23 people in a few short weeks. I guess it just depends on the area. I would imagine it would be hard for 100-200 people to find jobs at the same time in any area though. Are you the only nursing school in the area?

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Specializes in LTC, Psych, M/S.
Call me crazy but I honestly don't think it's the school's job to warn students about potential job markets years down the road. Nobody knows what the job market will be like 2 or 4 years from now. When selecting an academic pursuit it is up to the individual to do their own research and make a decision based on their own desires, academic goals, financial limits, and research about potential job markets once they graduate. The schools have no control over the job market, nor are they able to predict the future. The same principle applies to education as it does for any large purchase - buyer beware![/quote']

No it is not the school's responsibility which is why it is being predicted that the "student loan bubble" is about to burst. When it does, we may take another look at how our institutes of higher learning portray themselves. Nursing schools can, however, adjust their class sizes to meet demand.

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Specializes in Peri-op/Sub-Acute ANP.

The schools are doing nothing more or less than offering a service. Their demand is driven by the number of people who want those services, not the job market. It's a free market philosophy. Supply and demand. So long as people keep wanting to take nursing classes, art history classes, or whatever, the schools will continue to offer them. The school does not generate the demand, just responds to it.

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Specializes in LTC, Psych, M/S.

Other nursing students I have talked to said their instructors/programs DID warn them about the job market - this girl I oriented had no clue. IMO colleges that take taxpayer $$$ should be curtailing their programs to industry demand.

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Specializes in Peri-op/Sub-Acute ANP.

I hope the schools have more luck predicting the future two or four years down the line than I do because that it what it would take to do what you are suggesting. Even if they enroll a class sized to meet today's demand, they only stand a 50% chance of being anywhere close to what the future demand might be. There will always be a risk of it being too few or too many. That is why schools don't get involved in making predictions about how employable you will be when you graduate. They can't possibly predict it which rolls us right back to individuals making decisions for themselves based on their own research and willingness to roll the dice in a chosen career path.

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