Job Outlook Advice needed, Thanks!

[EMEddie]

I ll start my last semester of my nursing program in a month, graduating in December. I have thought of creating my portfolio now since I am still in summer and have time to do it.

I want to ask some of my professors for Letters of Recommendations(LOR), but I have a few questions in regards to this:

1- Do I tell them that these LORs are for when I start applying for jobs before graduating?

2- Do these professors include a date in the letter? Do they send them to me via email or how does it work?

3- What kind of stuff should my portfolio have? I want to have 2-3 copies of the portfolio and take them personally to the unit managers.

I am in CA and know how crazy the job market is, that is why I decided to post here since you guys have graduated already.

Also, if you can give me advice that you wish you knew in terms of getting a job upon grad, what would it be?

Thank you guys in advance, God Bless!

Eddie

[bayareastudent0711]

1) GET A HEALTHCARE RELATED JOB ASAP! WHILE IN SCHOOL. i know it's difficult, but when you are hunting for that RN job, you have a leg up on a lot of other new grads, because you have experience as an ekg tech/ ob tech/ er tech/ cna/ na/ unit clerk.

2) if a job isn't an option, research the hospitals you are interested in and start VOLUNTEERING AT LOCAL HOSPITALS. they ask for a year commitment usually. and you will fulfill that ! most new grads don't get a job until 9 month - 1 year. if you start volunteering now, you will accrue a lot of volunteer hours and have already built a relationship with the hospital.

3) when you ask for a letter of recommendation, let them know you are getting your portfolio together. it would be a good idea to enclose your resume also, so they know you are very serious about job hunting in your last semester of nursing program. and don't forget to tell them what class you were in, and what semester/quarter you were in to jog their memory.

4) depending on the professor, they may or may not date the LOR.

5) depending on the professor, if you email them, they will email you the LOR some will email it as a .doc, i had one email it to me as a PDF and she hand-signed it and then scanned it and emailed it to me=) now a days they will email a general LOR to you so you can have as many copies as you want. Also, always have a template with your school letterhead on hand, if you enclose that, the professor can type in that template. Some new grad programs ask for LOR on school letterhead, if you provide that for them in the beginning it's easier for you in the long run.

Good luck! Also, ENJOY YOUR LAST SEMESTER OF SCHOOL WHILE YOU CAN. lol =)

[vang1127, BSN, RN]

I totally agree with the above poster! I graduated out of state and moved back to CA without any networks and work experience at hospitals - it's hard to even land an interview.

School was the easier part for me You're doing the right thing of preparing ahead of graduation. Good luck!

[AllieandTT]

1) GET A HEALTHCARE RELATED JOB ASAP! WHILE IN SCHOOL. i know it's difficult, but when you are hunting for that RN job, you have a leg up on a lot of other new grads, because you have experience as an ekg tech/ ob tech/ er tech/ cna/ na/ unit clerk.

2) if a job isn't an option, research the hospitals you are interested in and start VOLUNTEERING AT LOCAL HOSPITALS. they ask for a year commitment usually. and you will fulfill that ! most new grads don't get a job until 9 month - 1 year. if you start volunteering now, you will accrue a lot of volunteer hours and have already built a relationship with the hospital.

3) when you ask for a letter of recommendation, let them know you are getting your portfolio together. it would be a good idea to enclose your resume also, so they know you are very serious about job hunting in your last semester of nursing program. and don't forget to tell them what class you were in, and what semester/quarter you were in to jog their memory.

4) depending on the professor, they may or may not date the LOR.

5) depending on the professor, if you email them, they will email you the LOR some will email it as a .doc, i had one email it to me as a PDF and she hand-signed it and then scanned it and emailed it to me=) now a days they will email a general LOR to you so you can have as many copies as you want. Also, always have a template with your school letterhead on hand, if you enclose that, the professor can type in that template. Some new grad programs ask for LOR on school letterhead, if you provide that for them in the beginning it's easier for you in the long run.

Great advice thank you!

[NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN]

What everyone else said is great advice.

Other things to include are any special certifications you've earned, such as honors certifications, if you go out on your own and do any courses such as stroke certification or anything similar definitely put that in there.

I even made copies of my nursing license and CPR cards so I could just hand them to managers without the extra time HR needs to make copies.

Several copies of your resume should be in it. I would also have a typed list of references in there.

I use a black binder and just have all my stuff ready to go and try to update it once a year so I don't have the hassle of going through my entire filing cabinet.

Good luck!

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

In addition to the above, make it a habit to start checking hospital websites daily, since new grad programs are often posted with little fanfare and remain online for a very short time--often a week or less. You don't want to miss a chance to apply to one.

Also, be sure to have your resume, cover letter, LOR, whatever else in your portfolio updated, scanned and ready to send: once you see a new grad posting, you want to apply for it IMMEDIATELY, otherwise it may not be there the next time you check back.