Job searching process for a new grad

NTPinky · Aug 12, 2007

I think the #1 advice I can give you is to start your job hunt about 6 months before you graduate. If I had to do over, I would've applied for an Interim Permit (IP) too so that I could work before getting my RN license and get that extra experience.

Stay on good terms with your professors and clinical instructors, because they may be able to provide you with some job leads, and definitely letters of recommendation.

Use sites such as www.aftercollege.com, which lets you specifically serach for "new grad programs." Network with your classmates and keep your ears open in case they get hired somewhere, because it's always easier to get in if you have an inside connection.

I searched for two months before finally being hired for a position this week. I had been applying for this position online but never heard anything, so I called the hospital to find out the nurse mgr's name, wrote a cover letter personally addressed to her, and took it along with my resume to her personally. She called me for an interview a few days later, and she called me about 30 mins after I got home to offer me the job. I think this is the best way to do it, because I always feel like resumes end up lost in cyberspace when you submit them online. Also, it seems that even though you submit a resume online, no one will see it unless they look for it (i.e, check their computers to see if there have been any applicants for xyz job, and nurse mgrs often don't have much time to do that). So going in person cuts through all that "red tape" and just makes everything go faster.

Good luck in school! :)

Lainee · Aug 12, 2007

Look up area hospital websites. Most have job listing posted. you can send your resume and then follow it up with a call a few days later. It is all sooo much easier nowadays!

llg, PhD, RN · Aug 12, 2007

Look up area hospital websites. Most have job listing posted. you can send your resume and then follow it up with a call a few days later. It is all sooo much easier nowadays!

I agree.

1. Keep your eyes and ears open throughout your program to help identify hospitals and units that are of particular interest to you.

2. Attend a few job fairs and/or open houses to further educate yourself about the local employers and the job market for nurses in general. You can do that at any time during your program. You don't have to wait until you are ready to make any kind of committment. Such events are usually informal and designed to help nurses and nursing students learn about the employers and what they have to offer.

3. As you meet possible future employers, ask them what their preferred timetable is for hiring new grads. Don't assume because one employer does it one way, that all employers do things that way. Don't assume because someone on this list lives in an area where certain conditions are true that those same conditions exist in your area. etc. etc. etc. Meet the recruiters, talk to them, ask them to tell you about their employer and how to go about applying there. Be sure to ask about any programs they have for new graduates and when the best time is to apply for those programs. (Some programs fill up quickly and if you wait too long, you may miss out on the opportunity.)

4. If the employer that interests you has a website, check it out periodically to get a feel for it. Use it to apply online if that is what the employer wants -- but follow-up within a couple of days with a phone call to be sure your application "went through the system" correctly. Follow-up weekly if you don't seem to be getting any action on your application. Give the recruiter about 2 weeks to get things rolling, but after that, try to contact the nurse manager of the unit.

5. If it were me ... and I were doing an online application ... I would simultaneously send a paper copy of my resume and a nice cover letter to the manager of the unit. It probably wouldn't hurt and it might speed things along.

The trick is to educate yourself gradually throughout your schooling and get more serious gradually as you go along. About 6 months before you graduate, you should get real serious and start to narrow your choices down. Depending on local conditions and the particular needs of the local employers, you might want to start interviewing that early ... but in other communities, you can afford to wait until about 3 months before graduation for that. If you wait until after graduation to start interviewing, you might find that the best jobs for new grads are already filled.

12breakfree · Aug 12, 2007

The instructor told us to start job searching process before the last term ended. What type of qualification do they look for in the new grads? Do they expect out of us as much as they expect out of those who have prior experiences?

Lainee · Aug 12, 2007

The instructor told us to start job searching process before the last term ended. What type of qualification do they look for in the new grads? Do they expect out of us as much as they expect out of those who have prior experiences?

Use any contacts you have to get in.

I think the interview is the key. Show you are competent, motivated and eager to learn.

At my hospital, they give you 3 months of orientation regardless of you experience. We want to make sure that you are comfortable working independently as well as that we are comfortable with your skills.