Leave during orientation for dream job?

[CALPA12]

Hi all!

Before I start rambling on and asking for advice. I want to thank everyone in advance and say that I do realize how lucky I am to have a job in the unit that I wanted right out of school. I am SO thankful for that opportunity.

Alright, so here goes... I graduated this May with my BSN and applied to two NICUs. One of which being my absolute DREAM job within a very large hospital system that has higher acuity then the second. I was offered one positions early before graduating at the smaller hospital. My dream position at the larger hospital told me I was on a list but didn't know if/when they'd have positions open up. So, I was stressing because most of the people in my class had already accepted positions and feared I would never get another offer and took the smaller hospital NICU position.

Now for the dilemma! I'm about 2 weeks into my orientation for my current NICU position. I've just received an offer from said dream hospital in the NICU (aka dream job). Part of me really wants to accept but I feel absolutely AWFUL about having to resign from the current position during orientation. The other part of me thinks I should just suck it up and stick out my first year then reapply to my dream hospital after.

Any thoughts/advice? What would you do if you were in my position? If I do choose to resign, what do I say... that I was offered my dream job? I have no clue! This is the trickiest situation I've been in to date. Also, should I still list this position on my resume for future positions (not like I plan of leaving the dream hospital once I'm in)?

Thank you all SOOOO much!!

[RLG2014]

Oh wow this is a tricky one! I am not yet a nurse so I don't know how helpful my advice would be but here it goes:

If you have a guaranteed position at your dream job.... then TAKE IT! You said that they put you on a list, so who knows what could happen if/when you apply the second time. I can understand feeling bad about leaving during orientation, however if this is what you really really want, then think of it as opportunity knocking, and who knows if it will knock again. I'm kind of going through the same thing but with schools. My goal is to have my BSN, however the only place that I was accepted into was a LVN program (not complaining!), but I haven't heard back yet from the BSN program that I applied to. So I'm kind of stressing about if I do get into the BSN program. Its my "dream school" however I would feel bad dropping out and taking up a space for someone else in the LVN program.

Good luck in whatever you decide! How exciting that you are starting your career :).

[RoMoFo]

Okay so this is one of those post that may or may not get u mixed reviews especially when you are talking about TWO jobs and half the people on these boards cant find one....anyways If I were in that situation I would most likely go with my dream job. If you are somewhere where you settled because it was the only job offer at the time, then you have a greater chance of being unhappy later and maybe being a little more lax versus if you loved where you were. As far as what you would say would be along the lines of Thank you for the opportunity but u feel the current position isnt the right fit for you etc. etc. its none of their business why you are leaving ALTHOUGH im sure there were hundreds of others that really did want to be there BUT im not going to go that route with this post, just my opinion. I think you should go where you would be happiest and that seems to be with your "dream job."

[RNJen2011]

Congrats first of all on being able to start your new career soon after graduation. I wish all of my fellow new grads the best of luck. I graduated in December 2011. I was blessed to have had a job 2 months after graduation, as well.

I am now changing organizations. I interviewed for a surgical residency and a non-clinical position. I continued looking. I was offered the surgical residency, and tentatively accepted, with a start date almost a month off. A week later I was offered the non-clinical position and in the meantime I received a call to interview for a medical acute residency! Yes, I am thankful that I have been given so many leads and opportunities. I accepted the non-clinical position which starts in about 2 wks, and will see if the Medical Acute offers me a position before that start date. Which brings me to your dilemma. What if I start the non-clinical position and am offered the clinical position? Do I leave?

My advice to you, and I've been around for awhile, this is my 2nd career, take your dream job. I don't know if you are under a probation period, but if so, remember they can release you without reason too. It goes both ways. Be courteous and gracious. Let them know with true sincerity that you apologize but you have been given another opportunity which you feel more suited for. That you even ask for advice shows character.

You have been there for such a short period, and if you stay at the new facility for any length of time, the first job will not be pertinent to the resume. You will, however, need to include it on any background checks. I have left a job off my already lengthy resume and explained the above. It didn't add anything to my skillset.

I can't answer my own question yet :-)

Best of luck to you! and Congrats again.

[RNJen2011]

I forgot to mention, that I notified the surgical residency that I would not be able to go forward. Another position fit my current circumstances better. And to add clarity, I received a call to interview for the medical acute position between the surgical offer and waiting for the non-clinical offer.

[Seas]

Quit for your dream job. You aren't too far along the orientation. And life is too short not to do your dream job when it is offered.

[norlns24]

I would be careful about labeling a job you have yet to perform for any great length of time and at place/ organization for which you have yet to work at (assuming you did no clinical there) as your "dream job." On what criteria are you basing this? I had a similar situation happen to me in another industry. I interviewed for 2 airlines 15 years ago around the same time. I really, REALLY wanted airline X. The pay was better, the routes were better, the bases were better, the uniforms were nicer, the service was better, and EVERYONE else wanted this airline, too. The other airline, also a major one, was good, but nothing great. As it turned out, the lesser of the two offered me a spot first, and I was in training there when the other airline called. I went with my gut and left training to work for the Dream Airline, but unfortunately later woke up to a nightmare instead. This dream company/ job changed so much after 9/11. Layoffs, bankruptcy, major pay cuts, work rule and working condition erosion, benefit reductions, base closures.... you name it, it happened. Employee morale dropped precipitously.

Things continued to get worse. Supervisors routinely bullied us not to call in sick. As a team player and wanting to be a good employee, I obliged, and continued on with a trip despite my ears becoming blocked in the middle of it so as not to rack up a sick call and deal with my b**** of a supervisor. This was the biggest mistake of my life, as I acquired permanent damage from that episode and have been medically grounded due to recurring ENT problems and the high risk of further injury. Meanwhile, friends from the other airline I have kept up with over the years (one of my fellow trainees is actually from my area and I even see her from time to time; small world) did not experience these things, besides taking a pay cut after 9/11 and experiencing a few work rule changes. In fact, a few years ago, their airline merged w/ another airline (big 3), and they now earn a lot more money and enjoy much better working conditions than flight attendants at my "dream" airline; the tables have totally turned. All these details are just to make my main point -- higher expectations increase one chances for disappointment -- as I have no basis to speak to the specifics of your two job offers.

In short, if you tout one of your jobs as your "dream job," you are assigning a lot of expectations to it. The health care industry is changing as rapidly as aviation, with many more changes to come. It is difficult to predict what these changes will mean to the positions and organizations for and to which you have applied. I am not suggesting that you should *not* take the other job, but keep in mind that you never know what the future holds, and it might turn out, totally by fate, that keeping your first offer would have, for any number of reasons, ended up being the better way to go. I realize this is a general rule; nothing new here. I just see much of myself in your enthusiasm for chasing that "dream job," just as I did 10 years ago when I left training to join the other, "better" airline. Now I find myself nearing middle age having to switch careers these years later, in part over my decision to chase the dream. Had I stuck with the "lesser" airline at the time, I would be able to hold great routes and schedules and I would be earning significantly more than most beginning nurses, enjoying really good benefits and those great layovers I miss so much. It is easy to get caught up in what seems like the optimal choice among two alternatives and I am not stating you shouldn't be enthusiastic or excited about the other job offer...I'm just suggesting you temper your enthusiasm a little bit and look a the other job with a more critical eye for a moment in order to make the most sober decision possible. Good luck to you!!!