Any advice would be much appreciated. I don't know what to do. I feel trapped and anxious.
I'm 6 months post-grad in Southern California. I've have been applying to jobs in CA for the past 2 months with no responses so far. Due to tight finances, I thought I'd get a part time job at Starbucks. I just finished my second week training and found out the scheduling is very inflexible for first 90 days. I can't make my schedule nor can I request days off. Which means a lot of my time is devoted to not applying to nursing jobs. Am I making a wrong career move by working at Starbucks and further delaying my entry into nursing? I don't have any nursing prospects so this job is bringing in some financial help. But I fear that soon I'll be a stale new grad and stuck making coffee.
Stay at Starbucks and put in less effort into applying to nursing jobs. OR. Quit Starbucks after just two weeks and commit fully to nursing job hunt but minimal finances. I need to make a choice very soon. Any input would be very helpful. ty.
Yes, Utah! Lot's of new grad nursing jobs there! Utah is also the safest state in the U.S., as it has the lowest rates of all types of crime. I interviewed for a position there too. Salt Lake City and Provo are great cities and have some of the top hospitals in the country. Don't be scared away by the Mormans, they are actually really kind and friendly people.
I'm not LDS (Mormon) and there are less Mormons here than there use to be, and YES! They are very welcoming!
Specializes in Psych, Addictions, SOL (Student of Life).
Any advice would be much appreciated. I don't know what to do. I feel trapped and anxious.
I'm 6 months post-grad in Southern California. I've have been applying to jobs in CA for the past 2 months with no responses so far. Due to tight finances, I thought I'd get a part time job at Starbucks. I just finished my second week training and found out the scheduling is very inflexible for first 90 days. I can't make my schedule nor can I request days off. Which means a lot of my time is devoted to not applying to nursing jobs. Am I making a wrong career move by working at Starbucks and further delaying my entry into nursing? I don't have any nursing prospects so this job is bringing in some financial help. But I fear that soon I'll be a stale new grad and stuck making coffee.
Stay at Starbucks and put in less effort into applying to nursing jobs. OR. Quit Starbucks after just two weeks and commit fully to nursing job hunt but minimal finances. I need to make a choice very soon. Any input would be very helpful. ty.
What part of So Cal are you in? We are hiring at the LTC, and we hire new grads - it's abit like storming the beaches at Normandy - but's a Job.
Yes, Utah! Lot's of new grad nursing jobs there! Utah is also the safest state in the U.S., as it has the lowest rates of all types of crime. I interviewed for a position there too. Salt Lake City and Provo are great cities and have some of the top hospitals in the country. Don't be scared away by the Mormans, they are actually really kind and friendly people.
Really?? When I looked up Utah nursing salaries, all I found was lots of nurses complaining about how Utah, particularly SLC, has a relatively high cost of living for having such a low nursing wage, and how nurses in the state just take it because so many of them are unwilling to relocate due to having family in the LDS/Mormon faith who wouldn't leave the area. Also something about there really only being two major hospital owners in the area, so wages stay low due to very little competition.
I worked two part-time jobs when I was applying for nursing positions. You have to do what you have to do. Sounds like this will be a good introduction to better time management, which is definitely a skill you develop as a nurse!
Really?? When I looked up Utah nursing salaries, all I found was lots of nurses complaining about how Utah, particularly SLC, has a relatively high cost of living for having such a low nursing wage, and how nurses in the state just take it because so many of them are unwilling to relocate due to having family in the LDS/Mormon faith who wouldn't leave the area. Also something about there really only being two major hospital owners in the area, so wages stay low due to very little competition.
That is true there is not a lot of competition for hospitals, but the way I look at it, the wage is not everything. I have health insurance for a family of 5 with a $500 deductible (NOT a type-o) and I pay $105 dollars a month (also not a type-o) and just about everything is covered for a $20 copay. Management is great, and being a not for profit hospital, the company invests so much back into equipment, training and world-class treatment and facilities. I live in the southern part of the state, so I can not speak to the cost of living up north, but where I live my wage covers the cost of living. Of course we want to make more money than we do, everyone does.
Ah The Nursing Shortage Paradox in California,†(see workingnurse.com for the article by the same name). It is sort of strange because if you look for the map Registered Nurse Shortage Areas (RNSAs) by County†in California, almost all the counties in Southern CA are RSNA areas. Thus there is a shortage of RN's in your area.
Yet I realize that, as the article mentioned above explains, the shortage is a shortage of experienced nurses and you are not one. Everyone wants to hire RN's with at least one year's experience but nobody wants to hire RN's with zero experience. Thus—Catch 22.
Consider looking for back doors.†By that I mean, become an EMT, then get a job as EMT, then as EMT Co-coordinator in a hospital, then, within one year….boom, you can jump levels because you'll know people. Consider working for Red Cross Bloodmobiles—have you tried that? Again, any experience at this point is better than none. Consider volunteering with a public health nurse/group, or a hospice. Jump into summer camp nursing, it may only be 3 months, but it's experience. Consider elder care, consider Alzheimer's units--they hmm...always need nurses and just maybe you'll find one where you can survive for a year.
Starbucks won't help, nor will it hurt you, unless they are so difficult that you can't make interview appointments. It's a difficult world, and getting more so, though every indication is that eventually the shortage will grow, so hang in there.
Also please consider networking and networking means that here, just as elsewhere, it does not do good to have a blank home page. We don't know what county you live in, and if you put stuff like that up, you just might get a PM: "Hey, you're not far from our facility, come and visit us." Consider Linkedin too--Network, join a nurses group, go to meetings, get on the Board--get famous, like the rest of us, uh, like a few of us--anyone famous yet? Anyone?
Hi Everyone. Thank you so much for your advice. After much thinking, I decided to quit Starbucks. There were too many schedule conflicts that didn't allow me to fully pursue nursing, like having time to attend job fairs. For now, I'll just have to find whatever ways to make money until I find a RN position. I'm also going to start applying out of state. Again, thank you and good luck!
Specializes in Tele, Interventional Pain Management, OR.
I have a retail job while in nursing school that I don't plan on giving up until I have a "signed, sealed, delivered" nursing job once I graduate.
The hours at my retail job (even if I end up needing full-time to meet financial obligations once school ends) shouldn't interfere with my ability to pursue nursing employment.
I feel for you, OP, and understand the dilemma. But I think hanging on to the steady income at Starbucks is a good plan until something more promising (i.e. nursing) comes along. Networking from a service/retail position really can happen. Just yesterday, as I worked a shift at my retail job, one of my customers asked me, "So, are you still in nursing school?" I proudly informed her that I just started my final semester.
It turns out that both she and her husband work as nurses for a major hospital system in my city...and I know them. Yay! Not a guarantee of anything, of course, but better than not knowing anyone in a super-competitive nursing job market !
Hang in there, OP. Keep that Starbucks job. I bet you'll find something in nursing soon enough.
Keep your Starbucks job and apply to literally every posted RN job. I don't know where in so cal you live, but the inland empire hires a lot more new grads than Orange County, for example. Don't be afraid to settle for a med surge job at a community hospital. After one year of experience it will be 100% easier to transfer to a more desirable dream job. You could also apply as a CNA at your preferred hospital - many of my friends did that and then we're almost guaranteed an RN job after 6 months
Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
Keep your Starbucks job and apply to literally every posted RN job.
In post number 30 of this thread, the OP announced that she quit her job at Starbucks to focus on her job search. Although I agree that she should have kept the job while searching for an RN position, I still wish her the best of luck.
I am assuming that a part-time job gives you time to look for jobs, so not seeing where that is a problem. Also, you have time after work to apply for jobs. Most jobs take online applications these days. Not sure why a choice needs to be made.
I didn't read the posts/answers before mine, so I am thinking people have already said this. Sorry, if I am redundant.
Working part time is fine. Just set your availability to specific days off so you can devote time to applying. I personally worked for uber because of financial pressure. However, the flexibility of working anytime I want was too hard to pass up. I even networked with traveling nurses when I picked them up from work.
DisneyNurseGal, BSN, RN
568 Posts
I'm not LDS (Mormon) and there are less Mormons here than there use to be, and YES! They are very welcoming!