New Grad needs experience

My advice would be to contact HR in the hospital your interested in and inquire about job shadowing for a day. Not only will it give you a good feel of the floors your interested in working on, it will also show the staff on that floor your personality--- There are many positives to job shadowing:

1) It proves to HR that your eager as well as serious about what position would be best for you.

2) By having current employees see you, meet you and get to know your work ethic--they will be the biggest help in getting you the job.

3) It could show you that you dont really want to work on that floor thus saving you from making a mistake in taking your 1st hospital job.

After your job shadowing exp, write a hand written letter to not on the Dept Mgr thanking them for allowing you to job shadow with their team, but also mention something about that floor that really excited you, ex: I loved the team work I witnessed while shadowing your team... Or...I was impressed at the level of infection control your team demonstrates etc etc etc. Then also write a letter to HR thanking them for the opportunity and lgive your home as well as cell phone and let them know " Trinity hospital is now my 1st choice in hospitals to begin my nursing career"

best of luck~~~

Thank you to all who have replied.

Great advice.

I live in NH and this state is not one of the ones that is hurting for nurses as badly as other states.

Peace and grace

Heather

I'm sure a year of experience at LTC looks better than a year doing nothing, so keep that in mind... of course, in my area they aren't hiring new grads for LTC either--hope it's better for you!

I do get tired of how every time a new grad posts that s/he's having trouble finding a job, someone replies that they don't know anyone who's had any trouble--makes it sound like the OP must be doing something wrong, when the job market really IS saturated in several areas in the country.

Check out your local VA hospital. MPLS has a great new grad program that I am starting in next month.

http://www.manchester.va.gov/

I noticed that they also have community based clinics under their bailiwick if the commute would be an issue.

Best of luck

I also just graduated! Might need to change my username now. =) I figured out which hospital I most wanted to work for and when I checked job openings, there weren't any listings for new grads. I applied anyway. I selected a couple of RN positions, rather than new grad, and explained in my cover letter and resume what I was looking for. They called me the next day for an interview the following week and I was hired the day after being interviewed by HR and my nurse manager. So basically, apply whether they have new grad positions listed or not, because maybe they aren't looking for them, but will take the ones who will show initiative. Also, if you cannot get in a hospital like you wish, I think sub-acute or extended stay would be more beneficial to gain skills and familiarity with equipment. Good Luck!

Lori

My hospital is offering a $500 bonus to current employees if they bring in an RN that stays with the hospital 6 months.

Wanna come to Georgia? I'll split the cash with you!:chuckle

All kidding aside...take some time off, give yourself a break. You're a nurse now...a valuable commodity...YOU decided where you WANT to work. Pick your hospital, submit your application and resume. Buy yourself a killer black pant suit and visit HR in two weeks. Tell them why you want to work for the hospital...and mean it. Go get the job Heather...the hospitals are not in control...you are.

Make sure you post the results.

I must have applied to 30 or 40 different positions before I was hired into a new grad program. The market here if fairly saturated as well. It's not that nurses aren't needed, it's just that you can't run a hospital w/ all new grads. I'd given myself until this summer...if I handn't landed a job in an ED I would have done something else.

Hang in there and keep plugging along. Make sure you apply to positions that may not list new grad, as has been mentioned above. I found that actually going to the department you are interested in and introducing yourself to the nurse manager was very helpful and universally well recieved. It shows initiative and motivation. Always bring a resume with you! Are there any job fairs in your area? Sign up on aftercollege.com and they will send you listing of career fairs for nurses and postings of new jobs in your area. I got a lot of leads from them.

It took me 3 or 4 months to get a job...the one I wanted anyway. Good luck and get ready to hit the pavement. Looking for a job was almost a job in itself.

All kidding aside...take some time off, give yourself a break. You're a nurse now...a valuable commodity...YOU decided where you WANT to work. Pick your hospital, submit your application and resume. Buy yourself a killer black pant suit and visit HR in two weeks. Tell them why you want to work for the hospital...and mean it. Go get the job Heather...the hospitals are not in control...you are.

Make sure you post the results.

If only it worked that way everywhere!