New Grad needs a JOB!!

Nurses Career Support

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Hello all,

Well I recently passed the boards(wow never want to do that again) and now I am need of a job. All thru school was told nurses are in demand bla bla..now it kinda seems like that is still the case but landing a job is a lot harder than I thought. Maybe hospitals don't want to hire new grads???

I have applied to many hospitals,,and heard nothing yet. Its been about 2 weeks. What else can I do?

All resumes are done online..so you can't personally drop it off or make it stand out. When you call to confirm they got it,,HR tells you to check your application status online....so yeah I feel like I am getting nowhere.

Any advice?????:confused:

Specializes in tele and stroke.

I guess I could try that,,but my schools clinicals were never really long..,.we would spend the most time in med/surg but I can't say I got to know the nurses/staff really well b/c just when we would kinda start to, we would have to move on. Unfortunetly we also did not have a practicum,,wish I really wish we had.

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Specializes in Internal Medicine.
banghead.gif it is very frustrating for me too and i think for all the other new grads out there. hospitals want experienced RNs, well how can we, the new grads, get any experience if they don't even hire us? and if they do they have very limited amount. by the time you see any openings online, so much applicants have already applied for it. i currently work at a clinic (internal med), i started as an LVN, been there about 2 years now. i like my job and everything, but i feel like it is not challenging enough and i want to do more.i want to use the skills that i learned, i just don't want them to go to waste, we worked so hard for them after all! now that i realized how hard it is for a new grad to find a job, so for now i feel like being an RN is not as exciting as i thought it should be sad.gif *and they said nurses are in such high demand*
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Specializes in tele and stroke.

totally agree with you- you would think that the 2 years experience you have as LVN would qualify for something.

I know..we were told all thru school we would be in such demand..even getting sign on bonuses!!!! yeah right. And the other thing to keep in mind is that the majority of hiring hospitals do is from within. All positions are offered to current employess first before everyone outside.

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Specializes in being a Credible Source.
banghead.gif i*and they said nurses are in such high demand*

And they were full of feces when they said it...

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I just want to respond by saying that I am experiencing the exact same situation. I just passed my boards, but have been job searching for the past 2 months. Most hospitals will tell you that until you have your license, they really don't want to give you an interview. Now that I do have my license, it seems that I have missed the boat on the summer hiring season alltogether. Now, it looks as though I a may have to wait until February!!! This is what most hospital nurse recruiters are telling me. Well, I am broke and working part time at my present job and need something to fill in the gaps until February. Does anyone out there know of anything we new grads can do to pass the time? How about clinic work, or something similar that doesn't require alot of training. Thanks for your input!!!

Grateful new grad,

Shegal

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Specializes in Internal Medicine.
I just want to respond by saying that I am experiencing the exact same situation. I just passed my boards, but have been job searching for the past 2 months. Most hospitals will tell you that until you have your license, they really don't want to give you an interview. Now that I do have my license, it seems that I have missed the boat on the summer hiring season alltogether. Now, it looks as though I a may have to wait until February!!! This is what most hospital nurse recruiters are telling me. Well, I am broke and working part time at my present job and need something to fill in the gaps until February. Does anyone out there know of anything we new grads can do to pass the time? How about clinic work, or something similar that doesn't require alot of training. Thanks for your input!!!

Grateful new grad,

Shegal

Hey Shegal, clinic is a good place to start. i've been working in a multi-specialty ambulatory clinic for 2 yrs now (i started as an LVN) and now am an RN...i work in internal medicine...i love it...it may not give you the experience that you need to work in a hospital...but it surely pays the bills. benefits are good (*hint hint: paid holidays!, weekends off!) you might also want to try LTC/SNF/Rehab... Hope that helps :nurse:

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Hey Shegal, clinic is a good place to start. i've been working in a multi-specialty ambulatory clinic for 2 yrs now (i started as an LVN) and now am an RN...i work in internal medicine...i love it...it may not give you the experience that you need to work in a hospital...but it surely pays the bills. benefits are good (*hint hint: paid holidays!, weekends off!) you might also want to try LTC/SNF/Rehab... Hope that helps :nurse:

Yes, thanks so much for the info. Bills are piling up and gotta get paid somehow!

Shegal

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totally agree with you- you would think that the 2 years experience you have as LVN would qualify for something.

I know..we were told all thru school we would be in such demand..even getting sign on bonuses!!!! yeah right. And the other thing to keep in mind is that the majority of hiring hospitals do is from within. All positions are offered to current employess first before everyone outside.

I want to say that I know this is absolutely true, that most hospitals hire from within. I got this straight from the nurse recruiters at more than one hospital..very sad for us new grads who worked so hard to get our license like you mentioned.

Shegal

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Hey Shegal, clinic is a good place to start. i've been working in a multi-specialty ambulatory clinic for 2 yrs now (i started as an LVN) and now am an RN...i work in internal medicine...i love it...it may not give you the experience that you need to work in a hospital...but it surely pays the bills. benefits are good (*hint hint: paid holidays!, weekends off!) you might also want to try LTC/SNF/Rehab... Hope that helps :nurse:

Oh by the way I forgot to say a big congratulations on becoming an RN! good for you, and good luck in finding something that fits you and your future goals!:yeah:

Shegal

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Specializes in Internal Medicine.

well...new grads, like us, will get our time someday... we just have to get enough experience to become better nurses and our time to shine will come... (*and wouldn't you think nursing school is enough experience already?!? all those sleepless nights, early morning clinicals, stress over tests...and don't forget about the NCLEX!) hehe just a thought... :heartbeat

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Hi Katrina,

Have you tried the really specialized job boards? I've used several. You can try nursingcrossing.com for example. Your chances of getting noticed is much higher because it's specifically for nurses.

I know it can be daunting, but just keep putting your resume out there. I got my first useful contact through online networking.

Regards,

Mikah

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Hi Katrina,

Have you tried the really specialized job boards? I've used several. You can try allnurses.com for example. Your chances of getting noticed is much higher because it's specifically for nurses.

I know it can be daunting, but just keep putting your resume out there. I got my first useful contact through online networking.

Regards,

Mikah

Hey Mikah, thanks for the info. I haven't thought of the specialized job boards, but I will give it try and see what happens. I think I have posted my resume at every health care facility withing 20 miles!!! And, nothing yet.

It makes sense to try online networking like with allnurses, I'll keep all interested parties posted!

Thanks again,

Shegal:D

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