New Grad

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Hi All,

I graduated in December, had a baby in March, and passed the NCLEX last month. I've been looking for a job, but nobody seems to be interested in New Grads. It's been six months since I've been in school, and I'm afraid I'm going to start forgetting things. I've applied for internships, any job that I think I might qualify for (and some that are a long shot). I've searched on every local hospital website, my resume is on 7 different job hunting sites, and I'm out of ideas. It's frustrating because all the job opportunities seem to require 1+ to 2 years experience.

Does anyone have any advice on how to get your first job? Any tips would be greatly appreciated :)

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Specializes in Med Surg - Renal.
Does anyone have any advice on how to get your first job? Any tips would be greatly appreciated :)

Congratulations on the NCLEX and the new baby!

Hospitals appear to have their pick of any number of experienced nurses. If you don't hear from any in your area, try LTC and Home Health.

Good luck!

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I know it sucks to hear this: But give it time. It took me eight months to get hired.

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Specializes in LTC.

It took me 6 months to get hired after passing the NCLEX. So keep your hopes up. You also should start looking into other areas of nursing such as nursing homes, home care, and clinics. Many of these place may take new grads. They aren't as glamorous as a hospital job, but you might something you like, if not something you like you'll get some experience.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!! On the baby and the boards! What a busy year!!!!!

I'm sorry about the job hunt. The market is REALLY tough.......the economy has cause many experienced nurses to leave home and return to work. site and you willl see you are not alone! Search the Try long term care, long term acute care or SNF's. Just keep hitting the pavement. Good Luck!

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Specializes in ER, progressive care.

The market is pretty tough. I graduated in December 2010, passed my NCLEX in March and just started working. it took me 7 months! Just hang in there and keep trying, and my best advice is to APPLY, APPLY, APPLY!! And surprisingly, the job I applied for (and got hired for) asked for 1-2+ years of experience. So don't let that discourage you, either! If all else fails, you can try a LTC or rehab facility. It may not be what you want in the beginning, but at least it is a job and you can get some experience. We had a nursing instructor at my school who was head of the critical care department, and she started off in LTC as a new grad. I always told myself that! Just because you start in LTC in the beginning doesn't mean you will get stuck there forever.

Congrats and good luck!!!

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As others have said LTC & SNF are the only option for new RN grads without "connections" around here. 6 months is about how long they stay before getting a hospital job. My advice is to go in and apply at these facilities. Most don't advertise online or even have online job applications and if they do they don't look at them due to the number of walk-ins. It shows interest and effort into working there. Good luck!

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Specializes in Hospital Education Coordinator.

sorry you are having this extra stress. Our facility is not replacing nurses who quit (in some areas). $$ is tight

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Specializes in Med-surg, NICU.
APPLY, APPLY, APPLY!! And surprisingly, the job I applied for (and got hired for) asked for 1-2+ years of experience.

I graduated in December too and received a job offer last week and the posting online said 1-2 years experience. So apply anyway for the jobs that say experience required. So stay positive and keep appyling, don't give up, you worked too hard in nursing school to give up!

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Specializes in ICU, PICU.

I don't agree with anyone who says that LTC and SNFs are for new grads without connections. I graduated from Ohio in February, moved to California in May, and with persistence and patience, found my dream job in a busy ICU (biggest and most reputable in the county) without knowing a SINGLE SOUL. I was told over 200 people applied for that job and I was the one chosen for it. Pretty humbling for being the new girl in town.

I applied to all sorts of positions, LTC and SNF included, but those weren't my passion. The best thing you can do is apply to as many jobs as you can, even if they say that a year or so of experience is "preferred." Secondly, write a great cover letter for each position you apply to and follow it up with a friendly phone call or visit. Also, be creative in finding ways to get the names of the nurse recruiter or nurse manager of the department you want. Find ways to make yourself stand out. I put together a portfolio, you can do this by hand or even put yours online. Maybe go in and ask the HR recruiter if he has a couple minutes to look it over. Be creative! :idea:

Tell people that you WANT the job... Don't sit around and twiddle your thumbs as you put in applications expecting different results. You'll get rejected before you're even given a chance. :uhoh21:Be friendly and professional. Get to know the people who review your application. I learned that the more personable I was to HR recruiters and managers during interviews, the closer I got to an interview. The more quiet and inhuman you are, the more likely you are to be passed over.

Don't give up. Keep on applying and ALWAYS follow up (without being a pest). It's so easy to get discouraged (trust me, I had my fair share of tears in the process). Be persistent and keep doing things that make you happy (yoga, working out, singing, dancing, art, that kind of thing). You'll get better at applying and interviewing the more you do it. Always be revamping your resume and try getting certified in whatever the job requires (ACLS, NRP, PALS, etc). And remember: You'll land a great job if you just keep being yourself! :o

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I think that you can claim "experience" in different ways. For example, I was a probation officer before nursing which has given me mental health, supervisory, and case management experience. Although I had the new grad stigma there are ways to enhance other aspects of your history. Don t forget about volunteer work and hobbies. It took me 7 days from the time that I got my license number to apply for jobs, interview and pick one of the offers.

Lastly, many jobs say that they prefer experience but many places will waive this when they are in need of nurses. Apply forthe jobs anyway, the most they can say is "no". Good luck!:nurse:

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Thank you everyone for your responses :o I've been applying to everything I come across, and hopefully if I keep at it I'll hear from someone eventually. I didn't realize you could walk into some facilities and give them your resume in person. I'm definitely going to try that as well.

Thanks everyone! :cheers:

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