New Grads: Need help with job application

[Gannusya]

I'm a new graduate RN who is trying to apply for a NICU RN position and need your suggestion about how to fill out the "Your goals and objectives" portion in the application. I understand that my goal is to become a highly professional NICU nurse, but I'm not sure how to describe my objectives. Should I just list all the main responsibilities of the NICU nurse?

Thank you for your help.

[Lev, MSN, RN, NP]

Do you want to get certification, specialty CPR, be a preceptor or charge nurse one day? Do you want to go back to school and get your MSN?

[RNGriffin]

Your goals and objectives should reflect your personal values( how well do you see yourself). What I would advise you to submit would pertain to my aspirations. The facility wants to know who you are, how ambitious you are, are you planning to leave in a couple of years, are you eager to learn more, are you interested in advancing within the organization or within that particular specialty.

Objective: What you and the unit can both provide each other. How can the organization assist you with your goals and aspirations? How can you assist the organization with their mission statement. Is this a teaching hospital, community hospital, etc?

Goals: what you are looking for out of an organization & life in general. What do you want to pursue within the short-term(5 years) and your longterm aspirations.

[Gannusya]

Thank you for your advice.

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

I disagree: In new grad's app for work the goal and objective (these are the same things, people) is to GET THE JOB, and everyone knows that. It's totally not necessary to say it, and actually looks pretty silly. Also save the "to provide excellent, client-centered, compassionate care blah blah blah." It's eye-rolling at best, and will not make you stand out from everyone else who read the same sample letter online and knows how to use a thesaurus. :) Resumes, even for entry-level nursing jobs, are supposed to be professional and businesslike, not flowery. You can make yourself stand out by saying less sometimes. :)

I would mention your longer-term aspirations, such as you conceive them today, as part of your cover letter or, better, save them for your interview when genuine enthusiasm will show itself, as opposed to the canned kind in a resume entry.

Note also that it is not necessary to have one's entire professional career mapped out at your interview. There isn't a nurse in management who planned to be where s/he is when that first job came up. People who say they will do this for one or two years, then do that educational program, then do that fer SHER sound charmingly naive. Better to say you've been attracted to _________ since a rotation in school, have done considerable reading about it in _________ and ________, have spoken about this with your faculty who recommended you go for it because ___________, and would like to see if it's the beginning of a career path for you since you hear this unit is a good place to do that.

Good luck!

[Birry]

I disagree: In new grad's app for work the goal and objective (these are the same things, people) is to GET THE JOB, and everyone knows that. It's totally not necessary to say it, and actually looks pretty silly. Also save the "to provide excellent, client-centered, compassionate care blah blah blah." It's eye-rolling at best, and will not make you stand out from everyone else who read the same sample letter online and knows how to use a thesaurus. :) Resumes, even for entry-level nursing jobs, are supposed to be professional and businesslike, not flowery. You can make yourself stand out by saying less sometimes. :)

I would mention your longer-term aspirations, such as you conceive them today, as part of your cover letter or, better, save them for your interview when genuine enthusiasm will show itself, as opposed to the canned kind in a resume entry.

Note also that it is not necessary to have one's entire professional career mapped out at your interview. There isn't a nurse in management who planned to be where s/he is when that first job came up. People who say they will do this for one or two years, then do that educational program, then do that fer SHER sound charmingly naive. Better to say you've been attracted to _________ since a rotation in school, have done considerable reading about it in _________ and ________, have spoken about this with your faculty who recommended you go for it because ___________, and would like to see if it's the beginning of a career path for you since you hear this unit is a good place to do that.

Good luck!

Haha, this just goes to show how inconsistent and maddening the job hunt is for us new grads. I was told (by a department director) that my resume and cover letter were too dry. Of course the objective is to GET THE JOB, but like you said, you can't just say that. Applicant evaluators are strange, unpredictable creatures who wield amazing powers of subjectivity over the lives of so many people (applicants) and predicting their own preferences is part of this futile game we play.

I would say put whatever you want, as long as you can articulately support it. I've tried both approaches, and neither way has seemed to make a difference, so maybe just don't listen to me at all.

[applesxoranges, BSN, RN]

I was told by my college's career center to eliminate the goals/objective part because everyone wants the job.