New Graduate Nurse in Canada

[skwi]

Here I am, a new nurse in which, I feel great for getting to this point. Yet, without a job I have yet to feel like a nurse and I find myself missing the hospital environment. I graduated at the end of April, and written and passed the June 2 CRNE. I've applied to many sites for jobs and have yet to be invited for an interview. I've checked over my resume, time and time again compared to sample CV resumes and checked over by career centers.

So I started this thread to see if any others are having similar difficulties in the job search. For those that have received offers, what did you do? I find when I go down to the hospital's I find myself handing my resume to the HR department which is similar to handing it through the internet sites. Is it a good idea to find out the nurse managers of the job posting and going down to the hospital and handing it to them. I tried that once and it seem like it wasn't the right thing to do, because she didn't seem very pleased. any suggestions?

[CharmedJ7]

Hi, I don't know how much help I can be because I really think the protocol and strategies differ a bit everywhere you go. Where in Canada are you located? You might have better luck posting this in the Canada section of the site because then more local nurses could give you advice.

I'm a new grad in the states, I graduated in May in NYC and passed the NCLEX late May. I applied a bunch of places online and kind of felt like it was all going into some sort of online void, I didn't get any calls or emails. Perhaps this was impatient of me, but I was tired of looking at things that said "New grads need not apply" or "will consider new grads" so I just did a search for nurse residency programs. I applied to a nurse residency program in DC online and heard back in a few days, interviewed, and was hired. It was a bit hectic relocating, but I started work mid-July and it feels good to be getting some of that first year in nursing under my belt instead of doing what a lot of my friends are and waiting for the perfect position in the perfect place. Just my two cents, consider relocation if it's an option, at least in theory you should be way more marketable after 1-2 years.

I don't know what the ideal strategy is in nailing down a position at a resistant hospital - "following up" is good, but I recall having difficulty really knowing what that meant in systems that filter everything through HR. My plan before I got this job was to try to keep busy while applying and reapplying everywhere, work at a free clinic, get more certifications, etc. Good luck!

[NotReady4PrimeTime, RN]

There's not a lot of difference in the job hunting process in Canada, although finding out where the open positions are might be a little easier with out regional health model. You look at the region website and follwo the instructions. Private nursing homes and physician offices advertise in the local paper, same as south of the border. The ugly truth is that the job market is horrible right now and a lot of the vacant positions are being snatched up by people in casual positions already. They're already a known quantity with a foot in the door. You need to apply for anything and everything that you're even remotely qualified for and keep applying. Conditions are actually worse than they were in the last slump when there were still lots of openings in the US for smart Canadian nurses willing to relocate. I graduated on June 24, 1994 and started my first casual position on June 19, 1995; I applied for 164 jobs in that time and got exactly one interview. Eventually someone was willing to take a chance on me and they'll eventually find you too.

[cwhitebn]

Come to Atlantic Canada! They're hiring left right and centre here! I'm in Newfoundland and love nursing. My entire class had jobs before we finished school. Halifax is a lovely place for nursing as well, great place to work! Make the move girl