I am writing this morning for a little direction. I recently graduated in May and interviewed here in Colorado for the nurse residency program with UC Health, but was not accepted. I know it is a competitive program, but I graduated with a Bachelor's degree and a 4.0 and passed the NCLEX on the first try and was a little surprised. That stated, I am now in the process of re-applying for the fall cohort but my wife is getting a little anxious about the job situation and is having me look into other avenues, which I am willing to do (Here Here to all those supportive spouses that helped us get through nursing school!). As I am looking at alternatives, all the RN positions I am coming across require previous experience, but as a new graduate I obviously do not have any and thus is my conundrum. Long story long, I guess my question is how do I get that first job with no experience?
While I did not graduate as a 4.0 student, my work and school experiences seemed to have helped me land some interviews in Colorado while being an out-of-state applicant. I applied and was granted an interview for the same residency program with Denver-Metro cohort. But, I was declined an interview for the Colorado Springs cohort. I also DID NOT receive a position with UC Health Denver-Metro following a panel interview with 6 people. In addition, I applied for the Centura Health Residency Program (interviewed with Penrose Hospital in Colorado Springs and did not receive an offer following a panel interview of 3 people) and I applied for the HealthOne Residency Program (interviewed with Medical Center of Aurora and Sky Ridge Hospital; have yet to receive answers on those interviews). I was invited though to reapply for the October cohorts with UCHealth if i wish. I too know what you mean by looking for regular staff nurse positions and all of them saying you need experience first with the hospitals in Colorado. I feel reluctant to apply for those though since I too just graduated in May. Good Luck with your job search!
I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who posted a response to my questions. I landed my first job with Banner Health and am a proud member of the resource team! I applied for every job I came across and eventually someone reached out to me. Thanks again!
Samm06, BSN, RN
126 Posts
While I did not graduate as a 4.0 student, my work and school experiences seemed to have helped me land some interviews in Colorado while being an out-of-state applicant. I applied and was granted an interview for the same residency program with Denver-Metro cohort. But, I was declined an interview for the Colorado Springs cohort. I also DID NOT receive a position with UC Health Denver-Metro following a panel interview with 6 people. In addition, I applied for the Centura Health Residency Program (interviewed with Penrose Hospital in Colorado Springs and did not receive an offer following a panel interview of 3 people) and I applied for the HealthOne Residency Program (interviewed with Medical Center of Aurora and Sky Ridge Hospital; have yet to receive answers on those interviews). I was invited though to reapply for the October cohorts with UCHealth if i wish. I too know what you mean by looking for regular staff nurse positions and all of them saying you need experience first with the hospitals in Colorado. I feel reluctant to apply for those though since I too just graduated in May. Good Luck with your job search!