Hello everyone. I am getting increasingly frustrated because I have been looking for a graduate nurse position since October. I graduated in December and passed the NCLEX last week. I have been on two interviews with no luck. I feel like the interviews go amazing but then I hear that it has been filled with someone else. I work for a hospital for 4 years and I thought that would give me a toe in the door. Florida hospital does not have anything on their website for GN's and Orlando Health has one. When I called about it they said that they have someone for the position and they are just waiting for them to apply. This is ridiculous. Why did I go to nursing school to have such a problem with finding a job? I am starting to look into nursing homes which is a complete 360 on the area I would really like to work which is postpartum. I haven spoken to all the managers of floors for the hospital I currently work for and my manager said they arent taking any new GN's in the pool. What am I suppose to do??
And does anyone know the starting salary in the orlando area for GN's??
Specializes in Utilization Management; Case Management.
Ok then I guess you expressed yourself. You seem very angry so I will not bother with you any more. But yes, my empathy is sincere and yes your post did reek a bit of feeling like you were somehow entitled to a job after years at university etc. You may be in for a long road with the way you seem to be handling things. But again best of luck to you.
Game of perception : ) N thanks for not bothering. Not at all entiled but I worked too hard to sit on my butt and not do everything to find a job...and I'm doing everything to find a job. Just wanted you to be mindful that some people do everything in their power to get results and a comment that makes it seem like they're not doing everything/or feel as tho they dont need to do everything is not nice. And that results in the angry monster showing face. Thanks for all the advice you gave in your posts, maybe someone will find it helpful. And the sincere empathy you give shouldn't be followed by 'ur not the first to not find work, the world owes you nothing, etc.' Maybe next time you feel empathetic you'll leave those parts out, takes away from the overall feeling of you caring...
Hello. I know how really hard it is to sit and wait several MONTHS to get a job. I did get two replys from jobs saying ... 'more clinical experience needed' of course. But how the heck are we supposed to get that clinical experience without getting started in the first place.
For those of you looking for Home Health or LTC or ALF's for jobs in the meantime - it's a great idea if you need the money, I almost had to do this myself, you will still get paid highly (more than like retail or anything like this) - but you need to remember that a lot of hospitals (if a hospital is where you ultimately want to work) - does not really look into these positions as experience.
Also people need to consider if they really have the experience for that. For instance, if you were lucky enough to get into a Bachlor's program in the first place, the ALF will hire you as a new nurse probably. BUT you need to remember that you are going to be taking the role practically of CHARGE NURSE over close to 30ish patients. Are you ready for that as a new graduate? Even with 12 weeks or whatever it may be of orientation, we as new nurses (this excludes prior LPN's and prior experience nurses of course) we as new nurses, should probably not put all that wait on ur shoulders, not having the ability to ask for help, or an idea, or a better way of doing things from other experienced nurses.
Overall, If you need the money, it's wonderful because it is a little bit easier to get a job here, but just understand this won't be really considered "Clinical Experience" if you are looking for a Hospital Job, even though it may be 2-3 times as hard for a New Graduate.
Hello. I know how really hard it is to sit and wait several MONTHS to get a job. I did get two replys from jobs saying ... 'more clinical experience needed' of course. But how the heck are we supposed to get that clinical experience without getting started in the first place.
Did you get a job?
For those of you looking for Home Health or LTC or ALF's for jobs in the meantime - it's a great idea if you need the money, I almost had to do this myself, you will still get paid highly (more than like retail or anything like this) - but you need to remember that a lot of hospitals (if a hospital is where you ultimately want to work) - does not really look into these positions as experience.
This is not true. LTC and homehealth nurses use their nursing skills every day. We might not be inserting foleys every day but we are using our critical thinking and assessment skills and we are mastering time management.
Also people need to consider if they really have the experience for that. For instance, if you were lucky enough to get into a Bachlor's program in the first place, the ALF will hire you as a new nurse probably. BUT you need to remember that you are going to be taking the role practically of CHARGE NURSE over close to 30ish patients. Are you ready for that as a new graduate? Even with 12 weeks or whatever it may be of orientation, we as new nurses (this excludes prior LPN's and prior experience nurses of course) we as new nurses, should probably not put all that wait on ur shoulders, not having the ability to ask for help, or an idea, or a better way of doing things from other experienced nurses.
This is a broad statement and position to take from someone who has no LTC experience. There are plenty of new LPNs and new RNs who successfully care for 30 residents and manage aids in LTC. I'm one of them. Many of us get little orientation time but our self-confidence and determination make us great LTC nurses. Its not often that we have nobody to ask questions of or to seek help from.
Has anyone considered seasonal nursing? I was hired for a seasonal (6 month) position in Naples. I'm relocating from Ohio where it's nearly impossible to get hired in LTC let alone a hospital. I'm a new grad with 3 months home health experience and was hired for a med/surg floor position. Even though it's only seasonal the pay is great, they are paying for my housing, and it looks great on resumes that you at least have some hospital experience.
It is over and over the same and I am sick and tired of it. I have a BA degree in Legal Studies but no one hired me since I had no experience. Then I went on and earned my RN license but no one hires, they all want experience. In addition here in Florida they want you to be bilingual. Well I am but I don't speak Spanish. That means I won't repay my student loans I already started the forgiveness process. Great system.
This is not true. LTC and homehealth nurses use their nursing skills every day. We might not be inserting foleys every day but we are using our critical thinking and assessment skills and we are mastering time management.
This is a broad statement and position to take from someone who has no LTC experience. There are plenty of new LPNs and new RNs who successfully care for 30 residents and manage aids in LTC. I'm one of them. Many of us get little orientation time but our self-confidence and determination make us great LTC nurses. Its not often that we have nobody to ask questions of or to seek help from.
I didn't mean this in an offensive way at all - sorry if you took it this way. I think LTC and ALF nurses work their butt off, actually more than floor nurses, because they have so many more patients (30+) with so many assessments, and duties. This is especially important because as you said, you have to be on top of things and critically think - because most residents have so many comorbidities that you have to be able to keep and eye out for just the slightest problems, because their reactions can be so much different.
I wasn't trying to say that I did not like LTC, I actually minored in Gerontology and had a wonderful intership program in LTC. I am very impressed and amazed at the work that these nurses have to do, especially in the time management skills that they have to attain.
You are right there are many new LPNs and RN's who can successfully care for these residents. All I was trying to say that - a new nurse would have to make a very strong drive to start off here. For example say if someone wasn't as comfortable in pharmacology - and they are going to be giving 15 meds to just one resident and don't know the interactions of each med with each other, or the normal adverse effects versus the actual issues to monitor for. I just think there is where an experienced nurse is best here for safety. New nurses would still be safe and careful starting out, but it would take us a long long time, lol but I guess that is how you learn and get quicker. :)
I just passed the NCLEX-PN exam in October. I am having a very hard time finding a job also. No one wants to hire new grads without 1 yr experience. How do I get experience if no one wants to hire me? I am getting frustrated..
I am sorry to hear that it is gut wrenching and angering to see the starvtion and destruction of a work force. Now during these economic hard ships employers can play these games but once the economy gets better and skilled people are needed they are either gone and chaged careers or their skills are obsolete. That is the time when employers start crying again for skilled cheap foreign Nurses or skilled labor. I like the way Europe trains its work force. They train their work force while they work during their time of studies and then go once a week to school. So after three years you have a fully trained, skilled, experienced and licensed individual. We are so cheap by not investing into our work force an issue that will come to haunt us. Well it already has. We lost our status as #1, our educational has slipped to #12 in the world. Other countries have heavily invested in education and training and we see the results right now, we are not anywhere near as competitive anymore. Now that does not help your situation. You may have to try looking for a job in another State of start out as a CNA and gain basic experience. Employers only want perfect people, I feel bad for you, I and many others are in the same boat. Don't give up and best of luck.
Hello everybody!!!! I'm a new graduate Registered Nurse with two years experience as a practical nurse on long-term care. I really enjoyed working in LTC because of the interaction with the patients; I did develop a relationship with the patients because I started working as a CNA at the same facility before becoming an LPN. I have to say that the job market for new grads is worst that what I had anticipated. I went to school in Hillsborough County and quickly after graduation relocated to Miami. It's been a while, I've been unemployed for far too long. I apply on a daily basis but no job yet, most of the openings require years of experience that I don't have. I don't want the feeling of frustration to overwhelm me so I decided to go back to school, volunteer for a while, continue to apply daily, and pray a lot lol....positive thinking positive results.
It took a month and interviews with three separate hospitals; however, I got a job offer today.
What worked for me was going beyond the "send resume and pray" approach that online applications can lull a person into. I made calls to recruiters and managers and, in some cases, went on the floors and introduced myself to the nursing managers.
Some of my classmates have found positions since graduation. Location does make a difference as my classmates in Jacksonville and Tampa have had a bad time thus far.
:yeah:
NightNurse876
144 Posts
Game of perception : ) N thanks for not bothering. Not at all entiled but I worked too hard to sit on my butt and not do everything to find a job...and I'm doing everything to find a job. Just wanted you to be mindful that some people do everything in their power to get results and a comment that makes it seem like they're not doing everything/or feel as tho they dont need to do everything is not nice. And that results in the angry monster showing face. Thanks for all the advice you gave in your posts, maybe someone will find it helpful. And the sincere empathy you give shouldn't be followed by 'ur not the first to not find work, the world owes you nothing, etc.' Maybe next time you feel empathetic you'll leave those parts out, takes away from the overall feeling of you caring...