No jobs for nurses! Will this continue?

Lyricalluna · Jun 8, 2012

I beg to differ. The nurses I've spoken to at my job tell me that it wasn't hard for them to get their first job and I will continue to ask around because I too felt the way you do and I am still a little wary about the job market.

EllTee2B · Jun 8, 2012

Well I'm very glad to hear that. Just a little hard to gather with all of the negativity on here. I also hear that it's not that no one is hiring, but more like new grads are just looking for the big jobs right away. If that be the case, I'm not too concerned. I'm working my way up from the bottom in life and that would do nothing more but make me appreciate a well paying job even more.

willowita, ADN, RN · Jun 8, 2012

All the negativity on this board gets to me too! I start to worry about finding a job.

But then I see the nurses I know, and it's a different story. A couple of people I know, out of ADN programs were able to get jobs in hospitals. My stepmother works at a major hospital and when I tell her my worries, she tells me that there are jobs, but that the wait may just be long to get the job. Especially if you don't know anyone. That's when it helps to know people and network.

EllTee2B · Jun 9, 2012

That's good to hear. I wasn't going to change my major either way lol. Nevertheless, it is comforting to know there are jobs but it just takes persistence and patience.

Lyricalluna · Jun 11, 2012

Yes see there are some jobs but don't expect a hospital job fresh out of nursing school. Even though that would be nice! :) The place I'm working at really can't keep licensed nurses for that long it seems we just had two quit and another RN put in the two week notice and that person wasn't even past the 90 day introductory period lol

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · Jun 11, 2012

sometimes it isn't negativity....it's reality. there is no nursing shortage. right now......there are multiple applicants for every position and many hospitals have hiring freezes. it is however, highly variant and a willingness to re-locate will help.

has the nursing shortage disappeared?

it's that time of year again. graduating nursing students are preparing to take the nclex and are looking for their first jobs. this year, many are finding those first jobs in short supply.

reports are rampant of new graduates being unable to find open positions in their specialty of choice, and even more shockingly, many are finding it tough to find any openings at all.

these new rns entered school with the promise that nursing is a recession-proof career. they were told the nursing shortage would guarantee them employment whenever and wherever they wanted.

so what happened? has the nursing shortage—that we've heard about incessantly for years—suddenly gone away?

the short term answer is clearly yes, although in the long term, unfortunately, the shortage will still be there. the recession has brought a temporary reprieve to the shortage. nurses who were close to retirement have seen their 401(k) portfolios plummet and their potential retirement income decline. they are postponing retirement a few more years until the economy—and their portfolios—pick up.

many nurses have seen their spouses and partners lose their jobs and have increased their hours to make ends meet for their families. some who left the profession to care for children or for other reasons have rejoined the workforce for similar reasons.

in addition, many hospitals are not hiring. the recession brought hiring freezes to healthcare facilities across the country, and many are still in effect. help wanted ads for healthcare professionals dropped by 18,400 listings in july, even as the overall economy saw a modest increase of 139,200 in online job listings.

for the rest of the article http://www.healthleadersmedia.com/co...sappeared.html

nurses are talking about: jobs for new grads

the big lie?losing our skills

the holy grail

take a job, any job

get out of the hospital

back to school?

give us a chance

without a doubt, the main source of frustration experienced by recently graduated and licensed but still unemployed nurses is what could be called "the big lie."in other words, the television commercials that encourage young people to become nurses -- and then abandon them for months (or years) without employment; and the educators who tell them that the associate's degree is perfectly adequate to guarantee employment, that they will have their pick of jobs when they graduate, and that there is plenty of time to get a bsn later on. who knows whether it is greed, ignorance, or wishful thinking that underlies the fairy tales told to nursing students about their future job prospects? whatever the motivation, the disillusionment of our new grads is palpable. the jobs they expected after all of their hard work just haven't materialized, and some grads are getting pretty desperate.

medscape: medscape access

for the rest of the article you need to register for medscape but it is free and is a great resource and source of information

be a nurse...if you can

not too long ago, the threat of a growing nursing shortage prompted thousands of prospective students to choose nursing as a career, and nursing schools rapidly filled to capacity. nursing was frequently referred to as a "recession-proof" career, and the outlook for finding a job after graduation was rosy.

experience and employment: the vicious cycle

now, the bloom, as they say, is off the rose. it seems that many of our new grads are stuck in that perennial dilemma: they can't get a job without experience, and they can't get experience without a job. this situation was not anticipated by thousands of nursing students who were told, often repeatedly, that a global nursing shortage practically guaranteed employment for them.

consider, for example, the situation faced by new graduates in california. a survey of hospitals by the california institute for nursing & health care found that as many as 40% of new graduates may not be able to find jobs in california hospitals, because only 65% of the state's potential employers were hiring new graduates and generally planned to hire fewer new graduates than in previous years. overwhelming numbers of new graduates submitted applications for the few available positions for new graduates. it wasn't that the hospitals weren't hiring at all, but that they wanted nurses with experience.

what happened to the jobs?

most experts blame the crumbling economy for ruining the job prospects of new graduate nurses around the country, but as usual these days, the truth is more complex.

uneven distribution. the demand for nurses was supposed to exceed the supply by the year 2010.the question of whether we truly have a nursing shortage right now is a fair one. the answer, it seems, is "it depends." apparently, it depends on where you live and where you are willing to work. neither the distribution or supply of nurses, or the demand, is uniform. some geographic (mostly rural) areas have a shortage of nurses, whereas some urban locations are witnessing an oversupply of nurses. new graduates seeking jobs in these regions will face a very competitive job market.

economic recession. the shrinking job pool is widely believed to be a consequence of the declining us economy. temporarily at least, economic pressures and job losses in all industries have induced thousands of experienced but aging nurses to forego retirement and even increase their working hours to support their families.

medscape: medscape access again requires registration but it is free no strings...

i am not stepping on your dreams. "praemonitus praemunitus" forwarned is forarmed. don't let this deter from your dreams for in knowledge there is power. start networking now. volunteer, work as a cna. be the best nurse you can be.

i wish you the best on your nursing journey.:loveya:

LovinLife28 · Jun 11, 2012

Esme12, I totally agree with you. I'd rather be informed now than after I graduate from school and have missed all the networking possibilities. When we had our orientation the instructors were very clear with us and they informed us that there were not many jobs. We were told upfront. Being from California (bay area), I know it is very competitive to get nursing jobs. i remember when I first started this journey, new grads were walking right into hospital positions but those days have long gone:crying2:.

BennyRNCA · Jun 14, 2012

You only need to look at the CA BON nursing survey of 2011. Nearly 50% of the CA new grads will remain unemployed going into their first year after graduation. The numbers are amazingly sad and that's of the ones that actually pass their NCLEX.

http://www.rn.ca.gov/pdfs/forms/forecasts2011.pdf

Don't forget that most hospitals will hire if you're within one year of your graduation date, so after that period has passed, you're not considered a new grad anymore.

BennyRNCA · Jun 19, 2012

This recent article posted in CA section puts the same RN survey with a 43% unemployment for new grads, I was almost right at near 50%, still sad.

Central Valley Business Times

Notice that most employers are asking for BSN preferred now and many places are going with the magnet status. It does seem like maybe things will change in a few years as it says there might be another nursing shortage, of course, they have been saying that since 2008.

bredenfam · Jun 21, 2012

This conversation has me petrified, but knowing is half the battle right? I had planned to attend a BSN program after all of the nursing friends I have urged me to go that way rather than to ADN, but I have a dilemma. I have been accepted to an ADN program (Chaffey College) and am an alternate for BSN at Loma Linda. Temporarily I have decided to pursue the ADN followed by the 1yr RN to BSN track at Loma Linda but with ADN starting in Aug and BSN starting in Sept, things could change. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Lyricalluna · Jun 21, 2012

I got accepted to a BSN as well but it won't start right away so I decided and prefer an ADN then to bridge over to BSN just to try and cut costs. The BS program is my last resort if I don't get into any other programs because its expensive. If you're BS prgram starts pretty soon I'd run with that.