Nurse with 2 Years Experience - Why can't I get L&D job??

[Nurse Beth, MSN]

Dear Nurse Beth,

I currently have two years of nursing experience by working in med surg and have been applying for other jobs but can't seem to get interviews. I want to move into another area of nursing and want to work in the labor and delivery or mother/ baby area. Been applying to those positions but haven't gotten a call for interview or they email me and reject my application. It's frustrating to me because I thought with experience they can at least give me an interview but nothing happens. I had a hard time finding my first job and now it looks like I might have trouble again looking for a new job. Any advice on what to do? I really want a new job but don't want to go through a hard time again. Any advice will be appreciated, thank you.

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Dear Wants L&D,

Two years of Med Surg is an excellent foundation and makes you marketable. Don't give up.

What's frustrating you is that you have a mindset or a timeframe of how long it should take to land a job in L&D. Let go of this timeframe and try to relax. Sometimes in life, things happen exactly when they are supposed to.

While you do have that all-important two years under your belt, remember that does not entitle you to an interview. Again, deciding that the process should be easy is an assumption that you made- and it's not working for you.

There are many strategies to employ when seeking a new position. Have you spruced up your resume? If you are getting zero calls for an interview, the problem could be your resume. Does it highlight your skills, and are you targeting facility-specific keywords? Have you diligently researched the organizations you are targeting? What networking have you done on your own behalf?

It's often not a simple matter of mass mailing in a resume. Several times in my career, I have landed jobs through creative approaches, such as cold calling a Nurse Manager, or finding other ways to stand out and be memorable.

Since what you are doing now is not reaping results, I recommend trying other approaches.

Best of luck to you,

Nurse Beth

[BonnieSc]

I found this also, and I don't blame the poster for thinking it--everyone says it all the time in nursing school and on this board. If you get two years of experience you can do whatever you want. Definitely not true!

Are you applying for jobs in your own hospital or elsewhere? It's generally a lot easier to make a lateral transfer than to convince another hospital to take a chance on you.

Be sure you have a cover letter that talks about why you want to move to L&D / mother-baby and what you would bring to the unit.

[ProperlySeasoned]

Is it possible to become certified in fetal monitoring on your own time? This would show interest on your part, and give you a chance to demonstrate competence.

[PacoUSA, BSN, RN]

I agree with this poster above. I have 4 years of ms/tele/stepdown experience and took an intro emergency nursing certificate program on my own dime to demonstrate commitment to the new specialty. It is on my resume and I have been getting interviews. They are scheduled and pending. Let's see if they blossom into a job. You have to demonstrate a commitment to the new specialty beyond what skills you already have. If that means getting some new certifications, do it! The investment is worth to make you stand out.