Nurses needed in CA?

If you are a new grad RN, finding work will be very difficult. You will be applying to new grad programs (there may be more new grad programs in the Southern California region compared to the North). You will be competing with thousands of applicants (both internals and externals) for a small number of positions. You could try the smaller hospitals to land your first job; however, you will still be competing with hundreds of applicants. This is assuming that hospitals are having new grad programs and positions and not cancelling them.

If you have experience as an RN already, you may be able to land a job quicker; however, I have been seeing experienced RNs still having difficulty finding jobs.

Hopefully by 2015, things will be better. Good luck in your studies!

As for right now, California is very hard to get a new grad job. I'm from northern California and it took me 11 months to get a job. And yes, I have my BSN. I am one of the lucky ones who got a job in California and its at a hospital and its on my dream unit. Most of my friends from college are not working where they want to be and some are still looking for a job.

Southern California does have more new grad job than northern California. I would not move here before you have a job lined up here. Also, as the poster said above, you are competed with so many other nurses for a job. Sometimes, there might be only 15 positions open but close to 1000 people apply. The thing is, nursing schools are taking in students to become nurses but once they graduate, there aren't that many jobs for those nurses.

I hope things are better in 2015 when you graduate. I wish you luck throughout nursing school and beyond.

What is bringing you out to CA? What part of NorCal? I would caution you against moving if you don't have to. There are scarce jobs out here.

If you have to move out to California (not by choice), it may be harder to find a position but you definitely will if you're proactive. Will it be slightly harder to be in an area trying to find a job where you don't have any previous experience & connections and are competing with others? Sure.

But if you really go above and beyond just applying to jobs online it isn't as bad as everyone says it is, IMPO. :-)

Thanks for the helpful replies everyone! I will have one year of experience in acute care as an LPN, and I have home-health and LTC experience. I would work in one of those fields if necessary. Adele, I was thinking Ukiah/Arcata/Eureka area specifically. Could someone tell me about the nurses strikes in SoCal? If there are so many nurses applying to all these positions, why are nurses striking due to short-staffing? Are the hospitals broke? Could anyone recommend a different state? WA or OR perhaps? Thanks again for all the help.

As I'm sure you know, if you want to get into acute care (even with your LPN experience) you need to do it ASAP. Every nurse recruiter I've talked to about home health & hospice (what I love doing) says that if you get into that field of nursing it's darn close to impossible to get back into acute care. Hospitals just don't view it as experience.

There are a ton of small hospitals in Northern California that are hiring. The closer to the "middle of nowhere" you get the better!

hello

getting a job in So Cal and North Cal is difficult, but is you like to live in the middle of no where, try applying in Bakersfield and you will get a Job.Thats a sure fact!

There are some really great hospitals in Bakersfield. I'm starting the versant program at San Joaquin Community Hospital next month and it's seriously gorgeous. On par with the magnet hospitals (just smaller at around 255 beds) that I did clincials and internships at during nursing school, IMPO. =)