Older applicants having an advantage?

[mmc51264]

I am wondering if anyone has had any experience with the older people in their class getting the interviews?

I am set to graduate in May and one of our community hospitals came to recruit at our school. A bunch of us applied. About 10 people got interviews, and then 5 were called for second interviews. I think all of them are over the age of 30 (we have a mixed class of over 35 and under). I was one of the lucky ones that got a second interview. The manager that I interviewed with said something about all of us having degrees in other fields.

I am excited I got the chance. I am in an ADN program in the same job market as Duke and Chapel Hill, which means if you don't have a BSN, the job opportunities are not great.

[dudette10, MSN, RN]

I just thought it was odd that the older students were the ones that got seconds. I know the others that interviewed are going to be great nurses, I was just curious.

Older students with previous careers may be better at interviews. Less nervous in speaking to a decision maker, more likely to have the right responses on the tips of their tongues, generally more experience at interviewing, etc. During my interviews, I wasn't nervous at all. In the car on the way to the interviews was a totally different story!

[stretched]

I am an older nursing student, just turned 51, and I am hoping that my age will be an advantage in some cases. Certainly, having had my family/first work career, I feel like I am more focused on what I want to do with the rest of my working life. I am enthusiastic about my classes and absolutely love what I am learning. I have maturity, stability, and there's not much that rattles me after having raised kids and been in the business world, etc. But conversely, I don't have that much longer to work....I won't be the 30-year employee (but I want to be the 20-year employee!). And, I hate to admit it, but I just don't have the energy/perkiness that younger workers have (and I'm not as cute!). I can readily admit that I am not as "quick" as someone younger.

I am convinced, however, that there is a place for all of us. I will bring my specific talents/abilities to the table and a younger person will bring theirs. A good hospital/clinic/health facility will recognize this uniqueness in their hiring pool and should be looking for a combination/balance of age and experience.

[zorabanks]

30-35 is not older, that's my age group... LOL

I don't think it matters. It all in presentation and preparation. Good luck!

[Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN]

I am an older nursing student, just turned 51, and I am hoping that my age will be an advantage in some cases. Certainly, having had my family/first work career, I feel like I am more focused on what I want to do with the rest of my working life. I am enthusiastic about my classes and absolutely love what I am learning. I have maturity, stability, and there's not much that rattles me after having raised kids and been in the business world, etc. But conversely, I don't have that much longer to work....I won't be the 30-year employee (but I want to be the 20-year employee!). And, I hate to admit it, but I just don't have the energy/perkiness that younger workers have (and I'm not as cute!). I can readily admit that I am not as "quick" as someone younger.

I am convinced, however, that there is a place for all of us. I will bring my specific talents/abilities to the table and a younger person will bring theirs. A good hospital/clinic/health facility will recognize this uniqueness in their hiring pool and should be looking for a combination/balance of age and experience.

Contrary to popular belief, there is NO nursing shortage. Will there ever be one again? I just don't know if there is one it will be a long time away. I hope that hospitals will be looking for that balance but I know they are looking at profit margin rather than any other attributes.

Right now it is an employer market. They can pretty much pick whomever they choose. While I agree with what you say, the demographic they are looking for is the 30-40yo new grad, second career choice, small/school age children with a mortgage and college debt and reasonably healthy. That makes this candidate mature with a proven career record, settled to an area, cheap and hungry.

Younger candidates are on a different career path and probably will leave once they get that "year", are looking to get married and have children and the 50ish candidate is entering the potential "health" issue age and may be more expensive in using benefits/insurance/time off and will not be the "long term" they are looking for.

It's just rough right now everywhere.....

[roemerr]

I will be about 46 when I graduate (that is if I get accepted this summer). I have been worried that my age will be a disadvantage. So I am doing whatever I can to keep looking/feeling as young/healthy as I can. I really felt "old" for the first time when I interviewed for nursing school on Friday. It was a group interview and multiple groups arrived at the same time to sign in before being broken into smaller groups. I didn't see anyone even close to my age. However, I do think I was better able to handle the pressure of the interview process because of my life experience. It is good to hear that some people think that age may be an advantage in the job market.

[dirtyhippiegirl, BSN, RN]

Right now it is an employer market. They can pretty much pick whomever they choose. While I agree with what you say, the demographic they are looking for is the 30-40yo new grad, second career choice, small/school age children with a mortgage and college debt and reasonably healthy. That makes this candidate mature with a proven career record, settled to an area, cheap and hungry.

I'm only 26 but now that you mention it, looking back on the interview with the hospital job that I eventually was hired on for --)

the nurse manager and I were making idle chit-chat while I was waiting to start my peer interview and the topic kind of shifted to me. I noticed that she perked up quite a bit when I mentioned that I had been married for five years already, that my husband had a good, stable job in the area with a company that is known for retaining its workers for long periods of time, and the clincher - the joke about having just invested in a 30 year mortgage in a buyer's housing market. ("So we're not going anywhere, any time soon!")

/nm opened up the interview stating that the unit usually had very little turnover but several nurses had left after getting married, deciding to go back to school, etc.

//so I may or may not have intentionally let those little tidbits about my personal life slip in

[mmc51264, BSN, MSN, RN]

that was one thing that I told my interviewer, that we were going no where anytime soon. I told her that I was not looking for just "any" job so I could get my year and move on. I really like this place.

I will say, there are plenty of Nursing Jobs here in NC. It is growing REALLY fast and they can't keep up with the schools or healthcare. Even thought the housing market has slowed, there are still a ton of new people and they are just finally catching up a little. There are 2 new hospitals being built and the existing ones are expanding. There are jobs here, just tough being an ADN competing with the BSN from UNC and Duke.

[Nurse SMS, MSN, RN]

I was told quite bluntly that my age was a positive (I am 41). There definitely were more of us in our 30s and 40s than in our 20s hired for the internship.

I was told they hired a lot of 20somethings for the last internship and now are finding them having to be counseled for struggles with communication with staff, patients and family members and that they are having to put them through extra classes on how to communicate with people face to face. "They can write a great email though" is the exact words that were used. So my anecdotal experience has been that age was seen as a plus when interviewing. And nobody was hired who didn't already have an inside connection into the hospital. Working connections is pretty crucial these days and it has to start a year or two before graduation happens.