Parkland Nurse Residency

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Has anyone applied to the recent nurse resident positions at Parkland Dallas and heard back from them?

It’s interesting that I was told back in july that applications for the October start date open in late July/early august, then someone else was told this application window was for February, and then literally 2 hours ago on the Parkland Facebook page a recruiter said these openings were for January. Really wondering if anyone there knows what XX is going on.

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On 8/10/2019 at 12:28 AM, EmD17 said:

It’s interesting that I was told back in july that applications for the October start date open in late July/early august, then someone else was told this application window was for February, and then literally 2 hours ago on the Parkland Facebook page a recruiter said these openings were for January. Really wondering if anyone there knows what XX is going on.

Oh wow. This sucks. No idea who has more credibility ?

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

Hospitals and healthcare are ever changing. Become mobile in your thoughts and tolerance for frustration and you will be ahead of the game. Answers given a month ago may no longer be applicable. You will need to cultivate this mentality as a nurse - nothing stays. The only thing you can count on is change.

For those reading who are still in school, make a mental note - the hospitals in DFW largely hire for their new grad residencies BEFORE graduation takes place. This means if you graduate in December, you should be applying for residencies August-November. If you graduate in May/June, you should be applying January-April. If you miss those windows you miss the boat. Most hospitals in DFW will not hire a new grad directly to the floor; however, Parkland still does sometimes, so if you missed the window, you may wish to look for positions that state no experience is required.

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11 hours ago, not.done.yet said:

Hospitals and healthcare are ever changing. Become mobile in your thoughts and tolerance for frustration and you will be ahead of the game. Answers given a month ago may no longer be applicable. You will need to cultivate this mentality as a nurse - nothing stays. The only thing you can count on is change.

For those reading who are still in school, make a mental note - the hospitals in DFW largely hire for their new grad residencies BEFORE graduation takes place. This means if you graduate in December, you should be applying for residencies August-November. If you graduate in May/June, you should be applying January-April. If you miss those windows you miss the boat. Most hospitals in DFW will not hire a new grad directly to the floor; however, Parkland still does sometimes, so if you missed the window, you may wish to look for positions that state no experience is required.

Hi! You seem to be very knowledgeable when it comes to the DFW area, I too applied for every Nurse Resident position opened since July 1st, and I was wondering if you would recommend me or anyone in the same position to go in person to Parkland and talk to someone, give them our resume, and make connections that way?

I don't know what the protocol is when it comes down to visiting hospitals, especially as a New Grad, but I feel since I have no medical experience, my applications are falling flat because of that. What do you think?

Thank you for your words about the area, they've certainly helped a newcomer like me.

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.
12 hours ago, pattylamb1 said:

Hi! You seem to be very knowledgeable when it comes to the DFW area, I too applied for every Nurse Resident position opened since July 1st, and I was wondering if you would recommend me or anyone in the same position to go in person to Parkland and talk to someone, give them our resume, and make connections that way?

I don't know what the protocol is when it comes down to visiting hospitals, especially as a New Grad, but I feel since I have no medical experience, my applications are falling flat because of that. What do you think?

Thank you for your words about the area, they've certainly helped a newcomer like me.

I know that this whole thing is frustrating and I definitely feel for you. Going in person is a risk. Best case scenario, you catch a manager in between other duties who is in the right mood to be something other than annoyed by your intrusion on their day. Worst case, you get the door slammed in your face, so to speak.

Getting your foot in the door of DFW as a new grad is very challenging, as you are learning. There just aren't enough acute care jobs available for every new grad that would like one and in general new grads are only hired into internships or residencies. Parkland does hire direct to floor once in a while, so keep your eye open for their RN I positions that do not specify a level of required experience. I am unaware of any of the other hospitals being willing to do this anymore. Training a new grad is just too involved and too risky - more than half tend to flee within the first three years, making it a bad investment for the hospital to train them only to have them go elsewhere to work or leave the field all together.

As far as how to get your foot in the door - some things have to happen before you graduate. Anyone still in school should be keeping a close eye on the job market and already be planning for the next step, starting a year or more prior to graduation. Network network network. The best way to get an chance at a new RN job in a hospital is to work as a tech while in school. Its a lot easier to get consideration as an inside candidate, provided you did a good job as a tech, of course.

The next is to have a BSN. Almost none of the hospitals in DFW are considering two year RNs for internships anymore. However, having a BSN still isn't always going to be enough. It certainly doesn't make it a gimme. There are more than ten colleges in the North Texas area churning out new grad RNs every few months.

Be willing to get outside of DFW. Areas that tend to be a little easier to get an acute care job but are a bit more rural include Denison, Temple, Rockwall, Rowlett, Wichita Falls, etc. Anywhere that is outside the DFW metroplex and a bit of an inconvenient drive is going to mean more opportunities for you to get in the door and get the experience you are needing to become a more desirable candidate. There are tons of experienced nurse jobs available in DFW.

Be sure to write a killer cover letter to go with your resume. Make sure your resume and cover letter reflect back the language of the job listing so that you get picked up by the automated filtering system. One of the best ways to get zero nibbles is to send the same resume for every position and not to include a cover letter customized for that facility. Its all computerized now, so if you aren't hitting on the key words in the ad a live person will never even see your application. It won't get forwarded on.

If you know someone in the hospital, such as a preceptor you worked with during clinicals, try to network with that person.

This is an anxious time. There are literally, no joke, hundreds of applications for each new grad position in acute care. You will want to be open to other kinds of nursing, not just hospital. The future of nursing is more in population health than it is in acute care as the model for medical care shifts away from the hospital. This means jobs in nonacute roles are growing. Look to SNF, LTACH, jails, clinics, parish nursing, community health , home health nursing and others as well as applying for acute care jobs.

Let us know how it goes. Good luck!

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2 hours ago, not.done.yet said:

Alot of the other hospitals take new grads for example Baylor, methodist, ut southwestern, Texas health resources and so on. New grads just have to make sure their resume are Top notch, essays are compelling enough including the cover letter also. i had alot of classmates get into various positions with all those hospitals around. Yes its indeed very hard as there are alot of new grads each year. But you need to apply at a certain time so i heard when they are hiring alot. The fall isnt the time they hire alot. its mainly in jan/feb and summer they hire alot this is exactly what a recruiter told me. Everyone best bet is to do something now like home health, rehabs or snf for now and then reapply if you dont get selected now instead of waiting. This is what some other people i know did when they didnt get selected the first round. later on, they applied and they got selected because they had a bit more experience going in and not just fresh new grad. You can also apply to other rural cities if you dont want to wait any longer also, you have more places there that need people immediately. Good luck to everyone

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

Yes, residencies are generally timed to be a segue from nursing school into clinical practice from the time of graduation. So Fall residencies are less common.

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Am I the only one finding it difficult to get a residency in Dallas?

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I am too. I am even thinking about getting a studio apartment to a residencies I applied 2 hours away. I can’t move, I have family here in Dallas. I am willingly to do what I can. I might get someone to share the rent.

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@C00KIE glad I'm not the only one who feels like this. Where did you apply to?

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Has anyone applied and heard back from OR or Mother Baby?

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It just says “Applied” under status on both OR and mother baby

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