RunsWscissors

Yesterday I went to an interview at Kennestone. I gave myself 3 hours to travel there from Chattanooga so as not to be late. 6 miles from exit 267B traffic came to a halt. Ultimately, I ended up being 20 mins late. This was a 3 pm appointment, not exactly rush hour. The recruiter never told me where to park so I ended up far away from the actual HR office (outside the ER). So I had to leg it with a full bladder for what seemed like miles. The facility was huge. It's 663 beds now so I guess it oughta be. Very modern & nice looking inside. I finally get to HR. The receptionist, unfriendly. My recruiter, completely uninvested. She dressed poorly, didn't make eye contact & immediately trots me back outside & upstairs for my interview. So I meet my potential manager. Almost immediately my uh-oh indicator starting going off. There was a woman seated in her office giving me a blatant, & slow once over with an expression of distaste. She left & I sat down. The interview lasted about 25 mins. Not many questions were asked of me. Some things I didn't like. You aren't allowed to start your own IV's, they have an IV team. Thats great for some, but I like keeping my skills current. She asked me about my charge nurse experience, so I told her. Then she looked at me in an odd way & said we have a charge nurse. I was applying for a prn job???? Then she asked me about my preceptor experience. So I told her about some of the students I had precepted over the years. She then have a sly grin & said yeah, we have a lot of students here. We keep our eye out for the good ones. At that point I was just plain confused by the entire experience. I had driven 3 hours to be ignored by a recruiter, silently insulted by some woman I never even met, & then interviewed by a nurse manager who clearly was more interested in new grads. When it was finally over I thanked her & walked back to HR as I had been instructed. The recruiter took a long time to come & get me. She rushed through a list of basic questions, saying "mmhmm mmhmm" before I could get even 2 words out of my mouth. I *hate* that. Finally, she pulled out some info papers, rushed through what sounded like a prerecorded message about benefits, facilities, wellstar, blah, blah, blah.... I looked down & realized her light blue nail polish was half chewed off. I know thats a petty observation, but it just summed up my day perfectly. I smiled & nodded in all the right places. When I left I was so ecstatic to get out I was almost glad to walk the miles to my vehicle. Impression- Wellstar is a huge, faceless entity with mediocre pay, benefits, & most likely not worth the effort to attempt employing with. Bottom line- wild horses couldn't get me to practice there. I intend to withdraw my application today. I'm also going to send a letter about why I decided not to apply with them. Perhaps it'll help them in the future. Who knows? As far as I'm concerned, bad traffic, so-so pay, managerial bs & HR that regards you as a recently paroled felon.....no thanks.

Thanks so much for all the replies! I hope to land an assignment soon. I just wish my license would hurry up & get here. Oh well, couple more weeks to go.

I've been scouring the web, forums, etc for info on a good company to travel with. I've come to the conclusion there is no perfect one. Sadly, I put out feelers with AMN before I realized what I was doing. The recruiter there has called me twice a day for the last 5 days. Sometimes more. I can't decide if I dislike her or not. On the one hand, I respect her angle. On the other hand she is driving me crazy. When I first spoke with her I said I was willing to go up to 10 hours driving distance from where I currently live for my first assignment. (I live in GA.) She suggested CA. I said, where on your map are you folding it to get a 10 hr max trip to the West coast from GA? She didn't laugh. I knew then it was a bad sign. She has extolled the Killem' Permanente's virtues ad nauseam (I genuinely thought I might throw up). I dont mind KP except I don't necessarily want to work in one. Also, no amount of redirecting can get her off the KP hallelujah chorus for more than 45 seconds (I started timing it on the third phone session). If I was doing shots every time she mentioned KP I'd have a lethal ETOH level in the first 10 mins. So I applied for my CA license two days ago. I don't mind traveling there, but I dislike the fact she won't even attempt to find anything closer. She actually suggested Burlington, VT today (18 hrs away as the car drives). But it gets better, she didn't just suggest it, she submitted me for it yesterday & wanted to give me the # to interview with the nurse manager. I coughed rather politely, and said you did what? I don't even have a VT license and zero desire to go there. This was a fatal error on my part as she countered with "Oh, well KP is filling their winter needs for 26 week assignments..." (I slapped my forehead and ambled to the liquor cabinet while I hmmm'd & huh'd in all the appropriate places.) So then I told her I'd get back to her, and gently eased my way out of the convo (an excruciating 7 mins later). I'm planning to have a memorial service for the 32 mins of my life I'll never get back later this week. Anyway, I've pretty much decided that I'm never going to answer another call from her. I can't afford the therapy to recover. I've put apps in with Flexcare, Valley, Nurse Choice, Freedom healthcare, Soliant, Talemed and I think 2 more. I haven't heard back from all of them, but so far I really liked the woman who called me from Nurse Choice. Granted, I haven't gotten very far with her. She called once and we discussed my CA license app status, she told what they could offer me, made it clear she was interested in me but wasn't pushy. She gave me her direct line & told me to call with questions or when my license came thru. No calls since then. I've read good & bad things about pretty much all of the companies I applied with. The sad thing is I didn't realize that Nurse Choice was affiliated with AMN. I even mentioned that I was talking to an AMN recruiter & the impression I got from the NC recruiter was she wasn't too fond of them. I told her the generics about what the AMN girl had offered me & she countered with a MUCH better deal. Significantly better all the way around. Anyway, I suppose I'm just venting. I want to pick wisely. I can do anything for 13 weeks, but I know I'd be mad as a hornet if I was stuck somewhere horrible for 13 weeks because of a pushy recruiter who didn't care what I wanted. I know I'm destined to make some rookie mistakes along the way. I'm curious if most of you are finding steady work? I have a decent job, but it doesn't pay well at all. But I worry I'll leave it & then not be able to secure assignments quickly after one ends. Anyway, hello to all!

So I graduated June 20th. I had all my stuff together, paid all the fees, etc... I check the GA BON site daily for updates. They have the receipt of my application date as 7/22/09. That's right, a month later. Its now 8/20/09 and I have yet to receive my ATT. I called them last week to see what the hold up was and basically they told me that they have 25 business days to process my application. Sigh~ The worst part is, everyone in my class except one other girl has taken the NCLEX. Here I sit twiddling my thumbs and still working as a tech while former classmates pass me in the hall as nurses and ALWAYS ask me if I took boards yet. So let me just say, #$G^& &*@! I am fed up. I realize that they have other apps to get through, but why me?! Out of a class of 30, just 2 of us sit here waiting. And probably the most disheartening is that I spoke with some people from last year and they went through this as well. The fun didn't stop after finally testing. They then had to wait just as long to receive a license number. Unfriggin-believable! I am so depressed right now. I've been through so many things these last 2 years and most likely I will not be licensed until October or November if this is any indicator of how fast they process anything. I just want to cry.

When I was asked this question right after selection I said that it was manifest destiny. However, I am a bit odd with a strange sense of humor. I think a sense of humor can go a long way depending on the situation/interviewer. That question to me always brings up the Miss America question about what you would do with your title. The answers are for the most part stilted and reheorificed with little genuine feeling. I would rather make people blink than to make their eyes glaze over. When the students in my class were taking their turns telling the reasons why they wanted to be a nurse, I was like hmmm. It was all, "I want to save lives" speeches WHICH IS GREAT, don't get me wrong. Its just that it was sooo impersonal. A few said that they had been touched by other nurses when family members had been ill or passed, to me that speaks volumes. I can relate to that. The people who just said what they thought was expected, bored me. Even the folks who said they wanted to be nurse because of the flexible job market were better than a generic reply. I know sincerity when I hear it. I think they ask this question to make you think about it. When you have to put your thoughts into words it actually makes you take pause to think it over. Also, I think they get a better feel about what kind of student or employee you will be.

I don't know about you, but whenever I took College Algebra I felt like my mind was being squeezed dry. I did all the homework and was in class and at the math lab. I'm not going to tell you how many times I just sat there numbly staring at a failing score. I took and retook my tests and then one day I found this site that had a program for algebra. It was http://www.bagatrix.com/college_algebra.htm . Now, I'm not saying buy it, but all you had to do was enter the problem in and it would solve the problem, now that in itself is not helpful, BUT it also showed every step involved. I really liked that. Another thing I used was a book I got at Barnes and Nobles called "No Fear College Algebra". Its a little skinny book and if I remember correctly it was about 8 bucks give or take and it was a math book with a sense of humor!!! I loved that book and I have loaned it to several of my friends and they loved it, too. Other than that my suggestion is to locate a reputable witch doctor... j/k. Anyways, try not to stress out so much, I know that's easier said than done, but I'm suggesting it anyway. Good luck.[MOUSE]You can do it.[/MOUSE] Wendi

My school has 40 seats a year with 300+ applicants. I feel optimistic about my odds. It seems that every year a lot of them drop out of the running to start a family or switch to the less competitive LPN program. I myself was unable to enter when I first wanted because of a pregnancy. So I feel that it will happen, maybe not as soon as I like, but it will happen.

I just wanted to thank everyone for their replies. Those are some excellent links and I am looking for the survival guide as we speak. I am just nervous I guess. I want my GPA to be significantly higher than it is. I just learned my school has 40 seats with 300+ competitors. :uhoh21: So I really want to stand out. I may even retake my two B classes. Thanks again! Luck to you others in the same boat.

Ok, so I am registered for the spring quarter. This time around I have Psych 291, Speech and a developmental math. I am terrible at math. This is not a new thing for me. I have had MAT096, skipped 097, and am now in 098 with one more developmental before the MAT191 that is required. I am curious how many other people are struggling with math? I see a tutor, but the minute I am away from him my mind goes blank. I just don't grasp algebra. I am so tired of math at this point. Technically I am taking 4 classes just to be prepared for the one 'real' class. Any tips for a successful quarter? I had a withdrawal/fail last quarter for the same class. I do not want to fail this class again. I am just nervous because I am always just barely getting by final grade wise even when I do well. Any thoughts or ideas?