ccstudent

I have been a member on this site since waiting to enter a nursing program, now I write you as a new grad RN in CA, and its been quite a journey of emotions, and so sad to be where I am now. I have applied to over 100 employers, that consists of hospitals, skilled nursing care, clinics, drug rehabs and home care. I have had 1 interview and it was not at a hospital. I felt good about the interview, and then the position was withdrawn and they laid off 2 nurses instead. I feel the worst is yet to come here in the Bay area. I honestly am not willing to relocate, I did not think I would have to. I own my home, my little boy is happy, and my husband works and still gets to spend a lot of time at home. So I am going to put my ambition on hold, I will still apply and be active in my search, but I am going to stop being depressed about the job market, there is nothing I can do about it. I will have fun with my family, live a humble grateful life, and hope that my path leads down a road of nursing that I have so hoped to travel on. So I must say goodbye to allnurses for now. I have used this as a way to occupy to much of my day to deal with my sadness of being one of the many unemployed new grad RN's. I wish you all the best.Bye

Please don't be offended, but really start to consider that the job market is non existent for new grads in most areas right now. If you have a Full time job and are thinking of quitting, think about that really hard. It is so hard to get a job as a nurse that you may be giving up money that you really need in this economy. Your GPA means nothing, the school means nothing, even your RN feels like an anticlimatic friend in your pocket. Nursing is wonderful, and rewarding, but .........you don't get to work with pts as a unemployed RN. This economy sucks! GOOD LUCK

I waited 1 year to get into physio, another year to get into micro, and then waited 2 years to enter the nursing program. I completed a very tough nursing program with many ups and a couple of downs and a constant stress level to graduate last December with Honors. My excitement was very short lived as I studied for the NCLEX-RN I took 6 weeks and went over 200 questions a day and another 2 hours of reading and I also took the Kaplan course. The test...very hard, so hard to predict the results. I would have bet money that I failed, but by some miracle(felt like one) I passed....OK so very excited...for about a week I was on cloud 9.. then the job search, I put out at least one resume a day, and have fallen into a pattern of online searching and applying, calling, trying to network.....and not one phone call, not one email returned,nothing. I am not trying to depress or dishearten anyone. This is something I wish I had read. During school all I heard about is how I would be offered many jobs before I graduated. This is not my reality and from what I have heard not the reality of ANY of my classmates. Talk about a serious letdown. I wish you all the best, and I apologize if this sounds negative. On a positive note: The pendulum swings both ways. Oh and here is a proactive solution: Write your local congressman, let them know how hard you have worked and what your hopes and fears are. Well good luck all , I am back to the internet to search for a job wish me luck!

I am not sure if this will be helpful, but I just took the NCLEX and Kaplan helped alot. It also helped to focus on the medications and the side affects in psyc and also prioritization, and most appropriate response to a psyc situation. I am sure this sounds vague but its as clear as I can be. Saunders was a great book during nursing school, but I know Kaplan is what helped me pass. Oh and by the way I got all 265 questions, its like running a marathon, make sure you have done 265 in one sitting just in case. Well I am sure I got a little off subject, but good luck in your last semester.

This was sent to me on feb 8th 2007. I must say that I looked back at my posts today, and could not believe how true this is. I just passed the NCLEX and finally feel free for the first time......well now I have to get a job....so I should say partially free for the first time in over 2 years. This is great advice. Good luck all.

Hi, I got 54% on my diagnostic, 66% on my readiness, and on question trainers 1-7 55 50 62 54 60 62 respectively. I also scored an average of 61% on all qbank. I took my NCLEX-RN on 2-25 and had 265 questions, I thought that I absolutely failed and learned I passed on 2-27, by seeing my name on the BON website as a RN. Hope this helps...

I can not believe I passed and I am now an RN !!!!!! I went out to dinner and celebrated and have rechecked the sight to just look at my name come up more then I will admit :) Thank you for all the posts and support. A special thank you to Silverdragon, who took the time to send me words of encouragement. 265 is a lot of questions, my only suggestion is for anyone about to take the test is to take a sample test of 265 and do not pause it and try only to let yourself take only one break. I mean I felt like I was not mentally prepared to finish the "marathon" and would have benefited from studying as if 265 was my ending #. Good luck to all.

I am sorry you are going through this. I am not sure if this helps but I when I was checking out schools, one of the schools had not received accreditation yet. I inquired about this and they told me that if the school became accreditated after I graduated that it would retroactively apply to me. This might help you if they go by some "master list" or something.....eventually your school will be on the list. I ended up going to an accredited school and just graduated, but don't see any one knocking on my door....the economy is hard right now, and I feel that I "missed the boat" but hopefully the boat will return in the near future, and what will matter is that you are an RN and are a great nurse. Good luck!

Hi, Daytonite is right call the lab, but here is my wild guess ( something you can never do as a nurse) gram positive or negative bacteria found in the blood and the degree in which it was present. Well I told you it was a wild guess, I should have said vague too. I am in a weird mood, I apologize. One more day of nursing school...and then its of to find a job that is not out there for me......even though the local paper says they are bring 2000 nurses here from overseas. Hence I babble. Good luck and let us know!!

I am just venting about being scared that I am going to do something to jepardize me finishing the last 4 days of preceptorship. I am getting more nervous, one of my preceptors is very difficult and makes me nervous, and it takes alot to make me nervous. She is very controlling and won't let me have my own groove along with other things it just makes me neurotic. Has anyone else felt this way, I am so close and can't believe how worried I am. Please everyone think positive thoughts in my direction. I hope all is well in everyone's nursing world :)

so you would put in 200ml an hour and that the bag has 100 ml which would run the bag over 30 min, does that answer your question?

I graduate from RN nursing school on Dec. 19th, I have a step daughter who is 16 and a 5 year old who was born an hour after my organic chemistry final, and I can't believe that I am almost at the finish line. My advice is that you 1) Let the house be the first to go. Its better to spend time with family then have a spotless house. 2)spend 30 min each day on your childs level, and play with them, It helps me focus on whats important( and I think tinker toys are therapuetic) 3) find a way to destress and be able to do that anytime you need to. 4) Have sex with your husband everyday, worked for me :) 5) Be happy with a B and spend the extra "A" time with family So thats what I did, can't say that they worked all the time, or that they work at all, but I am surviving. Nursing school. was a wonderful, difficult, enriching and life changing time in my life. But it was not at all easy. but it can be done and you will do great.

I am so glad that you are making the best decision for yourself. I must say that I have a 5 yo son and I have been very stressed. I have gone through so much this last 2 years and I read one post who stated that you had decided not to abandon you child and that really insulted me. You made a great decision and I am proud of you,I just wanted to voice my opinion and that I graduate in about 100 more preceptor hours and I have not abandoned my husband or son and had to say something. I know it was not the main poster but I am not sure how to quote the other poster so please know where this is directed at. I am sure that life will take you in the right direction. Jennifer

I have been tired of the "roller coaster" since semester 1 and it did not ease up but got tougher as the semesters came and went. I am know about to finish my classes in 3 weeks and then start a 5 week preceptorship and then.....I am done. wow. The journey has been life changing and as tough as it has been, I am glad that I developed new coping mechanisms to handle all the new experiences in clinical and I feel that my family has come out stronger because of the intense stress. I must say that I feel fortunate, people have been failed from clinicals, failed from theory, and there have been several divorces and seperations. This roller coaster ride is the most important thing I have done for myself since the birth of my son. Enjoy the ride and I trully wish you all the best.

I am finishing up my last 12 weeks of nursing school and just started homeschooling my son and its been great. He is doing so much better now that he is not in public school. He is a kindergartner and we have been having a ball. There is a public school charter homeschool that he is part of. He goes to class and plays, cooks, paints and learns on Tuesdays from 9-1 and on wednesdays he goes to music and drama from 9-1 and every friday there is a field trip planned. There are school supplies available for assistance in teaching and a teacher who checks in with me and adds advice and knowledge. The parents are wonderful, the classes are not mandatory but useful on a social level for my son and I feel that for the first time in my sons educational life that we are on the right track. It is not easy while being in school, but honestly it was harder having to worry about him while he was in traditional public school. I am very happy with my decision. On a side note does anyone know of any online homeschool support groups that I can join? Well best of luck and well wishing. Jenn