naomi712

Sorry for the delay, I've been busy working for the past few weeks now (unfortunately not a nursing job, but thankfully it is something I can do to make some money until I get that coveted RN postion ) I studied my butt off but of course there were quite a few things I didn't even look at that were on the exam. Luckily, I got most of those right and passed the exam :) It turned out that they interviewed all of the people who passed, however, and when I interviewed with the HR Director, she told me that though she liked me, there were candidates who were more experienced than I (there were nine of us who took the test and about six that I saw interviewed that day) and although she could sympathize with my situation, it was still an employer's market and they had to go with those with more experience (like I haven't heard that before ). She told me that she would hold on to my resume for a position in the future. Would you believe they had us all vying for one part-time position? Of course you would. Anyway, she advised me to not limit my search horizons, to look for night positions (which I would actually prefer) and weekend positions as well as per-diem positions (which I had no idea that new grads could even apply for). All in all, it was a good and bad experience, good because I finally got an idea of what to expect from an interview for a nursing position and I got the medication examination out of the way for that facility if they do decide to hire me in the future; the bad experience is that I was called only to stress myself out studying, travel for over two hours all the way to be told that they are not looking for new grads even though they could clearly see on my resume that I am such. I guess that's just the way it is...

Woah, nohika, you are scaring me And I see that you just started too... how are you holding up? Thanks for the advice CapeCodMermaid :) I will definitely keep you guys posted. Great to know, thanks cakegirl 32 residents... I'm sure I will learn alot but 32 is so overwhelming... Aww, thanks so much smileymimi :) I hope so too

Hmm... maybe this is a new thing they are trying to phase in...

Thanks for the advice, it turns out, alot of the things you mentioned were the first things I studied I see... so I should definitely know the safetly levels of these meds inside and out. Great to know :)

Thanks for the tips :) Do you work in LTC? And if you do, are you saying they didn't make you take a pharm exam to work there? "Most LTCs are so hard up to find staff." Oh boy... I hope that's a good thing. If not that might mean there's a high turnover rate... I hope if I work there they are well-staffed. I've heard too many horror stories of one nurse having over 20 patients

As far as I know, nursing schools do not have phlebotomy courses. Mine didn't and I don't know of any that does. Where I live, they have certified phlebotomists draw blood in health care facilities. I think you would have a great advantage if you took the course at your local college but I understand that you want to be totally sure.

Hey guys, After looking for an RN job for many months with no calls or interviews, I received a call out of the blue last week from a LTC facility from an HR person. When I called her back, she told me that they were having a pharmacology/med math exam on June 14 and that if I passed I would be eligible for an interview. I asked her if there were certain meds I should focus on and she told me that she wasn't allowed to tell me which ones All she told me was that there were 50 questions in multiple choice format and the exam was on paper. I also asked how good my chances were for getting an interview if I passed the exam and she said that she didn't know. I asked her how long it would take to get a call for an interview if I pass and she told me I would have to ask the Asst. Dir. of Nursing or the Asst. Dir. of HR so I'll know who to ask when the time comes. So now, I have a couple of questions for you guys; is it normal to take the pharm exam before even securing an interview? I usually hear that people get hired first and then are asked to take the exam. Is it different for LTC or does this usually happen? And my most important question, for you nurses who have taken the pharm exam in a LTC facility, were the pharm questions usually based on a geriatric population, like the meds most commonly used in nursing homes or were they generalized pharm questions which could cover any broad spectrum (like med-surg, oncology, etc.) Right now I'm focusing on studying meds more related to the geriatric population but it would help to know for sure TIA

Yes it is true that some new grads are getting jobs, Chriszyogi, however, I feel that it's unfair that you said that the people here complaining about not getting jobs are "spreading rumors." I know of many new/recent grads who would strongly disagree (myself included). The harsh reality is that during this time getting a job is very difficult, and many people have to wait several months (or over a year) to get work. It is just as true that there are many new grads getting jobs as there are many new grads not getting jobs. I guess its just the luck of the draw, or about who you know But I am not here to add doom and glom to you, goldbla19! My honest opinion is that there is nothing for you to worry about, the economy is bad now, but I am sure that by the time you are done with nursing school, the market will be wide open :) If you are still afraid of coming out during this mess, I would suggest going to nursing school part-time or taking off a semester or two, anything to prolong things until the economic climate gets better. And if you could work in between (if you're up to that), you could even make some money to help pay off the cash spent on applications and transcripts. Things happen really fast, the way the economy got bad quickly is the same way it'll get good, so don't let that keep you from your dreams Best of luck to ya.

I know exactly how you feel. I also graduated in May and passed the NCLEX in Aug. and have been looking for a job since. I've talked to my classmates and most of them have jobs now I go through the same thing when I call the nursing recruiter if they answer my phone call, that is. It's gotten to a point where I feel hopeless about nursing myself. I even asked my friend yesterday if they were hiring at her office job *sigh* I was also thinking about going to their offices directly and talking to them...

Congratulations:balloons: I'm not in a private LPN program but good luck to you! :)

That's true. I know alot of people who tried to go to Hunter for example. They have a great nursing program but they have a long waiting list. Private schools are the best way to go. Unfortunately they are more expensive, but they have much shorter waiting lists in comparison (if any at all) Some private schools will even take you with a GPA below 3.0

Hmmm... so the NLN is the exam that most of you take to get into the nursing program? In my school, we take the HESI exam to get into the program. Well anyway, good luck to all of you who are awaiting your scores :)