a_damsel

Children's does not directly accept new graduates. They have to apply through a very competitive preceptorship program called "Transitions." You can find more info on it at dmc.org

Yes, this is the norm here. When I worked at HF main the norm was 5, with a max. of 6. A few of my friends work at the DMC and they can get up to 7. In fact, one of the DMC hospitals that I interviewed for told me that the norm was 7 for that floor.

I got called for an interview 2 months after I applied. I week later I was offered the position.

I would only give information about your nursing career. Personal information (ie. marital status etc.) should not be relayed in interviews, in fact it's illegal for them to ask you directly. You can also speak about your personality traits and goals, but in relation to nursing.

Having a smooth ride through your nursing career does not mean you should discount the struggles of others. They are real. I don't feel that most of the posts on here are negative. Obviously people people come here for advice when they are having problems, but there are many positive positive posts and a wealth of information. It is what you choose to make of it.

I applied to over 250 (over 4 months) before I got my 1st hospital job. Keep looking and working on ways to improve your cover letter/resume.

$23-24/hr plus evening ($1.50+) and weekend differential ($2) in Detroit area hospitals.

No. Henry Ford CC wear navy blue. At OCC we wore a white shirt and olive pants/jacket.

Use the address of the hospital, but be sure to put the name and number of the floor she works on.

I always use a blank "thank you" card. I've had good results with that.

A friend got a sign-on bonus to work in a long-term care facility. My 1st hospital job offered tuition reimbursement. $1,500 (PT) and $3,000 (FT) per year.

It took me 4 months after getting licensed.

I graduated last year, but I don't believe the job market has improved since then. It's about the same or worse... All I got was rejection letters before I got my license. In fact some hospitals ask pre-screening questions such as "are you currently licensed." Answering NO pretty much automatically disqualifies you. Once I got my license I got 4 interviews. Granted it took 4 months to land a job irregardless, so be mindful that it may take awhile to get hired. It's hard and discouraging at times, but possible. Just ensure that you follow basic job-search etiquette: Fill out apps completely, always have a cover letter and a fine tuned resume, if you'd like to work in tele/icu/er etc. get your ACLS (if you can afford to, it's about $200+), since having ACLS I've gotten more interviews in those specialties and even med/surg, and send a thank you card to whomever interviewed you. When I got hired my manager specifically mentioned how she liked the card.

I agree with everything everyone has said here. Do not move to MI unless you have a job secured. As it may take months to find one, which can be very disheartening. I've heard the residency program is extremely hard to get into (as told by one of my clinical instructors that worked there). I had a few friends apply before we graduated last year and they did not get in. Children's is part of the Detroit Medical Center (DMC), which is one of the lowest paying hospitals in the Detroit metro area to start. New grads make $23 plus shift differential (about $2). If you really want to work there and do not have a stellar portfolio, try to get a job in peds at another hospital then apply once you've had enough experience.

Keep in mind also that LPNs and RNs usually start out a higher pay scale because they are dealing with approximately 30 patients. As a new RN I was offered $30 per/hr [no benefits/differentials] to start at a LTC facilty. In the hospital I'm getting paid $24 per/hr with $2 weekend differential and $1.70 for evening/midnights.