healinghands209

Hi Guys, Can somebody send me a PM with the list as well. Still looking since December. thanks

I agree with BSN317 almost anyone can get approved for Stafford loans. I had pretty horrible credit (and very little income) when I applied and I got over $5,000 per quarter. I had federal & state grants to pay for tuition so I basically lived off my Stafford loans and very part time work while I was in school. I didn't have a cosigner and the process was easy- talk to your financial aid counselor. The repayment plans are very flexible (repay over 10,15, 20,or 25 years at 8% fixed) and they give a 6 month grace period after graduation.

In case you haven't heard already many of the State psych hospitals are now on a hiring freeze as a result of the budget crisis. My hiring interview at Napa was cancelled a few days before my appointment date and a letter was sent out to all applicants that a freeze is currently in effect. Coalinga is also on a freeze but they continue to accept applications for future positions. State prisons seem to be exept from this - I just got a call from Folsom today for an interview-YAY!

Congratulations on making it this far! My advice is to call them back (and keep calling utill you talk to somebody) if they don't call you. I waited for SMC to call back as they said they would and they never did- needless to say I did not get an interview as a result of my "wait and see" attitude. Good luck to you.

Congratulations on getting accepted to the program! I graduated from CSUEB Concord in December and I can tell you with 3 kids you will definately need as much help with childcare as you can get. Clinicals start during the second half of the winter quarter and you will have 2 clinical days per week. In addition you will have between 2-4 classes on campus twice a week. Clinical hours vary, they can start as early as 6:45 AM or go as late as 10:00 depending on the rotation. Clinical rotations are broken down into 5 week blocks so your schedule will change every 5 weeks and you generally can't pick your hours. Most quarters I had classes on campus twice a week and clinicals twice a week. Sometimes it worked out that they were on the same day. There were never any classes on Friday and I only had clinicals on Friday once (3:00-9:00 PM). Everyone in my cohort attended full time (12+ units)- there was no option given. With 3 classes in addition to the nursing curriculum I suggest you do as much as you can during the 1st quarter since the schedule is lightest and during the summers. The nursing program is pretty demanding, you'll have care plans and assignments which easily take an hour a day, and then you have textbooks to read and studying top of all that. Since classes change every 5-12 weeks the pace is very quick so you really have to stay on top of things. I don't mean to scare you but this is the reality. That being said ...there were several moms in my cohort (I'm one of them) and a few of them were single and most of us made it! I think the key is to find a good support system and make sure you have flexible, reliable childcare. Good luck-the program goes by quickly and you'll be glad you did it. Hopefully there will be more jobs for new RN's in 2 years- right now many of us are still unemployed. Feel free to PM me if you have more questions.

Unfortunately, I'm afraid if you haven't heard from Stanford yet they will not be contacting anyone else. I got a message from Stanford recruiters the second day after the position was posted, when I finally was able to get in touch with them 2 days later I was told all the interview spots were taken! (this was 2 weeks ago)They move very fast and had over 400 applications to select from so they didn't even wait to hear back from people they couldn't reach on the first try. I was told they may have another program in October/November so be on the lookout. It's so damn competitive:scrying: ! We just want to be nurses, somebody has to give us a chance..... whaaaaaaa

We can't help you because all of us new grads in the Bay Area are faced with the same problem. No one is hiring new grads! Yes, there are a few places like Stanford and San Ramon Valley who are hosting Versant Programs but as you said there are record numbers of applicants and few spots (like 600 applicants for 20 positions). It's really, really hard to find a job with no experience around here. It's not just you. I have a BSN and have been sending out applications since February, I usually get an automatic email denial saying "sorry we are not hiring new grads at this time" or no response at all. I did however get a very quick response ( the next day) when I applied in Nevada, Texas and New Mexico. Unfortunately I can't actually relocate right now but if you can I would definatly look outside of California. Sorry, sad but true

Thanks for the honest advice. Napa is currently on a hiring freeze anyways (1st time in over 12 years I think). Don't know about any of the other state facilities.

I graduated in Decemeber with a BSN, have sent out nearly 100 resumes, got 1 interview and still don't have a job. Many of the New Grad programs around here have been cancelled and none of the hospitals in the SF bay area are hiring new grads. In our cohort of 40 only 12 have found jobs and most of those left to area to work. There are hiring freezes everywhere (County, State hospital, even Kaiser). The job market is still really tough in California and it seems to be getting worse here, not better.

Go to UCSF jobs, then search internships/training programs

Yes, we kid you not, the market is really that bad, in fact it's TERRIBLE (at least here is the San Francisco Bay Area). I graduated with a 3.5 and a BSN in December and I'm still looking. Out of our class of 35 about 12 have landed jobs (many of those that got jobs moved out of the area) . I'm not being picky at all, at this point I would work anywhere within an hours drive but it's really tough right now. I did not have an externship since our school ran year-round but I did have a 3 month preceptorship. If you're still in school do everything you can to make yourself stand out, good grades aren't enough. Work as an aid, get an externship and be as flexible as possible in terms of location once you're looking for a job. Good luck

I got a call from them on Tuesday - I was at work and couldn't talk to the recruiter at that time. I asked if she could please call back in 15 minutes or if I could call her back. I was told it was no problem and she would call back the following day. Needless to say they didn't call and I couldn't get through to anyone at the recruitment call center for 2 days. Finally I spoke to them today and.. surprise.. ALL POSITIONS FILLED. Ahhhhh! I guess you have to available the moment they call or they pass you by. I'm so sad They said they might post something in October. Better luck to you guys! Let me know if you got an interview.

I spoke to the recruiter at JMMC recently and I was told they are not accepting any external applicants for the upcoming new grad program. I sounds like they only have a couple of spots that may go to current employees or alternates selected from the last pool of February applicants. Too bad- that seems to be the case everywhere.

There are no current openings but they do expect to have a few toward the begining of June. I haven't looked into Metro but I'm sure there are plenty of horror stories at any of the forensic facilities. Do you currently work in corrections?

The QAP for Salinas should be the same. Yes, nearly all the questions are scenario based and you don't need to know specific meds just be detailed and thorough in your answers if possible. Mostly they want to know if you know the basics for working with the forensic psych population and how to handle common situations that may come up. They don't expect you to know specific protocols for working at their facility. Good luck, you'll do fine if you passed NCLEX! As you probably know the QAP is a qualifying exam which places you on a list of people eligible for hire. Depending on your "score" on the QAP you may be called back for a 2nd hiring interview which is more is apparently more in depth. Let me know how it goes.