pbajil

I have experience in other areas and have been trying to get into L&D, PP, or NICU for many years. Similar boat, decided this after I had my own children. I have found all of these really hard to break into. I know for a fact these hospitals have hired new grads. I suspect my years of experience works against me, that they don't want to hire someone 40 and not 22.

I would like to also add that they pay the school bus drivers better than the nurses. I actually have seen it advertised. I'm sure the bus drivers deserve their pay. But how can they pay their school nurses less? Very backwards.

Wow, congrats on being able to negotiate. I worked as a school nurse for about 33% of what I made in my hospital job. And was not able to negotiate. I left that position, and then a few years later was interested in another one that paid even less. I had to be honest that I could not afford child care and bring anything in with that hourly rate. Extremely low and disrespectful of my degree and my profession. Yet all of the school nurses accept this in exchange for the hours and summers off etc. We really need to stand up for ourselves and demand what we are worth. No other profession does this like we do.

I just wanted to chime in that I also left a school nursing job because it was not safe. I was in a float position and put in schools alone that usually had 2 nurses. That made me totally unfamiliar with the chronic kids, special needs kids, everyone's daily meds, at the schools I was thrown into. Rude teachers, rude secretaries, and yes the teachers that come in asking for ibuprofen. Just no. The other nurses that have been there 30 years and don't welcome change. The low pay rates that are not worth it. I really felt it was unsafe against my nursing license and I would be in a medical lawsuit if I stuck around. I did not give notice and explained all of this as my reasoning why. It was a very unsafe situation. And i did sub for a number of years before that, but I was able to choose where I went. As a float, I was told where I was to go, and had no choice, sometimes in the middle of the day. Very unsafe.

Just those times when thrown into a large school as a sub, alone, when everything that could go wrong, did.

It does vary a lot. In PA, yes the Certified Nurses make a decent amount/teacher pay. But the other RNs who either aren't certified or are, but are not hired into that rare CSN position, they make less than the bus drivers.

Good luck! I have over 10 years of critical care experience and have been trying to get a job in maternal/child for the past 7. I can not get a position, they only want unit-specific experience.

I never actually undervalued myself and told anyone I would work for free. One second you are telling me I am too expensive to hire, and now are telling me that no, I should not take a pay cut. Which is it? I want to change specialties and can not. @MrChicagoRN - What is a 10 year nurse stuck at a 3 year experience level? I have not advanced to any promotion level, because I was having babies and not working full time. Working, yes. But I am not stuck at a 3 year experience level because I have not promoted to some fancy FT position in my current specialty. I am not interested in those. And how would anyone know I have what it takes unless they interview me? I don't get any calls to ask me.

Thanks for your reply. I guess that's true. Although I would not in any way be "enjoying my summer" unless you count caring for a bunch of wild children and driving them to various activities and making sure they don't drown. It's honestly a matter of child care during the summer. I just need to give up job hunting for now, or focus on finding something my schedule can handle at the moment.

I would work for free if it's in a specialty I want, just to gain experience! No one has asked me how much money I want. I guess they assume I want to be paid $50 per hour in a new specialty? How about they give me an interview and an offer and see how expensive or cheap I turn out to be.

@obesity33 - YES it is true. I am one of the nurses on here that can not get a job outside of her specialty. I refuse to get another job in something I have already done. I just keep applying and interviewing. I find a lot of places are totally against it, only want specialty experience. But I have found some others that are open to it .... only I don't get selected because another candidate is "a better fit" because they have that experience. I do see new grads getting hired into these specialty areas that I want to work in. I see on facebook when I do an employer search, the new RNs that have just graduated and what unit they work on. It is blatantly obvious that my 10+ years of experience is being held against me. They want either someone with experience, or none at all. They assume I am set in my ways maybe? But if I weren't ready for a change and a challenge, why would I be applying? Best of luck to you.

I have to agree with most. Get a job first and then get the haircut. Yes, I think it will be hard for you to get hired with that haircut... there will be other applicants who look more clean cut. Once you shave any part of your head, it's hard to change it if you have regrets.

I had a really great interview on Friday. I'm not sure but think I may have an offer. However, I am looking at my calendar and my kids' schedule for the summer, and I am cringing by the amount a sitter would have to handle with the new hours this job requires. I also have a week of vacation I was going to ask about. I am thinking, if I could just start in August I would be okay on all fronts. So - How much time do you usually give between the offer and your start date? Besides giving 2,3,4 week notice to your present employer, is it okay to put off the start date until later because of vacation plans, and just out of convenience? I really don't want to mess anything up in terms of a job offer of course. But I wouldn't want to turn it down just because of the next 2 months' chaos either. Thanks for any insight.

Yeah, I would probably take the FT job too and get the benefits etc. Maybe move closer in a few months? Could you ask your current job if you could stay on per diem? That way you could fall back on it if the commute is too much.

Good luck! You are very lucky! I can not get a chance for an interview with my years of adult experience!

Or, you can be like me, who has been trying to get hired in L&D for many years and just can not get hired. I really WANT to work as a RN in a specialty I want before getting my MSN in that area. Instead, I may just go for the CNM so that I can finally work in this area. So, yes, to answer your question. You are fine without experience. Even if you applied you may not get hired.

I've been trying for 7 years. Do it now, with a "couple years" experience. No one will hire me, I have too much adult experience. (10+). They are probably assuming I will be "difficult" for me and that I am "set in my ways" as those above have described. I think it's obvious that a critically ill newborn is different than an 80 yr old. Of course I would be open to a completely different way of doing things! I could have finished a NNP program by now (twice). It's ridiculous that I could have gotten hired as a NNP faster than I could as a NICU RN.

No, they shouldn't turn down a job as a new grad either. But after that golden first year of med/surg, go for what you want to be doing. Otherwise, the nurses that have been taking care of adults? Stuck taking care of adults. I do believe that I can be accepted to a Masters program to become a Certified Nurse Midwife, or Neonatal Nurse Practitioner. Yet I can not be hired into Labor and Delivery, Mother/Baby, or NICU as a Registered Nurse. How is that right?

Well, Family NP cares for pts of all ages. Do you like kids or just adults? If you choose just adults, do you want to work in acute care, like a hospital? Then choose the acute care. If you really want that area, then go to school for that. For many, the FNP gives a broader area to choose to get a job. The smaller the population you can care for, the jobs are more limited.

I would not want a nurse to be taking care of me while high on marijuana. Prescription or no prescription. So, no.

I have advice for new grad nurses. If you want to work in a specialty area, even try it at some point in the future, do it ASAP. Either try to specialize right out of school, or do it after only 1-2 years of med/surg. I have over 10 years of RN experience, and can not switch specialties. They are hiring new grads into these areas. Or they want someone with more than 3 years in the specialty area. So, my experience is not only worth nothing, but works against me. I am worse off than a new grad. Yes I can get hired in something I have experience in, but that is not what I want. I had always thought that nursing would be such a great career choice, that there are so many specialty areas I could try. I would have never thought that I would be stuck in one area or nothing. It's a shame that nurse recruiters have blacklisted nurses with experience to switch specialty areas.

Thanks for the support. I'm glad I am not the only one. It is frustrating because I know for a fact that they are hiring new grads to these positions. I see nurse residency positions listed for new grads too. Either that, or they say they will only hire RNs with 3+ years of experience in that specialty area. So, my RN experience is not only worth NOTHING, but apparently it is a NEGATIVE. They wither want unit specific experience, or NO experience at all. My advice for new grads: Either specialize where you want to be ASAP out of school. OR if you have to take a med/surg job, leave it only after ONE YEAR. Do not think that you can change specialties after 5, 10, 15+ years. They will not take you.

So sorry to hear. I was home for about a year once, about seven years ago, and I am still asked about it in interviews. Employers do not like a gap in employment apparently. God forbid you take time off to recover from a car accident. I would just be honest, explain in your cover letters about why you had to abruptly leave, and that you have made a complete physical recovery now. I would also get in touch with someone you used to work with there, that can be a reference to state that you were a dependable employee while you were there.

Also, the recruiters consistently ask me why my past or current position is "only" part time or per diem. And what about this one year you took "off" to raise a child 8 years ago? Yes, and I do not regret that. Yet the new grads are coming right out of school... they haven't been working full time consistently over a 10 year period either. There is a double standard... for us that are already nurses, we can not be a mom who has stayed home with their children part of the time. And if I am applying for full time "dream jobs" and aren't getting them, yes I am still working part time in the position I am NOT happy in.

I am a RN with 14 years of adult experience. I graduated from a great school. In the beginning of my career I took what job was available at the time. I always thought as a nurse, I could switch specialties later on. That's what everyone says, right? Wrong. For the past 7 years I have been applying for jobs in different specialties. I am not given the time of day because I don't have experience in that area. Yet, I know for a fact they hire new grads. I meet these people in person. I do a facebook search and see their public profiles. There are new grads being hired in these hospitals, in these specific areas. I am a great nurse but am not given the opportunity to even interview. No one told me that if I got TOO much experience in one area, that no one would be interested in hiring me for another.