sleepymom

I've been offered two internship positions in the Dallas area. I think the pay is good for a new grad, but during my talk with HR, a sign on bonus was never mentioned. Is that something I should ask about or is it a given that if they didn't bring it up, then it doesn't exist? Thanks! :)

Thanks so much! See, I learned something new! :) I thought the only position a new grad could apply for was an internship! There are plenty of positions that I saw that only required a degree/diploma. Looks like I'll be busy submitting resumes today then. :) I do think the internship is a good idea because I really don't want to feel like I'm thrown to the wolves shortly after graduating, so I'm sure I will continue to keep an eye out for those as well. Although, I'm sure it's pretty competetive getting a spot!

Good question. I saw those posted at Baylor, right? I'm not a night person by any means. I really hope more positions become available. Seems that new grads are severely limited to what area they go into if all hospitals abide by the internship only rule.

I'm currently in nursing school in Richmond Va, and I will graduate in May. Here, there are no mandatory interships. We can apply to any area we want. If we are to get hired, we basically have a preceptor that we work with for 8-12 weeks. Me and my family are moving to Dallas once I graduate and I have been looking into finding employment in the plano/Frisco area. I'm confused about only being able to apply for interships. As of now there really are very few to choose from! I'm baffled that with the nursing shortage, that they would turn new grads away from other positions that need to be filled. There are plenty of jobs that I would LOVE to apply for, but I guess I can't because they aren't internships! The hospitals that have the most intern positions are hospitals in downtown Dallas, and I don't want to work there. HELP! This is so frustrating!

Hi everyone. Thanks so much for your advice. I did some looking around at other areas closer to Denton, but to be honest I wasn't all that impressed with what I saw as far as real estate is concerned. I'm not 100% certain that I will end up working in Denton. I've got a fairly good contact there and wouldn't mind working at the ambulatory surgery center. Only time will tell. If it doesn't work out, I suppose I will look a bit closer around the areas that I'm wanting to live. The only problem with that is that I have heard some pretty negative things about the hospital in Mckinney and others in Plano and Frisco. I realize that opinions are like... well, I think we all know where this is going. I guess it's just hard to know when it's just some disgruntled individuals mouthing off, Vs a legitimate crappy place to work.

area to be somewhat exact. I grew up in Texas, so that is where my heart is. However, I've lived in Richmond Va for the last 8 yrs. Once I graduate (in May) we will be moving back to the Dallas area. I'm really interested in any info good or bad about the hospitals in the Plano, Allen, Frisco and Mckinney areas. We haven't totally decided where we're going to be moving, but it will be in one of the above mentioned areas. I have a connection at the Presby Denton hospital, but I don't know how practical that will be depending on the drive/traffic. Does anyone have any advice about that? It's been a long time since I've lived in Dallas and I hear that it's really grown a bunch since we've been gone. Anyway, I'm excited to get back to Texas, and I really hope that I can find a good place to work that has a great orientation period for new grads. Thanks in advance for any info that you can give me. Also, if you have any advice about Plano, Allen, Frisco, or Mckinney that would be great too! I'm mainly interested in areas to live that have exemplary schools, as I have 2 small kids. I already know that property taxes are insane, so no need to elaborate on that! :rotfl:

http://www.styleease.com :)

I'm considering taking a spanish for health professionals class at a local jr college. It's not required for my nursing school, but I was thinking that it could possibly be useful to know a second language. I'm also planning on moving back to Texas after I finish school and there is a large hispanic population in certain areas. Have you ever ended up in a situation where any of your patients spoke very little english and you weren't able to effectively communicate? I was also wondering if knowing spanish would make me more marketable (so to speak) once I graduate. I just thought I would use you folks as a sounding board since I can't seem to make my mind up. On one hand it seems like a great idea. On the other hand I don't want to waste time and money on a class I don't really need if I'm never going to end up actually using Spanish in the work place. TIA for your replies. :)

I'm currently going to Bon Secours and absolutely LOVE it! The instructors are AWESOME and they are very hands on and encourage each and every one of us to go to them with any problems, questions, or concerns we might have. I was afraid that we would have crotchety old nursing instructors that wouldn't help us at all, and I was very pleasantly surprised. :) I also applied to another nursing school in Richmond (won't name which one) and it darn near took an act of congress just to get anybody in the nursing program on the phone. I would leave messages and voice mail and I would never hear back from anybody. It was the biggest cluster you know what I've ever seen. :uhoh21: I thank God every day that I didn't end up going there. When I email or leave voice mail for any of my instructors I hear back from them within an hour or two. Most of the time they answer their phone when I call!! Imagine that!! :chuckle I go to classes during the day, but I know they have night and weekend classes. You can also go part time if you'd like but the program must be finished within 6 years. I bet you can handle that. Good luck no matter which school you attend!

Hi, I'm a Freshman nursing student and I'm working on my abbreviations and definitions for lab. You would think that they would give us things that we could find in our text book or our medical dictionary, but Noooo Anyway, I've been looking in my texts and even googling the terms and have come up with nada, so I'm hoping some brilliant soul from allnurses can help me out. Can you tell me what these things mean or at least point me to a website where I can find them myself? amb amb cass (there is supposed to be a space after c and a s s but it didn't let me type it out) as tol str Also, I'm having trouble finding functional position. Seems to be a rather simple term, but I found nothing about it in my texts. Thanks in advance!

Well that's great. I'm feeling much better about the TEAS test. :) Well, I know you must be really excited about starting up. Will you be in the part time, accelerated, or full time program? I'm hoping that I'll be able to do the accelerated program. I've only got 4 more classes to go and then all I'll have left is nursing classes. Assuming I get accepted. Have you thought about where you want to work when you graduate? I noticed on the website that the Bon Secours hospital has won numerous awards for generally being a wonderful place to work. That's really encouraging. Best of luck to you!

Wow really!! See, I got a letter a couple of months back saying that I meet the basic requirements for the program, etc and that I needed to take the pre-enterance exam (their words not mine :)) and then after that I would have to go in for the interview. So did you have your interview before you took the TEAS test? I'd love to know that I'm accepted into their program. :) Bon Secours is actually my first choice school, and then I began looking into the practical nursing program at J sarg because I didn't want to wait a year to begin the RN program, but J sarg nursing program is so darn disorganized and I'm lucky to be able to get anyone on the phone that knows anything, and of course my emails and phone calls are never returned. It's been very annoying, so I'm back to square one and I'll gladly wait to start Bon Secours program if They'll have me. :) I've loved everyone I've talked to so far and (GASP) they are very prompt with getting back with me if I've got a question. Can't beat that. Thanks for your post. I feel better knowing that my acceptance doesn't hinge on this test. I feel confident that I'll do fine, but I tend to stress anyway.

"And by the way they don't have a waiting list nor a test to take to get on a waiting list either. " That's actually no true anymore. They require you to take the TEAS pre-enterance exam in order to be accepted into the school. From what I understand it's a fairly new process so you just made it through without having to take it. I go in on Aug 4th to take it. I've already passed the NLN for another school so I'm sure I'll be fine, but it's just annoying to have to stress all over again. Part of the process though. :) Good luck in school!

I'm supposed to list A) my accomplishments B) reasons for choosing nursing as a profession C) Reasons for choosing Bonsecours nursing school D) Goals and plans Let me stress that this is a very preliminary first draft. It sounds choppy at this point because I still have a bit of elaborating to do, but I wanted to post it here now to get some opinions on it in case I need to change things around. I'm open to any and all constructive criticism that you're willing to give me, as I want this essay to really stand out. I'll go ahead and let you know that I'm not too thrilled with the opening of the essay, but I'm stuck as to how else I should open. Writers block I suppose. :rotfl: Thanks in advance for helping me out! :) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- There are many accomplishments in my life that I'm proud of. One represents the first step into my adult life. After spending some time in college, I made the decision to join the Army. I wanted to become more independent and stop relying on my parents' money for college. I wasn't sure what field I wanted to pursue but I knew that going into the Army would would instill a strong work ethic as well as give me the tools I need to be a highly motivated person that knows the meaning of teamwork. Like any parent, I'm extremely proud of my children. I've been able to stay at home and care for them, which has always been a priority of mine. Knowing that they are happy, well behaved children is a source of satisfaction. Finally, I've continued my education, even while staying at home full time with my children. My progress has been steady, and I've been able to spend time thinking about the direction of my career. As I worked on the core classes necessary for almost every degree, I began to explore nursing as a career choice. My sister, brother in law, and sister in law are all nurses, so I've had an opportunity to learn about nursing from practicing professionals. Even though it can be a very difficult job, I feel that the benefits of caring for others will more than balance the scales. In addition, the time I spent in the hospital after having my children, and when my son was ill, gave me a greater appreciation for the difference the compassionate care of nurses can make in a patient's experience. The doctors often passed through very quickly, leaving the nurses to translate the care plan into more understandable terms. The nursing staff was the human face of the hospital. Nursing appeals to me because of the dynamic nature of the job. Each patient is different, and provides a unique opportunity to learn. Finally, the flexibility of nursing is very appealing, both in the variety of work environments, and in setting working hours. This is important to me as a working mother, because I feel that it's critical to be able to give my best to both patients and family. When I started examining my educational options, Bon Secours seemed like the clear choice. Bon Secours has an excellent reputation as a family friendly company, as shown by the placement in the 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers, and by being selected as a Favorite Place to Work if you have kids. The immediate hands-on experience and small class sizes also seem ideal in an educational setting. The flexibility of the part time course schedule is also important to me, as it allows me to balance my family and educational commitments. I'm looking forward to joining the Bon Secours School of Nursing. I feel I have a lot to offer, and if given a chance, I will excel as both a student and a nurse. I think the hands-on experience of clinicals will be a valuable opportunity to look at different aspects of nursing in order to choose my path more specifically. I am also exploring volunteer opportunities at St. Mary's Hospital as a first step toward getting involved in a medical setting.

Thanks for your suggestions everyone! :) I'm not in nursing school yet, but I'm currently going through the admissions process now. I'm actually waiting for my letters of recommendation to be mailed back to me before I mail everything off to the school. I called the volunteer line at 2 of the hospitals here in Richmond Va. I haven't heard back from one, but I heard from the other and they don't do nurse shadowing there. There is no floor work at all. The application is being mailed to me so I'm going to do the work anyway. I figure volunteering in a medical setting is better than nothing at all. I'm still not going to give up on shadowing a nurse though. I'll put a call into the nursing school and see if they have any ideas. Thanks again!