BA_anthropology

Thanks! I live in the metro area of the East Coast. Because we can get by on my husband's salary for now, me relocating and splitting up the family just isn't something we think is a good idea for us. I've tried evvvverywhere that I can imagine might hire RNs. There are certainly more SNFs in the area that I can keep trying, and for now that's the plan.

Again, as indicated in the original post and explicitly stated above, I would never lie about it. That wasn't even on the table as an option. And the "sales pitch" as you put it is the exact and honest current situation. I do need to work and I do want to work in nursing...nothing is being sold, though!

THANK YOU for this response. This sums up exactly what I was going to respond, too! Also, because I saw it mentioned a couple of times, I would have been extremely upfront with the hiring manager. That is why I asked how you all thought they would interpret the situation! But thank you all for all the responses, even if you thought this was a "stupid" idea (how impolite!!). However, if you were nasty in your response, I didn't read the whole thing. Obviously. I have clearly decided not to do this! It was simply and idea and from the overwhelming response, it is not an idea I should pursue. But this license is pretty useless these days so having to pay money, albeit a small amount, to keep it active is adding insult to injury. Volunteering is not an option for everyone. I DID volunteer before having a baby, but I can no longer afford to pay to work.

1.5 years after graduation and I have not a single nursing job under my belt. What is a girl to do after spending all that money and time and work on an education? I've come up with a plan? What do you think? What if I allowed my RN license to lapse by not renewing it and I applied for work as a CNA/PCT in order to get into the hospital, get experience and make connections. Then after a year or so I could reinstate my license and hopefully get hired at the hospital where I was working as a CNA. Any thoughts on this wacky idea? What would a nurse manager think of hiring an RN who had let their license lapse to work as a CNA?

Thanks for the responese!! Do you know, if I went back for a BSN would I be considered a new grad (and eligible for a job) even though I got my RN license after finishing my diploma program?

I'm wondering if I go back for either an RN-MSN program or a RN-BSN program, will I still find myself just as unemployable? I gradated in Dec 2011 with an RN diploma degree. Right after graduation, I moved out of the country for 6 months due to my husband's work. While away, I got pregnant. Between not having a bachelor's degree in nursing (I have a BA), moving right after graduation, then being pregnant I have had zero luck getting a job and I'm going NUTS! I've applied for over 100 jobs, gotten resume critiques from my nusing school instructors and I've applied to every type of job that I can think of where an RN can work-- and I've gotten 1 interview with a nurse manager at a clinic but not at any hospitals. I'm due to have my little girl in Dec and have pretty much given up hope that I'll get anything before I'm settled with her. That will put me at over 1 year since graduation with no experience!! EGAD! Moving is not an option as my husband has a career in our town in Connecticut. There are 2 local programs that look good for continuing education: RN-BSN and and RN-MSN program. My fear is that after graduating from either of these, I will have spent even MORE money on my education and still won't be able to find work in a hospital. As a side note, I was very good in school and clinically, I like working on the floor and I think I would honestly make an awesome nurse. Any thoughts? I'd really love to hear from a nurse manager if any of you have some wisdom to spare! Thanks!!

Okay, I'm sure there are a lot of posts asking a very similar question, but my situation is just a tad bit different and I'd appreciate any opinions. I'm a "new grad" nurse and I really want to get into critical care. I mean, really. For some completely crazy reason, my nursing school only rotated us to ICU for 2 days right before we graduated. It was amazing-- way more intense than anything I'd seen before and exactly what I'd had in mind when I went into nursing. I'd previously thought about ICU, but since it's so competitive to start there, I figured I probably didn't have a shot. But it really is the hot spot of nursing to me, so I might as well give it a whole-hearted try, right? So, here are the things "working against me." I graduated in December and I am only now starting to apply for jobs, because I've been out of the country for my husband's work. This had always been the plan and dictated my choice in nursing schools because of graduation date. It's nearly done and I can't wait to get home and get on the floor. I'm pregnant. Yup, 3 months in. I'll be 5 months when I get home and hopefully interview. I understand this may not make me an ideal candidate. But like I said, I really want this. I would just die to be able to nurse on a critical care floor, or even step down or ER. I want action and experience!! So, I know these things aren't in my favor but I really do want it badly-- do any of you have any advice about this? What I should be doing in this last 1.5 months that I'm out of the country, to increase my odds at getting a position when I get home? Do you think it's better to just get a job in med-surg, get experience and then get a critical care position when I'm not prego?

I got 10cc's of residual the first time, gave 600 cc of free water because when I got there his Na+ went way up (600 to replace insensible water loss, I learned!), titrated up his feedings, then got 350cc residual. It was very cool!! Also got to suction and use a condom cath (his came off), which I've never done! And he was a total sweetie. Broke. My. Heart.

Thanks, I still changed it. I'd rather not share at all than share too much. :-/

You know what, I originally used information that was not totally true-- you know, similar in the level of care it would require but the real story "story." I was definitely thinking about HIPAA. However, this scared the crap out of me and I edited it. Just in case.

Today in clinical py pt has a foley that has been irrigated (perhaps it will need to be irrigated again), a PEG that needs residual check Q4H (never done this before) and has been having 300cc's of residual, a PICC line, pressure ulcers, and yesterday his K dropped wayyy low. My other patient has 17 9:00am meds, all various routes of administration. BRING. IT. ON. And a shout out to all the instructors who are awesome enough to not terrify us students, will be present during everything new I do, and make it exciting to learn! Goodness knows they're rare.

Okay, thanks for all the suggestions and feedback everyone! I'm still not 100% sure what the next best thing to do is. Hopefully, something will pan out with getting experience over there (thanks for USA jobs suggestion-- I have looked there before, but all job listings I've seen ask for 1 year experience). It's good to know that other people have done something similar...or that there's hope for me to get a job when I get back!

Yes, that's the plan. Does it make any difference for finding a job when I get back?

Hi everyone, So traveling for 6 months after graduation has been the plan since before I started nursing school, but I'm terrified I'm going to be 100% out of luck finding a job when I get back. Initially, it was going to be a full year but that seems way too long to take off from the real world. My FI is a professor and has 2 spans of sabbatical over the course of his first 9 years teaching. During that time, he doesn't teach and focuses on research. It's common for people to travel during this time and that's been our plan for quite some time-- spend some time traveling before locking down and popping out babies. He's already arranged to research for a university in Italy, so that's going to be where we're living. Before starting school, I spoke with two instructors asking advice on the situation. They both told me that I should just "keep my license up," (I had no idea what that even meant when I started school) and I should be okay. Now I'm 2 months from graduation and the move is being planned. Yesterday, my clinical instructor asked me, "aren't you moving when you graduate?" and I told her the situation. I'm hoping to be able to do SOMETHING related to nursing while I'm there and I've been talking to someone at the US army base about working in the clinic there, but I'm under the impression it would be volunteer and I'd probably be taking a lot of blood pressures and not much else. Working in nursing through the Italian government is not an option due to there laws and qualifications. Anyway, my instructor told me that she thinks there's no way in hell I'll find a job when I get back, if I don't really keep up my skills. I live in CT where, just like everywhere else jobs aren't super easy to find, but there out there for new grads. Any thoughts? I'm considering a few things: enrolling in a master's level course online, while I'm away so at least I'm still advancing my knowledge base and/or taking a refresher course when I return. I'd appreciate any advice!

Agreed! I actually tried REALLY hard to think of what I should say and do to make sure the patient felt safe with both the doctor and myself. Including just stating that it wasn't how I'd learned to do it, etc. I was just kind of dumbfounded!