B52-H

chocolate, if you have an RX for them it wont show that you tested positive

Very nice! Did you finish orientation already?

Wow 60 people! Did they say how many they would hire as RNs? And how long is the CPOE job for?

If you can move out of California you will definitely increase your chances, just be prepared because it's still tough in a lot of desirable states. A year of experience is what most open positions listed on so cal hospital websites require. A lot of these are just fillers; positions that they really have no interest in filling. So do not use these postings to gauge what the job market is like. Maybe a recent job hunting nurse in the so cal area can weigh in.

Nah. Whether you're a new grad ADN, BSN or MSN, you still have no experience and are in the same pile with everyone else. "Here, you are all equally worthless." - Gunnery Sergeant Hartman (R. Lee Ermey), "Full Metal Jacket" :rotfl: Sorry couldn't resist, it was the first thing that popped into my head as I was typing this.

Yep they called and left a message this morning.

Yep. Every once in a while you will see the article or post from an experienced nurse who complains new grads are too picky or unwilling to work nights/weekends and that is the reason for the slim job prospects. Those days are long gone. People are desperate and willing to take jobs in any unit or non nursing positions (electronic charting tech support) and sometimes unpaid internships. In fact, it's rare you are even given a choice of what shift and in some cases the specific unit. They know the job market sucks and asking for shift accommodations will most likely get you cut. There are at least 50 other new grads willing to take any shift. Heard from someone else that with the job prospects so bad, when interviewing new grads about which unit they would like to work in, a very common response they get is "Any unit". Don't do this; show that you have a passion for a specific specialty but also indicate you are open to other units.

I think its around $12-14 hour. Work hard, make a good impression and you will get your foot wedged :) Depending on what phase of transition the hospital is at in transferring over to electronic charting, you may also be providing support for other hospital staff (Nurses, RTs etc) Usually it's just the physicians as they seem to have the hardest time switching over, unless you give them a shiny new iPad 2 to enter their orders with

Yep! You are going to be providing tech support for physicians whose hospitals are transferring over to electronic order entry/management. They will call you if they have problems with the software or need help. I know of a hospital that has almost 30+ new grads hired in this role. Hospitals are using this position to offer new grads a break with the bad job market and screen new grads they like and offer the lucky few a job.

Stop by your on base education office. They have tons of info and would be more than willing to help you locate a school.

The school I went to offered a program just like this; small stipends given out each semester in exchange for an employment contract. The payments were taxed though and counted as income. I didn't bite because even a small stipend counted as income would have dramatically cut my other financial aid. They are no longer offering the contract anymore, too many new grads, and cancelled many of the contracts people signed. With the current state of the new grad employment, I would sign even if they didn't offer money. Just cross your fingers they don't cancel on you.

I am the complete opposite; I love phone interviews. Especially if they call while I am at home where I'm comfortable. I have a online document that I quickly open up when they call that has the hospital and unit info, my background and qualifications etc. Like a mini cheat sheet that obviously would never fly in person. In person interviews never bothered me but at this point of my job search I find myself getting nervous because so much is at stake and it may be my last opportunity. Try going into the phone interview with the mindset that it's a conversation rather than a Q&A. Also remember to smile while talking on the phone, I know it sounds weird but it can help with your tone of voice if you're nervous.

South OC and so cal in general is over saturated. The hospitals close by (Saddleback, Hoag, KP, Mission, UCI etc) are either not hiring new grads or have limited slots; maybe fewer than 10. You are going to have to expand your search area and prepare to deal with the hours of traffic to LA, Riverside or San Diego. Wherever you can get an interview/offer is where you have to go.

Wow...

A quick scan of the forums and internet will show you that the job market is tight for new grads. Chances are that it still will be when you graduate. Volunteering can't hurt but it's difficult to evaluate it's employment benefits. It does allow you to maybe shadow a nurse in the NICU, see what the job is like, ask questions etc. If the nurse gets annoyed, you might be asking while they are really busy or they may not want to help. I find it's easier to let them start the conversation so you don't interrupt. It's also a great way to network and getting your face and name out there can help. New grads who have been looking for employment for over year will tell you that they are desperate and volunteering is definitely something they would consider or take up. In my local area, getting a volunteer position as some hospitals is really difficult and/or it's already full of new grads. Work hard, make a good impression and the drive and time spent will pay off.

BSN or an ADN will not be what prevents you from finding work. There are a few hospitals (usually magnet status) that will only accept BSN nurses but the vast majority really don't care. Usually very easy to get into ADN to BSN programs. Most hospitals in my area offer it on site through a local college partnership. Both of the programs you are considering are 2 years, so you can't ride out the bad economy longer in either. If cost is the overall factor, go with the ADN. Just be prepared for a horrible job market either way.

I am also in the OC area (Irvine) and I would be very hesitant about West Coast Uni. They have a nice little niche here in south OC because they can charge whatever they want for people frustrated by the wait lists/GPA requirements of the local community colleges and states schools. A friend of mine is currently going there. Like someone else said, the job market for new grads is really bad and being 130k in the hole and possibly unemployed after graduation would be terrifying. From the conversations I have had in the hospital and school, West Coast is viewed as a place to go if you have the money but not the grades.

If you are looking at Metropolitan areas in California, the further north you go the worse the new grad job market is (Bay area is horrible, I would flee from that place). If you are willing to take any RN position, look at areas in California few would like to live. For So Cal, anywhere in the desert (29 Palms, Yucca Valley) or just really far east towards the NV, AZ border (Apple Valley, Barstow) . The smaller hospitals will probably not have a website or online application. Call them directly, be enthusiastic and tell them what you can offer. One of my classmates got a job 2 weeks ago by walking into a small community hospital and talking to one of the unit directors. Obviously this isn't typical and your mileage may vary, but it shows you might have to be unconventional and pull out all the stops to get hired.

Finding an employer who will hire a brand new NP with only 1-2 years experience as an RN will be extremely difficult. NPs have a lot of autonomy and trusting one with that much responsibility, when they probably just finished their RN hospital residency, is asking a lot. Even by 2 years, most new RNs are still learning a tremendous amount on the job and slowly being given tougher patient assignments. I am not sure I understand your rush to work as an NP as fast as possible. Is it the pay? Take your time and soak up as much as possible, the current job market is really bad and getting even those 1-2 years of RN experience is really difficult.

This chain of realization made me smile :) Just type in "RN New Grad can't find work/employment" into google and look at the results. Sort the results to the past year and it's pretty horrifying lol. Hospitals always have postings for RNs. If you look closely you will see that almost all of them require at least 1 year of experience. And if you do some research on the internet, sometimes these postings are just fillers; job postings that they have no intention or need of filling. Like previously said, if nursing is truly your passion then by all means go for it. Just be sure you fully understand that employment may or may not happen. Like most things in life, its a gamble and you may go bust. When will things get better? No one knows. If anyone knew with 100% certainty, they would be rich from trading stocks. The one thing we do know for sure is that the job market is cyclical. New grad employment is horrible right now and eventually it will pick back up; but no one knows when. Could be a year, 5 years or 10.

Getting hired directly into the ER is very difficult Scholarships, college clubs, honor society really doesn't help much. Tons of people have it and they are looking for work. Hospitals want prior RN experience above everything else. If CRNA is your ultimate goal then you would have to eventually go back to school for your BSN and then grad school. IMO you would be better off going through a BSN program initially to ride out the bad economy. Hopefully things will be better by then. Look through any of the threads on here and you will see the new grad job market is horrible. It's like buying a lottery ticket at this point with the hundreds, sometimes thousands of applications they receive for a handful of spots. Working in a nursing home again is a very real possibility.

It's really tough out there. I am coming up on a year out of school and still have not found an RN position. It really sucks but you might need to take an RN refresher course to keep yourself competitive with the new grads who graduate every 6 months. Otherwise you will need to do a fantastic job convincing employers that your skills are still fresh after 2 years out of school.

Don't give up! You're so close to being done :) The Saunder's Book that tlc2u suggested is excellent and the only book I used. It really helped me with NCLEX strategy and identify that I sometimes get hung up on the distractors (random information, useless data) they throw into questions. For me the NCLEX was more about applying the nursing process than having to recall a fact and then choose a correct answer that was obvious. All the answers you can choose will be correct. You have to pick the one that is the most correct. The only way to practice this is by doing practice questions. Hundreds of them. It doesn't really help you learn or retain specific knowledge, but it helps you hone your test taking strategies and learn to apply the nursing process to each scenario if appropriate. I knew I was ready to take the test when even if I was presented a question that I had no clue about, I could work through the answers and make the best possible choice based on nursing principles. Don't get yourself worried about trying to remember every single fact and random pieces of information. It's almost impossible to do because the test can cover all specialties and scenarios. Instead take NCLEX assessment tests and really focus on the areas that you need review in.

For you the future of the new grad job market comes down to a simple question: Will the U.S. economy be better in 3 years? IMO it will be slightly better but no where near where it needs to be for hospitals to have enough cash to ease up on hiring restrictions. Rising gas prices, trouble in the middle east, massive federal and state deficits, rising interest rates, potential change in government leadership, high unemployment etc. You also have to take into account the massive backlog of new grads that still need jobs from around 2008 to the time you graduate and beyond. I would not expect things to get better until the economy is at full steam again (at least another 5 years).

I hear ya, I am in the same exact position