jas0419

At the hospital I'm at in the D/FW area in Texas, it's $24.75/hr. for the first full year (orientation is only 16 weeks of that, though), $28/hr. the second year, and $32/hr. into the third year. Night shift differentials are $4/hr., and weekend shift differentials are $6/hr. This is for an RN with a BSN.

To follow up, I had gotten the good pop-up on Thursday, and I passed today according to the quick results.

Well, I took my NCLEX yesterday afternoon (my first time taking it) and ended up finishing at 88 questions. I felt prepared going into it (I was also close to the top of my class and did well throughout the program), but the version of the test I had was so frustrating that when I walked out, I had no clue how I did. I wasn't even sure if I wanted to do the PVT, but my wife was finally like, "Just do it!" I did, and I got the good pop-up! I did it again this morning, and I'm still getting it. I really hope that's a good sign!

I took my NCLEX yesterday at 2:00, checked the PVT around 9:00, and I got the good pop-up; checked it again this morning, and I'm still getting it. I'll still pay for the Quick Results; just hope I'm not the first person that pop-up is wrong for! :)

Thanks! Did QT 5 today and got a 72%.

So I graduated in December from a well known university here in Texas. I currently have a job lined up to start on February 24th, so of course, I have to take my NCLEX before then. It's scheduled this Thursday, and I've been utilizing the Kaplan online materials for the last 3-4 weeks. I made my way through the videos and have been working on the Qbank and QTests for the last two weeks. The only questions I have not answered so far are QTest 5 (which will be tomorrow) and QTest 7 (which will be on Wednesday); I did #6 today (out of order) because it had more questions, and I had more time today to work on them. Here is my breakdown so far: QBank - I did 100% of it, and my average was 62% (mostly in the 62-68% range, with a few mid-to-high 50s; one 72%, which was the last one I did; and one 40-something % early on). I always did them with 50 questions. I also took the four sample tests: Sample test #1 - 54% Sample test #2 - 56% Sample test #3 (Priority questions) - 93% Sample test #4 (SATA, Ordering, etc.) - 36% (ugh) Diagnostic exam (done first and before watching any of the videos): 64% QTests: QT 1 - 59% (along with 2 and 3, done after watching the videos but before any of the QBank questions) QT 2 - 65% QT 3 - 56% QT 4 - 62% (along with #6 and the Readiness test, done most recently) QT 6 - 71% Readiness - 69% (done before QT 6) As I said up top, I'm doing QT 5 (and the Alt Format questions) tomorrow and QT 7 on Wednesday. Any time I see scores that low, I get nervous, but all I keep reading is that 60% and above is fine. Is this about right for doing well on the exam?

Yeah, I thought it was weird, but they said that prns are held to a different standard than full-time employees. The only problem with switching is that I'm required to work two-days per four-week schedule, and Saturday is the last day of the schedule. Tuesday is a final (possibly two), and if the final falls on one of the days that I'm scheduled to work, then I'll only be working one day. Friday is pinning, and Saturday is graduation, so those days are out. I guess I'll just contact them and see what they say. Thanks for the feedback!

Okay, so I'm graduating next Saturday from a BSN program here in the D/FW area. We were supposed to have one final yesterday (Saturday) and another final tomorrow. However, we had an ice storm Thursday evening to Friday afternoon, and here, it basically results in schools and other businesses closing down. Our Saturday final was rescheduled for Tuesday from 11:00-1:00. Yesterday, the school sent out an alert that the campuses would be closed on Monday as well (forcing the Monday final to be rescheduled). Supposedly, the final will also be on Tuesday from 2:00-4:30. However, the instructors have stated that this is not guaranteed, and the test could also be on either Wednesday or Thursday, but they may not know until Monday night or Tuesday morning (very last minute, in my opinion). Because we were originally supposed to be completely done by Monday afternoon, this obviously caused a lot of people to have to reschedule other commitments, some due to work and others who had planned to go out of town. So far, this nursing class (which was 80% online anyway) has refused to convert its test online, despite the fact that several other nursing classes have already agreed to do so for the students. So far, it hasn't affected me. However, the problem comes if the final falls on either Wednesday or Thursday. I've been working prn as a PCT for a big local hospital since May. From May until late August, I basically worked full-time (three 12-hour shifts a week) and cut back to only two shifts a month once my final semester of school started due to preceptorship scheduling and whatnot. Anyway, I had to call in sick one time in July due to having a 103-degree fever and being extremely and visibly contagious. I did not have this appear until the morning of my shift, and I called in as early as possible. I only missed one day. Unfortunately, in October, a very close primary family member died suddenly on a Thursday evening, and I was scheduled to have a shift on Saturday during the day. I waited until early Friday morning to call them once I knew when the funeral was going to be (Saturday). My wife and I had to go out of town for this, but I let them know more than 24 hours before I was scheduled. They seemed very supportive and told me not to worry about it. Anyway, less than a week after I got back from the funeral, I received an e-mail from the floor coordinator/assistant manager that I was going to be verbally warned due to having missed two days of work (the one day I was sick in July and the recent Saturday because of the funeral), that prns are subject to being terminated/let go after three missed days in a 12-month period. I spoke to the coordinator, and she said that she understood why I missed, but that they were required to still verbally warn me and have me sign something that I acknowledged it. So now, I'm scheduled to work both Wednesday and Thursday, and I'm concerned that if I need to call in and cancel my shift for one of those days because a final was rescheduled due to bad weather that this will be the time that they decide to fire me. Obviously, there's not much that can be done about the final. I'll also say that I planned on leaving the tech job very soon anyway because I was offered an internship/GN job at another hospital that I accepted and will be starting it at the end of February pending the NCLEX in January. At most, I probably only would have worked four more shifts (my focus was on studying for the NCLEX). Money is not an issue at this time, but I also don't want to leave this hospital with a bad flavor about me (i.e. if they end up firing me). In my nearly twenty years of working, I have never been fired from a job and have stayed at every job I've worked anywhere from 5-10 years. I'm a very reliable worker, and to possibly be fired due to two absences that were out of my control (a family death and a rescheduled final for graduation) just rubs me the wrong day, and I'm not sure of the best way to handle it. Has anyone ever been in a similar situation? How did you deal with it?

I'm graduating next week from an intense BSN program here in D/FW, and out of our class of 100, there are only around twenty of us (myself included) that have RN jobs ready to go, and I heard it was pretty hard for the previous class to get jobs as well, so yes, the myth about Texas being a goldmine for nursing jobs is just that. For those who do not have jobs coming directly out of school, they usually fall into one of the following traps: 1) Applying for regular (i.e. non-internship) nursing jobs, most hospitals around here require one year of acute care experience, or 2) The internship programs seem to limit you to only applying either the semester you graduate or one semester after. Beyond that, they will no longer consider you as a candidate. Mind you, there are always exceptions, but this is the general case, and there are still plenty of people who have graduated who still do not have jobs.

It has PMs disabled for me, but the public HR number (from the website) is 214-456-3900. Whoever you get there can probably direct you to the recruiter. I'd just tell them that you had submitted an application for the several of the internships, had not heard anything, and just wanted to follow-up with someone.

Sorry to hear you apparently didn't get selected, BlueJays2013. Sometimes it's hard to understand what hospitals are looking for. Perhaps the departments that you applied for were very competitive or maybe you submitted too late (or, like you said, maybe your transcript got lost in the mail, although from my experience, the recruiter was good about following up with me about receiving my transcript during the process -- had you considered contacting her?). Regardless, good luck with your continued search, and congrats on the upcoming graduation!

Thanks for the information! Are the Kaplan question trainers on Kaplan's website, or are they on an unrelated site?

Hi, all, I'll be graduating from an intense BSN program in a few weeks. I've already received a job offer for an internship that progresses to a full-time job following the completion of an internship; this starts in February. I have to pass the NCLEX before starting, so I plan to take the NCLEX-RN in the middle of or end of January. During nursing school, I've generally received all A's and B's on tests, and every semester that I've taken the HESI (including the exit HESI last month), I've had no problem doing well on it. However, I'm looking for some extra FREE resources to use in preparation for the NCLEX. I had purchased the Saunders book a few semesters ago for an added information resource; I also have the NCLEX-RN 3500 software. I don't think I need any additional information resources because the Saunders book seems to be thorough enough without getting too wordy. However, I'm looking for additional (and tough) questions. The NCLEX 3500 has a ton of questions to do; the Saunders questions seem too easy (I've heard these are easier than the NCLEX questions). I've heard great things about Kaplan and Hurst, BUT I can't afford several hundred dollars on these programs, so I would appreciate any free ideas that I could use to supplement my other study resources. Thanks!

Thanks! I wasn't an internal candidate, although I did my pediatrics rotation there last semester (not on that floor, however). I've been a tech at another hospital since May, though, but it was for adults. This is also my second Bachelor's degree (received a B.S. in psychology), and I've had some experience working with children with behavioral issues, so that may have helped.

Well, I don't know about the rest of the departments. I graduate in December, and I applied for most of the positions the weekend that they were posted. I had a call from the recruiter that following Monday, the first business day back, so this was on the 4th. They were interested in me for the gastroenterology floor, and I did a phone interview with her on the 6th and a face-to-face interview with her and the department supervisors last Friday (the 15th). They told me that they would have an answer for me in about two weeks. However, I received a call this morning from the recruiter that they wanted to extend an offer to me for the position, so it only took a week for the decisions to be made. Like I said, I don't know about the rest of the departments. However, when I spoke to the recruiter last week, she seemed to suggest that all interviews were being conducted over the last two weeks of the month. This may have just been for the department I was interviewing for, though. However, for the OP (and anyone applying now or for the next cycle), it was suggested to me to apply for any and all GN positions posted, not just the ones that were my main interests, because of the increased odds of getting an interview. I can definitely say that those positions you listed are the ones with the most interest and most competition. For the interviews, it's all behavioral format, so they ask situations where you've provided great service, gone above and beyond, how you've handled difficult patients/customers or co-workers, etc. There wasn't anything skills-based in either of my interviews. Anyway, good luck, and I hope you still hear back!