willow298

I just wanted to say that I just contacted the RI attorney general where I will be going to get my fingerprints done and who will be submitting them to the BON. They told me that if as long as the charges were expunged than they are erased and will not come up even with the FBI fingerprint check. They told me to bring the document of expungement with me when I go there to get my fingerprints done and they will doublecheck for me and make sure that they are not coming up.

I live in Rhode Island and I am 4 weeks away from being done with nursing school. I unfortunately have 2 misdemeanors from 4 years ago that were expunged. They did not prevent me from getting into nursing school, as I had to submit a background check. When I called the courthouse, they advised me that if my record is expunged than I can legally put NO that I have no convictions on any applications. What I am concerned about is that I know for the NCLEX application we have to submit FBI fingerprints with a background check. I have been reading previous posts that state that the FBI fingerprints will show any expunged charges. I don't want to mess up my application and lie to the BON, even though the courthouse told me I can honestly check the NO box. I just want the application process to go smoothly. I have read that others have submitted a declaratory process before applying for NCLEX. When I try to look up what that is and if they do that here in Rhode Island, I can't find anything. The incident was an isolated one and I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. It was a very unfortunate situation and I would be devastated if it implies that I am going to have a very hard time with this application for the NCLEX. I have not gotten into any type of trouble since and definitely learned from my mistakes. What should I do? Should I call the BON and talk to them about it?

Hi everyone, for the last week I have been quite a mess about the whole resume/cover letter process. I will be graduating in May. My mom is an LPN and works upstairs from this wonderful "assisted living" type establishment that I would ADORE to work for. It is a beautiful establishment with a holistic, home-like feel. They told me to apply now and not wait until May. I am very worried about this resume/application process because it seems as though there are no definite guidelines to follow. I hear a 50/50 mix of "objectives are unnecessary; not having an objective is unprofessional. Cover letters are the new thing and can really help you to get an interview; cover letters are not a requirement." It seems to go back and forth. Also, should I really be including my clinical experiences in my resume. Don't they assume that I have administered medications and taken vital signs, assessed dressings, etc? If an objective is needed, what really should it include? Where should I be putting my strengths? and how would I gear an objective towards obtaining a job working with the geriatric community? I am really obsessing over this because I feel that I really get one shot and I do not want to blow it by making silly mistakes with the resume/cover letter. PS-this place that I want to work does not have a nurse recruiter, so if I need a cover letter, who would I address it to?

Hey I am just coming back to this post to check out responses. I have 8 weeks left! YAY!!! In response to this post, by no means was it "EVERYONE" in my class. There are like 100 students and I don't know half of them. I was referring to the people who I thought I was considerably close to in the beginning that kind of started acting funny. One of the students I am referring to will not talk to me to this very day, which I find highly obnoxious. In no way did I act arrogant or snotty about my grades to her, or any of them. I have resorted to not telling anyone and just saying I did fine. There are still a few who pressure me into telling them the actual number, but I just let them rattle on about it and never actually give them a straight answer.

Thank you so much. That sounds absolutely amazing. I am usually really good at writing stuff like this, but when it comes to resume time for myself, my mind goes blank and does not function properly. Also, I already knew not to put her as a reference on the application, but thank you anyways for the heads up! :)

Hi all, I will be graduating in 8 weeks with my ASN and have been trying to compile a resume. Can you please review it and make any suggestions? I did not use a template because I was getting aggravated with the tables and things not lining up. It seems really short and kind of boring. I do not have any other experience in the health care field besides what is listed. I do not know what else I should put. Any advice/suggestions would be much appreciated. Oh and btw, I have read online that objectives are really unnecessary, and could actually hurt more than help. Does that sound right? I am trying to work on a cover letter as well, so it is not attached. Thanks **FYI I cannot figure out how to add this at an actual attachment from Word, so I copied and pasted...thats why the dates are not lined up on the left side..but they are in my original document. Can you just review the content and not the actual setup? Thanks again NAME address | xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx | phone | email EDUCATION Associate of Science in Nursing Expected May 2013 College name * Major: Nursing * GPA: 3.9 AFFILIATIONS Phi Theta Kappa 2011 - present National Honor Society CLINICAL EXPERIENCE * XXXXXXXX Hospital-specific building (October-December 2011) Cardiovascular Med Surg * XXXXXX Hospital (January-May 2012) Stroke Unit * XXXXXXXXXXX-specific building (September-November 2012) Level 1 Trauma/Burn Unit * XXXXXXXX Hospital Woman's Care Center (January-March 2013) Maternity/Newborn Unit * XXXXXXXX Children's Hospital (March-May 2013) JOB-RELATED EXPERIENCE Direct Support Professional Staff 11/2007 - 5/2009 Name of establishment * Responsibilities included assisting individuals with developmental disabilities to complete activities of daily living in the home and in the community. * Administering medications orally and topically under the supervision of a Registered Nurse. * Scheduling and preparing clients for medical appointments, picking up prescriptions and completing related paper work. VOLUNTEER WORK XXXXXXXXX Farm Fall 2007 City and state * Assisted children and adults with developmental disabilities with therapeutic horse-back riding under the supervision of **** *****, owner and manager.

Hey everyone. I am graduating in 8 weeks from an ASN program and I am really starting to worry about trying to get a job. My mom is an LPN at a local hospital and has been affiliated (and still works) there for the past 40 years. She knows a lot of the "higher ups" and has talked to them about my employment there. They told her I should fill out an application now. I want to make a cover letter for my very short resume, and I want to incorporate the fact that my mother has referenced me to apply there without sounding corny or like I expect to be hired just based on that fact. How should I word this? Dear ________, my name is Jane Smith and I will be graduating from _______ in May 2013 from the nursing program. My mother, ____ has suggested that I contact you regarding the positions you have available. Any better ideas?

Thanks for your response. It must be so helpful to have relatives in HR! I think I am just going to make a resume from scratch using some of the points you emphasized. I feel like it will be better than trying to go strictly by a template. Good luck in your last year of nursing school!

Hey everyone. I will be graduating this May with an ASN. I am already starting to try to compose a resume so I can apply in advance and it is sooooo confusing!!!!! Cover letter or no cover letter? Objective or no objective? Fonts, size, tables, ahhhhhhh!!!!!!!! I have downloaded multiple templates geared towards nursing and all of them seem to be good, but they all have different sections and setups. I am at a loss of which one to use, which sections are necessary, and what order the sections should be in, etc Obviously, I have no experience being a nurse since I will be a new grad, so is it smart to start with the education section? And what exactly should go under that..some just put the degree and school, while others put related course work and list the GPA. I wouldn't mind listing the GPA because it is one of my definite strong points. I have a 3.9 right now, so I really want to emphasize that. Should I list clinical experience as far as what I have accomplished in clinicals? "administered medications via different routes, inserting foley catheter, assessed and cared for multiple types of drains and dressings including chest tubes, JPs, Percut. nephrostomy tubes, maintained sterile technique..blah blah blah etc? I am abbreviating on here for the sake of all of your eyes lol. I dont want to make it too long and drawn out though. And also, should I be listing all the hospitals in which I have had clinical rotations at? Also, for my last question, as far as work experience, should I be putting that I was a hostess for a summer? That seems kind of stupid since it has absolutely nothing to do with the job I am applying for. However, I did work with adults with developmental disabilities and passed meds to them under the license of a RN, so I figure that that job experience might be good to include. Any help from you guys would be amazing. The more I look on the internet about this topic, the more and more confused I become. All I want is a job when I graduate, so I want to really make sure I do this right! Thanks

Thank you all so very much for your comments and kind encouragement. I do feel better today about it and it helped to come home after a long day of clinical and read all the responses. And one comment in particular really made me think..the comment about how I probably won't even talk to these people after its all said and done. Over the summer the one "real friend" I had, did not contact me for any reason at all....the entire summer. Good friend, huh? And you know what I get from another one....One person who was another "dear friend" from my first clinical rotation only texts me before tests to ask questions....for example "What is the difference between a calcium channel blocker and a beta blocker?"...I respond...and then that is the end of the convo. They definitely use me for their own benefit and then its obvious that that is the purpose I serve for them. So, in conclusion, I am just going to get through the rest of this program and rely on my family and boyfriend for support because at least I know from that from them it is sincere. (and from all of you fine ladies and gents) Thanks again. It really made me feel better to discuss with people who are outside of the situation.

Hi. I am 1 semester away from being done with nursing school. I am a really high achiever and get fantastic grades in both the lecture and clinical portions of my program. At the beginning of the program, I felt like I met really good people that were wonderful friends. But as time went on, I feel like that is not the case at all. As the semesters went on, we got divided up into different clinical groups and people started to get mad at me for doing very well on exams and for ATI tests. They used to approach me after tests demanding to know what grade I got, and when I told them they got angry. This semester I have decided not to tell anyone and to just say "I did good" to prevent this hostility. For example, 1 girl who I felt very close with last year hasn't spoken to me at all after I received points for passing a test and she did not. These people seem to behave very childishly and I feel like I am back in high school. I have one really good friend (I think) but he is in another clinical group this time around and I feel as though it kind of distances us, which is very unfortunate. I just feel extremely depressed about the entire situation and just decided to come on this wonderful forum to see some comments as to what others have done in situations like this. I feel like such a loner =[