I've been out of school for two years now, and for a number of reasons didn't take my NCLEX until about a month ago. Amazingly enough, I passed! I was so excited to finally get that out of the way. The thing is, I've been reading posts on this site about how it is near impossible to get a job as an "old" new grad. I am so disheartened.
A little more background: I live in Hawaii and work as a critical care tech in a hospital that does have a new grad program, but only hires in-house. Most all of the hires are "old" new grads that have been working as aides or techs. So, basically, if you are not able to get in to the new program right away (most don't), and you give up and decide to move away to pursue job opportunities, you've already been out of school for quite a while. Some people have had to wait for YEARS to get into our new grad program, or similar programs at other hospitals.
That being said, I have decided to look into opportunities elsewhere, mostly on the west coast so I won't be too far from home. I'm planning on applying for endorsement in Washington, California, and Nevada, where the population of people from Hawaii is the highest. I guess what I'm looking for is a little validation that it's not entirely impossible to get hired as an "old" new grad in these states. Will my experience as a critical care tech help at all? Am I wasting my money (it'll probably be around $500 or more for all three states)? Should I just stay where I am, in a state where I feel it is the most difficult to get into a new grad program?
If anybody has any experience with getting hired as an "old" new grad, I would love to hear from you. I would love to hear any advice at all! Thanks for taking the time to read my post. :)
Not everyone can deal with sub-zero, freezing winter temperatures and a sporifice population.
I checked Wikipedia after I asked the question and I definitely don't think I could live there (I'm from Hawaii). I spent 6 months in California and I froze my butt off there! That's with lows in the 40s. I don't think my body could handle subzero temperatures. Thanks for your reply!
Like previous poster said the weather up here is harsh but the opportunities are endless. Pay isint amazing for new grads $22.79 at my hospital but you can pick the unit you would like to be on and there are tons of opportunities for overtime.it just depends how desperate you are
bellatrixrn
33 Posts
I checked Wikipedia after I asked the question and I definitely don't think I could live there (I'm from Hawaii). I spent 6 months in California and I froze my butt off there! That's with lows in the 40s. I don't think my body could handle subzero temperatures. Thanks for your reply!