"One Year of Experience" -When does it start?

[RNDreamer]

Hello:

I was wondering when that magical one year of experience actually starts. Is it when you get off orientation/preceptorship? Or does it start on your first day of orientation? If a potential employer verifies your employment dates, will your current employer only include the date you were taken off orientation?

I hope my question is clear. Thanks in advance!

[belgarion]

Just based on business experience your employment date is the day you actually start being paid for being there, ie. your date of hire. As far as experience goes, that probably depends on whether or not your employer counts your training period as "experience". Where I am, your yearly evaluation (and pay raise) occurs on the anniversary of your completion of orientation or training. You seniority and therefore vacation eligibility is counted from your employment date.

Clear as mud?

[ChristineN, BSN, RN]

When employers ask how much experience I have I just say I've been since when I first started my first new grad job and let them figure it out.

[SummerGarden, BSN, MSN, RN]

since employment is business related... your year experience starts the date you start working as a rn. some places let you start work prior to being licensed (you work as a tech or an extern/ng until you get your license). employers usually only count the time you were licensed and working as your work experience. thus, orientation time does not matter. of course, there are co-workers that will subtract your orientation time, but what they think does not matter.

[RNDreamer]

Thanks for the responses. I will have to find out from my hospital what it is considered to be.

[GM2RN]

I've never had an employer pick it apart like that. It's all experience, regardless of whether or not you are on orientation.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

it depends upon what you're asking. if you're wondering when your year of experience -- or two years -- before going to anesthesia school starts, it starts the day you get off orientation. but if you're moving cross country and taking a similar position, it started when you started working. as long as you've been working off orientation for at least a year. (i would never say i'd had a year of experience if i'd only been off orientation for six months!)

[cherrybreeze, ADN, RN]

Where I work, yearly evals are done on the anniversary of your start date, so IMO, the day you start working starts off the experience timer. Even when you're on orientation, you're getting experience, yes?