San Diego new grads prospects and ratio

[wanttobeone]

I am a new grad relocating to San Diego. I want to know how long it might take to land a job there without knowing anyone from inside. Also what is the nurse:patient ratio there.

All the help is highly appreciated.

[karmyk]

I relocated from Northern California... no connections to the hospital systems here at all. It took me about two months before I started working... but I also hadn't taken the NCLEX yet. If you didn't go to a local school or don't know people in the area, it's difficult to get an interview if you haven't taken and passed the NCLEX yet. Some managers will tell you to call them back after you've passed.

I know of people whose instructors or clinical instructors knew nurse managers and were willing to hand resumes/cover letters to the managers, so they didn't have to go through the same process that you'll have to go through... it's a bummer when you see that happen, especially when you've been trying forever to contact nurse managers from those hospitals but have to call half a dozen times before you get called back.

I might have been applying at a bad time (late January seemed like a bad time to start applying for jobs... March seemed to be better). I lucked out because I realized I hadn't applied for a job with Scripps... and within less than a week or so of applying with them, I got in contact with a really great recruiter at Scripps who knew that the managers at her hospital weren't hiring new grads, but she still helped me find new grad positions at other hospitals and apply for them... and she even followed up with me to make sure I got in contact with some of the nurse managers. That was probably the nicest thing any of the recruiters had done for me-- it definitely made a good impression of Scripps for me.

The process with Scripps took maybe 2-3 weeks... I'm not sure what it would have been like, though, if I had applied in January (as opposed to early February). It was only after I finally started the new grad program there that I received calls from the other hospitals I applied to about potential openings for new grads.

Nurse-to-patient ratios go by California laws... on my floor (med surg) it's 4 or 5 patients per nurse... lately you're more likely to get 4 (I think they're shooting for that as a goal), but there are some nights that you still get 5.

The best advice I can give for anyone who's applying from out-of-area is to be proactive... realize that you don't have the resources that the local new grads have, so you're going to have to work two or three times harder (if not more) to get your foot in the door.

[wanttobeone]

Thank you for your response

[portobello]

i'm so tired of finding a new grad prog in the internet coz most of them wants a 1 yr exp. i have BSN-RN title already but can't find a job. by the way im here in san diego too.do ur hosp still hires new grad?or is it close aready? im willing to work fulltime. thanks in advance God bless

[suzanne4, RN]

i'm so tired of finding a new grad prog in the internet coz most of them wants a 1 yr exp. i have BSN-RN title already but can't find a job. by the way im here in san diego too.do ur hosp still hires new grad?or is it close aready? im willing to work fulltime. thanks in advance God bless

Having a degree does not make any difference, but having work experience does. As a new grad, most positions are already filled in the new grad programs at this time of year as they are starting in the next few weeks.

And having the degree from out of the US only makes things harder, not easier.

[portobello]

i see. thank u so much for the info suzanne.