This year my school has decided to do a random select system to choose students into their senior practicum.
I was not able to get employed at a hospital anywhere as a nurse tech or cna's (I am working at a Long Term Care facility right now) so I was really wanting to get into med surg for my senior practicum. Then I would have been able to be in the ICU, ED, OR, or anywhere I wanted.
But I got COMMUNITY HEALTH.. as broad as that sounds, I am really afraid it is going to set me back as a New Grad and it's going to make me look bad than other new grads who had senior practicum experience at med surg or other inpatient settings.
I sent out emails to switch but so far no one is responding. I only have until Monday to request the switch and I am so devastated and stressed out.
Most people who have gotten into med-surg for their senior practicum are already working as techs or cnas at other hospitals, some are in the same place for the senior practicum as where they are currently working!
Is there any advice from people here that did not get what they expected out of Nursing school?
Is there any way I can turn my community health senior practicum into an inpatient experience, as impossible as that sounds?
I'm graduating from an associate degree program this month. The clear trend I have observed in our region (I know this differs across the country) is that employment experience matters far more than BSN versus ADN or the specific clinical/practicum sites you had during school. The people in my class who have employment experience as a patient care tech, even if that employment was only for the past 6 months or so, have been the people who get many hospital interviews and multiple job offers. However, that's not to say there has been no success for those who did not have employment experience. But it is taking them longer to get interviews/offers, and there are far more of those people who are graduating without offers than those who have experience.
All that to say, my biggest advice for any nursing student is to do whatever it takes to get a tech job. I would go so far as to say don't let yourself graduate without that experience! Even take a semester or year off of school to land a tech job if necessary. Most state BON's don't allow you to work as a tech after you pass the NCLEX, so if you graduate and can't find an RN job, you won't be able to "back-track" to get the experience employers are looking for. Also, if you take time off, when you come back to school you'll have a fresh shot at getting the senior practicum you wanted. Network like crazy to get a tech job - that is far more effective than only applying online without personal connections. Call nurse managers and ask if you can shadow. You can create your own practicum in that sense. Then, when you have gotten to know some of the staff through shadowing, you can inquire about a tech job. If they see that you are eager, that you asked good questions during the shadowing time, and that you are a kind and polite person, they just might "create" a tech opening that didn't exist before. They are often looking to replace techs who graduate from nursing school - they usually hire for those spots around 2-3 months before spring and winter graduation time.
Sounds like your school has forgotten that you are paying them for this education. If it wasn't this way when you started this nursing program, it seems like you could challenge it. They shouldn't be able to change things this way for a senior student.
I'm graduating from an associate degree program this month. The clear trend I have observed in our region (I know this differs across the country) is that employment experience matters far more than BSN versus ADN or the specific clinical/practicum sites you had during school. The people in my class who have employment experience as a patient care tech, even if that employment was only for the past 6 months or so, have been the people who get many hospital interviews and multiple job offers. However, that's not to say there has been no success for those who did not have employment experience. But it is taking them longer to get interviews/offers, and there are far more of those people who are graduating without offers than those who have experience.
All that to say, my biggest advice for any nursing student is to do whatever it takes to get a tech job. I would go so far as to say don't let yourself graduate without that experience! Even take a semester or year off of school to land a tech job if necessary. Most state BON's don't allow you to work as a tech after you pass the NCLEX, so if you graduate and can't find an RN job, you won't be able to "back-track" to get the experience employers are looking for. Also, if you take time off, when you come back to school you'll have a fresh shot at getting the senior practicum you wanted. Network like crazy to get a tech job - that is far more effective than only applying online without personal connections. Call nurse managers and ask if you can shadow. You can create your own practicum in that sense. Then, when you have gotten to know some of the staff through shadowing, you can inquire about a tech job. If they see that you are eager, that you asked good questions during the shadowing time, and that you are a kind and polite person, they just might "create" a tech opening that didn't exist before. They are often looking to replace techs who graduate from nursing school - they usually hire for those spots around 2-3 months before spring and winter graduation time.
Thank you for the advice, however, I am not in a position to delay graduation.
I was looking for a patient care technician job, but I could not get a job.
I did manage to get a job as a Certified Nursing Assistant at an Assisted Living Dementia Care Facility.
Right now I am looking for a job as a patient care tech again and at several other nursing homes to see if I can take on another job.
I do have several people I know in the hospital but they aren't influential in that I can just get away with a simple job just by knowing them personally, and it's not easy as pie in Washington State.. it takes a great stroke of luck and a great deal of connections to land a job that way.
I have shadowed 2 nurses for 30 hours in an ICU, and shadowed a nurse practitioner at an Oncology unit for 8 hours. Right now I am volunteering at a hospital and for an organization at my university, and I volunteered at a summer for children with organ transplants for 2 years, but all that isn't enough in these hard times..
I will though, try really hard to get that patient care technician position.
With my CNA position at my current workplace (Assisted Living), I am hoping to perhaps have a better chance of getting hired at a nursing home after I graduate (things are so hard here that many New grads can't get a hospital job within 5 months of graduation. I'm hearing more stories about not landing a job in so many different forums, posts, and from people around me. It is definitely a trend that many senior nursing students will have to accept)
I plan on playing it safe by applying everywhere, LTC, rehab, clinics, just anywhere I can get experience in.
Thank you for all your advice. I MANAGED TO FIND SOMEONE who wanted to get into community health. I switched with her and is now going to be in Psych health for my senior practicum.
I am looking forward to because right now because I work with people with different mental disorders. I think this might be a useful area to explore with my interest of being a nurse for the geriatric population.
Frankly, my practicum made no difference when it came to employment. Yes, there were individuals who got jobs out of their senior assignments. Did I feel cheated? Yes, but there were no questions about it when I was job hunting. No one wanted to know where I had done my final semester. No one wanted to discuss it. And there also wasn't a job lined up. You won't be harmed by the assignment, but you also won't be helped. Or you may get a job in community health out of it. Try to look for the positive. If nothing else, get the semester done and finished. There will be plenty of time to get acclimated once you do get a job.
It's great to hear you were able to switch practicums! I agree with caliotter3 - interviewers are highly unlikely to ask about specifics regarding your practicum or anything else related to your school clinicals unless you choose to highlight something. I've had interviewers ask generic questions like, "Tell me about your favorite clinical sites/experiences and your least favorite." But those kinds of questions leave all of the control in your hands. You can take it in whatever direction you want and highlight (or choose not to mention) whatever you want. I didn't realize you already have CNA experience in an assisted living dementia facility. You can totally use that in your job search. It's all about how you frame your experience - the language you use and the things you choose to highlight (make it as relevant as possible to the place you are applying). It does sound like your new grad job market might be tighter than it is in other areas of the country. Not sure if you're open to relocating - at least for a couple years until you get the experience that will get you in the door closer to home? The midwest/central plains seem to have a lot friendlier market for new grads.
AJPV
366 Posts
I'm graduating from an associate degree program this month. The clear trend I have observed in our region (I know this differs across the country) is that employment experience matters far more than BSN versus ADN or the specific clinical/practicum sites you had during school. The people in my class who have employment experience as a patient care tech, even if that employment was only for the past 6 months or so, have been the people who get many hospital interviews and multiple job offers. However, that's not to say there has been no success for those who did not have employment experience. But it is taking them longer to get interviews/offers, and there are far more of those people who are graduating without offers than those who have experience.
All that to say, my biggest advice for any nursing student is to do whatever it takes to get a tech job. I would go so far as to say don't let yourself graduate without that experience! Even take a semester or year off of school to land a tech job if necessary. Most state BON's don't allow you to work as a tech after you pass the NCLEX, so if you graduate and can't find an RN job, you won't be able to "back-track" to get the experience employers are looking for. Also, if you take time off, when you come back to school you'll have a fresh shot at getting the senior practicum you wanted. Network like crazy to get a tech job - that is far more effective than only applying online without personal connections. Call nurse managers and ask if you can shadow. You can create your own practicum in that sense. Then, when you have gotten to know some of the staff through shadowing, you can inquire about a tech job. If they see that you are eager, that you asked good questions during the shadowing time, and that you are a kind and polite person, they just might "create" a tech opening that didn't exist before. They are often looking to replace techs who graduate from nursing school - they usually hire for those spots around 2-3 months before spring and winter graduation time.