Specialty areas for new grads

[2021NEgrad, BSN, RN]

I'm a senior male nursing student on track to graduate in May 2021. It's crazy that I should start thinking about the application process already! A lot of my classmates have had that "aha" moment where they knew what specialty area they want to work in (Peds, Cardiac, etc); however, I have yet to have that moment.

I'd ultimately love to be an ED nurse (I'd prefer some sort of med-surg experience first to get comfortable with skills though), and would love to try to pursue a travel nurse gig sometime after the required experience. What advice do you current nurses have for a soon-to-be-graduating nursing student on what floors to apply to, or the application process in general? Thanks!!

[kayji, BSN]

Apply to everything you think you might be interested in. Part of job interviewing is figuring out where you want to be, so go and ask questions, get a feel for the environment and team, which are pretty important for happiness on the job. If you're not committed to one patient population, you'll have more flexibility with the team/environment aspect.

[verene, MSN]

1) Look for residency programs and apply to openings (many Summer start residencies have their applications open in Jan/Feb). 

2) Pay attention during your clinicals - which areas have you enjoyed? Which haven't you enjoyed? Any areas where you really liked or didn't like the unit culture? This is important feedback for yourself and can help guide both applications, as well as what to look for when interviewing. Sometimes it can be better to work on a unit with a GREAT culture even if your interest is a little less - particularly as a new grad - because it will be a better learning environment. 

3) Let your instructors know what your career goals are - they can help set you up with experiences which will feed into your goals, make recommendations on hospitals/units/specialties to look into, and sometimes can even help arrange informational interviews or clinical opportunities that you wouldn't have with out them knowing your interest!    If there is an instructor who has worked in areas you are interested in and/or you feel comfortable with - talk to them! They can be some of your best resources for networking and finding opportunities for both jobs and clinical placements!

If your goal is ED and/or travel take a look at which specialties are in-demand for travelers, and what skills you'll need to build to get into those specialties (or if there is residency/new grad job opportunity - see if you can apply right out of school!).