STILL don't have a job?? Vent here!

[wonderwomanchels]

Hi all! I've been on this site for a while now, but haven't posted much. however, i feel like it'll just make me (and hopefully a few others) feel a bit better about this whole job situation if we vent it out together. i just need to complain, and i need people who understand how frustrated and hopeless i'm feeling.

i graduated from a somewhat prestigious university over a year ago, and passed my nclex without a bead of sweat. great grades, great clinical experience, killer references and resume....still can't get a job. i live in the northeast, where things are tight...but still. i work at the grocery store...THE GROCERY STORE! i paid $100,000 to get a degree so that people can supervise how i bag their eggs and talk to me like i'm stupid. i have nothing against my current job - they're great to me and it pays my bills kinda sorta for now - but it's so damn frustrating!

on top of all of this, i'm getting so sick of people constantly saying to me "but i thought we needed nurses!"...when is oprah gonna do a show about all of us who are graduating and finding a completely closed off job market? and now that a second year of nurses are finishing up, us 2008 grads are getting more and more lost.

it's not like i'm not trying - i apply to jobs nearly non stop. i call and ask for nurse managers and recruiters personally, who never answer their phones or my voicemails. i feel like a complete and total failure pretty much all of the time, and don't know what to do. i have at least 15 friends in the same boat, but none of them currently live nearby and i don't have anyone to talk to about these feelings. i cry a lot when i'm alone, but put on a big smile and just tell people i'm staying optimistic and i'm still looking etc. etc.

anyway - if you wanna chime in, please do. i know our families and friends are probably getting sick of listening to us talk about this stuff, so it feels better to talk to strangers who understand. :)

much love and keep the faith, my friends. we're gonna rise above this someday.

[Ace587RN, RN]

Florida is improving a bit. i see people from by batch 09 class finally getting some jobs. I just got a job recently and it requires a 50 miles/day of driving (25 and 25 back) in the Ft. lauderdale area. I wouldn't hope on any jobs in Miami right now. Move a little up north to like Ft. Lauderdale and West Palm Beach

[Rhyleighblue]

Hmmm.... where do I turn?

I graduated last December and I immediately left Maryland for Oregon to live with my new husband. Now that I here, I am discovering a rather odd paradox in the job market. Apparently nobody ever graduates from a Nursing program in Oregon. Or, if they do, they have no intention of working here as a new grad. Every single opening requires 1 - 2 years of experience as an RN. I have over 16 years of Home Health experience as an LPN but none - so far - as an RN under my own license. I have over 2 years of experience working in acute care during school, of course, but I doubt that this will amount to a hill of beans.

Any suggestions?

thank you most sincerely

[PedsRN1975]

What really gets me is even when they do post a job and you have some hope you might get something, you have to jump through so many hoops and interviews. Sometimes I feel it would be easier to become the president of the US than to get a job as a new grad RN. Then I think about two, three years back when they were dying for nurses and they hired you on the spot. It's so depressing, my partner is so sick of seeing me rant and rave about not having a job. But honestly, I have a BSN, 3.9GPA, I speak 6 languages, I have experience as a nursing assistant, you would think that I would be able to get something, anything. I mean, I'm not picky at all. I would ANYTHING. Well... I hate when people outside nursing and sometimes even experienced nurses that are not aware of the problems new grads have, when they hear about my "credentials" they assure me that I shouldn't have any trouble getting my dream job. They're saying " look I read this article that is talking about the great shortage of nurses we have, there is no way you can't get a job". Truth is, I want to slap them... Oh well.. Just ranting and raving!!!!

[EquuszARNP]

All of the Portland hospitals want to be magnet status, which means BSN or BSN-enrolled.

I'd go rural - Coos Bay, Astoria, Tillamook, Vernonia.

I'm in the same boat - just graduated and will take the NCLEX soon. Fortunately I work offshore as a medic so it's not urgent that I immediately find high-paying full-time RN work. I'm going to try to get in the door as casual and go from there. Crazy, no?

Also if you're anywhere near the border, get your WA license ASAP so you can look in Vancouver and Longview. St. John's in Longview has a good number of openings that seem open to new grads.

--Equusz

[DestinedRN09]

Well today I finally had a face to face interview for a job that Ive been waiting on forever, applied for twice and I thought I wouldnt even be able to interview for...It went really well and I should know within the next two weeks whether I have the job! Im soooo excited because I feel like this job is mine and even if its given to someone else, I am very happy to get this far! Stay motivated ppl!!!

[inforn43]

Have any of you been hired yet. Let me know. The economy seems to be worse than when you posted this. If you did get hired, did you figure out what might have been stopping you from getting hired? I am now staying in a motor home in a rural area and have applied at the one hospital they have here. They called me back a couple of times and i was hoping to just work on call. The thing that worries me is that there was something in the application about a credit check. Since i have been out of work for over a year my credit is terrible now and most of these things are recent.

[PolaskyRN]

I am from Northern Cali--the job market here is freaken tough! I graduated in May 2011 and passed boards in June. I have been endlessly applying for jobs and have gotten nothing but rejection letters/emails. Ive also applied to CNA/tech positions but its also a no go (been told they fear we'll not stick around long enough). It is very discouraging. We all worked super hard in nursing school to get to this point (and imo NO ONE outside of nursing will understand this!!) Its not like we DON'T/WON'T know what to do....geezus if only we're given a chance to prove we CAN do the job and do so safely. Sorry I am ranting off here I don't even know what I'm saying anymore...

ANYWAY, where is everyone from (geographic location)??

[newgradchad]

just need to vent --

i graduated in may 2011 and passed my NCLEX in june hoping to get a headstart on the rest of my classmates that haven't found jobs yet. what's most frustrating for me is seeing my classmates, who have taken the exam after me, find jobs! how is that even possible? ok granted i don't have the externship or aide experience, and i gave some of my classmates credit for that, but when i started seeing classmates that only had the retail work experience, like me, snag jobs within a month of passing is extremely frustrating! i have never experienced a jealousy like this in all my life!

[GGT1]

Is it possible to take 2 fulltime jobs? 12 hr shifts. 3-2's?

And this here is ONE reason it is hard for new grads to find jobs. There are SOOO many nurses that work more than 1 job.

[Music in My Heart]

And this here is ONE reason it is hard for new grads to find jobs. There are SOOO many nurses that work more than 1 job.

And many of us will take as many OT shifts as we can. I've been 4x12's for 6 months and presently doing 5x12's. The good news is, it'll probably kill me relatively young so those shifts should be available in 15-20 years... right in the heart of the next "shortage."

[Lifeofanurse]

I'm afraid I agree. I don't believe there is much of a shortage at least not where I live. I'm in Houston. We have a ton of nursing programs and a huge med center but getting your foot in the door is hard. I am about to begin earnestly jobseeking (took the nclex yesterday and getting the good pop up) and I'm scared to death I won't be able to find work. I really don't want to be picky..I'll work any dept in any field but I just don't want to drive the almost 25 miles to the med center, have to pay my own daily parking ($15) and then fight traffic too and from adding almost 3 hours to my already long 12 hour shift. I'll take a lower paying job out here in the suburbs anyday! So I'm going the nontraditional route. I'm going to be visiting LTC's and Rehab centers and some Psych facilities with hopes I can get in there. I would love to work at a Dr's office but feel I need a bit more experience.