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.
Well KAI67 i've been a camp nurse on and off this summer but still no luck on anything more permanent, and I'm starting to get really nervous b/c I just hit 8 months
a tip that one of my clincal instructors taught us was to put down how many clinical hours you worked during school and what extra rotations that you did. eg: ICU, NICU, Labor and delivery ect.
You need to take a look at this thread and start asking questions of some of the nursing associations that want you as a member....along with your money.
I graduated in May and started speaking with HR people at a couple different locations right away. But they dragged their feet and when they finally got back to me they only had per diem jobs to offer. I have a chronic condition, so I'd be a fool to give up my current position as a nursing assistant which gives me benefits. But what is really starting to upset me is that some of my classmates have gotten positions at the hospital where I'm an assistant. Its bad enough having to take orders and work like a slave for the nursing staff of each floor I go to (I'm in the float pool so I don't have a steady unit), but it's going to really be bad if those nurses giving the orders are my classmates - some of whom I outperformed in the classroom and clinical setting.
I guess the biggest problem is my inital resistance to working on a med-surg floor. I really wanted to go right into Psych or the ER, but jobs in these fields seem limited. People kept telling me "Oh, you're a guy and you want to work in psych? Theyll be begging you to work for them! Well, so far, it hasn't been a buyer's market for me.
Specializes in ED, ICU, lifetime Diabetes Education.
Has anyone tried creating a profile on Linked In and joining some of the nursing groups? Even though I have a job, I still get requests from head hunters and HR personnel.
1. Consider per diem jobs because they can lead to full time. If there is a specific facility that you want to work at with per diem slots open, it's a foot in the door. Carrying a full time gig and a per diem gig at the same time is common. Besides...the extra money at too bad either.
2. Newbies will never get the best assignments....take what you can get and work up.
3. Nobody really cares about your grades. "Where is a copy of your license?" is more of what you likely to hear.
4. Job related volunteer experience is helpful to employer's who appreciate it. I know many nurses who started as volunteer EMT's.
5. Can you clearly articulate what you are going to bring to the table for the organization to which you are applying? Make sure you are not meeting with recruiters and presenting "It's all about me. What are you going to do for me? I only want this position." attitude.
6. If you have no experience with resumes or job interviews...get help. Research the net, speak with people already working, whatever....It might be you just can't sell you. If you've never been on a formal interview, it is a skill you have to polish.
7. Dress for success. Look professional...not like you're headed to the club. Cover any ink, even if it means long sleeves and pants. (by the way, ink is cool!) Any facial jewlery beyond 1 or 2 conservative earings in each ear is usually not a good idea. Remember, you are being judged on how you fit into their organization.
8. They are not only looking at your skills, they are also looking at how well you fit into their organization. Most places will weight your fitting in as much or more then you skills.
Specializes in LTC, PCU, Med/Surg, Hospice, OBGYN.
Well KAI67 i've been a camp nurse on and off this summer but still no luck on anything more permanent, and I'm starting to get really nervous b/c I just hit 8 months
Oh boy, do I give you props! I'm going on 3 months and I'm pulling my hair out from desperation! I mean, I just took a PRN Hospice job but I need full-time 'cause I need the benefits. I hoping for a Med/Surg job that I applied for last week. I pray to God I get it and hopefully I can do both. I know, I'm just hoping for the best like everyone else. I hope you find something permanent too soon!
Specializes in LTC, PCU, Med/Surg, Hospice, OBGYN.
I guess the biggest problem is my inital resistance to working on a med-surg floor. I really wanted to go right into Psych or the ER, but jobs in these fields seem limited. People kept telling me "Oh, you're a guy and you want to work in psych? Theyll be begging you to work for them! Well, so far, it hasn't been a buyer's market for me.
Totally understand. I'm not a guy but I am bilingual and I was told over and over again "Oh, you're bilingual. They'll be begging for you to work. No problem for you getting a job." WRONG!!! I've applied to over 30 positions, been to 2 interviews where the Hispanic population is actually more than 50% and they still didn't give me the job!!!
People now keep telling me that they can't believe I haven't been "snatched up" yet. Makes me feel like I'm not working hard at it or that I'm doing something wrong. But I just took a PRN Hospice position and maybe I'll have a shot at a Med/Surg job too in a town that is mostly Hispanic. Hope for the best but expect the worst!
Am I too sensitive or are NG's treated like crap in CT? I've been on the phone to confirm some minor detail in order to complete the application packet or else your app gets trashed....and somebody "forgot" to place me on hold. I heard every word of an office conversation.."how much they hate GN's, wish they'd stop wasting paper/time and space and how difficult it is to be polite to GN's when you are waiting to speak with "real, experienced nurses". All of this in CT by the way...wish me luck ;-(
Specializes in LTC, PCU, Med/Surg, Hospice, OBGYN.
Am I too sensitive or are NG's treated like crap in CT? I've been on the phone to confirm some minor detail in order to complete the application packet or else your app gets trashed....and somebody "forgot" to place me on hold. I heard every word of an office conversation.."how much they hate GN's, wish they'd stop wasting paper/time and space and how difficult it is to be polite to GN's when you are waiting to speak with "real, experienced nurses". All of this in CT by the way...wish me luck ;-(
OMG! I'm not surprise though. I learned NGs are treated like crap in NC too. Have applied over and over and they're basically telling me cold-heartedly to call back and try again in a year after I am "experienced". Oh, and it can't be any type of nursing experience, it has to be acute care or hospital type setting experience. Totally ridiculous! Since in Hospice I do IVs, catheters, assessments, etc... I wish they would remember when they were NGs too and be more respectful. I hope to God I treat NGs better when I am finally a very old, experienced nurse. Good luck to you though!
OMG! I'm not surprise though. I learned NGs are treated like crap in NC too. Have applied over and over and they're basically telling me cold-heartedly to call back and try again in a year after I am "experienced". Oh, and it can't be any type of nursing experience, it has to be acute care or hospital type setting experience. Totally ridiculous! Since in Hospice I do IVs, catheters, assessments, etc... I wish they would remember when they were NGs too and be more respectful. I hope to God I treat NGs better when I am finally a very old, experienced nurse. Good luck to you though!
My experience has been the same, I went into a nurse manager's office to summit my resume and introduce myself, and He basically said, "I am not interested, even if I was I would not want to hire you." I thought to myself OMG, what did I do? I started to take it personal as if I did something wrong, Although I didn't let him know that he hurt me, I thanked him for his time and to keep my resume on file for future positions, but I could not have ran fast enough out of his office. All I wanted to do was cry.
I've got so many closed doors, and have been yelled at by so many HR nurse managers/recruiters that I've become immune. I don't understand how some people are just so rude, don't they understand how it feels, as they were once new grads too? But I have told myself that when I become old I will never treat NG's as how I have been treated.
Am I too sensitive or are NG's treated like crap in CT? I've been on the phone to confirm some minor detail in order to complete the application packet or else your app gets trashed....and somebody "forgot" to place me on hold. I heard every word of an office conversation.."how much they hate GN's, wish they'd stop wasting paper/time and space and how difficult it is to be polite to GN's when you are waiting to speak with "real, experienced nurses". All of this in CT by the way...wish me luck ;-(
No, it's not you being sensitive. I had one recruiter call me and ask how many years of experience I had. When I told her I was a new graduate, she groaned into the phone.
And yet they wonder why they say that nurses eat their young
play4lock
25 Posts
Well KAI67 i've been a camp nurse on and off this summer but still no luck on anything more permanent, and I'm starting to get really nervous b/c I just hit 8 months