What to say to next interviewer after resigning current job?

[musicalme]

So here is my story. I graduated almost a year ago. Nursing is my 2nd degree. I had superb grades and did well in clinical. I know it's very hard for new grads to get a job. I was happy to get hired last month at a well known hospital. As soon as I started orienting on the floor, everything negative unraveled. Unit was short staffed, nurses were very unhappy and always complained hating their job, the manager's a tyrant. Preceptor didn't want to orient me and always had a bad attitude towards my questions. The rest of the staff were mean to me. The unit is very busy and as a new nurse, I was overwhelmed by all that is going on. I talked to my manager, she didn't help much. I pretty much wasn't in a good learning environment and didn't want to risk my license b/c I wasn't being trained properly. I asked to transfer to another unit, but no openings. I haven't completed my orientation. I was disappointed by the environment, by the management, and hated every minute of it so I decided to resign. I convinced myself to stay longer but I just can't stay if my hearts just not into it.

Now I can't even put this experience on my resume b/c it'll look bad. What can I say at my next interview if they ask what i've been doing since the school experience? What if they ask me Why I think it would be better anywhere else?

[SummerGarden, BSN, MSN, RN]

why do you think it will be better anywhere else?? there must be a reason you are hopeful. my advice, the next time you interview for a job, be sure to ask them questions this time.

ask the interviewer how they train new grads, how long orientation is for new grads, and what orientation entails!!! also ask how long has your future preceptor been a nurse and precepting others (some nurses have great knowledge, skills, and experience but cannot teach their way out of a paper bag).

i would also ask how many patients you are expected to care for off of orientation and their acuity. on a supportive and within a safe learning environment, new grads are not to have the highest acuity patients on their floor!!! if the next interviewer does not understand this concept, you need to look elsewhere.

do not for get census because that is how you have been working short!!how is census determined for a shift? how many nurses are experienced vs. the new grads on your shifts? if the new grads out number experienced nurses in this economy, you may end up jumping from the fire pan into the fire because there will not be anyone to help you when you need it the most!!!

that brings me to the turn over rate. what is the turnover rate??!?!?! last but not least, be sure to walk the floor and scope out the nurses.

look them in the eyes… do they seem to put fake smiles on their faces in front of their director or the charge nurse standing next to you? does everyone appear uneasy? after you walk away, check them out when they do not notice you watching them… are they huddled in corners gossiping? are they talking trash about someone or something related to work? do they now seem happy when they think no one is looking?

the positive about your past experience is that now you are not clueless to what a bad nursing work environment feels like, looks like, smells like, or sounds like!!! you are experienced in that sense so use that to your advantage. gl!

[musicalme]

Thank you MBarn08, I have surely learned from this experience. But I'm still stuck on how I would answer the interviewer if I think anywhere else is better... I don't want to seem like I'm bad mouthing

[Whispera, MSN, RN]

Never badmouth a former employer. It can come back to bite you.

If they ask what you've been doing since graduation tell them you had a job but it wasn't a good fit for you. You don't have to elaborate about what the other employer did wrong. What you might do is figure out what you learned from the other job about yourself, to make yourself better in the future, and talk about that. Figure out something about the new place that would make IT better for you. Talk about that. If they have a website, read it closely. If you know people who work there, get info from them about the good parts of the place. Then you can say you "heard" something good, and mention it.

Remember, too, you're interviewing them as much as they're interviewing you.

[musicalme]

thanks so much for responding. I bet a lot of employers here that it's "not a good fit" ... is that really just enough and then I can spin it around and tell them why i'm interested in their hospital instead? :)

[elkpark]

my advice, the next time you interview for a job, be sure to ask them questions this time.

ask the interviewer how they train new grads, how long orientation is for new grads, and what orientation entails!!! also ask how long has your future preceptor been a nurse and precepting others (some nurses have great knowledge, skills, and experience but cannot teach their way out of a paper bag).

i would also ask how many patients you are expected to care for off of orientation and their acuity. on a supportive and within a safe learning environment, new grads are not to have the highest acuity patients on their floor!!! if the next interviewer does not understand this concept, you need to look elsewhere.

do not for get census because that is how you have been working short!!how is census determined for a shift? how many nurses are experienced vs. the new grads on your shifts? if the new grads out number experienced nurses in this economy, you may end up jumping from the fire pan into the fire because there will not be anyone to help you when you need it the most!!!

that brings me to the turn over rate. what is the turnover rate??!?!?! last but not least, be sure to walk the floor and scope out the nurses.

look them in the eyes... do they seem to put fake smiles on their faces in front of their director or the charge nurse standing next to you? does everyone appear uneasy? after you walk away, check them out when they do not notice you watching them... are they huddled in corners gossiping? are they talking trash about someone or something related to work? do they now seem happy when they think no one is looking?

the positive about your past experience is that now you are not clueless to what a bad nursing work environment feels like, looks like, smells like, or sounds like!!! you are experienced in that sense so use that to your advantage. gl!

those are all good questions to ask, but it's also important to keep in mind that many employers will say all the right things in the interview process, and, for whatever reason (whether they were intentionally lying to you or things just didn't work out as expected), you still end up having a bad experience after starting work (i think we've all had that happen to us at one time or another). i'm sure the previous employer didn't say in the interview process, oh, by the way, the nurse manager of this unit is a tyrant, the unit's short-staffed all the time, and the nurses have really bad attitudes -- and don't expect much in the way of orientation ... :)

it is perfectly ordinary and reasonable, in the interview process, to ask to speak to some of the staff nurses on the floor for which you're being considered -- privately, without administration or hr present. i usually ask to speak to the person who has worked there the longest and the newest hire on the unit. this might mean you making an additional trip (or more) to the facility to meet with these people at their convenience, but, to me, it's well worth it. for a new grad, it would also be a good idea to ask to speak to the last new grad who was hired onto the unit, however long that person has been there. you can ask these people about how orientation works "in real life," how the manager is to get along with, general mood of the unit, how happy people are about working for this facility/employer, etc. if the facility refuses to let you do this, that's a big red flag right there (imho).

"not a good fit" is the classic reason ("non-reason") for having left a position (so is "time for a change," but it's hard to say that with a straight face when you were only in a position for a short time :)). yes, you can talk about the positives you've identified about the potential employer -- or you can talk about weaknesses or mistakes you've identified in yourself (as a reason why the previous position didn't work out) and what you've done to improve them (there's a good chance you're going to get asked the ol' "what are your strengths and weaknesses?" question, anyway, so you might as well take the initiaitive and be prepared with a good answer). it is important not to bad-mouth the previous employer, as already mentioned.

best wishes (better luck next time)!