What do/did you do while searching for that first job?

[Work in Progress]

I mean other than going crazy looking at a thousand ads a day specifying that new grads need not apply.

We are running out of savings fast, our landlord didn't pay the mortgage for who knows how long and our place is getting foreclosed on, my husband is out of work and I will not be able to continue as a nurse intern for much longer (per the boss, not by any personal choice). I have a son and a hubby to support (and believe it or not, I am more likely to get a job right now than him, even with the new grad market).

What are you doing/did you do to make ends meet while finding a job? Retail? Husband's job? Family help? Who would hire an RN when they know that they will run, not walk out the door when they finally get a nursing job?

I have been looking and applying everywhere I can possibly think of. Everywhere specifies required experience. Hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, the health department, community mental health centers, home health, dialysis. UGH! One GI clinic actually had the audacity to post a job that required 3 years of acute care experience AND ACLS for a part time clinic staff nurse position that pays about 3 dollars less an hour than the hospitals in the area and is non-benefited. Why would anyone with that experience take that job? The health department wants 2 years of experience for giving immunizations 6 hours a day.

Sorry, that was a tangent- I know you all know how hard it is out there. Anyways, I have a couple of wishy-washy leads through some networking that I am hoping pan out. If they don't, I don't know what to do.

So, how did you keep from becoming homeless, defaulting on student loans and basically giving up on the whole nursing dream from extreme poverty? I am completely at a loss.

[SparkleRN]

Hi - I am in your same boat. Just lost my house to foreclosure, have mounting student loan and credit card debt and no light at the end of the tunnel. And my mom died this year! My boyfriend went to nursing school with me, now we are both hopeless with a temporary place to live. In 3 months we will be homeless, and of course we don't have health insurance. I have tried to apply for other jobs, but like you said - once they find out you are an RN they close the door. I'm considering looking for jobs where there is high turnover and they don't care as much - like bartending, waitressing, hostessing...I think even Starbucks gives you full benefits. You might just have to lie and say you don't have any education and you have been travelling or going to community college part-time for the last two years to explain your resume. The crappy part about this is that working for $8-10 an hour will do nothing for me. It won't pay my debt, won't get me a decent place to live, won't solve any of my problems. I might as well apply for welfare while continuing to look for a job full time. Here is a link to an article with "hope" for new grads that includes links to government benefit sights. You might be eligible for a lot more benefits because you have a kid, including food stamps which really can help in these tough times.

Unemployed New Graduate RN's â€" Resources, Help, and Information

I've also been writing to various nursing organizations that keep harping about the nursing "shortage" and telling them to give it a rest already. Writing to your local and state government might help, too. I'm going to try sending some emails to make our leaders address this situation, not that it will make any difference, but at least I tried.