Where you able to get a job as a new grad with a DUI???

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Hello all,

I will be starting nursing school in the fall at valencia and I am very nervous. I have already contacted the BON and been told that my past DUI will not keep me from becoming licensed. I have read many post about people that had a DUI getting becoming licensed but I was wondering where you able to get a job as a nurse at a hospital in Florida or wherever. How long was the journey for you finding a job with a criminal past? Should I even continue to pursue this career if the chances of employment are slim to none? Thanks a bunch.

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Specializes in PDN; Burn; Phone triage.
Hello all,

I will be starting nursing school in the fall at valencia and I am very nervous. I have already contacted the BON and been told that my past DUI will not keep me from becoming licensed. I have read many post about people that had a DUI getting becoming licensed but I was wondering where you able to get a job as a nurse at a hospital in Florida or wherever. How long was the journey for you finding a job with a criminal past? Should I even continue to pursue this career if the chances of employment are slim to none? Thanks a bunch.

I'm in Kansas, not Florida. My DUI was in 2008. Completed diversion in 2009. I graduated nursing school in 2011. Soooo with the numbers out of the way --

I found a pediatric private duty job almost immediately after graduating. Home health. It took me seven months to find a hospital job, which is a little bit less than average for the new grad. Like everyone else, I put in probably hundreds of applications and also had a phone interview for a hospital job that lead nowhere, an in-person interview for a hospital job that I didn't get, and an in-person interview for another PDN job that I got but the case fell through.

Friend of mine still had the Interlock on her car for the first half of nursing school from her DUI, and she ended up with two job offers (tele and ER) from two different hospitals.

I'll never know how many job offers I didn't get or how many times my resume was trashed immediately because of my DUI history. I also didn't have any recent medical care experience as a PCA, which also didn't help my job hunt. :lol:

I'm also lucky that KS has pretty liberal licensing laws. I actually didn't have to admit to my DUI to the BON because my license was never suspended and I received diversion -- but my friend, who did have to jump through the licensing hoops, didn't have any sort of restricted or probationary license secondary to the past DUI.

So, yes, it is possible. :)

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Be upfront about it on your resume. A DUI is a stupid mistake, but one that lots of people make. People will most likely respect you for being forthright and admitting to your mistakes. You should be able to get a job.

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Sorry about all of the spelling mistakes from the original post. Thanks for responding to my post. I am just nervous because I earned my phlebotomy certification because I wanted to start working at a hospital before school began. So far I have had no luck in finding an entry level position even though I am always honest on my application. I feel as though I am being judged for that one situation. Even during an interview I was told that I need to make sure I passed the background check. I just do not want to spend the time and the money to go to nursing school and not be able to find a job. That will ruin my life literally. Only one person has responded that got a DUI and was able to find a job. I just feel........bad, lost, discouraged. Please respond if you have been in the same situation and you were able to find gainful employment.

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Be honest and it won't be a problem. Mistakes happen. As long as you don't get one while you are a nurse.

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