Where to work as a pre-nursing student?

Banana nut, BSN, RN, EMT-B · Jul 5, 2016

I have a little trick that most students in your position do not think of. Go to the hospital that would be your dream RN Job and apply to work in the food services department. You do not need prior work experience, and you get to go to all the units of the hospital to serve food. This will give you special privilege when applying for an internal position as a tech or floor staff. When you go to work make sure you work as hard as you can talk with everyone on the different units about wanting to work on the floor as a tech and that you are taking classes for nursing. If you can network well and people like you, you can get a recommendation for a tech position from your higher ups in the food services department. Ask around what unit is hiring and ask your managers to refer you. You may need to be 6 months employed before you can transfer but it's well worth the wait. You do not need a cna to work as a hospital tech and if managment knows you are smart and hard working they will bring you on and train you. Not many people know about this avenue to get a tech job but I've done it personally and I have seen it done on more than one occasion. Once your working just keep asking around and keep your eyes open for a position and kill the interview and get to know all the charge nurses and bring them food for patients quickly and just be awesome and smart and easy to work with and you will transition very well into a tech job and then on to an RN JOB,

Good luck.

ItsThatJenGirl, CNA · Jul 5, 2016

I just applied for a PRN Emergency Department Unit Secretary job in the hospital I really want to work at post-graduation. Maybe take a peek at the open jobs in hospitals around you - see what they have on offer.

crazydoglady89 · Jul 5, 2016

You've been given some great advice! If you are unable to find work in the medical setting you desire, I wouldn't discount volunteer work. I personally volunteer in hospice on Sunday mornings, and it has really given me a great preview into the nursing world, as well as dealing with patients (I went through extra training to be a patient/family support volunteer).

My situation is a bit different from yours, however. I'm 26, I work full time, take pre reqs online and I do not want to give up my paycheck until I'm in nursing school (my job is not nursing related at all, hence the hospice volunteering).

My advice would be to be sensible and make sure you can pay your bills, but also don't discount volunteer work. Hospice in general is always in need and can offer you a pretty steady/predictable volunteer schedule. I work with some awesome people and a lot of my fellow volunteers are nurses, so I learn a lot from them.

Best of luck!

CanadianAbroad · Jul 5, 2016

Another good job to start is working as a sitter in a hospital. You do not need experience and then could transfer to a Tech position. Some sitter positions allow you to bring your books and study as well, depending on the patient.

Gabriella06 · Jul 5, 2016

Thank you all so much! I will try to find myself a job like the ones mentioned above, but if i can't then i will definitely look into volunteering.

mirandamc96 · Jul 6, 2016

If you've never worked in the medical field or closely with patients at all before, I recommend trying to get into a Chiropractic office as a Chiropractic Assistant if possible. Usually you don't need any previous job experience and they train you themselves without having to take any sort of class. I was able to do this as my first job, and work part time through my last year of pre-reqs. I know its not in a hospital setting, but I think its definitely a good way to get your foot in the door! Best of luck!

Niandra · Jul 6, 2016

Some hospitals have their own CNA programs! You might be able to find one in your area. While I was an undergraduate, I worked as a CNA. The hospital trained CNAs (well, they called them Clinical Associates there which sounds a lot fancier than it was) through their own program, so I actually had paid training! The downside was I wasn't able to work outside of that facility without going through a course and paying money. It was a difficult job but ultimately I got invaluable experience from it. I transferred to the float pool after a few months and got to work on every unit. I found that I enjoyed being a 1:1 with the patients with psychiatric conditions.

I left the field for awhile after I graduated college and have kind of come full circle. I'm planning to pursue an accelerated nursing program (I have a BA in Psychology/Poli Sci). I currently work as a unit secretary/mental health worker at a psychiatric hospital. Again, it's incredibly valuable experience. Working as a unit secretary is awesome -- the way my unit is set up has me working very closely with nurses. I've learned so much about meds, treatment planning, monitoring conditions, putting in orders, seen med passes, documentation and charting from this job.

Good luck on your job search!

lifelearningrn, BSN, RN · Jul 6, 2016

Getting into the door via food service is actually quite brilliant. I hadn't thought of that, either. Housekeeping is another 'in'. Being as young as you are, those are both a good place to start. :)

Banana nut, BSN, RN, EMT-B · Jul 7, 2016

Getting into the door via food service is actually quite brilliant. I hadn't thought of that, either. Housekeeping is another 'in'. Being as young as you are, those are both a good place to start. :)

I appreciate the complement.

This is a good option too but you will be getting your hands dirty and it is much more manual labor involved.

Just know that the sooner you get into a hospital setting the better and nurses love working with youngsters who are smart and motivated and hardworking. Show them you have these qualities and that you are easy to wrok with and you will go far.