Why graduate nurses can't find jobs- a must read!!!

Reading this article definitely shed some light on some of the questions that have been racing through my mind, and helped ease some of my frustrations. This article was written by an RN, a healthcare management consultant. Click the link and read the article and please share your thoughts :))

http://www.solutionsoutsidethebox.net/documents/2009/Nursing_School_Graduates.pdf

[llg, PhD, RN]

The author says exactly what a lot of us experienced nurses have been saying all year.

very nice article... i too am also having a hard time looking for a job.. since iam a new grad.. i wonder what the rn recruiter asks during interviews.. anyone?

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

please share your thoughts :))

I think that the article's author hit the nail directly on the head. She is spot on.

[HeartsOpenWide, RN]

Wow, tell me something I don't know. Nothing she mentioned that I have not already been saying for months; she just explains in nicely. Couldn't be more accurate.

Nice article, but nothing that make me feels better!! Sorry.

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, RN]

Good article, but nothing in there we didn't already know. Though perhaps seeing what everyone has been saying here in print in a real magazine will help those who don't understand finally understand.

[Mariposa2009, BSN, RN]

I'm a new grad and I believe I got my job b/c I was flexible. I was up against many experienced nurses, but b/c I was willing to work weekends, holidays, nights, I got the job. I don't understand how new nurses can be so picky, it really does not make any sense to me. Granted, I would prefer to work in an acute care setting, but that wasn't happening anytime soon. So, I decided to apply to LTCFs/SNFs to at least gain some experience as an RN. And, believe it or not, I truly enjoy it and am grateful to have a job.

Very good article, even though I have secured a job before graduation. I am already planning to begin classed in january to study for my RN, I am finishing up my LPN, and I am going to take some other courses such as billing and coding and phlebodomy and get state lisenced. I think that you just have to get creative in making yourself stand out as a new grad.

[itsmejuli]

I agree with the article, its spot on.

I don't expect to have much difficulty finding a job when I graduate. I'm single, kids grown and I can relocate anywhere in the country. Plus I'm not particular about which floor I'm assigned to.

I still wonder about online nursing education vs classroom. I've chosen classroom.

I'm a new grad and I believe I got my job b/c I was flexible. I was up against many experienced nurses, but b/c I was willing to work weekends, holidays, nights, I got the job. I don't understand how new nurses can be so picky, it really does not make any sense to me. Granted, I would prefer to work in an acute care setting, but that wasn't happening anytime soon. So, I decided to apply to LTCFs/SNFs to at least gain some experience as an RN. And, believe it or not, I truly enjoy it and am grateful to have a job.

NG here. Can you tell me why then that even though I fill out every application checking off that I am willing to work ANY SHIFT, WEEKENDS, HOLIDAYS, you name it, and still don't have a job?

I don't mean to be rude, I just want to let you know that there are new grads out there that are NOT picky and still jobless. The only thing I ask is to not do anything to put my license or my patients in jeopardy (having had 35+ patients and being a pill pusher for 8 hours is not my idea of experience or even decent nursing care at the last place I tried working).

[southernbelle4lu]

Thanks for posting this! :)

[prinsessa]

I'm not picky about shift or unit and still haven't found a job. People keep telling me to be flexible...that I may have to work nights, weekends and holidays. I have known all of that way before I graduated. There may be a few picky new grads but most of us are willing any shift possible just to get a job. I have even applied to "weekender" positions even though that would be very difficult for me. I would never get to see my kids or husband.

i'm not picky at all about shifts & my long-term career goal is acute care nursing, and there are still very few jobs out there for nurses like me! one of our hospital systems basically told us: "don't bother applying, we are no longer hiring new grads." called some LTCs and they also said, "we are looking for experienced RNs only for management purposes, no new grads."

doing the best i can...the economy is slowly getting better, i will find a job!

was up against many experienced nurses, but b/c I was willing to work weekends, holidays, nights, I got the job. I don't understand how new nurses can be so picky, it really does not make any sense to me.

Family ..... yeah .... kinda important sometimes ....

[Mariposa2009, BSN, RN]

NG here. Can you tell me why then that even though I fill out every application checking off that I am willing to work ANY SHIFT, WEEKENDS, HOLIDAYS, you name it, and still don't have a job?

I don't mean to be rude, I just want to let you know that there are new grads out there that are NOT picky and still jobless. The only thing I ask is to not do anything to put my license or my patients in jeopardy (having had 35+ patients and being a pill pusher for 8 hours is not my idea of experience or even decent nursing care at the last place I tried working).

I once was as narrow minded as you are in regards to working in LTCFs/SNFs. I even posted a thread expressing my concern about working in a LTCF. But, let me tell you, it has been such a great learning experience. I am more then just a "pill pusher," much more. I work on a sub-acute rehab floor. We can get anything from CABGs, many post-ops, S/P pneumonias, CVAs, MIs, many fxs, you name it. If you didn't know it, you would think that my floor was a mini med-surg unit. I hang IVs, insert foleys, access g-tubes, suction vent patients, dsg changes, and much more. Not only am I utilizing many of the skills that I learned in school, I am learning time management, honing my assessment skills, and getting up close an personal w/ my pt's and their families. Not to mention, learning how to interact w/ MDs and other healthcare providers. Also, working in LTC allows me to familiarize myself with charting and paperwork. I rather be working in a LTCF, then not doing anything for 5+ months waiting for my "dream job." And, no I don't have 35+ patients, I actually have 6-10. The avg med-surg floor has about 6-8 pts so, it's not that bad. Oh yea, I work 12 hr shifts not 8. Now, I'm not telling you to go into LTC, I am just letting you know that I do much more then just "push pills." Not all LTCFs are the same. Good luck on your Job Search!!!!

[Mariposa2009, BSN, RN]

Family ..... yeah .... kinda important sometimes ....

Sometimes you have to sacrifice to get what you want. And, yes unfortunately family time is included.

I once was as narrow minded as you are in regards to working in LTCFs/SNFs. I even posted a thread expressing my concern about working in a LTCF. But, let me tell you, it has been such a great learning experience. I am more then just a "pill pusher," much more. I work on a sub-acute rehab floor. We can get anything from CABGs, many post-ops, S/P pneumonias, CVAs, MIs, many fxs, you name it. If you didn't know it, you would think that my floor was a mini med-surg unit. I hang IVs, insert foleys, access g-tubes, suction vent patients, dsg changes, and much more. Not only am I utilizing many of the skills that I learned in school, I am learning time management, honing my assessment skills, and getting up close an personal w/ my pt's and their families. Not to mention, learning how to interact w/ MDs and other healthcare providers. Also, working in LTC allows me to familiarize myself with charting and paperwork. I rather be working in a LTCF, then not doing anything for 5+ months waiting for my "dream job." And, no I don't have 35+ patients, I actually have 6-10. The avg med-surg floor has about 6-8 pts so, it's not that bad. Oh yea, I work 12 hr shifts not 8. Now, I'm not telling you to go into LTC, I am just letting you know that I do much more then just "push pills." Not all LTCFs are the same. Good luck on your job search!!!!

Obviously you have a completely different experience than I did. I know that not all the nursing homes are the same. I have a friend who got a great sounding job at an LTC with only 18 patients and she actually does patient care. Hell, I would love to work there, but I can't because I live in a completely different state as her. But as you just stated, YOU DID NOT have 35+ patients, having to pass meds to every single one of them with only an 8 hour time frame, no time to document and working 2hrs past your shift was pretty much a requirement (if you're not taking short cuts...if you are then your one of the few that get out on time!), so you can't say that I am "narrow minded" when, simply, you did not go through what I went through (while working did you ever feel you were giving terrible pt care? every shift, did you feel like your license was on the line? Well, I did, every. single. time.). It's also very presumptuous of you to call me that especially since I have applied to OVER 30 LTC facilities within a 10 mi radius from my house after that experience, but NONE of them are hiring RNs. My previous comments about working in a LTC facility were NOT generalizations-- I only shared MY experience. And as you can see, I'm still not ruling LTCs out as a possible place to work.

It's great you found a nice place to work; good for you. Just my advice to you, don't make ASSumptions about people.