Why am I not getting call backs?

[cradlehold]

I started and finished nursing school late in the game. I graduated in '94 at the age of 32. I worked in maternity and out patient pediatrics until last year when I left due my child's illness. During the time, I also became a board certified lactation consultant and have been doing private practice consults. Now that I am ready to work for someone other than myself, I am not even getting to the interview process. Am I not getting call backs because

1) I am too old (50 in Nov)

2) I am too experienced (18 years and a BS in Maternal Child Health)

3) I am too specialized?

4) Because I haven't work in acute MCH/L&D in over 10 years?

After all this work and all this time, I am so discouraged. I've always been proud of being a nurse and can't imagine doing anything else. I never anticipated it would be this hard to return! What can I possibly do instead?

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

Ageism might be a factor. However, are the job applications asking for your date of birth? How would they know your age range, unless you are including your work history all the way back to 1994? Most employment applications ask for a job history that only spans the last 10 years, and nothing more.

The economy might also be a culprit. Many experienced nurses are in your situation, and you are not alone.

[Isitpossible, LPN, LVN]

new grads cant find work, seasoned nurses cant find work..... i really think its the economy...

[arg928]

Even if you aren't providing an age, most applications ask for high school name and year graduated, and college names and year graduated. Age can easily be calculated based on HS graduation date, so it could be an age thing.

I, personally, think it is an oversaturated market problem. I have been a nurse for a little over 4 years. In my class, all of us had job offers in our last semester. From my understanding, now over 50% of the graduating classes do not have job offers. I started in L&D, quickly changed to hospice, did a year in psych and now I'm just working prn psych and doing seasonal flu shot clinics. I feel painted into a corner with nursing, I could probably get another hospice job, but I am burned out with hospice. I can rarely get interviews in other areas, and then they always select someone with experience in that field.

Best of luck to you!

[llg, PhD, RN]

The economic conditions are part of the picture ... but your job history is probably also a factor. You say you don't have any recent acute care experience. A lot has changed in the last 10 years. That lack of recent experience puts you at a major disadvantage.

You have to assume that the employers have a lot of applications from people with recent experience that matches well with the types of positions they have available. They are more likely to start their interview process with those candidates. You may need to change the focus of your job search to jobs more like the private consulting you have been doing -- or take a refresher program to get back up to speed in the world of inpatient nursing.

Good luck to you!

[MrChicagoRN, RN]

Consider a refresher course to demonstrate you are up to speed on current acute care issues. And can the people that refer you your consultations offer any referral assistance?