Wondering why you can't get hired or promoted? Resume + Interview hints!
I've been reviewing resumes for open positions in my department and can't believe the resumes I've received: misspelling, words crossed off, no cover letter, including personal information about family life.
Look at your resume! Please don't send a resume if you have none of the job qualifications, unless your cover letter has explanation. eg. enrolled in education program etc.
I was taught in LPN and BSN program how to prepare a resume. Is this a lost art being skipped??
Also agree with our BB members that calling facility and finding out who is department manager, then forwarding your resume to them along with hr is great idea.
I work in smaller organization than hospital but has taken me over two months to get open positions advertised and three weeks to get resumes sent to me...those that sent to me directly have interview same week.
Questions during the job interview should be related to the job you are inquiring about. The following questions is illegal to ask during a job interview here in the U.S.:
Your personal life (married, divorced, children)
Pregnancy
Provision for child care
Religion
Club Memberships
Dependents
Ethnic background
Native Language
Physical Problems
Psychiatric Problems
Spouse's Employment
Credit Rating
Home Ownership
Questions You Should Ask (From Hospital Soup)
How long is the orientation phase and what can I expect?
If for any reason it seems that orientation is just not going well for me what will happen and who should I talk to about it?
Will I work with one preceptor throughout or will I have several different preceptors?
Who will be precepting me? Can you tell me something about them? Will I always have the same preceptor or will there be more than one?
What kind of professional advancement is available to nurses here?
What are some of the attributes of working for your hospital?
If I were to get a job offer from another hospital, why would I want to work for this one?
What is the criterion you will use to select the person you are looking for?
What kind of support can I expect from the nursing educators and preceptors?
What unique challenges has this unit faced over the last year? (I.e. successes, failures, etc.)
How much independence do nurses have in being creative problem-solvers?
Resigning From A Position
Check your facilities policy and procedures--most require that you give notice equal to amount of vacation provided, often 2-3 weeks; long term employed RNs can be 4-5 weeks.
Managers often need 1-3 months notice to be eligible for rehire --don't burn your bridges.
Hi guys! I just recently graduated in June, took a month off to self-study and do KAPLAN then took the nclex in august and passed. I just have a question, what questions do they normally ask in an interview? I'm having an interview with the hospital that I applied to tomorrow and I'm nervous as hell (knowing that I don't go so well at interviews, it's making me nervous) I don't have a problem doing what I'm suppose to do but sometimes it just gets me so intimidated when you're in a big room full of people trying to get a piece of you asking you all these questions, lol! and the silence is just nerve racking. Need some word of advice here, I really appreciate it! Thank you!
Hey, get on the internet and use the keywords "behavioral interview" or "behavioral interview questions" and you will have sine king of questions that could be asked. One popular one is what your long term goals are, like "What do you see yourself doing in five years in regard to your profession?" What would you do in a situation where.....". What is there difference in a manager and a leader?" Your best source of questions is the internet and of course you might try to find someone who does it for a living that is a trusted mentor. Good Luck!
Thanks for all that wonderful info! I just went through an interview with the Floor Director last week. I thought it went great! Guess what? I just received a letter of rejection from HR.
I'm at a point where I'm going to call the director and authentically ask her to critique my interview. At what point did she decide not to hire me? i think calling for constructive criticism is going to help tremendously. I'm also going to ask the same of the HR Nurse Recruiter.
I'm in the process of updating my resume and have experience as a CNA, LPN and RN. I have my LPN and RN experience on the resume, but should I put my CNA experience down too? My resume is getting longer and longer because I have had so many jobs as a nurse.....
Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.
I would mention prior experience as CNA but not list positions as that may sway some hiring mgrs who feel that CNAexperience makes one more understanding of teamwork, especially avoiding dumping on CNA as you've walked in their shoes....
This is such a great thread with so much info -- thank you all!
One question: Is it really acceptable (even expected) to put your GPA on your resume? I managed a 4.0 in my ADN program so would like to put it out there if it will be helpful, but don't want to seem like a show-off, you know?
To the last poster: First of all, congrats on your outstanding GPA in nursing school. But I'm not sure if it's acceptable to put a GPA on a resume or not. If you have some sort of distinction from your GPA, such as summa cum laude, I would think it would be more acceptable to place that title after your degree on your resume.
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chicarn, BSN, RN
38 Posts
thank you santababy52, I appreciate your response.