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.
Annette -- Don't think folding the resume is a big no-no. Even if you mail it in a larger size envelope, there's no guarantee that it won't get bent or otherwise damaged (which may even be a more likely result, since it'll be different than most other snail mail, and more easily trapped and "smushed" by the everythng else!).
Always include a cover letter with it. Fold the resume with it neatly.
Wait till the agency asks you to submit an App and furnish references.
hi all,as i am a foreign educated nurse would like to know-which is the best agency for international recruitment?who one can rely upon to get good job?thanks.
hi all!
this thread is really amazing and has been helping me a lot to update and "fix" my resume. it wasn't good (and interesting) at all...
by the way, i'm also a foreign educated nurse and everybody has been posting that we should send a cover letter/ references. how do i do if all my previous bosses only speak portuguese? should i write it when i send my documents or it wouldn't be recommended?
i would appreciate if someone could help me with these questions...
Wow! this is a great thread. I am, seemingly, unemployable in hospitals. I have been working as a CNA in home health hospice and/or LTC/SNF for the past 12 years, and thought I was paying my dues, learning the ropes etc. I have sent many many electronic applications to some local hospitals, and never get passed them just tossing the application. Never called, never interviewed. Finally, I called someone in HR at one of the hospitals and was told I was not being considered because I have no hospital experience. Well, my ramp up time is running out ( I am 54).
I am a very hard worker, read and research incessantly (I want to work as smartly as possible). I 'm no rocket scientist, but I am a mite smarter than a bag of hammers. The HR person said I would not be able to multitask because of my history in LTC.
I asked a MD I once worked for what she thought my problem was and she said :"one word:AGE." I fear she might be right!
I have been studying EKGs, medical terminology and ACLS to smarten up a bit.
Thanks for your quick response, but they seem to love my resume. I get a call for everyone I send out. I plan to come back to this site to do some research, but I don't think this is the problem. Would you be interested in seeing it? Please send me a private reply and I will gladly send it to you.
Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
IMO resumes are a waste of time. None of the hospitals I applied to would accept them and insisted that I fill out their long and detailed on-line applications. I actually recieved all the resumes I mailed out back unopened. I was offered jobs at all four hospitals I applied to but none of them ever saw my resume.
IMO resumes are a waste of time. None of the hospitals I applied to would accept them and insisted that I fill out their long and detailed on-line applications. I actually recieved all the resumes I mailed out back unopened. I was offered jobs at all four hospitals I applied to but none of them ever saw my resume.
I only applied to one hospital - applied online, which included BOTH uploading my resume and filling in all the same info in a form. I then had to mail in my resume, transcripts, etc. Then when I arrived for my interview? I had to bring anOTHER copy of all the stuff I had sent in, AND fill out a long paper application, which took me, a very fast reader/writer, a good half hour. Ahhhh, efficiency!
I become nervous at interviews and worry that I will not answer the questions correctly, which in turn causes me to give a poor interview. I tried to follow guidelines from my college's career website, and brought a professional portfolio with me to my last interview. The employer was not a bit intersted in looking at it. I was informed I did not need any type of resume. I was not hired for the position. Any suggestions on improving my interviews?
Thank you so much for these resources. I need all the help I can get. I'm like the trapeze artist .... I've got only my little finger hanging on to the trapeze I am used to and will soon be in mid-air looking to pick that next trapeze with both hands. It's the mid-air stuff that's going to be so scary.....:bowingpur
Specializes in Cardiac, Step-Down, Psych, Recruiting.
NRSINGED KAREN said:
I become nervous at interviews and worry that I will not answer the questions correctly, which in turn causes me to give a poor interview. I tried to follow guidelines from my college's career website, and brought a professional portfolio with me to my last interview. The employer was not a bit intersted in looking at it. I was informed I did not need any type of resume. I was not hired for the position. Any suggestions on improving my interviews?
After seeing things from both sides of the interview table, my best advice is to relax and be yourself. I know this is harder than it sounds, but think of it this way -- there are very few interview questions that have right or wrong answers. The interviewer is just trying to decide if you are a good fit for the position. If you are relaxed and answer everything honestly, and they don't choose you, maybe its for the best and the job wouldn't be the best fit for you, either. If you are shy and sensitive and the other nurses on the unit have personalities like barracudas, you might not be too successful on that unit. Managers take that sort of thing into account when they interview. The best you can do is be knowlegeable, upbeat, positive and relaxed. Present yourself in the most honest and favorable light that you can. Everyone has strong points and weak points and interviewers understand this. If you don't succeed on your first interview, you will be that much more practiced and relaxed for the second one. Good luck!
As a long time employer, I will tell you that resumes for anyone other than middle to c-level management is a waste of time. Most hospitals/ health care related businesses use an applicant tracking system which produces numerous statistics useful to future recruitment and retention efforts. Thats why they want the info presented to them in a certain way, ie their application forms. A good resume' will not help if the setting you are applying to does not have an approved open position for which your background specifically fits. If they have certain criteria, but have not advertised that criteria, that would be the explanation for non-responsiveness.
Specializes in Critical Care, Cardiothoracics, VADs.
Anyone have experience with hiring foreign-educated nurses? What concerns do you try to resolve at interview?
I have a telephone interview at a large teaching hospital coming up, for a Clinical Transplant Coordinator position. I am happy with the interview process and clinical/professional Q&A, but I am not sure what to research in terms of being an international nurse.
Any tips appreciated.
Edit: Had the interview, no questions about job experience or education as they were confident I'd be a good fit, only worried about what sort of timeframe I could get there and legally work within. Glad I did so much research on allnurses beforehand so I knew the ins and outs of the process.
should i write it when i send my documents or it wouldn't be recommended?
Thank you so much for these resources. I need all the help I can get. I'm like the trapeze artist .... I've got only my little finger hanging on to the trapeze I am used to and will soon be in mid-air looking to pick that next trapeze with both hands. It's the mid-air stuff that's going to be so scary.....:bowingpur
Havin' A Party!, ASN, RN
2,722 Posts
Annette -- Don't think folding the resume is a big no-no. Even if you mail it in a larger size envelope, there's no guarantee that it won't get bent or otherwise damaged (which may even be a more likely result, since it'll be different than most other snail mail, and more easily trapped and "smushed" by the everythng else!).
Always include a cover letter with it. Fold the resume with it neatly.
Wait till the agency asks you to submit an App and furnish references.