I’ve made it through the holidays now and I still have no job. I’m not really surprised, but I can’t help but feel a little low when every family member and friend asked me if I had a job lined up. All the general public hears is that there is a nursing shortage. Well there is…IF you’ve got experience. Every hospital website I look at has at least 25 - 100 openings for RN’s, but they will only accept applicants with experience. I heard from a reliable source that one hospital had 15 positions for GN’s with nearly 400 applicants. That’s crazy! I’ll just have to wait my turn.
Speaking of GN’s, that is now my official title! Woohoo! My temporary license takes effect today. I wonder if having that would help my applications. Also, I took my state’s jurisprudence exam yesterday and passed. It’s interesting; some states have this and others do not. It basically covers the legal and ethical issues that come up for nurses. The Board of Nurses apparently isn’t there to protect nurses; they are there to protect the general public from you! So don’t screw up. The actual test was 50 questions (multiple choice). In general it was just a lot of common sense, but there were a few answers I had to look up on their website. Yes, it was “open book/web”. I paid $25.00 for their online study prep course. I’m pretty sure I could have passed without it, but I was paranoid about the exam and had the extra money. It helped I suppose. I was familiar with the information that was on the exam because of it.
One of my readers, Candi, asked if I felt prepared to work in a hospital. Hmmm, good question. A little background…I have absolutely no experience in the medical field. I hardly even knew anyone who worked in the medical field. After two years of nursing school I do feel like I can walk into a hospital with a fair amount of confidence. It’s amazing how much you will learn in a couple of years. However, nursing school is the bare bones! You only learn what you absolutely need to know not to kill anyone. There were so many times I wanted to study a topic more in depth. When I did…I ended up failing exams. There isn’t enough time in school to understand everything about everything. Understand the basics and you’ll do fine. I learned more on my clinical days than I did in the theory classes. Make sure you are prepared for every patient you see. If you get to pick patients yourself, never pick someone with a disease process that you have covered before. You’ll be forced to learn more that way.
That’s enough babbling for now. Oh, I’m studying full time for NCLEX, now. That’s way fun (sarcasm). I’ll post about that another time.
-DV
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Trying to find a job is frustrating! As a new grad, I encountered the same problems. One thing I did in the interview process that I believe helped me get a job was to address my lack of experience. For example, "I know I don't have any work experience, but.... I had excellent clinical instructors who have witnessed my abilities firsthand and would be happy to provide references etc. I think this helped employers to consider taking a chance on me. Good luck in your search!
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