Things I Am Tired Of Hearing

I know, I know, it’s tough for everyone out there, but there are just some things that I am SICK of hearing during this job application process.

Take good notes if you want to avoid torturing me (or vice versa, in which case you are the devil)…

• New grads welcome to apply. Don’t say it if you don’t mean it. I’ve applied to many a job that will “consider” new grads, then a week later I’m told they’ve been “inundated” with applications from more experienced candidates and won’t even be interviewing new grads. Fine, but don’t make us feel that we have a shot if we don’t actually have one.
• Experience “preferred.” Bullsh*t. This actually means experience REQUIRED. How many times have I submitted for one of these, only to be told, “Sorry you don’t meet the minimum qualifications.” Well, you didn’t say I had to have experience, Mr. Recruiter Man.
• BSN preferred. Tell that to my second-degree nursing program that decided a BSN was unnecessary. Apparently they forgot that we actually have to be employed while we’re working on that Master’s degree…
• You can’t be too picky. Um, I’ve applied to jobs I wouldn’t want to actually do if you paid me $100 an hour. But I’ll take ‘em if they’re offered. 90 applications in a month does NOT equal picky, people.
• Hang in there. Says every person I know with an actual job. Try saying that when you’re unemployed and see how it tastes.
• It’ll all work out. Tell that to my landlord and other entities to whom I owe money.
• It’s not about you/It isn’t personal. Of course it’s not personal but that doesn’t make me feel better. It just reminds me how crappy things are for everyone around me too.
• Wait, isn’t there a nursing shortage? No, Virginia, not around these parts.

Moral of the story: Careful what you say to new grad nurses.

I Heart Timberland!

Not only did they sponsor my latest giveaway, but when they read my review of the Provider line and noticed that I wished for a wider version of their shoes, they quickly offered to send me another pair in Wide!

This time I went for the Professionals…in Navy. (Now I’m decked out in black, white, and blue nursing shoes…Sweet!)

At first try-on, they were super comfortable, and I definitely appreciated the extra width. As soon as I have an opportunity to wear them on a shift – A.k.a. As soon as I am employed somewhere – I will post a more thorough review. And keep an eye out for Jennifer Vitti’s thoughts on these puppies in the near future.

Ask and Ye Shall Receive

One of my favorite food bloggers recently invited her readers to “Ask Me Anything” and I thought that was kind of a neat idea.

So I’m attempting to follow in her footsteps…

Here’s your official invitation to ask me anything…about nursing, school, life, anything!

Obviously I have to respect HIPAA and maintain confidentiality, but if there is something you’ve been wondering since you read this blog for the first time, go for it!

Click here and fire away!

Busy Bee

Well, not so much.

I wish I could say my silence over the past week is due to a slew of job interviews that appeared on the radar. But I would be lying.

87 applications now accounted for and STILL not even a nibble. I just don’t get it.

So in the meantime I’ve been trying to occupy myself. I’m working out like I haven’t worked out since life B.N.S. (that’s Before.Nursing.School). And I’m seeing results. I’m eating a lot healthier too. So kudos to me for taking care of myself.

I’ve also hooked back up with my parish nursing preceptor from last spring. I checked with her to see if she had any projects I could help with, and she joked “Careful what you wish for!”

My first assignment: To put together a video presentation for the annual ladies luncheon. This year’s theme: “It’s not easy being green.” Kind of fun!

My ongoing project with her will be developing best practices for parish nurses to help their churches be more inclusive of people with disabilities. This is hugely close to my heart because I worked in disability support services B.N.S. We’re going to present on this at a parish nursing conference this fall. So I’ll actually get to see this through for the next several months, which is exciting.

The added benefit to all of this is that when (not if) I DO get called for job interviews and they ask me what I’ve been doing with my time, I’ll have a good answer for them.

Humble Pie

• Number of job applications completed this weekend: 8
  
• Number of applications submitted to-date: 70
• Number of interviews offered to-date: 2 (1 for an internship that was cancelled two days later, 1 for a clinic job that was only interviewing while I happened to be in Mexico)
• Number of job offers to-date: 0

Please sir, may I have some more?

Small Victories

I decided to take a day off from new job applications today. After venting to my nursing school friends and S for the past few days, I realized I was on the verge of a meltdown, and needed to step back. That in itself was a victory…rather than persist in the discouraging process, I gave myself some distance.

I also learned another lesson about the value of persistence. I had applied for an acute care hospice job last week, and just so happen to be friends with an RN who works there already. She gave me the name of the manager and we played phone tag last week, his last voice mail on Friday saying he’d be in touch after he got my application from HR and read through it.

Lo and behold, I checked my application status online yesterday and it said “Sorry, not selected.” Harumph.

However, the status date was last week, before I even got the manager’s message.

Which means he may not have ever seen my application.

So today, I took matters in to my own hands and called him directly to follow up. Sure nuf, he had never seen my application, had only received one partially completed application from another candidate and was mystified about why HR hadn’t sent him anything else.

When I asked if I could send my resume to him directly, he said “Absolutely.”

My RN friend says that he’ll be hesitant to hire a new grad but that he’s not opposed to it. The last new grad they brought on is doing great.

I’m not holding my breath, but it felt really good to be proactive about something…

P.S. Another victory for the day…The Makings of a Nurse got a shout-out in an online article, “50 Best Blogs for New Nurses”. As discouraging as the past few weeks have been, at least I know my experiences can be helpful to someone else.

Grumble, Grumble

Today was a big downer. I received several automated e-mails regarding my job applications, saying “Thanks, but no thanks.”

The b*tch of it is that most jobs I have found require at least one year of nursing experience. But how are we supposed to get experience if no one will hire us?

The jobs that will take new grads “strongly prefer” a BSN. I don’t have one of those because my program considers them unnecessary, citing the fact that we already have a Bachelor’s degree. When we pointed this problem out to our school, they said we’ll just have to work a little harder to market ourselves and our strengths. But how are we supposed to market ourselves if we can’t even get past the first round of applications because everything is online and automated?

We have a pro-seminar coming up, to check in with everyone about how we’re doing on the job hunt. They may be getting an earful from me…

Techno-RN

Hola via Ecto!

I’m trying my hand at a desktop blog publishing application that’s compatible with my Mac. I’ve already had a few technical difficulties, but the jury is still out. There is a learning curve to this stuff. The good news is, I get a 20-day free trial before I have to decide whether I’m willing to pay. And the lifetime fee is only $17.95. Not too shabby.

In other software news, I just found out about a free (with optional donation) program called Schoolhouse, that helps you organize assignments, exams, lecture notes, etc. I’ve tinkered with it a little and it actually looks pretty neat. Won’t have much use for it until May, but I thought I’d pass along the recommendation.

‘Looking forward to a big announcement from Apple tomorrow morning. Rumor has it they’ll be releasing a tablet Mac resembling a big iPhone. *Drool*

Can you tell I’m restless?

I Gotta Feeling

I just applied to what may be the perfect job for me. I’m not gonna jinx it by going into too many details, but the minute I read the job description I knew it was a winner.

Keep your fingers crossed for ol’ Nurse Teeny!

Timberland Winner

Time to pick a lucky owner of a new pair of Timberland PRO Renovas.

Let me consult my Magic 8 Ball…

Jennifer Vitti, come on down!

Send me an e-mail (if the link doesn’t work, try the Contact Me page on the blog) with your address, phone number, shoe size, and preferred style (Provider, Professional or Caregiver) and I’ll let the folks at Timberland know.

Congrats, Jen! I’m so excited for you!

P.S. If you would be so kind as to write a quick review once you’ve tried out the shoes, I’ll post your review here as a guest blogger. I’d greatly appreciate it!