The nursing job hunt

Question

I am a new graduate awaiting my NCLEX results in Chicago, IL. I am working a preparing for the job interview process. Can anyone provide me advise as to things to have on my resume, cover letter, & from who/how many recommendation letters should I have. Also, what are common questions asked in the interview process? What type of questions should I ask to look interested and qualified? Please respond if you have recently gone through this process or if you are responsible for the hiring process.

Answer 1

As you know, you're in good shape. For the last several years there has been a shortage of nurses in the US and abroad, and the shortage is only getting more acute as the baby boomers age -- you'll have plenty of opportunities.

On to your question.  We'll take it one piece at a time...

Resume: In addition to all of the usual elements one would include on a standard resume (education, job experience etc.) a nursing resume should really convey the the kind of nurse you want to be. Are you going for more clinical work? Do you hope to work with geriatric patients? Or do you prefer pediatrics? Do you want to be more of a research nurse?  Depending on your career goals, you should be sure to emphasize those skills throughout your entire resume.  Also, use the language of a nurse -- be sure to emphasize the clinical and technical knowledge you have gained.

Cover Letter: Whatever element your resume isn't conveying, use your cover letter to hammer that point home. This is a good opportunity to tug at the heartstrings a bit: in your cover letter, explain why you went into nursing, and how rewarding it is for you to work hard and care for patients. Older nurses (ie: hiring nurses and hiring managers) tend to be skeptical of a lot of young nurses, fearing that the young and new nurses won't want to work as hard. Make sure to reassure them that nursing is a passion of yours, and that you'll bring lots of energy to the job.

Recommendation Letters: Two should be fine. Fewer and fewer hospitals, SNFs, and other areas are requesting letters -- often they just want to talk to two or three of your references instead. Have those folks lined up.

Common questions: There are a lot of them. Be prepared for both soft questions like:  "Why did you get into nursing?" or "What are you not comfortable doing?" as well as practical skill questions such as: "Can you show me how put in an IV?" or "What are two or three things you should do to avoid patients falling on the unit?"  We would be happy to give you more examples if you're interested (just check out: http://prepsession.com/career-prep/inter...

Questions you should ask:

This is your chance to have a dialogue with your interviewer and show off that you're intelligent, resourceful, and excited about the job. A candidate without questions can come across as uninterested and/or nervous about the position.

Think of several questions beforehand, ideally at least 3-6 of them. During your interview, try to ask a blend of both general questions and more personal questions to build your connection with the interviewer. A few good examples of a general question:

-"How would you describe the type of nurses who excel in this hospital?"

-"Tell me a little more about the culture of this unit...what's it like working here day to day?"

-"What are some of the changes the organization is going through right now? How do you think it will be different in 2 or 3 years?"

A good example of a personal question you can ask: "Why do you enjoy working here? What keeps you excited about this hospital?"

Also, remember that you don't have to wait for the end of the interview to ask questions -- it's perfectly acceptable to sprinkle your questions throughout the interview. Just be sure to try to gauge your interviewer's style...While some interviewers may be more rigid, most people enjoy having a dialogue and more of a "conversation" during the interview.

Hope that was helpful!

If you'd like more advice, visit us at http://www.PrepSession.com/.