Nurse Residency Programs for new grads: my journey

I am done (in 6 weeks) however I am done with all in classroom time, lectures, labs, and exams. I only have 6 weeks of senior placement/precepting in the hospital, which by the way I will be going to a level 3 NICU, and I will be graduating in May!! I've known since before I started nursing school I wanted to work with children especially babies and toddlers so when I got into nursing school I knew I had to be a NICU nurse no questions. Well its incredibly difficult for new graduates to get hired on a high level NICU or any pediatric unit, however my dreams are bigger than just a unit, I want to work in the NICU at a children's hospital (not exactly the place most new graduates start out). Even for experienced nurses it's not easy getting into a children's hospital but once your there most don't leave.

So how do you beat the odds and give yourself a fighting chance at working in a children's hospital? I started my very first semester in nursing school by discovering nurse residency programs for new graduate nurses. Most children's hospitals offer them as do most hospitals in general (not all though) and the trick to this is research. I know I groaned myself when I wrote that but it is true, I can't tell you how many hours I've spent on my computer researching programs. Twitter has become my best friend in this process and all the programs I've selected to apply to have a twitter page, I even discovered some programs through twitter. I knew from the beginning that these programs only have your nursing school history to go off of and your work experience so I knew I needed to keep working with children as long as possible and make the most out of my 4 semesters in nursing school.

Now the work part wasn't that hard for me, I have been working with children for years and I was currently working with children when I started nursing school. As for making the most of nursing school well keeping my grades up was one thing, don't get me wrong I by no means got strait A's but I never failed a course and I worked hard to keep my grades high which isn't easy when you are involved as much as I was. I ran for vice president of my local Student Nurses Association chapter at my university my second semester in the program, I become the unofficially elected class representative for my class, I am a volunteer teaching assistant for the first semester labs, and I worked for Americorps for the first year of school. The teachers knew me very well and have all been very willing to write me letters of recommendation for these programs. I did some other volunteer work over the past few years that relates to children and health care. I pretty much did everything possible to make me appealing to the hiring department.

So my tips for any student who wants to apply for a nurse residency program regardless if it's an ICU position at a regional medical center or a NICU position at a children's hospital.
~Research, research, research: Find out where appeals to you (both which unit/specialty you enjoy and what region of the country) and research the hospitals that appeal to you, what type of program do they offer if they offer one, do they have an application process or is is a program for all new nurses, what are their requirements to apply, when are their important dates.
~Talk to your instructors early if you need a letter of recommendation. I asked my instructors in late January and provided them with the same list I made for myself so that they were able to see exactly what I was looking at and planning. Pick instructors that will benefit you, I asked my pediatric clinical instructor and then everyone else were instructors who have worked with me in some way and know what I am capable of.
~Start early, I had my lists ready in January and I still missed about 3 deadlines for hospitals I found in late January/early February. I made so many phone calls, sent so many emails, and spent hours online. It takes time to find these programs.

~Create an amazing outstanding resume and cover letter, every hospital is going to ask for these two things and if they are good and sell you well it makes all the difference. Include whatever you think helps you, for me it was all my work with children, my involvement in school, my senior placement, my HESI Exit scores, ect. 

~Create a list with all the information you can gather from each hospital. This keeps you organized with important dates, requirements, contact people, ect. This is especially helpful if you are like me and applying to 12 or more programs. 

Here is an example of what mine looks like: -->

*Children’s Hospital Los Angeles*

-Position is open: March 11^th-14^th online application, packet due March 29^th 4pm in the HR department.

-Contact Person: Nurse recruiter, call (323) 361-2193

-Website: http://www.chla.org

-Requirements: California State License, CPR certification, Application submitted online, Packet to include: Resume, cover letter, current (official or unofficial) transcripts, 2 letters of recommendation, and letter of intent.
(packets received following submission of on application)

A lot of these programs have packets you submit which usually include letters of recommendation usually 2, letters of intent or essays, supplemental information forms, and preference letters. Each hospital is different but all of them have a fairly lengthy application process that takes more than a day to complete, so give yourself enough time to complete everything. Don't rush through your essays or letters of intent (I spent 2 weeks writing one), ask instructors or family to read it and see where you can improve. I always try and submit everything at least 24 hours before the deadline (I'm not a last minute type of person). Remember to be open to new possibilities, I was dead set on staying around the 4 corner states and now I'll have an application going all the way to Tennessee, keep in mind that you will more than likely need to travel for interviews and you need to be willing to just go if your given the opportunity. I hope these tips help someone out there with their search for a job after graduation. 

Here is my list of hospitals I will have applications in at (in no order):

~ Children's Hospital of Los Angeles

~Children's Hospital of Orange County

~Rady Childrens in San Diego

~Phoenix Children's Hospital

~Colorado Children's Hospital

~University of Colorado Hospital 

~University of New Mexico Hospitals

~Dallas Children's Hospital

~Cook Children's Hospital in Ft. Worth

~University of Tennessee Hospitals

~University of Kentucky Hospitals

~St. Jude's Hospital in Tennessee

~I am still debating on a few hospitals in Ohio (it is so cold there in the winter brrr)