Entering the job market for the first time can be daunting for any new graduate – but if you’re a recently registered nurse, now is a good time to be qualifying.
‘A shortage of nurses at band 5-level across the board means there are plenty of job opportunities across the country,’ says Cathy Taylor, careers advisor for the Royal College of Nursing (RCN). ‘That’s not to say you don’t need to put effort into application forms and interviews. You’ll still need to perform well to secure the best jobs.’
If you’ve recently registered, here are six strategies to help you land your dream job.
1. Reflect on your experience
Now you’re registered, it can be tempting to fire off application forms but it pays to consider the kind of role you really want.
‘Think hard about everything you’ve experienced in your nursing career – which teams and environments you enjoyed most and least – and make an effort to research those fields you haven’t yet covered,’ suggests Cathy. ‘Talk to colleagues, peers, your tutors and mentors to help build up a picture of various roles and narrow down which best suit your strengths.’
There’s another good reason to critically review your experience to date. Thinking back over your time will help you come up with stories you can use to answer “tell me about a time when…” questions and demonstrate you have the right attitude, as well as skills for the job.
‘There’s an increasing emphasis on values-based recruitment in light of the Francis Report,’ says Cathy. ‘Employers are looking for candidates who have the right attitude, and who can demonstrate that they are compassionate and value dignified care.’
2. Use your contacts
Now you’ve identified the type of role that best matches your skills and strengths, it’s time to look for job opportunities. Cast your net further than job sites. Get in touch with nurse managers and senior staff you met during clinical work, and go back and visit wards you particularly enjoyed working on as a student so that you stay on their radar, suggests Cathy.
Don’t have any contacts in the area you’d like to work in? Research employers you’re interested in and find out the name of the nursing managers on professional networking sites like LinkedIn. Make contact, sell yourself and tell them why you would love to join the team. Remember to be generous and forward on job opportunities and contacts to people in your network – help others and they’ll be far more likely to help you in return.
3. Attend careers fairs
Careers fairs are a good opportunity to research the job market and sell yourself to a captive audience of recruiters. To get the most out of the day, you need to be prepared.
‘Look up a list of exhibitors on the website and decide who to target first and take lots of copies of your CV with you,’ advises Cathy. ‘Prepare five selling points about yourself ahead of the fair that you get across when talking to people.’ Some universities, such as the University of Salford and Trinity College Dublin, hold nursing recruitment fairs. The RCN also runs jobs fairs in London, Manchester and Glasgow.
4. Find more networking opportunities
Networking online can be a great way to open doors but there’s nothing like real world networking events to get your face known. Start attending local meetings of professional nursing associations, such as the RCN, and go along to conferences and conventions. These kinds of events are good places to meet department managers and key decision makers.
Remember to take along business cards and get the cards of people you meet so that you can follow-up with a phone call or email to arrange a meeting or stay in touch.
5. Think beyond hospitals
Most graduate nurses target hospitals but don’t forget to look at less-obvious employers such as charities, hospices, prison services, blood transfusion services and occupational health service providers.
More than a quarter of nurses work outside of the NHS – employed by private companies running cancer care facilities and psychiatric services to adult rehabilitation clinics and private birthing centres. Nurses are also needed to work in schools, nursing homes, palliative care centres and the military.
While it’s worth looking into opportunities with private companies, do your research.
‘As a newly qualified nurse, it’s important to get the support you need to make the leap from student to practising nurse,’ says Cathy. ‘The NHS is set up to provide mentoring programmes that support you in acquiring key competencies you need on the job, such as communication skills, decision-making and leadership skills. This period of support is called Preceptorship.
‘Although some organisation try to cater for the needs of newly qualified nurses, smaller companies don’t always have the resources to provide the same kind of structured support. For example, a newly qualified nurse working in a busy nursing home may be the only nurse on duty, responsible for 20 clients and supervising a team of care assistants.’
6. Keep current
Rather than sitting around between interviews, keep your nursing skills fresh by doing temporary work. This can provide valuable experience, industry contacts, and give you something to put on your CV and talk about at interview. Though Cathy adds you should note that some agencies only take registered nurses once they have six months post-registration experience.
‘A lot of undergraduate nurses work as bank healthcare assistants. Once you’ve graduated, it can be worth doing temp work until you find your first permanent nursing job.
‘Just try not to leave it too long before you work as a permanent staff nurse, as this is a way of consolidating your training,’ adds Cathy.
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