The nursing profession continues to grow and will continue to experience a shortage well into the next decade. Yes, it’s true there are new nurse grads who cannot find jobs. However, there are many factors that can be the reason this. Not the least of which is competition and how well those applicants measure up on paper and in interviews and employer testing. Other issues include nurses wanting to work and live in large popular cities where there is an abundance of nurses vs. working in small communities and even rural areas where the demand exists.
In addition to the geographic issues, if hospitals and other health care employers are going to pay top dollar salaries, they’re going to expect top candidates. The main priority for employers is most often BSN-prepared nurses. Students from the few remaining diploma nursing programs and those from Associate Nursing programs who cannot find a job would be well advised to continue with their education right away and obtain a BSN. If their sites are on a more advance nursing practice, they would be well-advised to stay in school and go for it now.
