How the “Wrong” Career Choices Have Built Me a Kick-Ass Nursing Career (Part One)

New grad nurses are inundated with advice from family, friends, professors, and other nurses. Much of it focuses on pursuing a prescribed path through nursing to get to their ultimate career goal, whatever specialty or department that might be.

I ignored a lot of that advice throughout my own nursing career, yet I have still managed to tailor a fulfilling and sustainable career, with zero regrets and lost opportunities. This series of posts examines some of the most persistent myths out there about starting and building a nursing career, one “bad” choice at a time.

“Bad” Choice #1: Ignoring the “spend a couple of years in med-surg” advice and jumping straight into specialty care.

Nurse examining newborn infant in the delivery room.

 “Are you sure you really want to go into pediatrics, knowing that you are limiting yourself for your future career?”

These were the words of the nursing school instructor who oversaw my last-semester practicum. She was far from the first person to share those sentiments. I worked in a large pediatric hospital before and during nursing school, so I had some great connections to new grad opportunities in pediatric specialty care. Despite that, I still got:

·         “You really need to do one to two years of med-surg nursing to hone your nursing skills and judgment.”

·         “Nobody can get into pediatrics as a new grad, especially the really acute specialties.”

·         “You’re going to miss out on so many opportunities limiting yourself so early on in your career.

I didn’t listen to the naysayers. I accepted a new grad position at a large pediatric hospital, in a non-med-surg position.

Now, medical-surgical (or med-surg) departments are some of the best departments for new grads to reinforce their nursing skills and knowledge and to learn time management.  

But it’s not the ONLY place to do so. In fact, many other departments, such as emergency rooms, intensive care units, and pediatrics, now provide special new graduate orientation to help develop those skills.

If you have your heart set on a place like the ICU or ER, you should apply. Look for facilities that offer a new graduate-specific orientation (some hospitals will refer to it as a “fellowship” or “residency”). These programs often provide additional education, extended bedside orientation, and mentorship from experienced nurses.  

Lastly, if you have your heart set on a specialty, and you don’t get the job as a new graduate, consider taking another nursing position. Yes, even if it isn’t your dream job or specialty. You cannot work on nursing skills if you aren’t working as a nurse. Many specialty departments prioritize hiring nurses with some level of experience, so having a year of nursing experience (or even six months) puts you in an even better position when you try for that dream job, again.

(And yes, you SHOULD apply again. We’re here to get you to that dream nursing job, after all).