As you know, I will be getting married and moving to Texas in just a few weeks. It feels so surreal to officially announce that I will be formally resigning from my position as a medical-surgical staff RN at Dekalb Medical Center…effective in less than one month! In my two short years there, I have gone from a fearful nursing student, to finally feeling confident in my skills as a new nurse, to now leaving my first ever nursing job; it’s crazy how quickly time flies and how many opportunities there are for advancement in the nursing field.
In fact, I recently seized the opportunity to sit in on an interview as part of a panel of judges, alongside my supervisor, manager, fellow-nurse, and an experienced tech. Being on the other side gave me new insight and allowed me to see a different perspective that I had not quite expected. I really got a good grasp of what interviewers are looking for and how certain aspects that you may not think are important, really make or break the interview. Amongst the obvious knowledge, confidence, prioritization and people skills, there are a few tips and tricks I have written about in the past (which you can check out here) that I believe will give you the greatest chances of landing the job of your dreams- well, at least as much as can be in your control.
As a new grad, I knew nothing except what I had stored in my short-term memory from my textbooks prior to exams, along with the obvious few basic nursing skills I got the chance to practice in my clinicals. To my utter dismay, when I began working on the floor, most things were entirely foreign to me. I felt rushed and lost during my entire orientation, couldn’t remember how to perform basic nursing skills, and even had a hard time retaining the knowledge on the simple anatomy and physiology I had spent so much effort trying to learn.
But I was blessed with an insightful and inspirational supervisor, intelligent and hard-working charge nurses, and an amazing team of the most supportive and understanding staff than I ever thought possible. I knew when I began working on the unit that a medical-surgical, critical renal and oncology and hospice floor would be the most intellectually and emotionally challenging place to begin my career. Because of the great team of people I have had the chance to work with, I never felt alone and always had support every step of the way, and it is because of this that this experience has also been the most rewarding learning experience of my life thus far.
I will miss not only my coworkers, but also my sweet patients who, even when they were not so sweet, always had something to love, and pushed me to my limits to always be my best- both as a nurse and as a human being. I will always remember my time at Dekalb Medical Center and will carry everything I have gained with me into whatever job I end up at next (hopefully a neonatal intensive care unit in Texas)! After everything I have gone through since beginning nursing school in 2013 to resigning in 2017, I know one thing for certain- nursing is the single most best decision I have made in my life and there is no doubt this is exactly where I am meant to be.
In fact, I recently seized the opportunity to sit in on an interview as part of a panel of judges, alongside my supervisor, manager, fellow-nurse, and an experienced tech. Being on the other side gave me new insight and allowed me to see a different perspective that I had not quite expected. I really got a good grasp of what interviewers are looking for and how certain aspects that you may not think are important, really make or break the interview. Amongst the obvious knowledge, confidence, prioritization and people skills, there are a few tips and tricks I have written about in the past (which you can check out here) that I believe will give you the greatest chances of landing the job of your dreams- well, at least as much as can be in your control.
As a new grad, I knew nothing except what I had stored in my short-term memory from my textbooks prior to exams, along with the obvious few basic nursing skills I got the chance to practice in my clinicals. To my utter dismay, when I began working on the floor, most things were entirely foreign to me. I felt rushed and lost during my entire orientation, couldn’t remember how to perform basic nursing skills, and even had a hard time retaining the knowledge on the simple anatomy and physiology I had spent so much effort trying to learn.
But I was blessed with an insightful and inspirational supervisor, intelligent and hard-working charge nurses, and an amazing team of the most supportive and understanding staff than I ever thought possible. I knew when I began working on the unit that a medical-surgical, critical renal and oncology and hospice floor would be the most intellectually and emotionally challenging place to begin my career. Because of the great team of people I have had the chance to work with, I never felt alone and always had support every step of the way, and it is because of this that this experience has also been the most rewarding learning experience of my life thus far.
I will miss not only my coworkers, but also my sweet patients who, even when they were not so sweet, always had something to love, and pushed me to my limits to always be my best- both as a nurse and as a human being. I will always remember my time at Dekalb Medical Center and will carry everything I have gained with me into whatever job I end up at next (hopefully a neonatal intensive care unit in Texas)! After everything I have gone through since beginning nursing school in 2013 to resigning in 2017, I know one thing for certain- nursing is the single most best decision I have made in my life and there is no doubt this is exactly where I am meant to be.