Nursing Shortage - False!

I think it's pointless whinging about it! It won't change anything. Try doing something proactive to increase your chances of finding a position at the end.
Try doing extra curricular things in the health field to boost your resume. Volunteer in health related fields, be a blood donor, get involved in the nursing department of your uni, join professional organisations as a student. DO something.
Being a dedicated profesional nurse doesn't necessarily start after you graduate and start a grad position.

Like any career, not everyone is going to walk into a dream job straight out of uni.

Of course, there have bene factors outside the grads control, like the GFC, which have impacted on the ability of hospitals to put on grad nurses.

Grad nurses cost more money to train, because they have to be supervised by experienced nurses. A similar situation applies to grad doctors trying to get an internship. Currently, there are more trainee doctors then internships available.

However, the nursing profession is still a good career choice with regards to career stability. Sure, if you miss out on an GNP then you may have to think outside the square to get into the game, but those determined enough will make it - no doubt there.

It is absurd for some people to reconsider doing their study or degrees based on the current climate. Look ahead 5 years from now.

The unions and governments are going to have to rectify the problem, otherwise the shortage will be increased in years to come as nurses retire from the workforce.

However, students may have to make sacrifices. You are going to have to be prepared to move anywhere to get a job. Having a partner or children to look after is going to complicate matters.

Overall, this situation is probably only going to get better as the lingering effects of the GFC fade, and as the government realises what a massive problem this is.

Not to be rude or anything, but the original issue was the idea of nursing graduates not getting jobs. Those experienced nurses have many other jobs available to them.

The issue here what nursing graduates can do if they don't get a GNP.

I'm not meaning to be rude either... it is easy for a new grad to find what they want, speak to the unit manager and sell themselves as a good investment. GFC be damned. Most good unit managers would know quality from crud and filter quickly.
Private hospitals have the means and connections to grow their own with new nurses, somewhat or even better, than public hospitals. Had I known this when I came out of nursing, I would have quickly steered my career in this direction.
Trying to follow the the Uni wants you to do, then get sucked into the public hospital system that has try outs, quotas, caps on how much you can work etc. is the wrong way to go. This is old school nursing theory running the chaos that new grads suffer.
You have to be able to follow your own path, create your own chances to gain employment and go from there.
I work in a private facility that needs nurses desperately, but despite them advertising, new grads think that they can't apply. This is where the system is totally broken. I can mentor/preceptor any new grad into our own program and have them scrub a list with success in a matter of months. You can't even get your foot in the door of theatres of public hospital without your certificate. My employer will then pay for your distance education in Periop Cert. so that you have the papers to show when you leave if you ever leave. Most privates are so good that you don't leave.
There are more options out there than the stuffy, archaic thinking ways of Public Hospitals run by Matrons that should have been put out to pasture eons ago.... My personal opinion and experience. New grads need to think out side the box of bureaucratic handling of their careers.

I know this thread has been totally hijacked but i need to put in my two cents worth!

to groonurse: i think its fantastic that you have found a place that you feel so passionate about and have highlighted an area of practice that is available to new graduates. However, i have to disagree with your view of the public hospital system. I have worked in many public hospitals in a wide variety of specialties and not once believed they were run by matrons with old attitudes. In fact, its always been the opposite. I think it is unfair that you have painted the public hospital system in this way when it is not the truth. I acknowledge that some places may be this way, I personally have never experienced this, but im sure some people have. This does not mean that every public hospital is like this. This also does not mean that private hospitals isnt without its own nasty side aswell. I too am passionate about where I work and the job I do and I encourage graduates to follow their hearts aswell- and if that means towards the public sector, then that is their choice, and I wish them every success. Public systems also offer a very generous education allowance aswell- I am currently in my second year of a masters degree and have yet to pay a single cent thanks to my employers. There are oppurtunuties everywhere, in both public & private and I suggest to new graduates to do their own research and look at all the possibilities available to them, and not take other peoples opinions too seriously.

NoNursingShortage,

I know that you read an article saying that there was not a nursing shortage anymore, but I know that it is wrong. I just recently graduated from nursing school and I did not have any issues finding <a href="http://www.glassdoor.com/Job/nurse-jobs-SRCH_KO0,5.htm">nurse jobs</a>, so that just helps to prove that there is a nurse shortage. I know a few people from my class had some issues, but it was because they did not do any volunteer work or strengthen their skills any while they were studying for the NCLEX. Make sure that after you become an RN, that you show them that you are the best nurse for the position and you are sure to get the job. Best of luck and don't listen to what the article has to say.

Ben, RN