Can't get hired

[JPolniak]

Hello. I am a new PA-C. Graduated in May, have had a couple of interviews, but have not been able to secure employment. The last interview went fantastic but I was not chosen due to lack of experience. Most of the positions in my area are for experienced PAs or require relocation, which I am not able to do at this time. I have applied for a residency program, but, even if selected, this is likely to not start until September. I am very frustrated and stir-crazy. I have put my CV out to several recruiting sites. I was told that finding a position would be easy. Not so much for me. Any suggestions?

[billo]

This is a very a common problem that I had also faced after I graduated in 2011.  It took me 3 or 4 months to land a part time gig and then another 3-4 months to actually be able to start full time at an ER full time.  The field is saturated now and you will have better luck if you relocate.  Also, if you are more flexible with your pay and specialty.  Good Luck.

[RuralER/Ortho]

Where do you live? Are you in a highly desirable/saturated area?

[rev ronin]

One word:

 

Network.

 

Network through your real social network, not just the Facebook or LinkedIn approximation thereof. Talk to people at rotations (whoops, too late), at conferences, at drug rep dinners.  I got a job offer while I was *shadowing* once (mind you, they wanted me for my IT skills, but still).

 

Resumes and CVs can go into the trash.  A handshake and a smile cannot.  Pound the pavement, expend shoe leather, and meet the people face to face who might have a need for a bright, enthusiastic, teachable PA.  THEN hand them your CV when they ask for it.  Harder? Absolutely!  More likely to result in an actual job offer?  You better believe it.

[LKPAC]

I wonder if we are over-saturating the market in general.  Too may PA programs.  I know that NPs are over-saturating.  It drives down salaries.

[Reality Check 2]

There are too many PA programs and too many new grads and a shrinking market despite all the reports. NPs are taking a lot of jobs based on perceived decreased liability and paperwork and supervision.

 

Again, our national organization isn't doing enough to foster our profession but we keep cranking out grads.

 

Us old folks are getting salary stagnant while new grads are in increasing debt and demanding unbelievable new salaries that mess the rest of us up.

[mmiller3]

Hello. I am a new PA-C. Graduated in May, have had a couple of interviews, but have not been able to secure employment. The last interview went fantastic but I was not chosen due to lack of experience. Most of the positions in my area are for experienced PAs or require relocation, which I am not able to do at this time. I have applied for a residency program, but, even if selected, this is likely to not start until September. I am very frustrated and stir-crazy. I have put my CV out to several recruiting sites. I was told that finding a position would be easy. Not so much for me. Any suggestions?

Where are you at? I see new grad jobs open up all the time. You may be working at a community hospital for a less-than-average salary for a few years, but you should be able to find something afterward.

[delco714]

Where are you at? I see new grad jobs open up all the time. You may be working at a community hospital for a less-than-average salary for a few years, but you should be able to find something afterward.

Or go semi rural..make more, less cost of living and get hired as new grad relatively easily

[Maverick87]

Hello. I am a new PA-C. Graduated in May, have had a couple of interviews, but have not been able to secure employment. The last interview went fantastic but I was not chosen due to lack of experience. Most of the positions in my area are for experienced PAs or require relocation, which I am not able to do at this time. I have applied for a residency program, but, even if selected, this is likely to not start until September. I am very frustrated and stir-crazy. I have put my CV out to several recruiting sites. I was told that finding a position would be easy. Not so much for me. Any suggestions?

 

My job hires new grads and we are looking for someone right now. It's a brand new position because we are expanding. Everyone here is very nice and are eager to teach.

 

What state are you in?

[Guest Paula]

Job searches can take 6 months or longer.  Don't give up.  Take the advice of the Rev and others who posted.  It took me 6 months to get a job back in 2004, then got 2 part-time jobs in rural health care.  One eventually went full-time.  

 

You will get a job, but job hunting is not easy and it is too bad you were told it would be.  

[mmiller3]

Or go semi rural..make more, less cost of living and get hired as new grad relatively easily

This. I just spoke to a recruiter a few weeks ago who was looking to fill a position in (very) rural Minnesota, starting at $110k for new grad and going up with experience.

[newton9686]

I think its a little rash to say the market is saturated. Who is to say when the OP was even certified when she graduated. Even if she was certified, which most are not immediately after they graduate, it is less than 2 months since he/she graduated. To give y'all some statistics, the last numbers I saw for PA unemployment like 0.4% which is one of the best in the entire workforce.

 

Agree with Rev, you gotta start networking. Also I would recommend listening to a podcast on PA Exam Review. Check out his feed. He has a great podcast on how to search for your first job. I believe it is titled something along those lines. Its based on the premise that you are already behind the eight ball when a job is posted to a online  job search. 

 

Hope that helps!

[Reality Check 2]

The market is WAY different than years ago and it keeps changing.

 

In the 1990s there were only 54 PA programs and I had SEVEN jobs offered 3 MONTHS before I graduated. I could pick what I wanted and didn't have to move or consider relocation at all.

 

Now, the market is way more narrow and there are three times the PA programs churning out grads. 

 

The market is not wide open and it is more difficult to find jobs. It is not in favor of PAs.

[mmiller3]

The market is WAY different than years ago and it keeps changing.

 

In the 1990s there were only 54 PA programs and I had SEVEN jobs offered 3 MONTHS before I graduated. I could pick what I wanted and didn't have to move or consider relocation at all.

 

Now, the market is way more narrow and there are three times the PA programs churning out grads. 

 

The market is not wide open and it is more difficult to find jobs. It is not in favor of PAs.

I agree with you that the market is different, and there are definitely more programs sending more PAs into the workforce. That said, the population has increased, the "baby boomers' are hitting the medicare age, and thus the need for providers has increased. The physician market is also changing, with many choosing more lucrative specialties. So, while I don't think the outlook for PAs is as rosy as some would believe, nor do I think it is as gloomy as some people around here believe either.

[JPolniak]

thanks for the replies. I am in Missouri - kind of hard to relocate at this time due to family - two daughters in highschool - one about to be a senior. 

 

Re: the " churning out" of new grads - I was told that the need was present for we " mid-level" providers in the current healthcare situation. You are correct, however, that the market is not wide open. 

 

I did listen to the PA Exam review information and have tried some of his tactics, some more useful than others. 

 

I will continue to look for ways to network.

[BruceBanner]

Sadly this is a common problem these days. I had the same issue back in 2012, and again in 2014---could not find a job for the life of me. I had one offer in 3 months and it was a total sham, doing injections for some chiropractor on a PRN basis. Another was for a for-profit retail erection clinic.

 

It will improve the more experience you get, but as a newer grad (especially if you have no primary care experience), it's an employer's market out there.

 

The market IS saturated, in suburban and major metro areas. The thing is, most PAs either want to or have to live in a specific location, usually a greater metro area. That's where their spouse works, they have kids in school, local family, or they just arent willing to relocate. 

 

We all know there are great-paying, available rural jobs, but not many folks have the flexibility to up and relocate like that. Or, just as likely, they dont want to live hours away from metro conveniences.

[Febrifuge]

It wasn't all that long ago that here on the boards, we were telling new grads about EMed's "2 out of 3" rule:

 

- Location

 

- Specialty area

 

- Salary

 

PICK ANY 2 (BUT ONLY 2)

 

And depending on how many PA programs generate a new batch of grads each summer within a 100-mile radius of you, yeah, it might be closer to 1.5 than 2 in your case. But there should be *something* out there. The trick is, it may not be posted on Monster or Indeed or the "Careers" pages of your local hospitals and health systems.

 

(If you don't already have automatic alerts set up with specific keywords at sites like those, and if your resume isn't already on file with the major local employers, then congrats: you have a mission for this weekend.)

 

Since you are tied down geographically, you'll need to be especially open to working in settings or specialties you maybe don't consider your best or most favorite subjects. You will also have to be a little bit open to being underpaid -- which is a thorny issue to be sure, since when employers know they can low-ball new grads, it hurts everyone. Just keep in mind, depending on circumstances you might not be looking for your ideal job, but rather looking for your first job.

 

Find something you can do for 1 to 3 years, and either learn to love it, or learn specifically what not to look for next time. Good luck.

[Maverick87]

Sadly this is a common problem these days. I had the same issue back in 2012, and again in 2014---could not find a job for the life of me. I had one offer in 3 months and it was a total sham, doing injections for some chiropractor on a PRN basis. Another was for a for-profit retail erection clinic.

 

It will improve the more experience you get, but as a newer grad (especially if you have no primary care experience), it's an employer's market out there.

 

The market IS saturated, in suburban and major metro areas. The thing is, most PAs either want to or have to live in a specific location, usually a greater metro area. That's where their spouse works, they have kids in school, local family, or they just arent willing to relocate. 

 

We all know there are great-paying, available rural jobs, but not many folks have the flexibility to up and relocate like that. Or, just as likely, they dont want to live hours away from metro conveniences.

 

This was very different from my experience.

 

I recently made a huge cross country move to a large metro area and I was inundated with interviews and job offers almost immediately in a multitude of specialties (sent out my first apps at the beginning of May and had a job lined up by early June). Some of these jobs were at top-of-the-line, name brand facilities.

 

We graduated in the same year, it seems.

 

I really do believe that it varies by location. I had interviews and offers at my previous location as well, but the places were pretty sketchy.

 

I do agree that the picture for newer PAs is not as rosy as most people seem to think.

[JohnConner]

I ended going rural in FL for my first job. I graduated in late December and didn't actually start until early March. Right now, I'm running an acute/urgent care type clinic for a private family medicine practice with 4 physicians. Most of the larger hospitals in my area wanted experience, so I had to expand my horizons a little. Its an hour drive to work, but honestly for the experience, I don't really care. I'm actually from Missouri (St.Louis Metro) and from what I've heard, it's a poor state to be in for PA's as it is. Stay persistent my friend and spread a wide net. If you're in the St.Louis area, you might try for jobs on the Illinois side an hour outside the city.

[mgriffiths]

I don't know what area of medicine you are going into, but I am going into orthopedics and just looking at orthopedics I have reviewed hundreds of job openings.  6 months from graduating and I have 4 solid offers in hand (and yes they are true offers of employment, not just verbal).  My situation is different in that I am more than willing to relocate, but all 4 offers are in the same general area, and exactly where my wife and I were hoping to be and where I focused the majority of my attention on applying.

 

In other words, there are plenty of jobs out there, but you have to be open either to relocating or not necessarily getting the exact, specific area of medicine you want, there are definitely some areas that are more saturated than others but there are hundreds of openings in just orthopedics right now across the country (and many in MN).

[Maverick87]

One word:

 

Network.

 

Network through your real social network, not just the Facebook or LinkedIn approximation thereof. Talk to people at rotations (whoops, too late), at conferences, at drug rep dinners.  I got a job offer while I was *shadowing* once (mind you, they wanted me for my IT skills, but still).

 

Resumes and CVs can go into the trash.  A handshake and a smile cannot.  Pound the pavement, expend shoe leather, and meet the people face to face who might have a need for a bright, enthusiastic, teachable PA.  THEN hand them your CV when they ask for it.  Harder? Absolutely!  More likely to result in an actual job offer?  You better believe it.

 

^^^

 

This times a million.

 

There are jobs on job sites, but, for the most part, there will be something wrong with them (high turnover, poor management, crappy pay, crappy benefits, etc). I would recommend taking a not-so-great (but not to the point of putting your license on the line) job and then hustle your a$$ off.

 

Leave no stone unturned and network as much as possible.

[PAJouy]

I have a friend who became an FNP this past January and it took her about 4 months to find a job in Missouri. I am in Michigan and when she found out I secured a job before graduation, she was shocked. She felt the market for mid-levels in the St. Louis area was not as wide as it is in the Detroit area. Something will come up!