Greetings everyone,

I'm a new member, this is my first post, you guys have a really great forum here.

I'm a student in an SBB program, and yesterday my counterpart and I were discussing when we should start looking and/or applying for jobs. This forum seems like the perfect place to solicit advice, so what do the folks on here think? We'll be graduating in late December, and I at least plan on registering for the exam as far in advance as possible so that I will be able to apply with SBB credentials right out of the program, but I'd like to get as much of a jump as possible. I'm not tied down to any geographical location and I've seen several positions posted online that look like great potential fits, but how long would a prospective employer be willing to wait for me (us) between submitting a resume and graduating?

Thanks for any advice.

J.D.

Great to have you with us here at Blood Bank Talk, tubeshaker.

It's been toooo many years since I've been job hunting, so I'm not the best person to give you advice (but I won't let that stop me!) The fact that you are open to consider different geographical locations really opens up a lot of opportunities for you. How fortunate! I don't think I'd worry about "how long a prospective employer is willing to wait for you"....I would think about sending out letters around the end of the summer to prospective employers that you might be interested in. Even though you won't be available until late December, they may know that someone is "in a family way" and planning on not returning to work (or planning to leave for some other reason), or they may know of a position that will be opening up at a nearby facility. Or, they may not have an opening now, but get a suprise in November when someone resigns, etc. If they were smart enough to keep your letter on file, they might save themselves recruitment fees!

What's everybody else thing? Let's here from some of you who have more recently "Been there, done that."

Donna

I haven't been there, or done that, as I'm in the UK, but I would like to welcome you tubeshaker.

:):)

Welcome tubeshaker. I would agree with Donna (aka L106). Go ahead and start looking around the end of the summer, beginning of fall. If you have a good resume and write a good introductory letter they might be willing to wait for you. I do have to warn you that the Human resources approach seems to be changing. Everyone wants an application up front on their website. The resume is electronically attached. At our institution they (HR) are trying to build an applicant pool for various job positions so when a position becomes open, they don't have to wait for people to come and apply. It's a bit of a different approach from my previous experiences.

Thanks for the replies and welcomes. All good points to consider, I'll share your advice with my classmate.

I've noticed your observation about the trend in applicant pools, adiescast. My wife is a generalist MT and has been applying for jobs in the area but more than once has hit a brick wall when the hospital's online application process is not compatible with Apple's Safari web browser. Usually if Safari doesn't work then Firefox will, so it's more a minor inconvenience than anything. Anyway, off the point, which was going to be that yes, I think just about every hospital she has applied to has required applicants to go through an online application process.

Thanks again,

JD

No advice, just a hearty welcome