UTAH
Jul 31, 2025, 5:00 PM
Nursing student Whitney Weston goes to the book on one situation as nursing students go about their work in the simulation lab in the Marriott Health Building at Weber State University in Ogden on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2023. (Scott G Winterton/Deseret News0
BY
Reporter/Producer
SALT LAKE CITY — While Utah faces a nursing shortage, some new graduates say landing that first job can be surprisingly difficult.
Kaylyn Lippert, a hormone replacement therapy clinic nurse, said she became frustrated when she repeatedly applied for jobs just to be turned down.
“It was really frustrating because, especially with these larger hospital corporations, you’re not actually being seen by anyone,” she said.
Lippert says the AI software being used simply filters out applications before applicants are ever seen by anyone.
“If you actually have an opportunity to talk with me, you would understand the experience that I have in that field,” Lippert said.
Lippert says she brings a lot to the table. During her final semester of nursing school, she attended numerous births and said she experienced significant personal and professional growth.
“It felt really deceiving to know that a software company … weeded out your application because it didn’t have a certain word in it … and getting an email (saying) your application is not being considered.”
Lippert wants to go into labor and delivery, but there are not many openings there. She said she applied for 20-plus jobs in that field, but almost all were immediate rejections.
“(It is) crazy because you hear that all these hospitals really do need a lot of help.”
Tressa Quayle, department chair of the Associate Degree of Nursing for Weber State University, said job needs have shifted in recent years.
“When we had the pandemic, COVID-19, we saw a lot of nurses leaving the profession, (and a lot of need for more nurses, she said. “At that time, hospital facilities were hiring anybody. Any new grad, they were being hired into high acuity areas (including) the intensive care unit, the emergency department, labor and delivery.”
Quayle said that since the pandemic waned, job vacancies have returned to pre-pandemic conditions.
“So, a lot of our new grads are not being hired straight out of school into high-acuity positions,” Quayle said.
School of Nursing at Weber State University Associate Dean Dr. Rieneke Holman said there are many jobs for nurses who are just coming out of school, but they may not be the nurse’s dream job.
“There are still nursing homes that are still hiring travel nurses and they don’t want to be,” Holman said. “So if new grads aren’t willing to look at places like skilled nursing facilities or if they’re not willing to do night shifts or things like that … it’s difficult to find jobs because they can’t find their ideal job.”
But Lippert says even those jobs can be difficult to get. She said LinkedIn job postings often advertise roles as entry-level or for new graduates, yet still list two to three years of experience as preferred.
“That’s not entry level if you want two plus years of experience,” said Lippert.
Lippert also believes that certain types of nursing jobs are just not a good fit for some people.
“I think not every part of nursing is going to be someone’s cup of tea,” Lippert said. “A lot of nursing schools, nursing professors will tell you you need to start in med-surgery, you need to start on a unit where you’re going to see a wide range of things. But me personally, there’s certain things that I know I cannot or do not want to handle.”
Even though it may be a bit frustrating, Lippert wants to encourage anyone thinking about nursing as a career.
“I just want to encourage nurses out there, whether you’ve been in nursing 15, 20, 30 years, or if you’re entering nursing school, or just getting out of nursing school that there are … options available [and] don’t count yourself out of those,” Lippert said. “It doesn’t invalidate your nursing license, experiences, and there’s some really cool things out there outside of the hospital thing that you really should consider and it can actually really grow your experience and enhance what a well-rounded nurse that you can be.”
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