After long hours of studying, countless exams, hospital rotations, and clinical internships, healthcare graduates are finally ready to put their degree to good use and take on actual work in the hospital.
Those aiming to gain experience overseas might need to be a little bit more patient as some healthcare regulators in other countries require a few years’ work experience in the medical field before they can land a job.
The National Health Service, the United Kingdom’s largest healthcare employer that hires a diverse range of healthcare workers worldwide, usually recommends overseas doctors to have at least two to three years of practice, post-graduate training, and certain internships to work in the UK.
Meanwhile, overseas nurses need to have a registered nurse license and at least one year of work experience to have a chance to be shortlisted in the NHS.
In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, overseas healthcare professionals require work experience in the home country to qualify. For example, registered nurses must have at least two to three years of relevant work experience. On the other hand, specialist roles require more extensive consulting experience.
In other countries like the United Arab Emirates, overseas healthcare professionals need more work experience. Doctors need a minimum of five years of work history, while nurses require at least two to three. Those aiming for specialty roles need to have been in practice for at least eight years.
While this might sound discouraging for medical workers with limited work experience, one need not fret because there are many ways to gain relevant healthcare work experience.
Volunteer
Medical mission trips allow healthcare workers to put their knowledge and skills to good use, and ultimately make them better practitioners, while at the same time help the less fortunate without access to healthcare.
Entry-level positions
There are medical facilities that are willing to hire new nurse graduates. Fresh graduates may want to look into becoming a nurse for private clinics, academic institutions, residential nurses or in-home care.
Internship program
Schools may have internship programs that may be useful to develop industry knowledge and nursing skills. Sometimes, internships can lead to a network of connections and future jobs.
Related positions
While it’s great if your first job is a nurse, it may not always be the case for some new graduates. For others who are struggling to secure a job as a nurse may want to consider other related positions such as lab assistants or data-entry clerks. These roles can give fresh graduates some industry knowledge, which may be useful in their nursing careers.
Having these initiatives on resume will increase one’s credibility and highlight commitment to medical career.
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