Some New Nurses Have Trouble Finding Jobs

From VOA Learning English, this is the Economics Report. About one-third of new nursing graduates in the United States are having trouble finding work. Alexandra Bauernschub is finishing a master's degree program at the University of Maryland. She has done well in the program, earning the highest grade point average possible. But she is worried because she has not received job offers. Yet there is hope for nurses who complete studies at four-year schools or graduate level programs. They have an easier time finding a job in health care than nurses graduating from a two-year degree program. Experts say there are fewer job openings because nurses in their 50s and 60s are delaying retirement. These workers are hoping to rebuild the savings they lost a few years ago during the financial crisis. Jane Kirschling is head of the University of Maryland's nursing school. She says weak economic conditions have created tensions in the job market. The number of students entering nursing school has risen sharply in recent years. At the same time, the United States is preparing for the retirement of millions of "baby-boomers." That is the name given to Americans born between the end of World War Two and the early 1960s. Hundreds of thousands of nurses are expected to retire just as people their age need more medical care. Health care laws are changing in the United States. Health experts say they expect demand for nurses to care for the sick and aged to grow. They say many older nurses will retire if the economy improves. This would create job openings for younger nurses and recent college graduates. For VOA Learning English, I'm Alex Villarreal.