surgical tech

i am thinking of going to school for this. is it hard to find a job after you graduate?

lindsay in Sacramento, California said: i am thinking of going to school for this. is it hard to find a job after you graduate?

DONT DO IT!!! WORST DECISION I EVER MADE. I OWE 30 THOUSAND DOLLARS TO WESTERN CAREER COLLEGE WHO CANNOT PLACE ME AT AN EXTERN SITE. I HAVE BEEN WAITING 6 MONTHS WITH NO WHERE TO GO. FIND SOMETHING ELSE. DONT DO IT!!!!!!

I agree! horrible decision! I went to High tech and have been out of school for over a year and still can't find a job! And i got straight A's

its really hard i ave two friend who are surgical tech and they both have great careers with kaiser......i get bad opinions and good ones!!egh!!!

Amanda in Sacramento, California said: I agree! horrible decision! I went to High tech and have been out of school for over a year and still can't find a job! And i got straight A's

OMG!!! thats horrible......i have two friends wo are surgical tech's and they have great careers!!! at kaiser!

i heard western career college was a rip off but i haven't heard anything bad from high tech yet!!! crap!!! lol

how much was the program at high tech and the length of the program

its 13months and about 24,000. so far i love it

how long is the length of the class per day?
thankx

Amanda in Sacramento, California said: I agree! horrible decision! I went to High tech and have been out of school for over a year and still can't find a job! And i got straight A's

I agree with you. I'm at the same position out from school for a year nothing school didn't even help. I got straight A's also.

IM A SURGICAL TECH THAT TRAVELS AROUND THE COUNTRY,I BEEN IN CALIFORNIA AND IT IS AB RIP OFF,I GOT MY SURGICAL TECH FOR UNDER 5 THOUSAND DOLLARS AND IF YOU ARE GOING TO SCHOOL FOR THAT AMOUNT ITS NOT WORTH IT,CALIFORNIA IS AN RIP OFF,THEY TAKE YOUR MONEY AND DONT HELP YOU FIND AN JOB,DONT GO TO THESE SCHOOLS GO RN PROGRAM NOT LVN BECAUSE THATS ALSO AN RIP OFF UNLESS ITS AT AN COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOR EITHER LVN OR RN PROGRAM,DONT GIVE UP JUST GO THROUGH THE SCHOOL SYSTEMS.

I am looking for surgical tech schools and found Hogh-Tech in sacramento. Can someone tell me a bit about the program and their experiences at High-Tech?

I am thinking about going to school at High tech for surgical tech and I have a freind that went there and she has been working for Kaiser for 6 years and she interned for them while she was at high tech. It seems that there is a demand from what I saw online when I was looking for jobs for surgical tech. Are you not getting the jobs because of lack of experience?

KATHI in Sacramento, California said: DONT DO IT!!! WORST DECISION I EVER MADE. I OWE 30 THOUSAND DOLLARS TO WESTERN CAREER COLLEGE WHO CANNOT PLACE ME AT AN EXTERN SITE. I HAVE BEEN WAITING 6 MONTHS WITH NO WHERE TO GO. FIND SOMETHING ELSE. DONT DO IT!!!!!!

Hi Kathi,
Any luck yet finding a job? My daughter wants to go to either WCC or HT but I am holding off because I don't want her stuck with thousands of dollars to pay back and not get a job. I sure wish I could read a lot of comments praising these two schools.
Thank you,
Pat

I don't know about getting a job, but this type of program is offered at junior colleges for a minimal amount of money and relatively few requirements for entry. But I agree, if you're going to spend the time going to school, become an RN. You can still work in surgery and despite the US financial crisis, there is still a shortage of RN's in California.

can somebody just say something positive about WCC for cry out loud!!!!! i will be starting the rn program in july. what will i expect when i start? will it be posible for me to work and go to school?
thanks

I'm looking about now for the job market for a surgical tech in Sacramento.. I'm thinking of relocating my family out there.. I love my job. It was the best decision that I ever made to go to school for it.. But my classes were no where NEAR as expensive as you guys are talking on here.. But then, I did go to a little tech school in Athens, GA near UGA.

I'm just more curious as to how the surgeons are and how competitive the market is there for this position.

I had a great job at kaiser permanente as a surgical technician and I have quite a few years experience as a surgical technician and I can't find a job either. I have assisted several individuals from western career college and hi tech while they rotated through kaiser operating room. I wish you guys the very best but this is one career field that is difficult to place in hard times. you all should have went to nursing school. It would have been a lot cheaper and the pay out a lot higher.

I gratuated a year ago and i get nothing but we need tech with at least 2 or 3 years experience. how do i get experience if no one well hire me. i am so depressed i do not know what to do.

erika90 in Los Angeles, California said: I gratuated a year ago and i get nothing but we need tech with at least 2 or 3 years experience. how do i get experience if no one well hire me. i am so depressed i do not know what to do.

what were your favorite area's to work in in school? I got my job after school because I wanted Orthopedics, I loved it in school and I wanted to do total joints.. what is the field in most high demand and would you be willing to do it every single day?

I plan to go back to nursing school (the comment above yours) but really.. I don't want to be an RN.. I love what I do now.

There is no longer a nursing shortage in the Sacramento Valley, and they do not foresee one for a few years. If you want answers, ask the Nursing Directors at American River College or Sac City. They have over 1,000 applicants each semester, with only 35 lottery seats available. Some students are now waiting up to 3 years before being drawn. Unless a new nurse is willing to relocate, many wait months and years in Sacramento before securing a job. However most hospitals and private surgeons will not touch you with a 10 foot pole if you are a new graduate, and have not worked in months or years. They won't take the time to catch you up to speed.

I am a Respiratory Therapist. Our training is equivalent to an R.N., we both are considered low level Medical Practitioners, E.M.T.s are not. Contrary to popular belief, R.T.s and R.N.s are allowed to diagnose IN THE SCOPE OF THEIR FIELD. However many won’t take the responsibility (Because often they don’t know what to do. Either because like intern physicians, it takes years of training after medical school to become competent. Or they are afraid the doctor’s ego will be bruised, which is a short cut to losing your job.)

Tom Preston, Respiratory Therapist in Placerville, California said: QUOTE]

I graduated in 2002. Shortly before passing my licensure exam, I was injured and unable to walk for a few months. I walked into Cardiopulmonary my first month at my first hospital. My supervisor was openly studying, in the middle of the department, the pistol he had just bought. Weapons in a hospital are a federal felony. The door was open to E.R., patients, their family and staff walking by. Not wanting anyone to (accidentally) get shot, I reported it. He got a slap on the wrist, then fired me for insufficient job performance. I could not find an attorney willing to take the case (Orange County, awarded Best Small Hospital in California, owned by 39 physicians).

I could not use the hospital as a reference, and was then out of school over a year. I applied to every hospital in Southern California, the Bay Area, and Sacramento Valley. I interviewed with nearly a dozen. They all said they could not take the time to catch me up to speed (triple patient loads, which is why most nursing careers are a little over 2 years). So I have applied to 100’s of government jobs, school districts, restaurants, and moving and janitorial companies. No luck, 100’s of people are applying for 1 job. Employers figure medical professional are just biding their time until a hospital calls them. I’ve been out of work 6 years, which is why I am considering going to nursing school. There are a lot more opportunities for R.N.s with an R.T. license, on to Nurse Practitioner or Physician’s Assistant, Nursing Ph.D., teach, supervise departments, government and school district positions…

The moral of this story. Your morals and ethics will be severely tested in medicine. If you report malpractice or fraud, hope for a positive outcome, but be prepared for the worst.

erika90 in Los Angeles, California said: I gratuated a year ago and i get nothing but we need tech with at least 2 or 3 years experience. how do i get experience if no one well hire me. i am so depressed i do not know what to do.

With all due respect, either apply with private surgeons who speak your native language, or take English classes. I see a few typos in your comment which look like second language mistakes.

Heather Andrews in Royston, Georgia said: what were your favorite area's to work in in school? I got my job after school because I wanted Orthopedics, I loved it in school and I wanted to do total joints.. what is the field in most high demand and would you be willing to do it every single day?

I plan to go back to nursing school (the comment above yours) but really.. I don't want to be an RN.. I love what I do now.

Hi! I am interested in the Tech school in Citrus Heights but dont know which ones are out there. I am also an ROT for an Ortho Surgeon and want to do Ortho when i am done. What pre-recs did you have to have? Was it hard to get a job out of school? Was the school easy? Anything helps, thanks

I,ve been an S.T for over 7 yrs. I graduated from Hi Tech. I didnt get placed at my extern site for over 8 months. Didnt get my 1st tech job tilI I took a job 300 miles from Sac,over a year after graduation. I know to get a job in this field it takes CONSTANTLY applying,patience,timing and a lil luck. Especially if you are not willing to relocate. I do not regret becoming a an S.T. Where else can you become part of a team responsible for saving lives or making them better? You are what you do for a living. The gratitude I receive from grateful families, and the feeling you get knowing you were an integral part of saving a childs life, or any human beings life is indescribable. To me it was worth it.

Well, I found a job out there in Sacramento and I'll be starting on the 8th of February :D I was patient and just held on to the faith that if I was meant to relocate there I would find a job, that someone would want me.. It also helps that I have 3 years trauma experience and tons of vascular and Ortho experience.

Lyndzi B, I'm not sure what schools are out there.. I'm leaving monday for Sacramento.. But if I learn anything I will let you know.

My only job I've had in this field thus far, I got after 4 months of waiting for people to call me back. Pre-recs are basically the same for all programs, adding Anatomy and Physiolgy in there.
School was easy to me. I just picked it up like I'd been doing it for awhile. Of course there was a learning curve and moments that I wasn't sure wether or not I'd made the right choice, but I love my job. I couldn't imagine doing anything else, honestly.

NEVER GO THROUGH PRIVATE COLLEGES FOR PROGRAMS LIKE SURG TECH. SEARCH OVER AND OVER AND OVER FOR JUNIOR/COMMUNITY COLLEGES THAT OFFER THE PROGRAM.
LAS POSITAS JUNIOR COLLEGE IN LIVERMORE HAS A NEW SURG TECH PROGRAM, ITS NOT THAT HARD TO GET IN BECASUE ITS NEW. TOTAL COST IS ABOUT $2500 AND I BELIEVE FINANCIAL AID IS AVAILABLE. THEY ALSO SET YOU UP WITH INTERNSHIP SITES IN A TIMELY MANNER. DOUBLE CHECK ACCREDITATION BUT I DO THINK THEY ARE ACCREDITED.

Don't do it. Both ST schools in Sacrament are pumping out ST students left and right. Sacramento hospitals are not known for hiring ST's without experience. That is why many ST's leave SAC to find work and then return at a later date. If you can, go into Radiology or try the Pharmacy Tech program. I have many more employers are willing to hire a newly graduated Pharmacy Tech student. I feel like I wasted my money. I can't even find a job pushing wheelchairs without experience. Good luck, but your money is better spent on a different career.

Sounds like the best way is too attend a community college. $30 grand is way to much money to pay out. Then on top of that you /I may not get placed in a job... Community college here I come!

Actually it is a great oppurtunity, you just have to know people afterwords to get a job. the reason People can't find jobs is because they aren't familiar with doctors or hospitals around the area.

lindsay in Sacramento, California said: i am thinking of going to school for this. is it hard to find a job after you graduate?

Don't do it... I'm a surgical tech and i can't find a job either.

Hi Florida ST's I am starting the surg tech program at Ptec this Monday.....Im just wondering what schools the Fl students graduated from and why you think its hard finding employment?

I have been researching all the hospitals in St. Pete and it seems they always have positions available. I was also told that when you do your clinicals its pretty much a job interview and a lot of the students get hired then for after certification.

Any info you have would be great. Thanks!

Victor,former Instructor @Western Career in Citrus Heights, California said: I,ve been an S.T for over 7 yrs. I graduated from Hi Tech. I didnt get placed at my extern site for over 8 months. Didnt get my 1st tech job tilI I took a job 300 miles from Sac,over a year after graduation. I know to get a job in this field it takes CONSTANTLY applying,patience,timing and a lil luck. Especially if you are not willing to relocate. I do not regret becoming a an S.T. Where else can you become part of a team responsible for saving lives or making them better? You are what you do for a living. The gratitude I receive from grateful families, and the feeling you get knowing you were an integral part of saving a childs life, or any human beings life is indescribable. To me it was worth it.

Hi Victor I'm a 7 years experience Tech and interested in becoming a instructor in Western any Idea How I can make this happen? or i could help out just like in High Tech on lab days.

lindsay in Sacramento, California said: i am thinking of going to school for this. is it hard to find a job after you graduate?

Check Sarah Babs website at www.surgical-technologist.org/ she has shared great amount of information.

shai in Tracy, California said: NEVER GO THROUGH PRIVATE COLLEGES FOR PROGRAMS LIKE SURG TECH. SEARCH OVER AND OVER AND OVER FOR JUNIOR/COMMUNITY COLLEGES THAT OFFER THE PROGRAM.
LAS POSITAS JUNIOR COLLEGE IN LIVERMORE HAS A NEW SURG TECH PROGRAM, ITS NOT THAT HARD TO GET IN BECASUE ITS NEW. TOTAL COST IS ABOUT $2500 AND I BELIEVE FINANCIAL AID IS AVAILABLE. THEY ALSO SET YOU UP WITH INTERNSHIP SITES IN A TIMELY MANNER. DOUBLE CHECK ACCREDITATION BUT I DO THINK THEY ARE ACCREDITED.

Las Positas is not accredited and only a few of last year's group got their internships and none of those from this year are placed yet either.

To shai in Tracy, Las Positas is not accredited. the first group through just started getting placed in the fall of 2010 and they started in the fall of 2009. the second group started in the fall of 2010 and no one has been placed yet.

Just finished school in Gateway community college.... only payed under 3,000. The only thing i can recommend to students that already started is get tons of recommendation letters from anybody you can get them from and references...