A nursing student says he and his cohort were “sold a dream” as The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) Wales warns that up to half of all nursing graduates in Wales may not have a job to go to when NHS recruitment opens.
RCN Wales said it is “raising the alarm” after confirmation that there is a shortage of Band 5 posts for newly qualified nurses.
It comes as recently graduated paramedics say they have been “left in limbo” after the Welsh Ambulance Service said it is “not in a position to employ newly qualified paramedics this year”.
One student, Trystan Thomas, said he felt “completely taken aback” upon hearing the news.
“We were sold a dream about becoming nurses, about becoming healthcare professionals – myself, paramedics, as well as we’ve recently seen – and now we’ve been told ‘thanks for all your hard work, you may or may not get a job,'” he told ITV News.
“We don’t know what the future holds and we essentially feel like we’re on standby.”
Trystan added that he has “never seen [his cohort] so demoralised”.
“I used to walk in and see smiles and we’d be happy about where we are. Now I see long faces, me included.”
RCN Wales said that the lack of jobs for new nurses represents a “serious failure of workforce planning and undermines the Welsh Government & NHS Duty of Quality to improve the safety of care”.
It is calling on the Welsh Government to provide “urgent clarity on the scale of the shortfall, credible, long-term workforce planning, and immediate system‑wide solutions to recruit, retain and deploy the nursing workforce Wales needs both now and in the future”.
RCN Wales said it has received assurances that students will not be penalised where posts are unavailable, including being released from any work‑in‑Wales obligations and not being required to repay tuition fee support when workforce shortages prevent them from securing employment.
Nursing student Trystan Thomas says his cohort feel “demoralised”. Credit: ITV Cymru Wales
Professor Sandy Harding, Associate Director of Nursing, RCN Wales, said: “The situation facing newly registered nurses is deeply concerning and exposes serious failures in workforce planning.
“It is becoming increasingly clear that this situation is being driven by financial constraints, including the freezing of vacant posts within the local health boards.
“Our NHS is under intense pressure, yet hundreds of newly qualified nurses may have no posts to enter. This is simply unacceptable.
“These students stepped forward for Wales, trained through immense challenges, and now face uncertainty at the very moment the system needs them most. They deserve far better.
“Every newly qualified nurse will be vital to meeting Wales’s care needs. The RCN will continue to demand transparency, accountability and long‑term planning from the system.
“We will not stop speaking up for students, for our safety critical nursing workforce, and for the people who rely on safe, high‑quality care.”
Health Education and Improvement Wales, who coordinate the process in matching medical students with vacancies, said the decision to postpone the process of matching final-year nursing students to jobs “had not been taken lightly”.
In a statement, a spokesperson said: “Student Streamlining is the nationally coordinated all-Wales process for matching final-year nursing, midwifery and Operating Department Practitioner students to suitable Band 5 roles across NHS Wales.
“Following discussions across NHS Wales organisations and partners, the decision has been taken to postpone the opening of the nursing and midwifery student streamlining process from 8 April to 11 May 2026.
“The extension has been agreed to allow additional time for Health Boards to review workforce positions, confirm and validate vacancies, and maximise the number of roles available.
“This decision has not been taken lightly. It reflects that NHS Wales organisations are managing a complex financial and operational position, alongside other changes in the available workforce including improved staff retention in some areas. This means fewer Band 5 roles suitable for graduates are currently available than in previous years.
“Whilst this extension is intended to increase the number of available roles for graduates, we cannot guarantee that it will fully resolve the gap between the number of graduates and available roles. In addition, while streamlining aims to support fair and consistent matching, it cannot guarantee a specific role or location.
“We understand this news is upsetting for students who have shown dedication and commitment throughout their training.
“We also recognise that the NHS Wales bursary requirement to work in Wales for two years after graduation may be causing concern. While we’re doing everything we can to help students find jobs in NHS Wales we can release students from this requirement, at an appropriate time, if needed.”
RCN Wales said it is “raising the alarm” after confirmation that there is a shortage of Band 5 posts for newly qualified nurses. Credit: PA
The Welsh Labour Government said: “We recognise the strength of feeling expressed by the Royal College of Nursing Wales and understand the concern of nursing students and newly qualified nurses at this critical point in their careers.
“We are committed to ensuring that our significant investment in NHS education and training is matched by meaningful employment opportunities, and we do not underestimate the impact on individuals or on services if newly qualified nurses are unable to secure posts.
“We are working closely with Health Boards, Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) and universities to address these challenges and support graduates.
“The number of nurses working in NHS Wales is now at record levels, reflecting our continued investment in the workforce. We are also seeing falling vacancy rates and reduced reliance on agency nursing, which are positive indicators of progress in building a more stable workforce. However, we acknowledge that this improvement must translate into clear and timely employment pathways for graduates.”
A Welsh Labour spokesperson said: “We hugely value the work of nurses in our NHS. The number of nurses working in NHS Wales is now at record levels, reflecting our continued investment in the workforce.
“If re-elected, we will recruit, train and retain the staff our NHS needs through a long-term workforce plan. We will widen access to medical education based on The Open University’s proposal for a flexible and blended model.”
A Welsh Conservative spokesperson, said: “It is completely unacceptable that newly qualified nurses could be left without jobs at a time when our NHS is under such intense pressure.
“Just last week we heard the deeply concerning news that paramedic graduates are also struggling to secure roles, highlighting a clear and systemic failure in workforce planning by the Welsh Labour Government.
“At a time when patients are facing long waits and staff are stretched to breaking point, we should be doing everything possible to retain this talent in our NHS, not forcing graduates to look elsewhere.
“The Welsh Conservatives will retain, recruit and train more doctors, dentists, nurses, midwives and other health professionals to end Labour’s recruitment crisis and improve access to appointments.”
A Welsh Liberal Democrat spokesperson said: “This is an extraordinary and unforgivable failure by the Welsh Labour Government.
“After years of mismanagement, we now have the absurd situation where newly qualified nurses are left without jobs while patients are treated in corridors and staff are pushed to breaking point.
“Labour cannot keep blaming everyone else, this crisis is the direct result of their failure to plan, fund and staff our NHS properly.
“They must urgently guarantee jobs for nursing graduates and set out a serious workforce plan, or risk driving away the very people our health service so desperately needs.”
A Plaid Cymru spokesperson said: “Despite the increasing pressures facing the NHS and its workforce, with huge numbers of nurse vacancies across Wales – the fact that there is a lack of available jobs for new nurses only further highlights Labour’s serious failure to invest in and forward plan for the NHS workforce.
“A Plaid Cymru government will create a new comprehensive national workforce strategy – ensuring our NHS staffing needs are met, strategically align the provision of courses with the demands within health boards, and ensure that students in Wales aren’t forced to leave the country they planned to build their career.
“Plaid Cymru is the only party that offers new leadership for Wales with real plans to support our NHS after it has been let down by Labour for so long.”
A spokesperson for the Green Party said: “Following revelations about the Welsh Government funding the training of paramedics and then not employing them, we see the same clear failure of planning regarding the training and recruitment of nurses. Labour’s leadership of the NHS is a shambles with no clear long-term workforce plan to match needs now and in the future.
“Nurses are the bedrock of our health care system and Wales Green Party will ensure workforce plans reflect the needs of the health service and our changing demographics. We will ensure they are properly resourced with clear delivery plans.”
Reform UK Wales said: “This situation is unacceptable and echoes what we’ve seen with the Welsh Ambulance Service.”A lack of proper workforce planning by the Plaid-backed Welsh Labour Government is making a mockery of taxpayers who fund a substantial agency staff bill and training for nurses who aren’t being offered jobs in the NHS.”Reform UK Wales will implement a comprehensive workforce review to quantify gaps and ensure that this failure ends.”
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