Moving to Hawaii - new grad

U.S.A. Hawaii

Published

Aloha everyone!

We just received word today that my husband (USMC) has received orders to KBay in Hawaii. We are excited/nervous about the entire move as well have 3 young boys in addition to pets coming along with us. However, my biggest concern is going to be my new grad status.

A little background. I have had my LPN since May 2009 and have about 10 months of experience working in a medical clinic. Prior to that I also had my CNA and worked in a nursing home for about 3 months. I am anticipating graduating this May with my BSN and will - which puts me in new grad status!

Our dilemna is that I am sacrificing some great opportunities out here to get right in with a job as a new grad. I am unsure about the availability of new grad jobs for BSNs out in Hawaii and would greatly appreciate some feedback from those living there to help weigh our options before having us all move out there (as my husband knows that he could be a geo-bachelor for a year if it comes down to it).

Thank you in advance!!

KC

Hey Gang -

Lets not forget pay is relative ....When I lived in Hawaii 2008-2010 gas was almost five dollars a gallon and milk was close behind....

That's a lot of spam and mac and cheese unless you have adjusted for inflation...35k in Georgia allows a lifestyle that would need to be

about 75k for similar lifestyle in Hawaii...Just sayin'

The market is just now turning around for new grads in HI. The Queen's Medical Center is hiring MANY new grads since they are opening up another hospital. They hired around 50 something this Fall, and are hiring more. If you use the CNA position to prove yourself and network, you can get hired. Good luck to all.

Specializes in Hematology/Oncology.
The market is just now turning around for new grads in HI. The Queen's Medical Center is hiring MANY new grads since they are opening up another hospital. They hired around 50 something this Fall, and are hiring more. If you use the CNA position to prove yourself and network, you can get hired. Good luck to all.

After the bill that was passed in HI over june and the increase of revenue for the state I knew this was going to happen. I didnt say anything because I didnt want to look like an idiot. lol

Either way I will be going for MMMC. I am applying for an NA position there until they have an opening.

The market is not turning around for new grads, especially if you are not from Hawaii and did not go to school here. If you are not from HI, I strongly recommend getting several years of experience elsewhere, and then if you insist upon working in Hawaii, come as a travel nurse. I work in HR and can tell you the market is highly over-saturated and hospitals don't care at all about who is a better nurse since the vast majority of hiring is done by staffing agencies who know nothing about healthcare.

mcubed45's comments are right on - as a CNA you will wait 1-2 years for an RN position, if you're even able to get hired as a CNA, which if you're a mainlander is unlikely to happen unless you go through a medical staffing agency. CNAs with experience can make up to $17/hr base pay, but those jobs are very very hard to get, and no, you will not be able to afford the Hawaii cost of living on that salary.

Your plan to stay in CA is probably best. This is not a stimulating environment in which you'll learn from great nurses how to become one yourself. You'll get frustrated, lose your life savings and if you're lucky know someone with the money to fly you back to the mainland.

Specializes in Hematology/Oncology.
The market is not turning around for new grads, especially if you are not from Hawaii and did not go to school here. If you are not from HI, I strongly recommend getting several years of experience elsewhere, and then if you insist upon working in Hawaii, come as a travel nurse. I work in HR and can tell you the market is highly over-saturated and hospitals don't care at all about who is a better nurse since the vast majority of hiring is done by staffing agencies who know nothing about healthcare.

mcubed45's comments are right on - as a CNA you will wait 1-2 years for an RN position, if you're even able to get hired as a CNA, which if you're a mainlander is unlikely to happen unless you go through a medical staffing agency. CNAs with experience can make up to $17/hr base pay, but those jobs are very very hard to get, and no, you will not be able to afford the Hawaii cost of living on that salary.

Your plan to stay in CA is probably best. This is not a stimulating environment in which you'll learn from great nurses how to become one yourself. You'll get frustrated, lose your life savings and if you're lucky know someone with the money to fly you back to the mainland.

I think 17 dollars an hour is doable depending on where you live and what resources you currently have.

I am kind of lost with your comment, in your other thread you said you work in HR, but you are looking for a CNA position part time in the hospital setting? but you work in the hospital full time?

but you cant even use your hr position in the hospital to work as a can part time?

I graduated this year from a HI school as an RN. I am not from Hawaii. Our class has been more successful in obtaining jobs as new grads in Hawaii, so I would say that the market is trending upwards for new grads. I'm sure this is also a facility dependent phenomenon. Multiple hospitals are expanding, and from attending nursing conferences, a large chunk of our nurses are over 65. I am not saying that it is going to be easy obtaining a job, but multiple managers expressed their interest in hiring me for ICU. I turned it down because I must move to the mainland for family reasons. I have applied to hundreds of positions in CA with no luck. I know of people here that work through agencies as CNAs/techs etc. and make connections with managers. Sometimes it is who you know in Hawaii, which is why networking and proving yourself is so important here. You might be waiting for years (for a hospital job), but you might not. It has been very hard for new grads here for the past few years. So much so that one of our instructors told our class that we would not get jobs. She was very wrong and her information was outdated. Still it is very competitive. Without other types of healthcare experience, I would think it would be hard to compete.

CNAs can make over $20 an hour depending on experience. I make $17 base pay with 1 yr exp. and am not a "Certified" NA. You may want to try getting an ER tech position. There is a high turnover for RNs and some hire new grads.

Also we have had classmates gain employment in LTC facilities, Hospice, etc. Keep your head up and good luck.

I graduated this year from a HI school as an RN. I am not from Hawaii. Our class has been more successful in obtaining jobs as new grads in Hawaii, so I would say that the market is trending upwards for new grads. I'm sure this is also a facility dependent phenomenon. Multiple hospitals are expanding, and from attending nursing conferences, a large chunk of our nurses are over 65. I am not saying that it is going to be easy obtaining a job, but multiple managers expressed their interest in hiring me for ICU. I turned it down because I must move to the mainland for family reasons. I have applied to hundreds of positions in CA with no luck. I know of people here that work through agencies as CNAs/techs etc. and make connections with managers. Sometimes it is who you know in Hawaii, which is why networking and proving yourself is so important here. You might be waiting for years (for a hospital job), but you might not. It has been very hard for new grads here for the past few years. So much so that one of our instructors told our class that we would not get jobs. She was very wrong and her information was outdated. Still it is very competitive. Without other types of healthcare experience, I would think it would be hard to compete.

CNAs can make over $20 an hour depending on experience. I make $17 base pay with 1 yr exp. and am not a "Certified" NA. You may want to try getting an ER tech position. There is a high turnover for RNs and some hire new grads.

Also we have had classmates gain employment in LTC facilities, Hospice, etc. Keep your head up and good luck.

Your class kind've lucked out with the timing. With Queens opening Queen's West next year there were a lot of positions to fill at both facilities. As such, the recent nurse residency group was much larger than usual. Once both facilities are staffed, however, job openings will once again become dependent on the rate of retirement. Statewide, there's still a fair amount of backlog of new grads that have been waiting 1-2 years for jobs though. When you consider that between UHM, KCC, HPU, and Chaminade there are 500-600 new grads per year on Oahu, it's easy to see that there are far more new nurses entering the workforce than leaving it.

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