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Hi everyone!

I have 6 months of school left until I am an RN! As I'm sure it's going to fly by, I'm seeking out possible job prospects, places to live already. I am currently residing in Halifax, Nova Scotia but have a great desire to travel somewhere, anywhere in Canada. I'm still young, no family, and not ready to settle down. I am looking for a fun, adventurous place (but also must have a good hospital!) So basically, I want any of you Canadian Nurses or those who have experience in Canada to recommend any great places in Canada for a new nurse! I want to work general med/surg so shouldn't have trouble finding a job, and areas I have considered are Moncton, Ottawa, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, Victoria...and I realize these are all big cities but if anyone even knows a rural area that would be great too........just want to get a few more ideas...thanks for any input!

Sue

I guess I should add more before someone answers...wel it really depends on what you prefer.......I prefer not a crazy large city.....but a medium sized city and hospitals that are not crazy specialized. I love the outdoors, lakes, hiking, running, the mountains, etc. A nice climate, and good pay helps too =)

Specializes in NICU, PICU, PCVICU and peds oncology.

You might consider Brandon, Manitoba - smallish city, medium-sized general hospital, lots of outdoor opportunities, major military base close by. No mountains, and the climate's a little extreme (-40C to +40C in the same year) but a nice place to live.

Red Deer, Alberta is another nice smallish city about halfway between Edmonton and Calgary and only about 2 1/2 hours from the foothills. Sylvan Lake is close with boating, fishing, swimming. They have a medium-sized general hospital with a busy emergency department. The climate isn't as wildly variable as Brandon, but it does get cold in the winter.

Kamloops, BC is yet another possibility. They have mountains, hiking and running trails, the North Thompson River, Paul Lake, several world-class golf courses and at least two world-class ski resorts nearby. Their hospital is a general, with a small ICU and a busy ED. The weather there is generally hot and dry in the summer, temperate in the winter with some snow but not the deep freeze. Kelowna and wine country are a little more than an hour away.

Hi SusieQ1234,

I live in Ottawa; it's a beautiful city: the suburbs are very quiet, DT is beautiful and very diverse. That being said, finding employment in Ottawa could be very discouraging if you speak only English. Most hospital openings require a B or B+ in French. Some LTC positions require French too. I wouldn't say the city is totally bilingual, but it's an "officially bilingual city". I find it annoying when I call an institution and they say "Bonjour" first.:angryfire hey, most people here speak English.

Hi Sue,

You might want to look into the Tri Cities area of Kitchener/Waterloo/Cambridge in Ontario, as well as the city of Guelph, which is only about 15 minutes away. I lived in Guelph and did my nursing training in Kitchener. I'm currently living and working in New Zealand - now THERE'S a place that would have everything you're looking for!

Anyway, there are solid/generalist hospitals in Guelph, Kitchener, and Cambridge. I did placements at all three and worked med-surg at Guelph as well as psych at Homewood (across the road from the general hospital). Kitchener has specialty cardio programs but, otherwise, they're all pretty much on par. I'm most familiar with Guelph - great biking and hiking trails, lakes, rivers, golfing, 20 - 30 minutes from ski hills, awesome farmer's market - but all 4 cities offer similar amenities. Kitchener's hospital is probably the largest but I would say that the city is the 'dodgiest' - the other three are much nicer aesthetically, although it does have its nicer areas, like any city. More blue collar overall, I guess, would be the best way to put it. Thanks to Wilfrid Laurier and Waterloo Universities in Waterloo and U of G in Guelph, all of the cities are pretty vibrant and full of life/'student cities', to a certain degree - perfect for a young, single, professional to network, mingle, socialize, and meet new friends.

I see you didn't mention Toronto as a possible consideration for you but it's a FABULOUS city and only about an hour's drive from the Tri Cities (using that as your home base) - an awesome special night out on the town with the girls or perfect to catch a concert/ball game/hockey game/one of the innumerable festivals or events of some sort that's always happening. You name it, Toronto's got it! And no, I don't think TO is the centre of the universe - always much preferred it as a place to visit but it IS a blast.

If I recall correctly, all of the hospitals are unionized so pay is pretty standard and decent/sufficient enough to keep you at a solid standard of living. I never complained. Guelph and Waterloo have some of the highest average/median incomes in the province due to the solid number of young, well-educated professionals that reside there.

If you do a Google search on any of the cities or any of the hospitals within them (St. Mary's, Grand River, Guelph General, Cambridge Memorial), you'll get a great idea of what it's all about, plus you can take a look at their online job postings as well.

Ottawa definitely is a great city, as per a previous poster, but it sounds like the Tri Cities area might be right up your alley. Feel free to message me if you have any further questions/if I can help you out in any way.

Cheers,

Katherine

Thanks so much for all your advice!! There are so many great places to live in Canada, it's making the choice very difficult, I'll msg you when I have some more questions!:wink2:

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