Feasible Way to Be an RN While Traveling?

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I'm not a traveller or a nurse yet...lol. I'm actually a pre-nursing student looking to the future here. I'm hoping someone will have some insight for me! My hubby is finishing up nursing school this semester and will have his RN sometime this year (YAY - this has been a LONG journey). My plan is to enter nursing school this coming fall and complete my ADN while he gains experience in his field. When I'm done I'll of course work somewhere to gain appropriate experience in my field. When we're ready we'll travel (we already homeschool our kiddos, so getting an RV and going around the country while we work will complement our current lifestyle). We'll still have kids young enough that rather than take contracts at the same time, we'll either alternate contracts or hubby will just do the full-time travel contracts and then I would do per diem/agency nursing in whatever location we happen to be in to keep my skills up. *I think* anyways. Not being a nurse yet, I don't know if this plan is feasible. I'd hate to go through all of the schooling and get to that point to realize things don't work the way I think they do. At some point when I posted years ago about our plans, that was a suggestion. I don't remember where it came from. So my questions I guess are is it feasible to think I could do agency or per diem (is there a difference?) when he will have a 13 week contract? So I'd have to work with an agency that is okay with my only being an agency nurse for them for the 13 weeks that we're local. OR if we alternate contracts, when it comes time to find contracts, will we have trouble getting travel jobs if we've had a good 13 or so weeks off? Will they worry that our skills will be rusty? Will our skills get rusty in that amount of time? If it ends up being feasible for me to just do agency/per diem while hubby does all the full-time travel contracts, is one or two days a week going to be enough to keep my skill level where it should be? Will I end up not being marketable at all in terms of nursing jobs? My eventual goal when our kids are all older (probably once we're at or close to empty nest) and we're ready to settle in one spot (if that happens) would be to be a midwife, so working as an L&D nurse would be a great stepping stone and provide great experience. But my priority is being with my kids and schooling them and having time to take them out and about and experience life as we travel the country. Being on the cusp of entering nursing school, as I said I'd hate to go through all of the work of school (which I KNOW is intense from watching hubby go through it) only to find out that I can't manage my career in the way I want/need to in order to live how we desire. I tend to ramble, so hopefully what I'm asking is clear. Feel free to ask for clarification if it's not. And on another note, just dipping my toe into this world and getting my CNA license last year, whew, the work all of you do is amazing. I come from a career in social services, including the very tough work of child welfare, and wow - nursing is not for wimps. You guys are AMAZING to do what you do!!!

Specializes in PICU, Sedation/Radiology, PACU.

Are there other careers you might find just as fulfilling that allow you to work remotely? An IT degree gives you hundreds of options for well paying work you can do from anywhere. Accounting allows you a lot of flexibility in location, and the ability to sign on with larger corporations for temporary jobs during tax season. Majoring in a language could allow you to work for a company like Language Services Associates, providing interpreter services by phone. Medical Transcription, while not so high-paying, would require less education and be quicker to complete. If you do decide to stick with nursing, you could consider telenursing- or telephone triage- which may allow you to maintain a full time job with benefits while working remotely. Another option could be working for a health insurance company as a nurse auditor. Your employment options as a two-income family living on the road aren't limited to accepting concurrent travel assignments, and there are ways to work remotely that provide medical benefits as well.

One more piece of advice- you didn't mention what degree your husband is pursuing, but you did say that your plan is to get an ADN. You will find that not having a BSN will limit your travel assignment options because, even if the travel agency doesn't require a BSN, many hospitals will.

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Are there other careers you might find just as fulfilling that allow you to work remotely? An IT degree gives you hundreds of options for well paying work you can do from anywhere. Accounting allows you a lot of flexibility in location, and the ability to sign on with larger corporations for temporary jobs during tax season. Majoring in a language could allow you to work for a company like Language Services Associates, providing interpreter services by phone. Medical Transcription, while not so high-paying, would require less education and be quicker to complete. If you do decide to stick with nursing, you could consider telenursing- or telephone triage- which may allow you to maintain a full time job with benefits while working remotely. Another option could be working for a health insurance company as a nurse auditor. Your employment options as a two-income family living on the road aren't limited to accepting concurrent travel assignments, and there are ways to work remotely that provide medical benefits as well.

One more piece of advice- you didn't mention what degree your husband is pursuing, but you did say that your plan is to get an ADN. You will find that not having a BSN will limit your travel assignment options because, even if the travel agency doesn't require a BSN, many hospitals will.

I have considered other options and IT would probably be the closest thing to something else I could be interested in, but truly my heart is in birthing and babies and this idea of progressing to a midwife someday (when we're okay with settling and discontinuing travel). As someone with a history in social services/ case management, I also feel like I could look into telephonic nurse case management and such if I get tired of floor nursing, full time travel contracts, etc...So I'm trying to remember that there are alternatives. I'm pursuing an ADN because I have it fully funded (tuition, fees, books, uniforms, supplies, testing fees, gas mileage, etc...). I would MUCH prefer to do an ABSN program since I already have a Bachelor's degree, but I also don't want more college debt considering I've carried college debt around since my first go around that I've been unable to pay off (should be able to take care of it quickly once hubby and I are both working as RNs). So I will go the route of the free to get my RN! I figure I can do an online RN-BSN and even try to knock that out prior to traveling or while traveling. Hubby is in the same boat - same funding source. So he will have the ADN as well, but is also open to online RN-BSN as needed.

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One more piece of advice- you didn't mention what degree your husband is pursuing, but you did say that your plan is to get an ADN. You will find that not having a BSN will limit your travel assignment options because, even if the travel agency doesn't require a BSN, many hospitals will.

After many years of traveling, I still have not come across a single hospital that requires a BSN for travelers. It would cut their options dramatically and thus increase the bill rates they would have to pay for a qualified traveler. I've heard rumors of restrictions, but no actual confirmed ones for travelers. Even hospitals that require a BSN for staff waive it on the condition that you are actively pursuing one while working for them.

Certainly if you are pursing a nursing degree with no prior college, go for the BSN program. Less stressful than ADN programs, and only about one semester more in total. It keeps more career options open later should you want them.

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As much as I think I'd like to get my RN, work L&D, and then eventually be a midwife, I'm trying to wrap my brain around whether or not this is the right season of my life for this or whether we'd enjoy the full-time, homeschooling, traveling life more if one of us could be home with the kids full-time! It's so hard to know the right answer on this. :)

Homemakers have a long and noble history. However, in our American culture, you are looked down on, especially if you don't have a career or at least a degree. In addition, modern economics do not favor single income families like it once did in our recent history, say pre-1980s.

There are a ton of rational reasons to obtain career preparation. For one, what happens if your husband dies suddenly in an accident? Perhaps you have some good life insurance, but being able to take over financially and go to work in a good paying job is something that can't be taken away. Like in a divorce. Then there are the social considerations, if your family is your entire life, your social needs may not be met and even you may not be as interesting to your husband.

Life choices are always tough, but getting an education should be given a priority. It is easier the younger you are, especially with family commitments. Obviously it is your decision, and most of what I touched on is speculation that may not even apply to you.

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Homemakers have a long and noble history. However, in our American culture, you are looked down on, especially if you don't have a career or at least a degree. In addition, modern economics do not favor single income families like it once did in our recent history, say pre-1980s.

There are a ton of rational reasons to obtain career preparation. For one, what happens if your husband dies suddenly in an accident? Perhaps you have some good life insurance, but being able to take over financially and go to work in a good paying job is something that can't be taken away. Like in a divorce. Then there are the social considerations, if your family is your entire life, your social needs may not be met and even you may not be as interesting to your husband.

Life choices are always tough, but getting an education should be given a priority. It is easier the younger you are, especially with family commitments. Obviously it is your decision, and most of what I touched on is speculation that may not even apply to you.

Honestly you have hit on some things that are a concern of mine. As someone with a Bachelor's degree, it has been so disheartening that when push came to shove and we NEEDED me to take over supporting the family so hubby could complete RN school, I simply couldn't. My background is social services/case management. The area we live in is not helping as it's a very low-paying area and not a ton of jobs. I took time off to raise a few of my kiddos when they were younger and ran a licensed home daycare for years. And actually the home daycare supported my family while hubby was in school getting his pre-reqs and his LPN license. We closed the daycare doors because, well, in the state of Illinois I was being subject to late daycare payments (lots of clients in this area are state pay because of the economically depressed area I live in) and let me tell you that the mortgage company does not care that the reason you haven't paid in two months is because you're still waiting for the state to pay you money that you are owed. It's a mess in this state. So I ended up closing my doors while hubby was working full-time as an LPN. I didn't think it would be a big deal to find something in social services/case management to support the family for hubby's LPN-RN year this past year and try try try as I have, I've been rejected for every decent paying job that I've tried to obtain. This is WITH my Bachelor's and a good history in social services work. I could probably find something 45 minutes away, but I'd lose so much by commuting and our income is so depressed that we struggle to keep our vehicles running - so it would not be a good idea. I kind of feel like I'm being punished for having taken time off to spend with my children as infants and I definitely think many in the position of hiring haven't a clue the vast skill set necessary to run a successful licensed home daycare business. So instead I'm juggling two low-income part-time positions and hubby is still having to work to make up the other half of the income we need to survive right now. My two part-time jobs (equaling out to full-time hours) are equaling what he makes half-time as an LPN (and even that is not good in this area).

Anyways, all that to explain that I get completely the point about what would I do if something happened to my husband? Like I REALLY get it because I have actual living proof that I can NOT support my family if needed. It's been humiliating and frustrating to experience as one who did get my education and make it a priority when I was young and had no kids and it was easy to do. Granted, I maybe would have better luck with this in a different area. But this area has been so bad that we've gotten poorer since we moved back here (it's our home town) and we're at a point where we can't even fix our house enough to sell it to make enough to pay the bank what we owe. There's nothing catastrophically huge thankfully, just lots of little things that shouldn't be a problem once hubby has his RN income. Sadly, that is the state many families in this town find themselves in. They get poorer the longer they live here to the point that they are so poor they can't afford to get out!

I made a chart just the other day going through my kids' homeschooling needs and realized I will be homeschooling through 2034 at least - hahahaha - definitely okay with that. BUT what making the chart made me realize is this. I have ONE old enough to need schooling right now, an additional kiddo that will be starting homeschool my second year of nursing school. I can juggle that - I really can. That's a whole other post. But I've talked to many a mom who has juggled nursing school with homeschooling responsibilities. It can be done. BUT once I have four in full swing of homeschooling. Possible, yes, but really really a whole heck of a lot harder. So making that chart has made me realize that really this is my window in which I can do this and it won't be easy, but much easier than it will be even a few years down the road. Also, my full funding for my program is time-limited. I started receiving funding last year when I took the CNA course and pre-reqs and have received it for my co-reqs (which will all be done after this semester except for microbiology - all A's too - sorry, can't help it - toot toot!). I will have two remaining years left of my FULL funding, which is exactly what is needed to get through the ADN program. So really, it's kind of like now or never. And I feel like once I have the RN, nobody can take that away - even if I end up working a bit less at times.

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You sound very grounded. I do have a comment from this last post of yours, pragmatism counts! Putting some or all of your kids in public schools for a year or two is not going to hurt them, and might even shorten your time away from them while easing your current burden. School is stressful enough for both overachievers and underachievers and you don't need added stress from also trying to do your kids right (and potentially affecting them as well from your own stress).

I do have a fun anecdote for you though. There was a 57 year old woman from Nigeria in my nursing program with 8 kids at home (possibly adopted) and an absentee husband in Africa and got through school going full time. She certainly was not an overachiever academically and had some big problems with decimals (OK with dimes and pennies, but she couldn't make the jump to a third decimal place). I don't know much about her home environment or finances but assume some older kids helped with younger ones. So some people are capable of amazing things!

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You sound very grounded. I do have a comment from this last post of yours, pragmatism counts! Putting some or all of your kids in public schools for a year or two is not going to hurt them, and might even shorten your time away from them while easing your current burden. School is stressful enough for both overachievers and underachievers and you don't need added stress from also trying to do your kids right (and potentially affecting them as well from your own stress).

I do have a fun anecdote for you though. There was a 57 year old woman from Nigeria in my nursing program with 8 kids at home (possibly adopted) and an absentee husband in Africa and got through school going full time. She certainly was not an overachiever academically and had some big problems with decimals (OK with dimes and pennies, but she couldn't make the jump to a third decimal place). I don't know much about her home environment or finances but assume some older kids helped with younger ones. So some people are capable of amazing things!

Wow. That is an amazing story. I do love hearing about other people's successes with this - helps me to realize that if someone else can do it so can I. That being said I just might be 57 or so by the time I'm able to go back for the midwifery part...lol! Oh well - more time to have a solid OB foundation! And I think many women feel comfortable with a granny midwife of sorts! :)

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Specializes in Cardio-Pulmonary; Med-Surg; Private Duty.

Other things to keep in mind... when you're in nursing school, your husband will, in all likelihood, be working just three shifts/week. He can take over a large portion of the homeschooling duties during that time. You don't need to do you-school + homeschool at the same time all on your own.

Another source of income for your husband (and you, too, after you get your RN) is private duty nursing (PDN) before you start traveling. The pay is usually less than hospital RN wage rate (because most of the work is paid for by Medicaid versus private health insurance), but the work is usually WAY less intense, too (just one patient who is relatively stable, home setting rather than facility, etc.). Just one shift a week at a second job is like getting a whole extra week's paycheck every month. Depending on the Medicaid rate in your area (each state is different), you'd be looking at an extra $10K or more per year just by working one day a week in PDN. Since you're looking at a minimum of 4-5 years until you could actually start traveling, that's an extra $40K-$50K you could put in the bank to have a nest egg to fall back on while traveling.

Although, you may want to look at buying a super-cheap house with a portion of that cash, and then also reap the tax advantages of having a tax home while traveling. You don't have to keep your current home or buy a smaller home in your area -- you can buy a cheap home anywhere. It doesn't even have to be up to snuff, because if you pay cash, you don't have to meet a mortgage-lender's strict requirements. If a $10K investment allows you to save $10K/year in tax benefits, you're coming out ahead after that first year. Buy a home in a no-income-tax state, and you're even better off. Add a roommate to cover taxes and insurance and utilities and lawnmowing/snowshoveling, and there you go. Plus, instead of putting money (that you'll never get back) into renting an empty apartment, you will still have the equity in your crappy little house you purchase when all is said and done.

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Hello Swimming-duck, I know this is an older post, but I was looking for very similar info and we seem to have a lot in common! We currently live in a camper (family of 5) and I am in my first semester of nursing school - getting my associates (I already have a BA in music education that I never "formally" used). My husband is disabled and he has been homeschooling the kids (he also has a degree--electrical engineering --- that he has never used, lol!). AND my mom is a midwife!!! So I thought we have too much in common for me not to say hello to you, lol. We have been seriously considering going on the road, with me as a traveling nurse. Of course, it is a 3 year plan to get there, so who knows what we may be up to by then, lol. I have considering taking a close by job in med-surge for 2 years... my "dream" job is the burn unit because my daughter is a burn survivor... but I've heard that is really hard to get into also and I will probably need the 2 years experience anyway... and maybe even go for my BSN in the meantime. It is good to have a lot of options though and I applaud you for going after your dreams! You will have to let me know where to find these "large families in RV" website are! I need to join, lol :D

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Hello Swimming-duck, I know this is an older post, but I was looking for very similar info and we seem to have a lot in common! We currently live in a camper (family of 5) and I am in my first semester of nursing school - getting my associates (I already have a BA in music education that I never "formally" used). My husband is disabled and he has been homeschooling the kids (he also has a degree--electrical engineering --- that he has never used, lol!). AND my mom is a midwife!!! So I thought we have too much in common for me not to say hello to you, lol. We have been seriously considering going on the road, with me as a traveling nurse. Of course, it is a 3 year plan to get there, so who knows what we may be up to by then, lol. I have considering taking a close by job in med-surge for 2 years... my "dream" job is the burn unit because my daughter is a burn survivor... but I've heard that is really hard to get into also and I will probably need the 2 years experience anyway... and maybe even go for my BSN in the meantime. It is good to have a lot of options though and I applaud you for going after your dreams! You will have to let me know where to find these "large families in RV" website are! I need to join, lol :D

We do have a lot in common. Hello there! I found out that I gained admission to the RN program recently, so I'll be starting the ADN this fall. So I'm about four years out from this travel dream if you count the 2 years experience needed for traveling!

If you search on facebook for "fulltime families large families on the road" you will run into this facebook group. I'm open to FB friending also if you wish.

It is good to have options. I considered music for my BA way back in the day before settling on Sociology. I was originally going to head into music therapy. But I've obviously strayed very far from that. I do teach my oldest piano and recorder though, so that's something...lol!

I'm glad you piped up and commented. You'll have to keep me posted on how things go!

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Awesome! Yes, my focus was in piano, lol :D Although I had to choose between vocal and instrumental and I chose to do vocal, since I had no idea about band, lol :D Yes, friend me on facebook! Is there anyway to private message on here? I'm new to this forum.... Congrats on getting accepted! I'm sure you will breeze through the program :D

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