First Travel Assignment in Texas?

[PolishGirlRN]

Hi all!

I'm an RN with two years MedSurg experience in a small hospital in Albany, NY and what I really want to do is move to Austin, TX.

My current workplace requires 4 weeks notice upon resignation. For a variety of personal reasons, I'd also like to take some time off between jobs. I can't really imagine applying for a job but not being able to start until 6-8 weeks later so I am considering taking a travel assignment in Austin as a stop gap measure.

Financially, I could probably swing just moving without a job offer but most apartment complexes want you to submit pay stubs so housing may be an issue and as a fairly new nurse with just an ADN I worry that my job search may take longer than I would like. So securing a travel assignment in or near the area I want to be while I look for something more permanent seems like a good plan.

However, I have heard from coworkers that traveling without a specialty is awful. I have also seen Texas mentioned in these forums as a place to avoid traveling. Any more experienced travelers have any feedback on my plan? I feel like even if the situation is awful and the pay is low, I'm just using this as a way to move halfway across the country with less uncertainty.

I am planning to move in the fall (October). How soon should I be contacting agencies? I'd like to have my ducks in a row before handing in my resignation but I'm aware that this may not be possible. I'm a huge planner so I often like to have things figured out months in advance. I've had this plan since January and it's killing me to sit on it at work but all the advice I've gotten is that I shouldn't let work know about my plan until I'm ready to execute it. Any advice you guys can give would be immeasurably helpful!

Thanks in advance!

[NedRN]

I would strongly suggest skipping the travel idea. You won't be eligible for special tax treatment (a huge benefit normally of traveling), and all your compensation including provided housing is taxable.

So you will likely earn more as staff, get real benefits such as good health insurance, PTO, holidays, vacations, retirement, and squeeze a health relocation bonus out of them. You can dictate what your start date will be so time off is not a problem. The only issue will be a gap in your health insurance that will be expensive to cover while you are not working. The easiest option is to COBRA your current employer. Or for less, you can take a chance nothing bad will happen to your health during your employment gap. The extra you will pay on your income taxes as a prorated penalty will be minimal.

[PolishGirlRN]

Thanks for the detailed info! I don't know much about the whole tax situation and this has given me some other things to think about. As for health insurance, I plan to get my state's ACA coverage while I'm not working (plus I will be traveling abroad during my break so travel insurance should cover anything catastrophic). I'm really just nervous about striking out for a new place in a city I don't know well where I don't really have any family or friends without a job waiting for me. I guess I was considering that taking a travel position with housing would be a convenient stepping stone to finding something more permanent.

[Barkow]

If you absolutely know you want to move to Austin, I'd just go ahead and try to find a staff job. If you're valuable enough to them they shouldn't mind waiting six weeks for you to start, and like Ned pointed out you can sometimes get relocation money. I'd only use traveling if you're having trouble getting bites on your applications from afar, or if you're not 100% sure about the move and want to try it out while maintaining your home in Albany as backup.

[PolishGirlRN]

Thanks for your input. I will definitely be getting rid of my apartment in Albany and be sort of itinerant from August to October, bouncing between friends, family and travel accommodations before moving to Austin. I am also wondering how early I should begin applying for a TX license since most of the jobs I see posted require you to have one when applying.

[Barkow]

I would just apply for the TX license now since you know you want to end up there. Better to have it done so you're able to apply to positions as soon as you see them, and it shows you're invested in making the move.

[PolishGirlRN]

**UPDATE** I've been in Austin for five days and have 3 interviews already. Guess there was no reason to worry! So excited to get back to work.

[Ginger45]

I have traveled to Dallas, TX. The place where I went was awful. There were a lot of foreign nurses which was fine but I could not understand them. My area is psych. I don't know how the medical center is. It's tough there. I have a really easy time getting an assignment and I am usually am gone within two weeks. I would request a small town. Good luck!