Getting married after graduation... Honeymoon during orientation?

serenitylove14 · Nov 22, 2013

I am not sure what an ATT letter is but I would just tell them that you can start on whatever date is after your honeymoon.

llg, PhD, RN · Nov 22, 2013

I wouldn't plan a wedding for that period of my life -- graduation, taking NCLEX, starting a new career -- all within a few weeks of each other. That's a bad idea. I've seen several new nurses try that and end up regretting trying to cope with so many big events at one time. Many end up failing NCLEX because they were too distracted with everything else going on in their lives to focus properly.

I would look for a job that starts after your wedding and after NCLEX. If that's not possible in your area, then plan a very small "easy" wedding so that you don't have to invest too much time and effort with all the last-minute details. Delay the honeymoon until after you pass NCLEX, etc. In other words, try to minimize your committments and stress until after NCLEX is safely passed.

An employer would most likely give you a few days off for a wedding/honeymoon -- UNLESS those days fall on critical class days of your orientation. So while you might get lucky and get the time off, you might not. And if you "fall behind" in your development on orientation, it could get your job off to a bad start -- adding a lot of stress to your life and possibly sabataging your success.

Take care of yourself -- play it safe -- do yourself a favor -- and don't try to do it all at the same time.

BBRANRN2013, ASN, RN · Nov 22, 2013

It's doable - I got married 2 months before graduation at a beach 5 hours away and we stayed a whole week! I graduated with high honors and passed my NCLEX first try! Good luck and congrats!

starry01 · Dec 3, 2013

Hi,

It depends on a lot of factors. Is someone helping you plan your wedding? If yes, I think you can squeeze in at least 4 hours a day of studying for the NCLEX. If not, consider your study habits.

I graduated in early June and got married mid-July. I had a day-of wedding coordinator but was planning all the details and dealing with all my other vendors on my own. I did not have time to study before my wedding. Hence, I took my NCLEX in mid-September.

Because I passed my boards relatively late- I knew I would not be eligible to apply to new grad programs. These fall programs began anywhere from September through August. So I honeymooned right after.

Everything depends on your schedule and if you are willing to wait to hold off on the honeymoon. If you know for a fact that you will get hired right out of school- I would hold off on the honeymoon.

NPOaftermidnight, MSN, RN, NP · Dec 4, 2013

I actually got married the weekend of graduation (5/18). We left for our honeymoon a couple days later, were gone for 2weeks. A week later, I received my ATT, and 2 weeks after that I took my boards. I'm sure you're excited to start your new job but enjoy your wedding and honeymoon and just start your new job when you get back. The last thing you are going to want to do in the days after your wedding is go to work - you need to have fun and spend time with your spouse. No employer is going to fault you for wanting to take your honeymoon! Also - it can be difficult to get vacation time (not to mention you are probably going to have to wait to accrue it, and then get approved to use it). Who knows when you'll be able to take your honeymoon? In my current position, the soonest I would be able to take a whole week off would be a year out from my start date. Do it now while you can!!

Swellz · Dec 11, 2013

I had a friend who had already planned and paid for his honeymoon before he got a job offer. Well, it ended up overlapping with his orientation. He was initially told that he absolutely had to be there and no exceptions would be made, but his nurse manager gave him off in the end.