How did you feel when you got your first nursing paycheck?

dansamy · Sep 17, 2013

I have a feeling that I will be disappointed. New grads only start at 24/hr. But with crazy overtime I've pull 1400 checks as a tech.[/quote']
I started at $19/hr. Now, before shift differentials, I make $21.79/hr. Yeah, I need to find a more labor friendly state.
Sent from my HTC One X using allnurses.com

YouSmellLikeCDiff · Sep 17, 2013

I remember thinking that my bank account had never seen that much money! ...and then it was gone after putting a down payment on my apartment.

DedHedRN · Sep 17, 2013

My first two weeks of work was so hard, I was almost disappointed. I felt I deserved more.

BSNbeauty, BSN, RN · Sep 17, 2013

I felt blessed !!! I had enough for bills and retail therapy.

ak2190 · Sep 17, 2013

I remember feeling rich after having made $9.00/hr at my previous job!

adventure780, BSN, MSN, RN, APN · Sep 17, 2013

I was elated, I didn't want to spend it all fast, I wanted to donate it to charity and I did eventually donate a portion to charity and it felt great, it went St. Jude's

plinytheRN · Sep 17, 2013

disappointed as well... I made more as a student intern in CA ($23), than I do as an RN in Louisiana ($20) the whole cost of living thing is cheaper is mostly untrue (my rent here is $988). sigh... underpaid and overworked is the norm in the south. can't wait to get back to cali with pt ratios, better pay, and unions.

fetch, BSN, RN · Sep 18, 2013

Mixed bag -- it was twice what I made as a pharmacy tech but still a good 20% lower than what a lot of my fellow nurses were making (I was working at a clinic, they were at hospitals). Now that I'm a school nurse, it's more per hour but less per year! Just gotta trust in my budgeting skills and believe that doing what I love is more important than getting a bigger paycheck.

healthyglo · Sep 18, 2013

I feel like we don't get paid enough for the **** we deal with

Now that's the truth lol.

YasminLassiter · Dec 30, 2013

A little sad that it was not much more than my previous salaried office job, however I am still happy with the career change. I look forward to all the possibilities though.

Katniss88 · Dec 30, 2013

When I got my first nursing paycheck I stared at it for a few minutes. I have had other jobs in the past but I never made that much in a single paycheck. It was also my first professional job as an adult so I also was feeling quite accomplished that all my hard work in nursing school finally paid off.

RunBabyRN · Jan 3, 2014

I'm graduating in May, and already dreaming of that first paycheck!