How much education do I need before traveling?

RRN · Mar 15, 2005

I am a nursing student that will graduate with an associates in may. I have wanted to become a traveling nurse since I started school. I do plan on getting my Bachelors but is it better to have a bachelors before I start traveling or do I just need some work experience, or both? any advice would be helpful.
Thanks a bunch.

You really need at the minimium ONE YEAR of experience. School will never make any person an experienced nurse.

When you travel you need to hit the floor running. You won't get much orientation. You need to be able to perform at the optimum level of an RN.

You can travel with an ADN. An ADN will give you an RN license if you pass the NCLEX.

Get your year of experience . It's worth it.

Dixielee, BSN, RN · Mar 15, 2005

Education is not the limiting factor.....experience is. Most companies require at least one year before traveling. I think that is not enough. You need to be completely confident in your skills. If you can get some varied experience in different hospitals, maybe working agency, you can get a feel for what it is like to be in a new environment with little or no orientation. It is a good idea as well to see how several different hospitals do things, learn different equipment, etc. Some places have a medication Pyxis, some use the carts, some have locked boxes in each patient room. There are many different types of IV pumps, tubing types, Blood glucose monitors, etc. When you enter a hospital to travel, they will expect you to be able to pick up very quickly and will not provide you an orientation to teach you how to be a nurse. You get a few pointers on how they do things, and what their expectations are, but that is about it. Then you are off and running.