How does it all work?

NedRN · Aug 23, 2014

Would you mind Googling it first? People write entire books about travel nursing and asking such an open ended question and hoping for a large answers is a bit unfair. One good way to learn about new topics is indeed forums and if you want to read multiple threads here, you can learn a lot, especially if you try reading between the lines.

guest769224 · Aug 23, 2014

Ned educates me daily as I follow his and others posts in this forum. There are several threads for you to research and by the time you're ready to travel you'll have a good understanding.

scrubnurselife · Aug 24, 2014

Well, you have about 6-8 years to go before you get there. Don't get me wrong, it's great you're looking that far ahead while in high school. First, finish high school. Get into college, take your pre-reqs, and really focus on your math and sciences. From there it's applying and getting into nursing school, passing nursing school, passing NCLEX, and once done, picking a specialty and working in it for at least 2 years before you can look at traveling. Some agencies will say they take at least one year experience, but at least 2 would be a better bet because you have to hit the ground running on a contract and not need much orientation. Good luck! :) We look forward to seeing you here further down the road getting ready for your first contract! Any idea what type of nursing you want to do yet?

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Aug 24, 2014

You need to be an experienced nurse before you can be a traveler. Right now, your focus should be on finishing high school and keeping your grades up to get into the college of your choosing. Coming straight from high school, I'd recommend you attend a 4 yr BSN program. You can enter it right out of high school and the pre-reqs will be built into the program. Then, once you finish school, graduate and take NCLEX, plan on securing a permanent (not travel/contract) position that you will stay at for at least 2 years. Travelers get very little orientation with each assignment, so you need to have a solid foundation in nursing before you travel.

itsximenaa · Aug 24, 2014

Well, you have about 6-8 years to go before you get there. Don't get me wrong, it's great you're looking that far ahead while in high school. First, finish high school. Get into college, take your pre-reqs, and really focus on your math and sciences. From there it's applying and getting into nursing school, passing nursing school, passing NCLEX, and once done, picking a specialty and working in it for at least 2 years before you can look at traveling. Some agencies will say they take at least one year experience, but at least 2 would be a better bet because you have to hit the ground running on a contract and not need much orientation. Good luck! :) We look forward to seeing you here further down the road getting ready for your first contract! Any idea what type of nursing you want to do yet?

Thank you so much! This Deffinetly answered all my questions. I'm thinking of becoming a pediatric nurse, that's very high on my goal list!