job change/salary raises/certification

[allthesmallthings]

I am a new grad (6 months on my first job) and starting to look around at other job opportunities. 4 questions:

1) How do I look around for another job without attracting negative attention to myself at my current job? I'm not interested in leaving my current job for at least six months to eighteen months, but I do want to know what's out there, how responsive employers would be to me with at least one year of experience under my belt, how many interviews I could get, etc. When I first looked for a job, after graduation and before I got my license, I only got a couple of interested call-backs and one interview (in another state, the interview which ended up as the job I have now). I want to know how much better my options would be, applying with both my license and a year of experience. However, how do I look around and put in inquiries/applications to check how the fish are biting, without my current job finding out? When I do eventually transfer jobs, I don't want to be without a job while I look for a new one, but I don't know what the protocol/penalties are for looking for a new job while still on the old one.

2) What's the feeling towards nurses who switch jobs within the hospital, or within the hospital system? I work in a hospital system consisting of about four different hospital locations. When I interviewed for the job, the supervisor said that her reservation about hiring me was that I might stay a year, then get lonely for my old home in Georgia and leave. I'm not sure that I want to go back to Georgia yet, or at least not for a year and a half (I get a financial bonus if I stay on the job two years); but if I switch jobs within the hospital, or to another hospital within the system, is it still viewed the same way as if I had just abandoned ship? Not to sound codependent, but I know that job turnover is inconvenient for managers, and that one way to get ahead in your career is not to tick off management, or at least to be able to see things from management's perspective.

3) Do nurses get annual raises? I'm looking into retirement funds, and sites keep talking about how annual raises increase your salary. Do these raises apply to the nursing industry, too? After, say, ten years or so, will I top-out my salary based on years experience, or will it continue to grow up until retirement?

4) Certification: what is it?? How, and how much, does it affect your salary? Is it worth getting for the financial aspects? Is it worth getting just for the educational aspects, to keep myself in school mode? How long does it take? Can I do the learning online? Can I do the test online? Does it really make you feel more knowledgeable, confident? Does it really impress employers/potential employers when put on your resume? Should I get certified in more than one specialty?

Responses appreciated! It's still hard to believe I'm "out there" in the "real world," with an actual career!

[scarcity21]

bumping for answers pls

[HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD]

You need to talk to your manager about how salary increases are handled at your facility. Normally, you will get an annual raise tied to your performance evaluation. At some facilities, these are done at the time of your date of hire anniversary and at others everyone is evaluated at the same time each year.

Sometimes, an organization will give an across the board raise if they find that they have fallen below what the competition is paying.

There are many benefits associated with staying at the same organization. If you have an employer contribution pension plan, you are fully vested after 5 years - this means all the money belongs to you. Your accrual of vacation and sick days increases. You will also have opportunities to train for more responsibility such as charge nurse and to get involved with activities that can prepare you for leadership positions.

I certainly don't want to put this all on you - but this is one of the main reasons that everyone is so reluctant to hire new grads. There just seems to be a focus on job change rather than trying to gain skills & expertise. You can change that impression - at least for your manager.