Life and jobs in San Francisco

crazyframes · Jun 24, 2008

That's hilarious. The "non-brand" neighborhoods? I've lived in SF for a total of 9 years and I've never heard that:) I live in Hayes Valley, so I guess I live in a brand name hood. It still gets foggy, windy and cold. Summer is the coldest time of year in ALL of San Francisco. People always under estimate our weather all the time. This is why we always see tourists downtown with their shorts, sandals and those cheap sweatshirts they sell at the corner stores on when the fog kicks in around 3pm. Not to laugh at them:)
And we've been quite lucky the past week with the warmer and very not like SF weather.

Yeah - someone else said name brand so I figured there are some non-brand neighborhoods as well

It has been gorgeous as of late and I'm loving every minute of it. I know what to expect of the summer so every day I see sunshine at my house is a day to celebrate! However, I think the lack of fog is not helping with all of the fires as of late. Hopefully they'll be able to get those under control soon.

Public transit in the city of SF has it's good and bad. There are tons of bus lines and a few muni lines. If you live near a muni or BART stop that is much more convenient. As for night transport, the bus system has OWL buses that run on a very reduced schedule between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. I think they typically run every 30 minutes so if you miss it you've got a long wait ahead of you. Overall, it's a pretty good system. I've never been to NYC so can't compare to that but I did live in Chicago for 10 years. There you wouldn't think of living too far from an El stop if you didn't have a car because the buses were terrible. Here, not as bad but the MUNI system doesn't compare to the El at all.

I'm starting school this fall in Hayward and will be commuting from the far west side of SF out to the East Bay. On public transit it will take me about 1:45 from door to door. That compares to about 1:10 in the car. It will end up being an extra hour each day but I figure that's an extra hour to study!

Jazzy_nurse_SF · Jun 24, 2008

Can anyone give me any feedback about the new grad RN programs offered all around the bay area hospitals?

I am not able to get into the programs due to its full capacity in the bay area, for the rest of the summer and fall.

Does anyone know about applying for jobs as a regular position level one? Do they at least consider those positions if one is a new RN.

Thanks for the feedback.

CityKat, BSN, RN · Jun 24, 2008

New graduate programs in the bay area are MORE competitive than anywhere else. People believe that because we start out with a higher hourly pay, they will make more money. So, they come to California. The reality is that we have higher taxes and the cost of living is higher than 99% of the rest of the country. Yes, here in the bay area, we are neck and neck with Manhattan rent prices. That's quite unbelievable.

We have new graduate programs only 2x a year and if you're lucky enough to have the departments look over your resume, you might get an interview.

However, be aware that most of last years graduates who are from SF bay area, have not even been placed yet and so, hospitals are giving them the advantage (I was directly told that by a nursing recruiter).

Also, take into consideration that UCSF and SF General are all on hiring freezes still, I believe. Not the private hospitals.

There are plenty of hospitals in the east bay, but all of their summer programs are filled as well. Graduates are fighting to get in anywhere they can right now. You cannot pick and choose your hospital in the bay area.

I suggest commuting to Sac, Davis, Vallejo or the south or north bay. Along with the east bay.

Thats just my experience:)