Looking for info on SUNY Upstate Hospital

[MajinBulma]

Hi everyone

I’m currently a nursing student and have another year before I graduate but my fiancée and I are trying to get an idea of where to move once I’m done and we are looking at Syracuse, NY.

I’ve seen a few conversations about SUNY Upstate and just wanted anyone’s opinion on this hospital or even any other places for a new grad in Syracuse. What’s the work environment like? Is the pay decent? Are these places that a new grad can excel in? Are there sign on bonuses?

Any information would be wonderful!

[ballerina09]

Hello!

I currently live in Syracuse and I work at St Joseph's not Upstate. In general, Upstate pays less than other area hospitals however the benefits are far superior. Also, they are the big trauma hospital so if you're into that go to Upstate for sure. Upstate also has a good RN-BSN program that they completely pay for, St. Joes does not have this. As a new grad, it can be hard to get into Upstate, most end up in the "Float Pool" which is not ideal. I really enjoyed getting my start at St. Joes, also its magnet and Upstate is not. Keep in mind that there is Downtown Upstate and Community Upstate, Community is much easier to get into but also isn't as good as the downtown campus. As an aside, don't go to Crouse hospital, steer clear at all costs. Good luck!

[MajinBulma]

Thank you for your input!

I’ll have to look into St Joseph’s as well. I’m not looking to start off my nursing career in the float pool. I’ve heard how stressful that can be for even seasoned nurses.

[NurseBettyD, RN]

I have multiple friends at Upstate that went directly to one unit. To be fair, we are all grads from the same school and that could be why. I loved my clinicals there. They have an awesome nurse residency program for new grads. It's a teaching hospital and the environment is more conducive to learning. They also have a children's hospital and are leaders in cancer research and treatment. Pay starts a bit low but an awesome place to learn.

[HiddencatBSN, BSN]

New grad pay is much lower at Upstate but there’s a significant bump after your first year and the pay ends up being competitive, plus you qualify for state pension. I like the hospital a lot and think there’s a good, pro-nurse culture here. They’ve been very proactive and safety conscious with COVID and when my unit’s census dropped, they gave us training and educational opportunities rather than send us home (or lay people off like other hospitals here did). We also sent volunteers down to NYC to help when they were at their peak.

If Magnet is something you care about they have their Magnet site visit coming up.

I’ve worked several other places (out of state) and this is overall the best hospital I’ve worked at.

 

[ekj152]

Hey guys! If you don't mind sharing, could you please tell me the starting rate for new graduates? Rather know before applying and wasting their time.

[icyskies]

Jan, I think its around 27 for newer grads. They post this information publicly online somewhere.