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hello, I am a pre-nursing student. I am wondering, what is your guys salaries like, how many hours per week do you work and how much do you make per hour. Do any of you do contract work???? And if so, is contract work very excellent opportunity???
At the hospital I work at, I have heard that the base starting pay for new grads is $18.75/hr (which seems awfully low to me, compared to what I've heard nurses make elsewhere). However, I've also heard that new grads in this same hospital can make $30/hr by working nights and/or weekends.
I'm hoping to make at least $20/hr right out of school. From all the quotes I always hear about most parts of the country and on this board, I don't think that will be too hard to achieve.
I think my paticular state (AL) just doesn't pay nurses that well.
I live in central Jersey (shore) and take the train to work. I also have to pay state income tax in NY and NJ (although I get a break from NJ, since I work in NY)
The highest-paying facilities within an hour's travel from my house were in the $26-$27/hr days, and $30-32/hr nights range, and I wanted to take advantage of the unionized hospitals and $10,000 tuition reimbursement I was offered in NYC.
I was also offered, as part of the union contract:
-no cost health insurance for me and any family members up to 23
-night differential
-no mandatory OT
-no call shifts
- 4-5 weeks paid vacation.
- experience differential (up to $29k a year extra for 30 yrs exp)
- education differential for BSN, MSN, etc.
- pretax transportation and medical expense accounts.
- 1 12/hr sick day per month
- 6 paid holidays a year
- 4 personal days a year
- 3 paid educational days a year
- certification differential (CCRN, RNC, etc)
These were much better than what I was offered in NJ.
Rents where I live are in the $800-1k range for a 1 bed. Rents in Manhattan are $1000-1500 for a studio.
I really have no idea what my standard of living would be on what I'm making now. I am paying for an Ivy grad education out of pocket, paid off all my undergrad loans, and I'm plugging away on my car payment. I've always put every extra cent into decreasing my debts.
I'm sure you could make a great living where you are in NJ. The reason I work in Manhattan was to work at the largest referral Childrens Hospital in the area, and to have the advantage of tuition reimbursement. There are a lot of great hospitals in OC, such as JSUMC, all of which could provide you with a decent living.
I live in central Jersey (shore) and take the train to work. I also have to pay state income tax in NY and NJ (although I get a break from NJ, since I work in NY)The highest-paying facilities within an hour's travel from my house were in the $26-$27/hr days, and $30-32/hr nights range, and I wanted to take advantage of the unionized hospitals and $10,000 tuition reimbursement I was offered in NYC.
I was also offered, as part of the union contract:
-no cost health insurance for me and any family members up to 23
-night differential
-no mandatory OT
-no call shifts
- 4-5 weeks paid vacation.
- experience differential (up to $29k a year extra for 30 yrs exp)
- education differential for BSN, MSN, etc.
- pretax transportation and medical expense accounts.
- 1 12/hr sick day per month
- 6 paid holidays a year
- 4 personal days a year
- 3 paid educational days a year
- certification differential (CCRN, RNC, etc)
These were much better than what I was offered in NJ.
Rents where I live are in the $800-1k range for a 1 bed. Rents in Manhattan are $1000-1500 for a studio.
I really have no idea what my standard of living would be on what I'm making now. I am paying for an Ivy grad education out of pocket, paid off all my undergrad loans, and I'm plugging away on my car payment. I've always put every extra cent into decreasing my debts.
I'm sure you could make a great living where you are in NJ. The reason I work in Manhattan was to work at the largest referral Childrens Hospital in the area, and to have the advantage of tuition reimbursement. There are a lot of great hospitals in OC, such as JSUMC, all of which could provide you with a decent living.
Good lord. Sounds like they're practically begging you to work for them, as far as benefits go!
SteveNNP, MSN, NP
1 Article; 2,512 Posts
You can easily pull 80k+ as an RN commuting to NYC.