misconceptions about nursing pay

I'm new grad in Baltimore making $26! (29 with diff). Is it because you have your masters? I wonder if pay goes up with higher degrees.

I have researched different hourly rates for NEW NURSES in this area and like I said before , most pay for new graduate nurses in the hospital setting are set pay, irregardless of education and speciality. I have confirmed with several new nurses and nursing recruiters. Also note some places pay higher, I know downtown baltimore hospital that pays $28 an hour.

$26-$28 is perfectly normal for a new grad. Unfortunately, the numbers you see online are often mean or median salary numbers. Also unfortunately, with the state of the economy, we are not seeing raises like in years past. I started as a new grad in '11 making 27.50, and in '16 was still barely over $30.

I hospital-hopped and now make $37 with 5 years of experience. I'm in an expensive metro area in New England.

If you think your new grad pay is bad, you're in for a mega-shock when you see how much you pay in taxes! Just be thankful you're in a profession where you can work pretty much infinite overtime, and you're making well above minimum wage, which is what many of your college classmates are doing right now.

Also, counsel prospective nursing students not to spend 6 figures on their education. I had to go to a school that was not as prestigious in order to get academic scholarships. I passed my NCLEX and have the same earning power as my peers, except graduated with 24k in debt instead of 160k. It's hard to make financial decisions like that when you're 18. So help others understand fully the burden of an expensive education.

I'm in the Midwest and was also shocked at how little it was starting out. I actually made less working than I did not working. And that was a tough pill to swallow to be honest.

Even though I'm still a new grad, my bade rate has gone up somewhat and I'm happier with what I make. My shift differential helps and when the two differentials combine, it's really worth it. We also get offered Bonus OT a lot.

I had a FNP who is also nursing educator tell me her first nursing job after her BSN started at about $23 an hour in our area which for her was about 5-6 years ago. So that's what I expect to start at or around when I graduate.

I'm new grad in Baltimore making $26! (29 with diff). Is it because you have your masters? I wonder if pay goes up with higher degrees.

Nope, definitely not the Masters. I have 7 years of experience.

My new grad starting pay was a little less than $5/hr more than what I made prior & that disappeared to help pay for benefits I didn't have before.

I recall a pt who was excited about his fiance being in nursing school, the same program I went to. He talked about how her pay would blow his out of the park & mentioned he was a union laborer making $30/hr. Um, nope. You will be disappointed buddy. That's $2 more than what a senior nurse I work with makes after 20 yrs. (Midwest region)

$26-$28 is perfectly normal for a new grad. Unfortunately, the numbers you see online are often mean or median salary numbers. Also unfortunately, with the state of the economy, we are not seeing raises like in years past. I started as a new grad in '11 making 27.50, and in '16 was still barely over $30.

I hospital-hopped and now make $37 with 5 years of experience. I'm in an expensive metro area in New England.

If you think your new grad pay is bad, you're in for a mega-shock when you see how much you pay in taxes! Just be thankful you're in a profession where you can work pretty much infinite overtime, and you're making well above minimum wage, which is what many of your college classmates are doing right now.

Also, counsel prospective nursing students not to spend 6 figures on their education. I had to go to a school that was not as prestigious in order to get academic scholarships. I passed my NCLEX and have the same earning power as my peers, except graduated with 24k in debt instead of 160k. It's hard to make financial decisions like that when you're 18. So help others understand fully the burden of an expensive education.

I disagree with your statement, before nursing school I was making well over minimum wage. I'm not expecting six figures but a decent wage. A wage that can provide BASIC necessities such as food , shelter and clothing. Shelter is a huge in this area as cost rents is high, even in undesirable areas( unsafe ) , common rent around here is $1000 plus with out utilities. I feel like the wages in this area does not match the cost of living even with experience.

I disagree with your statement, before nursing school I was making well over minimum wage. I'm not expecting six figures but a decent wage. A wage that can provide BASIC necessities such as food , shelter and clothing. Shelter is a huge in this area as cost rents is high, even in undesirable areas( unsafe ) , common rent around here is $1000 plus with out utilities. I feel like the wages in this area does not match the cost of living even with experience.

It is just like any other profession. Living expenses vary, as do salaries. A profession that is relatively lucrative in one area may not be in another.

I just got an E-mail offering bonuses for extra shifts. With differentials, I can make> $1,200 a weekend. Not great in San Fran, or NYC, but where I live, you can easily get a 3 bed/2 bath house for

An extra weekend a month would cover mortgage insurance and taxes.

In Alabama, new grads make anywhere from 17-21 depending on the area. $20 above is usually Birmingham and other big cities.

It is just like any other profession. Living expenses vary, as do salaries. A profession that is relatively lucrative in one area may not be in another.

I just got an E-mail offering bonuses for extra shifts. With differentials, I can make> $1,200 a weekend. Not great in San Fran, or NYC, but where I live, you can easily get a 3 bed/2 bath house for

An extra weekend a month would cover mortgage insurance and taxes.

Wow, nice bonus! While $1200 a weekend is awesome I sure wouldn't count on that to make a mortgage payment though. Chances of that much extra income potential lasting 15-30 years are pretty darn slim. I would sure like to make that for a few months to finance a dream vacation though

You shouldn't make the "good" money just yet. You need experience. It sucks I know, but you need something to back up the demand for the higher pay. You will get there though. I started at 19/hr in kansas. 6 years later Im making 6 figures, and no I don't live in California. No one should come out of school expecting high pay.

You shouldn't make the "good" money just yet. You need experience. It sucks I know, but you need something to back up the demand for the higher pay. You will get there though. I started at 19/hr in kansas. 6 years later Im making 6 figures, and no I don't live in California. No one should come out of school expecting high pay.

not expecting high pay, but like i said some nurses can make as low as $30,000 , where rent alone is $1000, some of the poster says they're making the same as nurses in my area but the cost of living in much lower compared to mines.