Moving to AZ?

[Luckyyou, BSN, RN]

I am currently in a long-distance relationship with a lovely guy in Gilbert, and since we have been dating for over a year, we have been discussing buying a house and getting married. As he owns a small business in the East Valley, I would be the one moving to him. I graduated in May 2011 and I am currently a NICU nurse in a large academic children's hospital in the midwest. I have been in this position since January. Previously, I worked on a very busy medical/oncology floor for six months (I did not actively seek to leave this job, but was unexpectedly offered a NICU position I couldn't turn down). How is the market for semi-experienced peds nurses in the Phoenix area? I know the two big NICUs out there are at PCH and the large Banner complex (Cardon Children's if I remember correctly). I'm in that weird spot between new graduate and experienced and I feel that it could be a disadvantage.

I don't want to look like a job hopper but the 900 mile difference is a killer and I love the area he lives in. However, it seems like a bad idea to move out there without a job, and I would be heartbroken to leave the NICU (although I would consider pediatric CICU or PICU positions). Any advice is welcome! I have a compact state license so getting an AZ RN license isn't much of a worry.

[mceeh]

Hi Cerriwin... I want you to know that this is my first post. I registered for an account SOLELY to reply to your post here. I just moved to the East Valley myself (just over a month ago), but have been actively job hunting for FOUR MONTHS. The market here is BEYOND tight. There is no way to talk to anyone. I even tried knocking on manager's doors... they will not speak with you. They tell you you have to just go online. That's pointless as you are in a sea of a thousand other nurses. Here are my thoughts: There ARE NICU positions posted with Banner (Cardon Children's). However, many of them have been posted for a long time. I would apply anyway and see if you get a call back. I do not have level III experience (my background is Level II) but applied anyway and at least got a recruiter to call me back. That was as far as it went, however. (I was hoping they would train me. No way... no one is getting trained to anything right now. You have to have the experience.)

Also... Use your boyfriend's address when you apply. I have been told that if they see that you have an out-of-state address, they often wont' even consider you, even if you say you are relocating. That was exactly the experience I had.

Another suggestion... apply for all of the Banner registry and travel jobs. It's a GREAT way to get your foot in the door with Banner. That's what I did. The travel jobs are nice. It's local travel, so you don't actually "travel" anywhere. I just got offered a travel position for a 13-week postpartum assignment on DAYS. They will either give me a 1-bedroom apt. or pay me $300/wk extra as a housing allowance. Plus there is a big bonus at the end for completing the 13 weeks and this includes benefits. I'm turning down the job, only because I was just (FINALLY) offered full time employment at another hospital in the East Valley. But it's been a full time job looking for work.

Also keep in mind that if you choose to leave voluntarily to relocate, it's highly likely that you will NOT qualify for unemployment. If you have other questions, I'm happy to answer. It's a very, very tight market here, even for experienced nurses. I feel beyond lucky that I was able to secure employment. Good luck! It's a great place to live! (Oh one more thing... you might want to wait a couple of months... everyone tells me that the census jumps in the winter and they go on massive hiring sprees. That might be the time to get in!)

[Luckyyou, BSN, RN]

Thank you for responding!! Great tip on using his address to apply. I will probably not even start applying until January so hopefully my timing will be good. I appreciate all the advice!

[Assess&Safety1st, BSN, RN]

Apply at Phoenix children's hospital. I saw a bunch of RN positions opening, LPN none, Good luck.