Moving to Chicago

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I'm looking at moving to Chicago this summer and wanted some input from nurses who live there!

1) Hospitals. Which ones do you recommend? Any you would say to avoid? I'm a NICU nurse and want to stay at a NICU (currently in a Level IIIB).

2) Living. Which areas are good places to live and where should I avoid? I have a small dog and would love an area that is more dog friendly.

3) Is it worth it to have a car in the city or is public transportation good enough that I could avoid the headache of paying for and finding a place to park?

4) What can I expect for pay (I have 3 years experience)? I currently get paid very well in comparison to cost of living and don't expect it to be like that in Chicago but having an idea of what I'll be making will be beneficial.

Thank you for your help!

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Hello,

There are many NICUs in Chicago that have fantastic reputations. I would look into University of Chicago, Northwestern's Lurie Children's Hospital, Rush, Loyola and University of Illinois.

North side of Chicago is a popular place for young people! Especially Wicker Park, Old Town, Logan Square

Most nurses I know have a car.

New grads in Chicago make about $30/hour. I would guess that with 3 years of experience at a Magnet hospital like the ones I listed above, your salary will be around $35/hour.

Hope this helps!

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Specializes in Emergency Room.

The only hospitals I would avoid are Jackson Park and Roseland but I'm not even sure they have NICUs. With 3 years experience it depends on the hospital but I imagine you'd be making $32-$35. If you do agency you can make around $45 - $52.

I'd recommend finding what area you think you'd like to live in and then looking at the job opportunities from there on out. Figure out if you can walk, need to commute, or if you have a car can drive.

And as for a car it's really up to you. I've lived in the suburbs most of my life and just don't feel comfortable not having one. I could also take the bus to my job, get a Lyft/Uber, or walk for 35 minutes if I wanted (I don't, and probably never will lol).

So again the car is up to you, but make sure wherever you live has most of what you need in walking distance (grocery store, public transportation, pharmacy, etc). Most places you want to go you can use public transportation. But also keep in mind public transportation doesn't all run 24/7 here and sometimes certain routes are only on certain days so do your research in that area too.

Hope the move goes smoothly :)

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