Moving to Michigan! (Help)

Begin looking closer to that time. Politics can change so quickly in a facility, down to a unit's policies. But I think its great that you want to start planning now. Just keep in mind, what you are told today may not hold true next week, much less in 2 years. Good luck. But start contacting hospitals in about 18 months and see what you can find out

Do you have a BSN? U of M is currently seeking magnet so it literally takes an act of God to get hired without it right now, however you will enjoy a sweet pay bump, I left FL 4 yrs ago and work at UofM in the PEDs ER

Good advice, RNinIN!

Zoo, 2 more classes and i'll have the BSN, finally! :)

The area in MI is important too, not just the hospital. If you wouldnt mind sharing your thoughts on diff parts of MI too, id appreciate that!

Hello! I stumbled across this as I was looking for the reverse – I'm a lifelong Michigan resident looking to move to Arizona next year!

Are you sent in living in the lower Peninsula of Michigan? All your cities are "below the bridge"- not sure where her family is. I am a resident of the upper peninsula which offers a smaller town for you with an excellent low cost of living. I currently work at OSF St Francis Hospital in Escanaba, MI but UP Health Systems in Marquette, MI is bigger.

Up here is a great place to raise kids and get lots of land with your home for cheap!

I'm only familiar with my little town is SE MI as far as living and schools, our cost of living pretty low, schools are good and we have an extension of Jackson College in town kids can attend in HS, my middle one is completing their culinary program this year, my youngest will start their EMT program in the fall. My oldest has already graduated and is working in a small local factory until he decides what he wants to be when grows up lol

I was in the UP last year for her fam reunion, pretty cool place.

She is pretty set on the Romeo/ Dryden area I think...

She grew up in Almont.

University of Michigan is unionized and pays well (certainly better than Florida) but it is definitely one of those places that thinks you should be grateful for the chance to work there. A deal breaker for me, anyway. Small town in the summer but being home to the university means that every fall the town doubles in size and is overrun with college students. Traffic on game days is horrible. But if you are a big fan you might love it. (Tickets to games are expensive!)

Spectrum is a good hospital system, one of the most respected in the state. Grand Rapids is a great place to live as well. It is a (relatively) bigger city compared to some of the others, but has a small town feel. Had a good local food and drink culture. For location, this would be my top choice currently. It offers the best of small town and up and coming hot spot. I *think* the cost of living is decent, but don't quote me.

Munson is smaller but a good place to work last I knew. It is the only game in town as far as inpatient care. They are the referral center for northern Michigan, BUT they fly out their most critical cases to Grand Rapids. Small town with a tourist industry. Nice place. Expensive to live in town, but you can find good options if you look. Good up and coming area for food, wine, and beer. Consistently appears on top ten lists for vacationing and living. Good place to raise a family, less good for young singles.

Detroit is obviously not small town. There are some good areas and some bad. It's not as bad as people out of state make it seem. I believe Henry Ford is inner city?

Royal Oak is a more expensive area.

Not sure where the other ones are. Unless closeness to your wife's family trumps this, I would personally recommend drawing a line across the state at the level of Grand Rapids and picking a local at or above that line. Generally (with exceptions), the north half is a nicer place.

Edit: Avoid Flint.

Thanks Janey, that is some solid info! Until your post I didnt even consider Grand Rapids. Wife says its about 3hrs away from her family, who are just south of Romeo and Washington. The vibe from UM about being lucky to work there is scary to hear.. those places usually dont seem as nurse friendly..

Is the union pay at UM much different than non-union pay? I understand unions are huge in Mi.

Unions are not as big in Michigan as they used to be, now that it is a right to work state and the UAW has given so many concessions to the management of the Big Three (not a bad thing, they had to to remain competitive and get the bailout).

I know people who have worked at U of M and other than being unionized, it is not all that much different, or better, than other hospitals in the area. I would not let the idea that they consider it a privilege to work there put me off at all if I wanted to work there, because they need you at least as much as you need them if they want to keep their doors open. The only truly negative thing I have heard about working there is that the parking is very limited, so you either pay a hefty fee (last I heard around $500/year) to secure on site parking, or you park off site and ride a shuttle over to the hospital campus. I know I wouldn't like this, just for the time it would waste, so I would probably pony up the stupid fee and be done with it. This may no longer be the case, but the last I knew, it was.

Ann Arbor is a bustling city and as a PP mentioned, traffic can be hairy, especially on the day of a home football game. However, there are several very quaint, safe, family oriented small towns within 30 min. of Ann Arbor so you would have the benefits of small town living but also proximity to the dining and cultural events of Ann Arbor. Google Chelsea, Dexter, Saline, and Tecumseh, just to name a few. Very, very cute towns, very family friendly. I disagree with the PP who said the the upper half of the LP is far better than the lower half, there are many, many very lovely, safe, places to live just within an hour of Detroit, believe it or not. Detroit has some of the nicest suburbs in the country and the small towns, as I said, are awesome too.

PP was/is biased in favor of the northern part of the state, I'll own up to that :). You are right, there are nice areas around Ann Arbor too!

Well, I may be just a bit biased too..., and I know the upper LP is lovely, but I just wanted him to be aware that SE Michigan does have a lot to offer as well. I am not a native of Michigan but I find the quality of life here in SE Michigan to be amazing and after 19 years and counting, I consider myself a proud Michigander.

I feel like our corner of the state gets a bum rap a lot of times because of Detroit, but there is so much more to it than that. Where I live, I can be in downtown Detroit/Windsor, Ontario in an hour, yet we are surrounded by lakes and cornfields and could literally leave our doors unlocked all night. I love it here and most of the people I know do as well.

Aren't we blessed to live in Da Mitten?

Just wanted to let you all know that I appreciate each of your comments and learn more everytime someone posts!