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Discussion

Need some guidance on where to start..

Hello,

I am graduating with my ADN this coming may. BSN in May 2019.

I was just offered a job on a general med surg floor. I completed clinicals on this floor and absolutely loved it. I have been warned by 2 CNA's that the floor was awful but from what I experienced it was excellent. To be hired on into the new grad cohort I have to sign a contract that I have to work on the unit for a year no matter what I choose.

I believe that my ultimate goal is to specialize in cardiac but I also love ED and Pediatrics and can see myself making a permanent career out of those as well.

My temporary goal is to be traveling in 2 to 2 and a half years.

Unfortunately I know nothing about traveling. If I have experience on a general med surg floor will that fare well whenever traveling? Am I able to travel to an ED or cardiac unit with general med surg experience? Should I do med surg for the year and then find another unit? Or should I turn down the job offer overall and try for something else?

I understand this is a personal decision but I am looking for advice that will optimize my travel nursing experience.

Thanks so much for the help ahead of time.

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    To travel, you need a solid two years of experience in a given specialty. No, you cannot travel in other specialties unless you get experience in them first. Medsurg is a great foundation for other specialties, but you are probably better off choosing your favorite specialty now and getting into a specialty internship before medsurg. Your choices could be greater later, especially at a large teaching hospital, but sometimes it can be harder getting into a new specialty after making an initial choice out of school. I think the risk is lower to choose your preferred specialty now. It will be relatively easy to do medsurg later.

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    Exactly what NedRN has stated will most likely be the best route if your ultimate goal is to travel. If your specialty is ED or Cardiac you'll be able to float down to other departments such as M/S later in your career if you so choose too. However, it is much harder to change a specialty when traveling since most facilities are going to require you to have 1-2 years of experience in that specific field. As for companies/recruiters I would look at the other threads on this website since this question has been asked a few times and there some great answers out there regarding this issue.

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