New Grad needs help with salary negotiation!!!

[JMRN09]

Hi everyone!

After months of searching, I have an interview scheduled next week with a large ambulatory surgery center in NJ. This is pretty much my dream job and I never expected to get into the OR as a new grad especially in this economy. Besides being scared of blowing this interview due to nerves (at this rate I am going on one interview q 6 months), I realllly have no idea what to expect with salary. The cost of living here isn't cheap, and the MINIMUM i could take is 40K due to my loans, mortgage, etc etc.

I understand the whole pay cut due to not being in the hospital, but is 40K reasonable to ask for?

Hours are M-F with full benefits.

Please offer your suggestions, or advice on how to negotiate salary... the interview is coming up and I need HELP!!!!!!

THANKS

[Sniper RN]

I dont know what the pay is in NJ but I would think $40K is low. I would ask for more. The worst they could do is negotiate you down. I think you will get more than $40

[JMRN09]

Thanks for the input, Sniper. I guess I just wasn't sure since my friend was just offered 35K at a doctor's office for a full-time position. They asked her when she interviewed what she was looking for, and she said 50K. She told me that the guy almost fell out of his chair. Just didn't want this to happen to me. She didn't take the job in the end....mostly because the doc seemed like a jerk right off the bat.

[Sniper RN]

The less money a Doctor has to pay his nurse, the more he puts in his pocket. I have seen a good doctor lose a lot of his patients because he hired cheap crappy nurses to try to save himself a dollar. He may have been one of those Doctors. Good luck on the job!!!

[ck29_2000]

Can you pull up some local hospital websites and see what they're offering their new grads?

[JMRN09]

Can you pull up some local hospital websites and see what they're offering their new grads?

I haven't seen any 'official' starting salaries on the hospital websites, but word-of-mouth has been anywhere from 25-28/hr....

The other thing I was thinking about was that this place is part of a large corporation (a franchise even?) so maybe they will offer me a competitive rate with the hospital. I will be their FIRST new grad ever...

[llg, PhD, RN]

I will be their FIRST new grad ever...

That's a really bad sign. They probably don't have much idea on the orientation needs of a new grad and are probably not accustomed to providing the type of ongoing support you will need for a while.

I realize that you might need to take this job if they offer it to you. But in a normal job market, I would strongly advise any new grad to RUN from such a situation.

[JMRN09]

Thanks for your concern, llg....very good point.

I hate feeling so desperate with these jobs. Would I be any better off in an LTC that threw me to the wolves? I just don't know anymore.

I will go for the interview and see what my gut instincts are...They assured me that they have trained nurses who have had no OR experience most with 2 yrs of med/surg. Yes, I know, I cannot argue that those 2 years are very, very important. I also was told that I would NOT be circulating/scrubbing for quite a while. They would start me in pre-op starting IVs...I would then move on to learning post-op care. Assures me that they would work with me as a team and not let me drown. So hard to tell if I can trust this.

[Nurserton]

The most important thing is SUPPORT. As long as you have support, a mentor, some other NURSE who you can address your questions/concerns with,and to provide a sort of blueprint for you, you'll be ok. It sounds like they are baby stepping you anyway. But be sure you have a readily available and very preferably NURSE resource.