New Grad NP - Experiences with Relocation

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I am a new graduate NP who just passed my boards 2 weeks ago. I have been applying to jobs since I graduated about 2 months ago. I had only applied to jobs within my home state (probably close to 75 NP jobs), which got me NOWHERE. Seriously, not even a phone call from one single recruiter. Even as I reached out to all of my healthcare contacts, they said the norm was to look for an NP job for 6-9 months. Anyway, the past 2 days I have expanded my search to nationwide & already have gotten multiple phone calls from recruiters wanting to schedule interviews. My husband & I rent our home, we are child-free, & he's not in love with his job so we are kind of excited to start a new adventure somewhere else. The clinics who are contacting me are probably not in the most desirable cities, but I also don't love my current city. Did anyone have a good experience with moving to start a job? Did you go with your dream job or choose your job based on the city? Are second NP jobs easier to get if I have some NP experience on my resume? & should I apply for the state's APRN license only after I have accepted a position? Did you mention any relocation costs in your negotiations?

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5 minutes ago, ela517 said:

My husband & I rent our home, we are child-free, & he's not in love with his job so we are kind of excited to start a new adventure somewhere else.

I have nothing to add but the idea of moving anywhere I want and starting a new adventure sounds awesome!!!

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Specializes in Critical Care.

I did this exact thing.

I applied to only a few in state jobs, but mainly applied out of state.

1. do not obtain licensure in any state until job offer. I had companies inquire about my application status and I told them flatly that I will be applying contingent on job offer.

2. the job (a hospital) paid for my travel to/from interview (flight/hotel) and additionally this hospital paid for flight/hotel back for an additional few days after job offer to find housing.

3. My first NP job did not offer relocation initially. I inquired and was asked how much, I did some math and gave them a pseudo number of $10,000. They accepted and I had a $10k limit which I was reimbursed upon receipt (1 year contingency otherwise I owed all monies back).
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Things worked out well for my first NP job. Licensure was not difficult (I had a compact RN license which temporarily allowed me to function in the new state and application for CRNP was a breeze).

A year plus later I am moving again (went from the SE to NE to now the West coast). This new hospital offered significantly less for relocation (was able to gain some more $$ with negotiating).

States that take months for licensure: California, New York, Georgia, ?Texas?

Hope this info helps a bit.

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Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).

If you are looking at jobs in locations with a shortage of providers, they will generally pay relo. In California, for a new grad, relo is $3,000 to $5,000. There is also usually a sign-on bonus on top of that, in areas with a shortage of providers.

If you are seriously considering California, apply for your RN and NP license ASAP, as it takes 3 to 4 months or longer.

In general, in California, the areas outside of San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego have shortages of providers (those 3 cities have more providers than openings and are way too expensive). Cities to consider: Sacramento, Stockton, Modesto, Fresno, Bakersfield, Redding, Chico. These are all quite nice and affordable. California also has many small towns and rural areas. Don't rule a small town or rural area out if it is within 30 miles of a larger city.

The Western U.S. in general has a lot more NP job openings.

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1 hour ago, ArmaniX said:

I did this exact thing.

I applied to only a few in state jobs, but mainly applied out of state.

1. do not obtain licensure in any state until job offer. I had companies inquire about my application status and I told them flatly that I will be applying contingent on job offer.

2. the job (a hospital) paid for my travel to/from interview (flight/hotel) and additionally this hospital paid for flight/hotel back for an additional few days after job offer to find housing.

3. My first NP job did not offer relocation initially. I inquired and was asked how much, I did some math and gave them a pseudo number of $10,000. They accepted and I had a $10k limit which I was reimbursed upon receipt (1 year contingency otherwise I owed all monies back).
———

Things worked out well for my first NP job. Licensure was not difficult (I had a compact RN license which temporarily allowed me to function in the new state and application for CRNP was a breeze).

A year plus later I am moving again (went from the SE to NE to now the West coast). This new hospital offered significantly less for relocation (was able to gain some more $$ with negotiating).

States that take months for licensure: California, New York, Georgia, ?Texas?

Hope this info helps a bit.

This helps so much! I also have a compact RN license, but I had no idea if it would have any use working as an APRN.

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Specializes in Peds Urology,primary care, hem/onc.

I did this for my first APN job. I could not find a job at all in the state where I graduated. I was young and single and had no ties to the area so I applied to jobs all over the US. The employer paid for my airfare, rental car and hotel for the interviews. It was a big hospital system so they also assisted me in finding a place to live (I rented an apartment initially). They paid I think 4 or 5 grand in relocation assistance (they reimbursed me with receipts). I also negotiated reimbursement of my grad school loans (4 grand a year until they were paid off). Granted, this was 15 years ago so I am not sure what the current market is for this. If they really want you, they will do it so no harm in negotiating. That is how I got my loans reimbursed. The salary they offered was on the low end and I told them I could not afford that with my loans so they offered to repay them for me.

I am glad I did it. I love the area I live in and never want to move. I was at that job for 15 years and am no just moving on to a new job. I did not know the area at all but did my research to find out the area, cost of living, crime statistics, schools etc. I rented an apartment that was relatively close to my work until I knew the area well enough to know where I wanted to buy a house. Your future employer can help you with that as well (at least let you know good places to live, commute times etc).

Good Luck!

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Specializes in Critical Care.

I will echo what fullglass mentioned.. if you are set on going to a state such as California. Go ahead and start that application now (against what I recommended before), it is my belief that states like California do not pay much mind to applicants without already active licensure.

As well, as a new grad I got absolutely NO response from any applications I submitted to Cali (even with license). A year later, I received a response to every application I submitted in multiple states.

The compact license caused me more headache than necessary. The state I am currently in would not process my RN license until I changed my drivers license over and submitted proof of being a resident... Unlike every other RN license I have. I think because it would change what license I had for compact purposes.
So if moving from compact to compact you can go ahead and apply with that for your NP license and then obtain the RN license after the fact when you have proof. ** You can get by with this for 2 years or until license renewal.

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I am also a new grad and wish you the best of luck! I have been applying and have not heard back either. I went to a career fair and one recruiter contacted me back, out of dozens. That is the only job lead I have so far. We moved out here for husband's job and have a child so we can't relocate. If I was single, I would do an NP residency program.

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Hello,

I did this as well. After graduating, I applied for positions in the pacific northwest that had decent access to skiing. Flights, car rentals, and lodging were covered for all interviews. The position I accepted provided moving expenses up to 10k. I did not start applying for licensure until after I accepted a job offer, and my new job reimbursed me for licensure expenses after passing credentialing.

I spent about 15 months at my first job, and then started looking for positions that would allow me a 3-4 day work week. I recently started a new position in a city about 3 hours east. This new job also covered interview and relocation expenses. I'm very happy with my new position and new schedule! Best of luck!

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Specializes in Psychiatric and Mental Health NP (PMHNP).

Here is a link to a HRSA Virtual Job Fair:

https://events-na11.adobeconnect.com/content/connect/c1/1114521017/en/events/event/shared/2450067050/event_landing.html?_chorificet_=utf-8&connect-session=na11breezrhi247cpdx5hqasu&sco-id=2450038807&utm_campaign=Rural+communities+need+you.+Register+Today!&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery

These events have clinics from all over the country and most of these employers are new-grad friendly. Sometimes they list NP residencies, too. There are an increasing number of NP residencies in California.

Before the job fair, you will get a list of all participating employers and what positions they are hiring for. Even if you can't sit in on a session, go ahead and apply if they are looking for NPs.

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I relocated a few months ago and I don't regret it one bit. I didn't get as much as some others posted for relocation though. I got $3000 for relocation. They paid for my hotel, flight, rental car when I came for the interview. When I first started working with recruiters I considered some places that were not ideal at first. I love the city I'm in now. Great weather, beautiful beaches, its not in the middle of nowhere, still not a big city but only 2 hrs away from the closest big city.

And its only a 8.5 hr drive from my home state so not too bad. I think I lucked out with this one. I'm getting some good experience here. Not sure if I will stay after 2 years. I am thinking of moving west, but who knows. I may end up staying here. I'm glad I took a chance on moving though. I had to sell my home, but you know not being a home owner, feels a bit "freeing" right now. My son is grown and out of the house so I can pick up and go wherever I want to.

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