When to apply? overseas RN returning to USA

[red sweater]

Buenos días a todas y todos,

I am a new-ish nurse from the USA. I graduated nursing school and passed boards one year ago and moved to South America to volunteer as a nurse. I have worked here for a year now and am planning my return to the States.

I am licensed in Massachusetts and will be looking for a job there. I wish to start working in a hospital the beginning of January.

When should I start looking/applying for jobs? I am not familiar with the application/interview process of American hospitals.

Muchas gracias!

[elkpark]

I would start applying ASAP. The job market is v. tough for new grads right now, esp. in the Northeast and cities, and I have no idea how much weight healthcare employers will give to your volunteering experience (as in counting it as clinical experience"). If they don't count your year of volunteering as clinical experience, you will considered an "old grad" (less desirable then the more recent inexperienced grads). If your South American experience "counts," you may have an advantage over the more recent grads. In either case, though, this is a rough time to be job-hunting, even for experienced nurses, and even more so for newer grads.

Best wishes!