OK salary and cost of living

RAYLO! · Sep 16, 2009

Hi,
I am a new grad RN from CA and having an extremely hard time finding a job. I am thinking about relocating to Oklahoma. I have a few questions:
What is the average salary for a new grad?
cant answer this one haven't been a new grad in over 7 years
Average cost for a one bedroom apartment per month? cheap ones, 400-450, nice neighborhood- 665-750
Can you recommend a few hospitals in a moderately/well populated city? I am afraid the transition from a large California city to a rural one will be too much for me, especially if I will not know anyone.
ok try this perspective garden grove, cali has about 500,000 people in their city limit. moore, ok suburb of Okc, 50,000.. but Okla has normally more square feet..
Also, do any hospitals offer relocation assistance?
I honestly never seen that here hopefully someone can help you
Thank you in advance. I will really appreciate any help you can provide!

also of note my hospital @ this time is not currently hiring new grads. or hiring prn...

scubadude · Sep 17, 2009

what is the average salary for a new grad? $18-19/hr plus differentials, avg, $3 nights and $3-5 weekends.

average cost for a one bedroom apartment per month? $350-650 depending on how nice you want to go.

can you recommend a few hospitals in a moderately/well populated city? i am afraid the transition from a large

california city to a rural one will be too much for me, especially if i will not know anyone. many of the okc ones seem to be on a semi-hiring freeze, there's jobs but a little rare. no sign on/moving expenses that i know of. well the va has about a 10k sign on last i heard. other hospitals in okc are ou med medcenter, mercy, integris baptist/south and canadian valley campus, deaconess and saint lukes. simple google for their sites will prob help you more than i can. in tulsa, hillcrest and saint john's and saint frances are the big ones. tulsa pays a little more and apartments are about 50-75 more for a comprable. last i heard st. frances still had a sign on bonus, this was a few months ago. many also consider tulsa a nicer city than okc.

Dorali, BSN, LPN, RN · Sep 17, 2009

I don't really know anything about starting pay and job availability because I haven't made it that far yet! However, overall the cost of living here in Oklahoma is a lot less than mist other areas of the country. Pay is also lower as well. I think this is a good place to live and couldn't imagine being anywhere else. I'm partial though.

Anyway, I recently found a forum that I thought might help. Not nursing related, but will give you more information about the area.

http://www.city-data.com/forum/oklahoma/

Good luck with your job hunt!!

Dondie

mlok · Sep 17, 2009

Thank you for all of your help. I had a classmate who recommended the Tulsa area because that is where she grew up and her family still lives there. I haven't exactly decided if and when I will begin applying. I still need to come up with the money to endorse my license, but it looks like OK's fee is only $85 compared to other states ($200+). It is a big decision to make and I want to make sure it's the right one. My main concern is financial... I need to save up for the move and I might even have to buy a new car when I get there.

How is the public transportation system in OK?

Thank you again for your help. You really don't know how much I appreciate it.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Sep 19, 2009

What is the average salary for a new grad?
Average cost for a one bedroom apartment per month?
Can you recommend a few hospitals in a moderately/well populated city? I am afraid the transition from a large California city to a rural one will be too much for me, especially if I will not know anyone.
Also, do any hospitals offer relocation assistance?
Thank you in advance. I will really appreciate any help you can provide!

A new grad RN will command an average of $18.50 hourly in most hospitals in Oklahoma City. The University of Oklahoma pays $18.65, Saint Anthony's pays $18.93, Integris pays $18.44, and the majority of the major hospitals follow that trend regarding the low pay rate.

In Oklahoma City, you can rent a semi-decent one-bedroom apartment in an okay area for $400 monthly. If you want something nicer and larger in a more upscale area, you'll pay more. Oklahoma City has about 500,000 people.

It is unlikely that the hospitals in the area will offer any relocation assistance, because they can attract a flock of new grads without having to offer expensive enticements.

Manurse715 · Oct 3, 2009

Hi,
I am a new grad RN from CA and having an extremely hard time finding a job. I am thinking about relocating to Oklahoma. I have a few questions:
What is the average salary for a new grad?
Average cost for a one bedroom apartment per month?
Can you recommend a few hospitals in a moderately/well populated city? I am afraid the transition from a large California city to a rural one will be too much for me, especially if I will not know anyone.
Also, do any hospitals offer relocation assistance?
Thank you in advance. I will really appreciate any help you can provide!

This info is for TULSA

~$18-19.00/hr I got a $7,000 sign on bonus paid out over the 2 year commitment at the going tax rate of (lame) 60%. But it's more than nothing.

~If your paying more than $600 for a one bed room you're in a "nicer" apartment. Less than that and well I wouldn't want to live there.

~ Tulsa is no Cali. Things are different around here. I come from Texas, Dallas/Fort Worth in particular. Tulsa was a one horse town, I thought at first. Having lived here 6 years its' just the right size. You have one of everything (shopping entertainment ect...). Tulsa is very much a small business, entrepreneur, conservative, family oriented place. It is growing A LOT. They say we are in a recession....but it's not in Tulsa. They're building stuff everywhere.

I think you will be very pleasantly surprised by Tulsa. Home go for $85-120/square foot to buy, renting is very affordable, gas is $2.09 today and milk is $2.88, movies are $6.50. Dallas is a short 4 hours away with the MEGA shopping and international airport.

Overall, and this is coming from a Texas Boy, Tulsa is a great place to live.

Manurse715 · Oct 3, 2009

How is the public transportation system in OK?

Lol. Public transportation in Tulsa is for poor people. No one who doesn't have to uses it. Honestly. Down here in the South things are different. There's not as much of a need for it really. Most folks own 2-3 cars.

Katy-NursingStudent · Oct 10, 2009

I just wanted to add that if your going to move from CA to OK then definately move to the Tulsa area. Live on the outskirts (bixby, glenpool, or JENKS) I lived in Glenpool and paid only 600 for a nice THREE bed apt. You will get much more for your money living in one of those towns and its only a stones throw from Tulsa.

Take it from me who has lived ALL over oklahoma!

HDfatboy · Oct 10, 2009

WOW!

I'm from Boston!

You might ant to think of moving out here!

tclema · Oct 21, 2009

Lawton here.

If you can find a job in OKC or Tulsa, it's very nice out there. Try there first.

Lawton is about the same hring range, same cost of living, but lots and lots of military. It is also a growing town, about 3 hours from Dallas and 1 1/2 hours from OKC.

Mydreamjob · Jun 14, 2010

Lawton here.
If you can find a job in OKC or Tulsa, it's very nice out there. Try there first.
Lawton is about the same hring range, same cost of living, but lots and lots of military. It is also a growing town, about 3 hours from Dallas and 1 1/2 hours from OKC.

tclema,

I am from CA and thinking about moving to OK too.

Could you please tell me what hospital are you working for? Are you hiring new grads?

Thanks a lot