Alisabeth

That’s great! How are the clinical rotations handled? Do you find your own preceptor, does the school assist? Interested in this program.

I live in Miami- no. I live right in the Brickell (downtown) area where the metro rail, and metro mover are heavily used. Insist on a rental car. The Miami public transportation is not like New York.

I’m a locum as well. I have done multiple locums all over Florida. I’m staring another locum in Miami this summer. Southwest Fl, the market is tough if you’re not bilingual. However they still have corporales health, corrections locums that don’t require you to speak Spanish or Creole. Sometimes the Florida locum companies that are based in Florida have more Florida contracts.

I am a surgical NP, an I absolutely love my job. I was an OR nurse, and I agree with Alicia777 it really helps you get your foot in the door. I am family nurse practitioner, because I did not want me to have limits on the patient ages I could see. I am a travel nurse practitioner, and everyone once in awhile I run into hospitals that only want Acute Care NP for a surgical setting. I do not have my RNFA, but I think it is very valuable to have. Would love to hear how your interview turned out, keep use posted!!

I have been doing locums work as an NP for several years now, and I love it. The hourly pay to me seems to depends on the location and specialty. Family practice typically pays less, surgical assignments pay higher. Some companies are W2, others are 1099. Family practice/urgent care I've made in the range for W2- $60- $65/hr, and as 1099 $65-$75/hr. For surgical assignments I've made in the range for W2 $65-$80/hr, and 1099 range $75-$110/hr. Locum companies will also pay for malpractice, and all travel including; flight, baggage, mid size rental car, fully furnished apartment or Residence inn Marriott type hotel. There are a few cons to consider, not all travel/locum tenen companies provide health insurance or a retirement plan, so keep that in mind.

Yes, I am a FNP who travels. I traveled as an RN and wanted to continue as an FNP. You're right it is very hard to find information for traveling nurse practitioners. Below is the link to my post regarding traveling as an NP. I had posted this previously on the NP forum for allnurses. There are many great opportunities with different companies. The pay is excellent, and of course they cover travel, rental car, housing, malpractice. Some assignments even take new grad NPs. I have been traveling for the past few years and love it. I am licensed in several states, and have worked in a variety of specialties and settings. Feel free to PM me for any questions. Also, for traveling assignments for NP google- Locum Tenen Nurse Practitioner. It's not under travel nursing for NP as it is for RN. https://allnurses.com/travel-nursing/nurse-practitioner-travel-574109.html#post5206983

Definitely keep your NICU PRN job, sounds like it works well with your school schedule. My BF was a NICU RN for 4 years before she became an Adult NP. She had no problem transitioning over. Your NP clinicals will help you feel more comfortable and gain adult experience. Good luck!

Have you considered doing a locum/travel assignment? Some assignments take new grads . It could help you get some NP experience and locums always pays way more than a regular job. Just a thought. The FL job market is awful :-/ and most jobs here want you to be fluent in Spanish.

I had all my paperwork into the Texas BON- so they were just waiting on my test results. I had my Tx license within a month. Congratulations!!

Congratulations on your acceptance! FNP/ACNP were together in some of the same classes, so you will get to know people in both programs. The job market is tough in SoFL, especially if you are not fully fluent in Spanish. However, a lot of my friends in my program were able to find amazing jobs. I don't know how the market is for acute care, or if this would apply to you since hospital employee positions are usually hired through job postings. I found my job by sending out my CV to 20 neurosurgery private practices in SoFl. I had no idea if they were hiring or not. I had an overwhelming response and request for interviews. I ended up having to choose from 3 amazing job offers. I'm not sure what area you are looking to work in acute care, but I know you will have so many opportunities in the setting you choose. Apply early, and be looking online at job postings throughout your program so you know whats out there when you are ready to apply. Good luck in your program!

The UM FNP program is tough. I think they make it that way to ensure their 100% passing rate on the board exam. The first semester is the most difficult and heaviest class workload. I think once you make it through the first semester it's gets much better the last two semesters. The faculty is very supportive, and work with the students. Most students worked part time or per diem as an RN. I would not recommend working full time. If you need to work full time, look into the part time option. I received a full scholarship so I was blessed and did not have to work while in class. I did not have children when I was in the program. Several people did have children, but they were in the part time program. Hope this helps!

The UM FNP program is tough. I think they make it that way to ensure their 100% passing rate on the board exam. The first semester is the most difficult and heaviest class workload. It was referred to as the "weed out" semester. Out of 37 students in my program, I believe 4-5 had to switch to the part time program. The 4-5 that failed a class and had to go to the part time program were working full time, some had language barriers that I think made test/power point presentations more difficult for them. The program is not impossible, and I think once you make it through the first semester it gets much better the last two semesters. The faculty is very supportive, and work with the students. I never felt like I was being set up to fail. Example; my first patho test I made an 83, and 84 is passing. I immediately had the professor setting up an appointment with me, as well as two other faculty advisors. They went over my test, study plan, assured me not to stress out, and kept tabs on me the rest of the semester. It was nice to have the extra support. Most students worked part time or per diem as an RN. I would not recommend working full time. If you need to work full time, look into the part time program. The best thing about the UM program for me was the variety of clinical rotations to choose from. I along with several other students knew we didn't just want to have the basic family practice/womens/peds only clinical experience. We were able to branch out into other areas for our clinical rotations, surgery, neurology, infectious disease, ER, dermatology, etc. That was great!

The great thing about being an NP, is you can move around to different practice settings and specialities. I think you're gaining very valuable experience in the ER, and you can always move to a clinic setting if you want to!

I graduated from UMiami in 2009. The job market was depressing back then as well. I would apply for everything with no luck. I was also not fluent in Spanish, so that was a huge factor in not being able to find a job. What finally worked for me and I recommend everyone doing this. I sent out 20 CVs and cover letters to random clinics I wanted to work, from South Miami to Fort Lauderdale. I had no idea if they were hiring, but I had nothing to lose. I wanted to work for a private neurosurgery practice. I had an overwhelming response. Out of 20 letters I sent out, 16 responded requesting interviews. This is how I found my first job as an NP. I even had to narrow it down and choose from 3 amazing offers I had received to pick my first job. My classmates saw what a good response I had through doing this, that they did this as well with family practice, pediatrics, plastic surgery, etc. They were also able to find their first jobs as well. Make sure you are also looking on indeed, enp network, and surprisingly Craigslist has NP job postings as well. Hope you find something soon!

I think you would do very well as a PA or NP. You have to pick the program that fits you the best, and I would take the length of completion into consideration. I wanted to reply to your post because I want to make sure you know NPs can jump to different subspecialties very easily. I am a Family NP. My main/favorite specialty is surgery, specifically neurosurgery. However, I am a travel/locum tenen NP and have worked in multiple specialties in my various contracts including ER/urgent care, family practice, orthopedics, neurology, In surgery and Orthopedic/neurology I also work and round in the ICU. I just didn't want you to think you would be stuck in only family practice, if you became an NP or FNP. I have met many other NPs in my travel assignments who have also worked in multiple subspecialties as well. Whether you go for PA or NP, you will do great. Good luck!