Wildcatkt

I can also speak to this personally; I worked in trauma ICU as a new grad, and I thought I loved it at first, until the stress started physically weighing on me. I wasn't sleeping or eating, and I was so stressed thinking about going to work that I would get physically sick. ICU is a scary environment, and even after a year when I felt that "click" and felt for comfortable and confident, I still hated the environment (I'm a people person, and everyone there was vented/sedated, lots of death, crying families, etc . ) After 1.5 years, I moved to maternal/child where I do postpartum, NICU, peds, etc, (everything but L&D really because I hate it lol) and I have never looked back! ICU definitely taught me a lot of skills and critical thinking that I find very useful in my work now, but I don't think I would ever go back. I would suggest doing what you said and waiting out a year, but you can't force it if it's not where your heart is :) good luck in your decision!

Similarly, I had debated between becoming an RN and a PA, so I applied to UC Berkeley and a few CSUs and was accepted to all. After a job shadow, I decided nursing was definitely the right move for me, so I went to CSU Chico and got my nursing degree; I've been an RN for 1.5 years now and I've never looked back :) I've always been proud for getting into UCB, but a degree from a prestigious college does not necessarily a happy career make! Also, in regards to pay, Pediatricians are some of the lowest paid MDs out there, and the student loan debt is massive. If being a pediatrician is your heart's desire, then forget about the money and go for it, but if being a pediatric RN is what you TRULY want, I say go for it! Sac State does have a good nursing program, and you get to do clinicals at specialized Childten's hospitals (such as Shriner's), which will be great experience for your dream of being a pediatric nurse! Good luck in whichever path you choose :)

Also, I work at the large regional facility in northern Nevada, and from what I've been told, the other hospital is private/for-profit and their mag patients stay in L&D. I think it might have something to do with them being part of the Calofirnia nurse's Union, but I'm not too sure :)

Our Mag patients come up to PP as soon as the pressures are stable (systolic

Sorry to hear about your troubles, I had a similar experience :cry:I graduated from a BSN program in May and i turned my paperwork in before I graduated in April, and didn't get my ATT until late August :-/ they "lost" my transcripts, so I paid to order 3 new pairs (2 juniorcolleges and the university) and DROVE them because I didn't trust them with my paperwork for in the mail anymore. When I got there, they did some looking around and FOUND my originals, so $50 down the drain. They continued to play lost and found with various parts of my application, as it turns out they had everything they needed from the start, but kept separating/misplacing things. Calling is nearly impossible, I found driving to the office in Sacramento was where I got real information. So frustrating, I had two seperate new grad program offers that had to retract because I didn't have my license in time. They need to get their act together :-/ I am working in Reno now, the Nevada BRN took one week to get my temporary license and would have gotten my permanent in 2 weeks, if the California BRN didn't take 2 months just to send an endorsement paper confirming that I have a license in CA. I wish I would have known this is where I would end up, I would have started in Nevada in the first place! Glad it all got figured out in the end though :)

I am working as a new grad at Renown, I have only been here a few weeks so I can tell you what I know so far! Renown hires new grads in all units (I started in trauma ICU) except ER unless it's a rare occasion. Pay is okay, I am from the SF Bay area so it seems low to me but you can definitely live comfortably on the money. New grads start at $28-$31.15/hour (differential for night shift, and almost all new grads are hired on nights). As far as rent, i pay $795/month for a very nice one bedroom in a good part of town, you could probably find one for cheaper for less quality or if you got a two bedroom and a roommate. Cost of living I would say is low, but again I am from CA so everything seems low to me lol. I love it here, you have all seasons and it is so close to Tahoe, which is great if you like the outdoors! New grad orientation consists of combination of classes and preceptorship time, ranging from 8 weeks for med/surg/ortho/neuro, 10 weeks for tele, and 12 weeks for ICU. Hope this helped, good luck with your job hunt! :)

Hi Kim, I am an RN in Reno, and there are two main hospitals here, Renown Regional Medical Center and St. Mary's. I am currently working in the Trauma ICU at Renown, and I love it here! I am not sure where you looked up the hospital size, but I know Renown has 2 campuses and over 800 certified beds (I think just over 600 at the main hospital). There are also 3 ICUs on the main campus (an 18 bed med/surg ICU, a 28 bed Trauma ICU, and a 30-something bed Cardiac ICU) and I think one at the South Meadows Campus. It is also the only Level II Trauma hospital in northern Nevada. I can't tell you much about Cardiac ICU, but it is in the Tahoe tower which is pretty new and everything there is nice and recently renovated! Pt. rooms are HUGE there. My friends that work on that unit love it. The pay is lower than CA, but that can be said for any other state other than CA, lol. Plus the cost of living is lower here and there are no state income taxes :) I hope this helped a bit, good luck with your search!

I have actually been wanting to ask the same thing! I have accepted a job in Reno, and I really want to move in with my boyfriend in South Lake Tahoe. The commute would be around an hour, but that's without snow. I don't know if it will be worth it once it stars snowing, I am thinking of getting a small one bedroom closer to work, especially since I will be working 12 hour night shifts :-/

Hello! I am a new grad RN and I will be starting in a level 2 trauma ICU at the end of next month. I will have a 12 week orientation period with a combination of hospital days with a preceptor and classes, but I am wondering if anyone can give me any advice on how I can prepare myself before I begin, since I have about a month? For instance, any books that would be helpful related to trauma/critical care, common medications that I should familiarize myself with, etc. I am also interested in hearing from someone who works on a trauma unit, and what you think of it...my preceptorship experience was on a med/surg ICU, so I am not sure how different this unit will be! Thank you in advance! :)

I received an email response yesterday after I asked about which units already hired/are hiring for which start dates/and if interviews were completed and this was the response I received from the nurse residency program recruiter: "The only thing I can tell is that managers are starting to request applicants for the October 26 Cohort. Interviews are taking place now through early October." I received this yesterday on 8/14/15, so there may still be hope :)

I had a friend hired into Internal Medicine. Does anyone know what units are hiring now and which ones are hiring in October?

Hey guys! I know someone that just got called for an interview in L&D, but don't know anyone who has been called for any other units yet!

And @Jennybewbs It should be doable to take other courses during first semester, and a lot of my classmates are taking some in spring (our 3rd semester) because it is supposed to be the easiest semester! But if you could split them between 1st and 3rd I think that would be a good idea :)

Congrats to all of you who got in!! Looking forward to possibly meeting you guys! You should all come to the fundraiser event that the CNSA holds at The Bear at the beginning of every semester, it's a good way to meet people from other semesters! :))

Whoops sorry I'm kinda late, I've been super busy studying for finals and whatnot But yes I got an email before I receive anything in the mail :)

Awwww man I remember the waiting game too, they waited until the 15th to tell me (the very last day possible!!). :/ Fortunately I did not have the issue of finding a place to stay because I transferred up a semester early, but I can also help anyone that wants recommendations or needs to know which areas are NOT good parts of town lol :)

The first semester is mostly just learning the basics, and you start clinical after spending the first 3 weeks in skills lab (p.s. I would probably recommend Enloe or Oroville for first semester clinical!). The other classes have a lot of review about concepts from anatomy/physio, and most of the new stuff learned is all about basic nursing practice/HIPAA laws/therapeutic communication/head-to-toe assessments, etc. Second semester is definitely a LOT harder and requires much more time, because we have clinical 2 days a week, and a 6 unit pathophysiology class that is pretty tough, in addition to pharmacology! And there is a LOT of reading, so be forewarned! lol But there are a lot of people in my class who have children, I don't personally, it will probably be more difficult to manage your time but definitely doable :) When does everyone find out about acceptance?

Hey all! I am a student currently enrolled in Chico's nursing program, and wanted to let you all know that I absolutely love it! I am just finishing up second semester, and the professors have all been pretty amazing so far! I love the town too, there is always something to do, and lots of hiking/outdoor things to do if you are into that kinda thing :) It also doesn't hurt that it's dirt cheap to live here (I was also accepted into San Diego state's program but couldn't find affordable living there!) I had 90 points when I applied for spring 2013, and I believe the cutoff went down to 83.75. I think there was only one person accepted from the waitlist, but the semester before me accepted 38 students from the waitlist so it can vary! I'm sure you have all looked at the point system by now, but prereq GPA and TEAS score make up a huge percentage, so I would definitely focus on that! And I was denied the first time I applied, so remember to not lose hope! Anyways, good luck to all of you applying! It's a tough program to get into, but very worth it. And please let me know if there are any questions I can answer for you guys!

I agree with the above posters that all 3 cities are pretty different in terms of culture (and all 3 are also expensive cities to live in, even by California's standards). I am from SF (and on a side note, I don't know anyone who is sensitive to calling it "SF", "San Fran", or "Cali", the only one that locals aren't too fond of is "Frisco" lol =) ). It's a little cooler here usually than down south, but not too cold, it's a very mild climate. The people here are generally very friendly and easygoing! I have a friend that works for the UCSF hospital and she loves it. As for LA... the traffic, the smog, the people... bleh, that's all I've got to say. San Diego, however, is BEAUTIFUL! The weather is a little colder in the mornings but that tends to go away early on in the day (pretty standard for a city on the coast), it's one of my favorite places to visit here in Cali. I don't know about the hospitals there, but based on climate and scenery alone I would say it should be #1! And because all 3 are pretty big cities, I'm sure they would all have some potential for your husband. Good luck!! =)

Hello! So I went to Los Medanos to do my undergrad, but I just recently transfered to Chico State to do the nursing program here. From what I understand, LMC has a pretty good ASN program. The only issue is that it is completely lottery based, as I'm pretty sure most junior colleges are. This is why I did not apply to any JC programs, because as long as you meet the minimum requirements (3.0 GPA, 75% on TEAS I think?) then everyone has the same chance; they do not take merit into account as much as they should. However, I have heard that it could take a couple of years to finally get in. They used to put your name in the lottery more than once for every time you have applied, but due to impact they have discontinued this practice. However I do know that their program is pretty good, and they also sometimes hold classes/meetings about the program that you could search for on LMC's website. But I would definitely recommend applying to all 3 colleges to increase your chances! Good Luck!