NadaHin

I don't start until 5/16. It's a big move for me and I'd like to have an idea prior to getting there.

Heading to La for my 3rd travel contract and wondering how the job market is there/difficulty of finding a staff position in the hospitals there? A little about me; 27 yo male, started nursing in June 2016 in a mixed CTICU/CCU level 1 trauma /teaching hospital, just finished my 2nd contract at Mount Sinai CVICU and starting a travel contract at USC Keck in their CVICU. I plan on applying to Kaiser's CRNA program. Going to work a few contracts and then my plan was to go staff somewhere for a year, get residence, retake some classes, and apply for the program. I'm just worried about being able to get a staff position in a CVICU in one of the teaching hospitals there. Any thoughts from a California RN greatly appreciated!

Here's a link to post about my travel experience so far: https://allnurses.com/travel-nursing/new-travel-nurse-1154416.html In terms of tips so as to not run in to any snags, I think most important is where you're currently licensed and where you want to practice. My license was originally in Pa, had to apply for endorsement in NY and again in CA. Both my endorsements were much quicker than any time I had seen posted on any of the forums. CA took the longest and so I had to wait after my 2nd contract and couldn't really look for a contract in CA. Definitely start your CA endorsement process ASAP! There's so many issues that could pop up with that licensure including your fingerprints not qualifying or your nursys not going through. Other than that make sure you keep up on your ACLS/BLS/PALS.

Hey! A little bit about me, 27 y.o. guy, did a 2nd degree BSN, started working in a mixed CTICU/CCU in a level 1 trauma/teaching hospital in Philly(lucky to have been able to start here) in June 2016. Started traveling in October 2017 and did my 1st travel contract at Mount Sinai Brooklyn in general ICU and then just finished a contract at Mount Sinai Heart Institute CVICU, heading to La this week to work at USC Keck in their CVICU. I was nervous to start with less than 2 years but it's actually been great. The 1st recruiter I worked with wasn't that great but I didn't know what to expect. He didn't really seem to care about me as a first time traveler and couldn't get me any positions. My 2nd recruiter was awesome! She really cared and went the extra mile for me in terms of getting me a job, higher pay, and just checking up on me. I did use a different recruiter for La since the first agency didn't have any exclusives in La. This recruiter is a good balance of caring but not overbearing, is very straightforward which I love and isn't too pushy. She's all about getting me as much money as she can and making sure that I'm at a hospital and in a unit that I'm comfortable with which I really appreciate as well. I feel like the particular agency is important in what they have to offer in terms of contracts(where they have exclusives and stuff), what their compensation is usually, and the resources they have to offer you but the recruiter really does vary and you just gotta keep working and talking with one until you find one that you're comfortable with. Sorry for the lengthy post! I just thought it'd be nice to put all that info out there because I wasn't looking for a lot of this information prior to starting and didn't really find much.

Is there anyway to see if we can start in Spring of 2014 if we got accepted for Fall of 2014? The time until then is sort of a waste for me.. Just working and not really saving up or anything. Would be great to start ASAP

And thanks klp1886! Congrats to you as well! Drexel was the only school that I applied to. I live in New Brunswick now, but my home is in South Jersey(15 minutes from Philly), so hoping that commuting/parking won't be too much of a problem..

Hey! So I turned in my application and had all my transcripts in by September 15th and I was accepted on the 15th(I still think that's really weird/fast/good/not complaining, lol. I had taken 3 summer courses( ethics, computers, and a&pII), but apparently they had changed the prerequisites sometime in September after I had already taken the courses. Of the current prerequisites, the only one I don't have is nutrition. I double majored in Cell Biology/Neuroscience and Psychology at Rutgers. I also wrote an essay because I had experience as a CNA and unit clerk which I thought would help. My GPA was definitely not competitive so I'm really surprised that I got in and found out so quick.. lol.

So the people that applied the last couple of years all said that the earliest people find out if they got in was usually end of November, but I just checked discover and I JUST GOT ACCEPTED! I'm seriously thinking it's a mistake though, as the deadline was just yesterday... Lol... My gpa was also really low and way below a 3.0, so if you got in post and let me know!

Hey! So I recently applied for the Fall 2014 cohort! A little bit about me; graduated from Rutgers with a bachelors in Cell Biology/Neuroscience and Psychology. It was a really rough major so I didn't do too well, graduated with a GPA of about a 2.65, but I was hoping to get in with my last 60 credits. I'm not sure how they figure out the last 60 credits, but I'm on the edge of a 3.0, I might be a little bit below or above, not sure. If not, then I'm going to take a couple winter courses and apply in the Spring. I worked as a CNA for the past year and am now working as the unit clerk for our facility as well. There wasn't anywhere to write this on the application so I just went ahead and wrote the essay so I could work this in, hoping it'll help a little bit. This might be a stupid question, but do you think being a guy will help me get in at all? I live in South Jersey so if I do get in I'll probably end up commuting. I had turned in all my application materials around 9/20. From what I've heard Drexel starts letting you know around Thanksgiving/ after October 15th? Best of luck to those who have/are going to apply!

Also, I've been working as a CNA for the past year. Does that help my chances at all?

Hey! I'm looking to apply to the Drexel ACE program this October, this forum has helped a lot! But, wondering if someone can help me clear something up. What counts as the last 60 credits when determining GPA? I didn't do too well my Junior year at Rutgers. I'm taking 11 credits now for my prereqs. So, counting the 30 credits from my senior year, and the 11 credits from my prereqs, I'd be at 41 credits. How would they determine what to use for the 19 credits from my Junior year? Because I'm borderline on the 3.0 GPA and I failed Organic Chemistry 2 my junior year and not sure how this will effect the GPA calculation.