Relocation advice

[avonrn]

[COLOR=#000000]Hey all! I am a new nurse with about 1 year experience in med surg oncology inpatient at a cancer center. I am looking to relocate to a new place at about my 1 year mark in February, I just want to gain more nursing and life experience in new places! I also will be continuing my rn-to-Bsn wherever I relocate to. I have also considered traveling, but I am concerned about not having a home base (I wouldn't want to pay rent if I was away most of the time, and i wouldn't want to be without an apartment) and about who would care for my cat/how to bring my cat with me.. Too complicated, but maybe someone can talk me into it??[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#000000]the places I have considered are Philadelphia where I began my undergrad career, Texas particularly Austin, California but not San Diego or San Francisco d/t saturated markets, Washington or Colorado ([/COLOR][COLOR=#0000ee]wallet hub[/COLOR][COLOR=#000000] article's top 2 states for nurses to work). As far as specialty, I am really open to trying anything right now so I am mostly focused on location, then the job and school search will begin. If anyone knows of any agencies that assist with relocation and Job Search please let me know.. thanks!!!! I am just looking for opinions on good places to go and good facilities to work for[/COLOR]

[anewsns]

Aww that's so exciting and lucky that you can have these experiences !

[HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD]

I can understand your wanderlust. New places can be very exciting. In order to achieve those dreams, you'll need to make yourself as marketable as possible. Since you don't have your BSN yet, get an ANCC certification ASAP. This is a clear demonstration of your professional commitment as well as knowledge and skills. If possible, get some supervisor or leadership experience - even Charge Nurse experience will plump up that resume.

BTW, Austin is extremely saturated & will may be a very difficult market unless you have some hard-to-find specialty skills. If you're looking for relocation assistance, you'll have to negotiate this yourself, as organizations do not use placement services for non-management positions. The good news? Relo assistance is becoming more common in my part of the world. I understand that Houston Methodist is engaged in foreign recruitment again due to the shortage of experienced nurses in their applicant pool.

Best of luck to you in your nursing travels!