Starting pay for a New Grad?

Published

Just wondering what the starting pay for a New Grad is in or around Oklahoma City?

What about the pay for a New Grad in the NICU or any other critical care unit?

Specializes in Psych/Detox.
No...sorry you have that wrong. My husband just got out of welding school, he makes STARTING OUT 14.50, its at the low end for welders but his boss said if he stays steady he will have no problem getting a raise. It is at an international company, and really, we are just lucky he has a job! It took about a month to find anything! Jobs are all over online but when you call it is a different story. He also has 5 years experience. Where cost of living is low, Salaries are low, its just how it works. There are many nursing jobs that pay well in OK but aren't the best hours or might not fit your sched. the best. The more you work the more exper. the more the pay. LIFE is expensive, doctors go to years and years and years of school to make how much money they make, nurses 4 years for a BSN. The average pay for a OK nurse is around 55,000. Which is pretty average for a bachelor degree. if all nurses made 70,000-80,000 in Oklahoma (some already do but their status is higher) i think everyone would be a nurse, because you would always have a job, low cost of living, and high pay. Our salary is adequate for where we are. If it's raised, awesome, you won't see me complaining because nurses work hard.

55,000/yr = >26/hr Not in Oklahoma.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
55,000/yr = >26/hr Not in Oklahoma.

Yes in Oklahoma- Doesn't mean you start there- but with experience thats usually where you end up. Take into consideration all of the other factors, where you work, your health benefits, how long you have been working, etc. I have 2 aunts who are nurses in Oklahoma, have their BSN, one in late 30's one early 40's and they both make a little more then average salary. But then again it they are excellent nurses and work really hard.

It just depends on the situation- but yes 55,000 (benefits, 401K etc) is where you can eventually get as a nurse. Money is important, but it's not on the top of my list, whether I get 20/hr or 26/hr I will still be happy with what I'm doing and able to support my family.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I agree. I know how much our Nurses make at the hospital I am recruiting for, and 26$ is what quite a few get. For base pay. Then there are still your shift differentials, 401k, health insurances, Clinical Ladder, Retention bonus, etc.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

It really varies from each shift/schedule. Base starting "weekday" pay for new grad RN's at a local hospital is 18.50/hr. But, Sat/Sun plus one week night can start you out at as much as 29.60/hr. I really didn't know there was such a difference in shift pay!

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Yep there is. Like we got differentials for evening/night shift, weekend, holidays and then there are shift supplements for picking up shifts in advance, extenting shifts and callback, on-call etc. I wish I'd get some of that in my position. :)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Adolescent Psych, PICU.
55,000/yr = >26/hr Not in Oklahoma.

I would disagree. Virtually all the RNs that I work with who have experience are making $30/hr or more and that is NOT counting in their shift diffs, etc. Heck I've been an RN for 1 year and I'm making $23/hr

New grads may not start out making a whole lot but with time and experience you can certainly make $30/h here in OK which I would consider to be pretty good money for this state.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in CCU.

I just graduated May 2010! Can anyone give updated new grad wages for the metro hospitals like Mercy, Deaconness, Integris, Saints, OU, select, etc???? I know pay isn't the only thing to factor but I really am weighing my options. I hear alot of different rates and beginning to think some ppl dont know what they're talking about lol.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Adolescent Psych, PICU.

You should be able to just call up the nursing recruiters at all the local hospital to find out new grad RN rates, it easy to find out. I know when I graduated 2 years ago and started working for OUMed my starting base pay was $18.65/hr. I would be interested to see if the pay has gone up.

I would bet most new grads are starting out around $19/hr.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
I know when I graduated 2 years ago and started working for OUMed my starting base pay was $18.65/hr. I would be interested to see if the pay has gone up.

I would bet most new grads are starting out around $19/hr.

Nope, it's still $18.65 hourly at OU Medical Center. I completed an RN program in the OKC area recently, and one of the HR managers from OU Medical Center spoke to our class about working for them after graduation. He quoted a pay rate of $18.65 per hour.

I think the economy plays a major role in the stagnant wages. Since many new grads are desperate to find a job, the major hospitals are in no hurry to raise their starting pay rates because they know that people will willingly work for a wage that is no longer competitive. I believe that Integris is paying $18.44 and that Saint Anthony's is offering $18.93 per hour.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in CCU.

See, someone told me that Integris was paying 19.50 to start, as well as Deaconness. I was offered 18.83 for Saints CCU. I will probably call around to just clarify. But yeah I definitely think the new grad start pay hasn't progressed due to the economy. I dont know. What about the starting new grad pay for Oklahoma Heart Hospital?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Adolescent Psych, PICU.
Nope, it's still $18.65 hourly at OU Medical Center. I completed an RN program in the OKC area recently, and one of the HR managers from OU Medical Center spoke to our class about working for them after graduation. He quoted a pay rate of $18.65 per hour.

I think the economy plays a major role in the stagnant wages. Since many new grads are desperate to find a job, the major hospitals are in no hurry to raise their starting pay rates because they know that people will willingly work for a wage that is no longer competitive. I believe that Integris is paying $18.44 and that Saint Anthony's is offering $18.93 per hour.

Thanks.

Have most of your classmates been able to get RN jobs? I graduated in 2008 and we basically had our choice of what we wanted to do, so Im curious as to what its like out there now for new grads. I graduated in May 2008 and by Dec of that year our census had dropped and we were being canceled left and right and I had to look for a more stable job to support my family because by Jan/Feb it had gotten no better (needed a consistent paycheck). So that is one question new grads need to ask about is how they handle staffing when census drops and they do not need all the RNs they have scheduled....something I wish I would have known about.

I worked for OU for 2 years (nurse partner and RN) and now Ive been at Saints for about a year and a half. Just for anyone who is curious Saints does pay raises once a year and it is all focused on your units patient satisfaction score, employee satisfaction, and other unit goals as well as completing your yearly competencies (that is 1%). I work in a unit that scores good (which is such a joke to me) and my raise this year was 3.8%. Last year it was about 4%. I know when I was in nursing school and a new grad I always wondered what my raises would be like, so I just wanted to pass that along.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
I'm a new grad in the ICU and I make $18.65/hr plus differentials. HTH. I think my pay is typical for new grads here.

r u a rn or lvn with that pay?:confused:

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion