To get a 6 month job or wait after graduating?

[mcknzkthrn]

I'm currently a junior in a RN BSN program. I just found out yesterday that I was accepted to my school's summer critical care program. That means I will be graduating in December with over 160 clinical hours of crit care and be certified in ACLS, PALS, and NNRP all before graduation. As excited as I am for it, I don't know what to do once I graduate. My boyfriend and I want to get married after he graduates 6 months later in May (2015) and then move away from where we are now, in Virginia. I would love to move to CA or FL, some place warm with a big city. He's open for adventure.

My question is this, what should I do with those 6 months while I'm waiting for him to graduate? I feel like getting an RN job around here would be cruel since they take 6 months to train new grads anyways, and then I'd leave. But I also don't want to not work for 6 months either. I worked hard for that degree, I want to use it! We have discussed the possibility of me finding the place we'd want to settle down at and getting a job there. The only problem is that we don't know where we want to live and it would be hard planning a wedding from across the country. I've also toyed with the idea of volunteering abroad so I keep experience but don't have a commitment to a hospital, and it'd look good on my resume. But with that I wouldn't be making any money. I need to make SOME money to have something to pay for a wedding.

What would the best option be?

[jennycRN]

Hahaha.... Congratulations! Sounds like you have a lot of exciting times ahead of you.

Start to think about your priorities (nursing is ALL about prioritizing, lol). Remember that weddings don't HAVE to be expensive or elaborate. It is an important day, but it is just the beginning :-) However, the nursing job market is competitive and the decisions you make after graduating may determine your options ( at least in the short term) in this profession.

Good luck and enjoy your critical care program!