Trying to get into travel nursing......

gonzo1, ASN, RN · Mar 15, 2008

All you can do is keep trying different agencies until you find one that will take you. There is a ton of agencies out there.

Then after an agency hires you hopefully there are hospitals that will accept you. Most hospitals require 2 years experience in rank and position. ie: RN with ER exp or LVN with med surg etc.

bagladyrn, RN · Mar 16, 2008

I have been trying to get into travel nursing for the past couple of weeks now and am having absolutely no luck. I was an LPN for 7 years before becoming an RN in May of 2007. I know most require at least 1 year experience, but does no one give credit for years as an LPN? Does anyone know of a company that will submit a nurse with less than 1 year of experience? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

It's not just the agencies blocking you - most hospitals require a year minimum of experience at the level (RN) that you are now. It would do no good for the agenciy to submit you to a hospital if this was what they required. There is enough difference in the role of an RN that this really makes sense since as a traveler you are expected to be able to jump in with little to no orientation and function fully on the unit. Since you will not know the unit or the hospital it makes sense that they would want you to be comfortable in the role itself. I have actually come across some contracts in my specialty that require 5 years of experience to get the contract.

It's really not that long until you have your minimum year of experience. What I would suggest is that you spend the time contacting agencies, letting the recruiters know that you are anticipating traveling when you have that year and getting information about the agency, what benefits it offers, what areas of the country they have contracts in, how many contracts they average in your specialty, what percentage of their travelers tend to take repeat contracts with them, what their average payrates are. This way when you are ready to travel you can make an informed decision with all the info in front of you. You should also spend the time reading on this and other forums for travel nurses about people's experience with various agencies.

The other thing you may want to do while working out your year is to pick up an occasional per diem shift at other hospitals in your home area just to get a feel for what it is like to come in to a new environment and function quickly.

All of the above will lead to you having a good experience as a traveler and not being overwhelmed and unhappy a long way from home.

*An afterthought to add here - you should also concentrate now on making sure you have a financial cushion for when you start traveling - in case you get across country and the contract falls through or your car suffers a major breakdown along the interstate, etc.

elkpark · Mar 16, 2008

Sorry, no, your LPN experience does not count -- only RN experience. Also, many hospitals that use travelers require two, three, or more years of experience, so, the more experience you have, the more marketable you will be as a traveler (even though, as you note, the agencies will be v. happy to sign you up with only one year).

Like bagladyrn, I encourage you to spend time reviewing some of the other threads on this forum -- lots of info and cautionary tales about tough situations people have found themselves in when traveling. Plenty of people here would tell you that (just) one year of experience is not enough; you need to not only be clinically competent and seasoned, you need to be savvy enough, in general, as an RN to be able to look out for your best interests (because neither the agency nor the hospital where you're placed is going to!) and make sure you don't find yourself in a situation that will endanger your license ...

KatieBell · Mar 16, 2008

I am sure you can find an agency that will sign you, but it will be very difficult to get a hospital to hire you. They want someone who is as proven as they can get.

Now it is almost May of 2008, so you almost have a year of experience. Again, however, you may find it a hard time finding a hospital that is interested.

Many of my contracts specify at least 3-5 year experience, and then specify experience in certain types of facilities. I was recently hired by a hospital that refuses first time travelers, so you can see while there are lots of travel jobs out there, not all of them are going to be right for someone in your situation.

And defintiely second the need for a financial cushion, all sorts of wierd things happen on contract and you dont get sick time, PTO, or anything like that.

EJ8468 · Mar 17, 2008

I think traveling with only one year of experience is a bad idea. However, I will make you the exception because you have 7 years of experience of acute care under your belt. You will have to wait at least one year because most places want you to have 1-2 years of recent experience but I have seen nurses (just recently in CA) with just 12 months of experience hired as travelers. Don't become to picky on your first assignment. Go for a big hospital with lots of needs. Once you get your foot in the door and have the first assignment under your belt, it will be smooth sailing from there. Good Luck

TCHilton7 · Apr 28, 2008

I am having a similar problem myself, however, I am an RN with 1.4 years of experience in an ICU and cannot find a facility willing to take me. Originally I was looking in CA only and have decided to expand my search to try to increase my chances of getting a position. I am still having difficulty, all of the hospitals I have been submitted to (about 12 total) have rejected my paperwork saying they only take travellers with 2 years exp. plus prior travel. Well where do you start?

Diary/Dairy, RN · Apr 28, 2008

Stay where you are until you get 2 years......

I would not travel as an ICU nurse. I have traveled as a tele nurse.

Good luck to you.

Brownms46 · May 3, 2008

I have been trying to get into travel nursing for the past couple of weeks now and am having absolutely no luck. I was an LPN for 7 years before becoming an RN in May of 2007. I know most require at least 1 year experience, but does no one give credit for years as an LPN? Does anyone know of a company that will submit a nurse with less than 1 year of experience? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

What was your experience as an LPN? It does matter, and I have assisted nurses with less than 2 years experience to get a travel assignment, and they did well. Everyone is different, and some people need two years, and some don't.

It is true that there are facilities they will want more than just two year and will not deal with first time travelers. However, they are others that will , but it is a thing of being at the right place at the right time.

You have been given excellent information here though, so keep trying, and keep everything in mind while you search.