Would you choose a large pediatric hospital for poor pay, or a small pediatric hospital for good pay as a new grad RN, BSN?

[Purdicialle, BSN, RN]

I just graduated with my BSN last month and got my RN last week. I only add that I have a BSN because it means that I do have student loans (around $7,200.) I learned while I was in school that pediatrics was where I wanted to start and managed to find a position at the women's health branch of the level I Ochsner system in Shreveport, LA. It's a good hospital system from what I can see, as well as a teaching hospital, and the floor is pediatric patient exclusive. It has 22 beds and a ratio of 1:4. I was thrilled to get the opportunity, but admittedly the pay is really poor. There's no sign-on bonus (which is fine), but there's also no relocation assistance (which is hard since I'm from North Texas around 5 hours way) and the base pay is only $25.50/hour. After night shift differential I'll be making $29.50/hour.

Earlier today I interviewed with a small level III hospital in Lawton, OK for the pediatrics/women's health floor. The pay is so much better. There's a $6,000 sign-on bonus that doesn't require a contract ($1,500 paid out every 6 months over the course of 24 months.) The longer you stay, the more you get paid out, but if you leave early there's no expectation for you to pay anything back. In addition to that they're offering me a $2,000 relocation assistance in exchange for a 1 year contract (considering I'm only about 1 hour away from Lawton, that's phenomenal.) The base pay is $30.00/hour, and I can choose between opting out of benefits and receiving $34.00/hour, or getting a night shift differential and receiving $32.50/hour. The floor is 14 beds, but I was warned that there are generally very few pediatric patients, so the floor is mostly a bay for female med-surg patients and sometimes an overflow for postpartum couplets. Ultimately I'm fine with this, but in my interview they were already trying to assess my willingness to float to/do overtime on med-surg, so I get the feeling that between a notable lack of pediatric patients and a notable need for med-surg nurses, I'm not going to attain the experience that I'm ultimately after which is to become a pediatric nurse. They also said that their ratio is 1:4 on both pediatrics and med-surg, but as I was touring the hospital I could tell that at least on the med-surg side this was absolutely not the case. The attempt to pull wool over my eyes makes me suspicious of how honest they're being in regards to other aspects of the hospital as well.

I just need the advice of experienced nurses. If you had the choice would you take the better pay, or the better experience?

[ETCO2_, BSN, RN]

One thing I've learned from being nurse is sign on bonuses are not always good. It usually means the hospital is hurting for staff. If pediatrics is your dream I'd take the lower pay and get 1-2 years experience there then travel or go elsewhere for a job which will pay you more.