6 Tips for a First Time Travel Nurse
I have spoken to many nurses who want to travel but don’t consider letting go of their staff positions and jumping into the world of travel because of fear. Surprisingly, some have way more experiences than the average nurses, however still hesitant to travel and have a lot reasons why they don’t want to give it a try.
I usually get statements like: “I’m afraid the contracts will be too complicated and demanding”.
“I don’t want to do all the licensing requirements and Onboarding exams”.
“I’m afraid the housing situation will be horrible and hard to find.”
“I’m scared to travel by myself and wont’ make any friends”.
In all honesty, all these are valid questions because if you’re gonna make a decision to leave home or family and go to a new environment, you need to know all the details to make your travel experience a good one. For that, I will list about 6 important tips if you are a new traveler or plan on getting into travel nursing.
First thing first.
Do your research
Travel nursing is not for everyone because some people don’t like changes and there still opportunities to leverage your career in your staff position. It is necessary to research on where you want to travel, local or out of state, research about the different agencies , pay packages etc…
Why this is important? Being a first time traveler, you may not want to travel out of state, so starting a local travel position within an hour or two away from home is a great option. Also, try being in flex/float pool within your hospital in order to get a feel on travel nursing since you might get floated to different units during your assignment.
Second, you want to research the different agencies simply because they don’t operate the same or they don’t offer the same pay package. Then, add your number and make sure it’s worth traveling by doubling or tripling your income.
When you’re traveling, you are duplicating expenses; therefore, you want to make enough to cover both expenses, at home and out of state. It simply makes no sense to leave home and to earn the same income .
Get Organized
As travel professionals, once you contact a recruiter, he/she would want you to send everything related to your career: licensing information, certifications, health and up to date immunization records and references. It also means that you’re 100% prepared to submit your application and ready for those phone interviews.
One thing I do, is creating a file where I add all my updated documents and be able to attach them to my email in quick second. Lastly, be familiar with the different prices you have to pay for your certifications and licenses especially if you don’t live in a compact state.
The great thing about about you living in a compact state is to be able to travel in more than 30 states with that one nursing license. Isn’t that awesome?
Be Flexible
The more flexible you are with location, facility and pay grade (I’m not telling you to cut yourself short), the more jobs will be open to you. Just have have a range on what’s the highest and lowest pay you would want, that will make your search easier for both your recruiter and yourself.
Travel nursing want you to be so flexible that if there’s an emergency, you will be able to hop on a plane within 24-48hrs. Meaning, you may not even know what’s your next contract is within a week of you starting. By now, I just keep a small carry on bag with all the essentials I need. 
Plan Your Housing
If your travel nursing assignment is far away from home, you would want to secure your housing before you get there. Not all agencies provide housing and if they do, you may not even like what they provide.
There are many other factors to consider when looking for housing. Do you want to live in the center of town, or you rather drive 30+ minutes to work? Do you want roommates? Do you have a furry friend? By asking yourself all these questions, your search will be much easier.
Me personally, I have tried Airbnb, Extended stay with kitchen areas as well as short term rental. I honestly don’t have any problem with any of them as long as it’s less than 15 drive to work.
Keep in touch with your recruiter
A good recruiter will be available to you when you need them. There’s nothing worse than having questions and concerns at work and no one is available to answer.
It doesn’t matter if you just started travel nursing or on your 15th assignment, you will have questions in the beginning, and during the process. Your recruiter works for you and if you don’t have the best one, you can always call your agency and switch recruiters if you have to.
Explore and Make New Friends
And please don’t forget to make new friends, explore the new city and eat some good food. You will be away from home for a period of 4-13 weeks and the last thing you want to do is to stay locked up in a hotel room or your Airbnb. Don’t do that !!!
