The pros and cons of travel nursing

If you are just starting your exploration into a travel nursing career one of the smartest and easiest things you can do is make a simple pros and cons list. A pros and cons list is one of the most efficient ways to start the decision making process and is something you should make for yourself as you decide if travel nursing is for you. Here is a list of some of the pros and cons of travel nursing to get you started.

Pros of travel nursing:

• Travel nursing lets you avoid hospital politics (or at leas tonly hear them for 3 months at a time)
• Being a travel nurse lets you have a “working vacation” in all kinds of new places for 3 months at a time
• Travel nurses typically make more money, thanks to benefits (like paid housing) provided by the travel nursing company and tax allowances for working away from home
• Building your resume is easier as a travel nurse thanks to the chance to work at new facilities every 13 weeks that each may have something new to teach you
• If you are thinking of moving then travel nursing is a great chance to explore a new area before you relocate
• You also get the chance to work at hospitals in other cities you never would have if you just lived in one city

Cons of travel nursing:

• As a travel nurse there is not a big chance for career advancement (in the short-term anyway), simply because you are rarely anywhere long enough for a hospital to commit to you in that way
• Travel nurses get little cross-training because hospitals typically want travel nurses who are focused in their specialty so they can come in and help right away
• You have to wait to be a travel nurse because hospitals also would rather have experienced nurses, so the industry standard for a travel nurse is usually two years in your specialty as a prerequisite
• When you are travel nursing it is easy to get lonely if you are the kind of person who is used to a core group of friends, but if you are the kind of person who makes friends easily or someone who enjoys spending time alone then you should be OK
• You may get homesick on a travel nursing assignment and miss the familiarity of your family, home and hometown