As I write this article, it’s near the end of September 2021, and travel nursing is one of the hottest career paths out there for nurses.
In fact, if I click away from this article and scan my inbox or text messages, I’ll almost surely run into one, two, or several recruiters who have messaged me or emailed. They’re sharing urgent messages, some well written, some poorly stated. They’re looking for experienced and even not as experienced nurses to make the leap into travel nursing and join the wave.
But does that mean that these are the only contracts out there? Heck, one of the questions I asked myself was if these are even the best ones available? All good questions, and I figured if a 25-year nursing veteran like myself was asking, then perhaps you might be too.
So how do we sift through the good, the bad, and the potentially ugly in available travel nursing contracts?
While there is a litany of things you can do as a nurse, in this article, I’ll share my top tips for doing just that.
Just remember, this is what has worked for me and if you have tips, hacks, or tricks that work for you, then feel free to hit us up in the comments.
So without further ado, here are my top three tips for finding some of the best travel nursing contracts out there.
Stay up to date with your nurse staffing and travel nurse agencies.
This is a wicked simple tactic, and many of my colleagues tend to NOT do this because of its simplicity.
Tsk-tsk.
The truth of the matter is that getting on email lists and receiving and reading newsletters is a quick way to stay in the travel nursing loop. It’s also a super-easy way to tell who the better agencies and recruiters are. Here’s what I mean.
Many “fly by night” companies or recruiters won’t take the time to develop a newsletter or even a way to connect via email. It’s either too time-consuming or too complex, and the way to spot this is on their websites or landing pages.
Is there a place for you to insert your email to learn more?
If there isn’t, I move on. My goal at this stage is to control the narrative and gather info to make the best choice for ME and my career. So if a recruiter or company doesn’t have a list to sign up on, I’m out.
The good ones have this and keep you abreast of what’s hot and where they have contracts.
Find and stay in touch with a recruiter.
A recruiter is more than just someone at the agency.
A great recruiter looks out for you in the same way an agent looks out for a pro athlete or movie star. I know it may sound a little bougie, but it’s a simple truth. A great recruiter understands that if they take care of you one time, you’ll likely stick around for a 2nd, even a 3rd time.
So find a great one, and stay in touch with them.
A recruiter will be your go-to for any queries you have about the contract. They’ll help you figure out which type of contract is best for you. When going through an onboarding procedure, a recruiter will save you a lot of time!
Follow travel companies & nursing agencies on their social media platforms.
If you’re a nurse seeking an assignment, then being on social media is a must.
I’m not saying you need to have a profile and post every day. Instead, you must find and stay abreast of what travel nurse companies do, communicate, and post. How they handle their public image on social media says a lot about them as a company. Also a lot about their culture!
Pro tip: if you read through comments from nurses or colleagues, you’ll surely learn a lot of the nitty-gritty about them as well.
And if we go all the way back to the point of this article, this is a simple and easy way to find your next travel nurse assignment!
The final word
As I said, there are many ways to find travel contracts, but these are my go-to methods and hacks.
They’ve proven valuable to me not only as a travel nurse but frankly in every other aspect of my career as a nurse and as a freelancer. And remember this, the agencies and recruiters may also use the same tactics when seeking the best travel nurses why THEY want to work with.
To learn more about the travel nursing opportunity and cities across the country, visit Bestica Healthcare and start planning your next assignment today.
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