How I TRIPLED my income as a Registered Nurse 

If you're a new grad watching this, or most likely a nursing student watching this, don't forget the part where she put in her years in order to easily get travel RN jobs. Experience is everything. 85% of the stuff you're learning in nursing school will go out the window as you re-learn how to do actual bedside nursing at your facility. And so you need to have a little patience, especially if you're younger.

Thank you for spelling this out. As a staff nurse, I definitely realize travel nursing is the only way match inflation, just needed someone to spell it out the way you have. Thanks for the great video! Definitely reconsidering my options.

I’m here to say those contracts are pretty much gone and it’s almost just as good to work core… I make $43.50/hr as an RN core when I WAS making $85/hr as a local travel nurse. I really wish those contracts were still around… God those were so good…

You go girl, I just love your videos 😊I am a retired 66 y/O mom who has a daughter who is a school nurse in California. So, I listen to your information to pass on the information to her. She is an LVN and is apprehensive to get her RN and it’s not the money it’s that she doesn’t think she can do it? I always tell her she is smart enough. So, I will pass on these statistics to help her to get an incentive to get her RN. Thank you for sharing your advice.

thank you so much ! you are wonderful 😊

Good information. Thanks

That was very smart - taking advantage of the job market. You have to be young though! It's sad that in our profession (even prior to Covid), you have to change companies in order to raise your salary significantly. Otherwise, you get a raise of 60 cents here or there. I've known coworkers who've gone above and beyond (taking on extra projects, etc.) and they still end up with a meager raise.

Really loved your videos Katherine!

I wasnt financial free as a nurse until my 40’s and I’m still in my 40’s, bought my second house already, earn on a monthly through passive income and got 4 out of 5 goals, just hope it encourages someone that it doesn’t matter if you don’t have any of them right now, you can start TODAY regardless your age INVEST and change your future! Investing is a grand choice I made. Great video! Thanks for sharing! Very inspiring! I love this

I’m a new graduate trying to pay off student loans so I’m taking all the tips I can get! Thank you for the info and video!

We used to have a 5 step clinical ladder where used to work and the percent increase wasn't bad, but then they cut the percentages. I made it to clin-IV, but I decided to go back to school for my master's. I also wanted to get off nights which I did forn7 years. Now I'm back to home health, but I almost wish I would have tried travel nursing. Congrats to you for doing well!

Thanks for all the info! I'm a new nurse with just a few months of experience on a med Surg floor. Do you recommend I go into the ICU, ER, or both before doing local assignments? Also, how far away were your local travel assignments?

Straight to the point! I like it.

What are you doing for health insurance?

My bf works at Cedars-Sinai in West Hollywood as regular staff she makes 135k , no other, no on call. She started off travel nursing making 40 an hour but housing certificate was 4k a month , she found apt 2k , pocketed the other 2k tax free

I plan to do travel nursing in the next 10 years! What specialty would you say its best to get into for that?

How do u apply for local travel nursing in socal? I thought you need to live 60 miles away from your assignment to get housing stipend? Or $112 is the rate only per hr without including housing?

My goodness $26 an hour in PA. Here in Las Vegas you can expect $35-40 as a new grad!

What do you do about health insurance, are you insured by a spouse or do you get your own insurance on the market…is it expensive?

Travel nursing pay is amazing but positives of staying at our hospital is paying almost $2000 for one extra shift ($1200 + time and a half). For me this added $120k last year. The stay at my hospital for insurance, $5000 in tuition reimbursement, 2 weeks paid vacation and stability. Plus I love my coworkers. As an ER nurse I plan on climbing the seniority ladder and training for trauma.

Just got into nursing school, can’t wait to graduate and start making a decent pay. Definitely hoping to be a travel nurse for those in between contract vacations lol

Hi!!! I’m new to your channel and I wonder if you would sometime talk about NCLEX reviews. Thanks???

I’ve been a nurse for 14 years. After a pretty burn out year personally, I’m doing travel nursing..honestly the first 8 years of my career, I “capped” or at least that’s what they told me at just $21/hr...it was really horrible. I was in RN school and got divorced while in school several years ago and just had to work as I had two young sons. I am doing travel nursing now as an LPN. I am tired of being tired. I want to live well and be paid fairly. Best decision I made. Thank you for sharing

Gosh...if all nurses had this transparency we wouldn't have such disparities in nursing pay.

I just learned that there are different levels of RN how do you level up? Do you have to go back to nursing school? (I’m planning on taking nursing and I stumbled upon your channel)

Hey can you tell me how you find local travel contracts ? Or which agencies in PA you’d recommend?

I have been a nurse since 1983. The old days were hard but so much better than the healthcare workforce today. Todays healthcare setting is not friendly to our “seasoned and tenured” nurses.

Is there a company you recommend working with? I’m near Atlanta too!

I ❤ this! Where do you live? I’m in FL local contracts are scarce

I thought you couldn’t get any stipends with local travel nursing ?

This is great thanks so much for the insight! Just wondering if someone with BSN would make even more? Not sure if you have that, sry if I missed it

Absolutely, Nursing does not pay unless you travel. But, I would loveeeee!!!!! to find a way to travel out of the nursing profession for good.

Hie Katherine, great video! May you please kindly share with me your travel nurse company. I would like to apply too

what is local nurse travel called in Australia? is it same thing like working with agency

Can I ask why you moved from pa to Atlanta, is Atlanta better opportunity for nursing?

Can u go straight into travel nursing new grad .and do u have to have your bachelor's degree to travel nursing.

Do you have Medical Insurance as a travel nurse? How much will I make in California?

What does it mean to level up as an RN?

can i do the trveal nursing job by going to school of nursing instiad of university

Would you recommend any companies for local traveling?

cath lab or critical care?

Did they try to force you to get the clot shot? If so, has the travel companies and other hospitals been cool with exemptions?

She’s killing it

@Katherine Ann: What is an RN 1-4❔

What is the nurse travel agency you are with?

What is the name of the agency you’re with?

What is local travel nurse? What you have to do? Where is the work? Can u explain please

Amazing! Just amazing. Keep it up. The Lord keep you safe and in good health. Shalom.

do you do 3/12 as travel nurse or you pick up hours?

Hey- is it best to go through a travel company or go straight to the hospital with the travel opening via Human Resources? Thinking maybe I don’t want to be restricted to the typical 13 weeks…

How can I message you? I would love to tell you how you can make similar pay outside of bedside as a nurse.

Love it when you said that you don't want to be indebted. Thanks for the inspiration.

I'm an RN working in home health making $23/hour. And I have over 30 years experience in cardiac, surgical, and physical rehab. I couldn't stand the office politics of the hospital which is why I settle for what I do now for so little. I'm sick of nursing tbh and just want out. The pay inequity is nothing short of abuse.

problem is the broken system in US, they can pay more $ on a traveler nurse than their normal resident nurse same job description... what's the difference??? American created two tier system in their healthcare after covid. Alot of our colleague question the management they hire so much traveler with the same role as them but higher pay, isn't that fair?

I have 100k of debt and definitely do not want to take on more loans 😢. Will look into traveling

How much overtime are you working on average in order to make this $150,000 figure? Or is that what you will he earning without overtime?

Hi how do you qualify for a food stipend being a local travel nurse? I thought you only get a stipend if you’re 50 miles away from faculty

Can you tell me what courses I can do to level up as a Rn I have 10 years international experience. Thanks love yr videos

Love this video. Nurses have all the education and resources they need to make a decent income. They can invest and make more too. Why would their income ever be something left up to others is my question after watching this. Could their potential be limited by references? Their environment? Haters? 🤷‍♀️ Its scary to think that someone with the qualifications and experience to be a nurse would not have a decent income.

Curious if travel nursing is available for outpatient positions!

I live in California and make $49. I am looking to get into venture capital.

Would you care to share the name of the agency? Do you have benefits? Health insurance?

I work as a school nurse and I would like to try travel nursing- though do you need to have yrs of med surg experience? Are there travel nurse positions that are in other nurse disciplines? Your videos are great and helpful!

The downside of travel nursing is you are a 1099 employee, almost no benefits. And you have to go new places every few weeks. I have managed to almost double my income while staying on and working ICU on a weekend program and also working one on-call shift a week. So, I have consistently made a 70k or 80k base double to 120 to 140k per year for the last 15 years with full benefits. I have a total of 29 years in ICU. I plan to work another 7 to 12 years and retire at age 60 or 65 having achieved financial independence.

How do you find travel nurse positions?

Our hospital doesn't have any rn 1-2-3 stuff lol

What about health insurance?

What is a local traveling nurse? I have not heard of that term.

What are your thoughts on traveling while being married? I'll be qualified to travel as a monitor tech in few months, but my wife is apprehensive about letting me have too much freedom and being away several months at a time lol.

What is your agency?

Why this little? Omg, my ex was working as a handyman at a hotel, getting paid 35 p hour.. no education at all 😢

When ever I have looked into California travel contracts I always come out making more per diem staying where I'm at(in Ca.). I think the big money contracts are a thing of the past.

Can you go more into detail of how local travel works. You mentioned getting a food stipend is the only difference no housing allowance?

35 or even 40$ per hr is the new 10$/h..you cant get a decent house..and keep up with expenses..if you have kids , thats it..just daycare can be up to 3k..per month..

travel nursing is always an option

If you want the short answer: She went from being an RN Level 4 making over $36.25/hour, and then quit and found a job in travel nursing for $112/hour doing med surg nursing, then back to a slightly lower rate at $75/hour (over $150,000 per year). You can work for 6-8 months and then afford to take a vacation. Give her video a like! I don't like waiting for an answer but she was thorough!

That’s exactly what I did! The money was amazing!! So sad it’s going away.

Good video, the best decision I made as a RN nurse was to create a side hustle for extra income streams. It has really helped me and my family financially stable.

Wow I am a LPN and working in long term care making 50hr

👍🏻

I did travel briefly at a hospital not too far from my home. The pay was great, but the staff was very friendly - but only to each other. They would not help me if I needed someone to witness a waste of a med or help me boost someone in bed. The aides only helped the other nurses. It was AWFUL. And of course, every single shift, I was given what seemed like every trainwreck on the floor. I thought it just seemed that way until I started noticing that my patient's rooms were split up, like if there was a less acute patient in my "row" of patients, another nurse was assigned that patient and I had another fresh post-op isolation pt with multiple drains, wound care, trach/suctioning, frequent carotid ultrasounds, NG tube, q 2 hour pain meds, etc. across and down the hall, away from my other patients! And this was med-surg!! I'm the type that goes into everything super friendly and helpful to others, looking at us as a team and looking forward to getting to know people. Do YOU feel like you get the cold shoulder from people because you are making more than they are for doing the same job and/or feel like you are given difficult assignments on purpose? I have heard this a lot about travel nursing. What they don't seem to realize is that it ultimately puts the PATIENTS at risk, as it was almost impossible to get to everyone in a timely manner. At the very least, the patients I'm sure were not thrilled (although I was lucky they seemed to be very understanding).

I am an RN in Michigan. Starting pay averages between 29.25-34 here on average. This is talking to coworkers that applied at different hospitals. I am getting paid $33.69 starting, working on day shift. Way too low. We should all be starting at $50...easy. Also, never heard of leveling up as an RN. We definitely do not have that here in Mich.

Nurse Katherine - Are you open to learning how you don’t have to work harder as a Nurse and make so much more? If you love it you can share it with your audience. You’ll smash this and you & nurses deserve to do what you LOVE without having to incur debt or work even more !

My name is Chakit Chauhan. I am from India. Please tell me how to earn money online. I am a nursing registered.

How I stayed at the same income but salvaged my sanity...became a nurse educator...

Travel nursing is another way. Great video

I have a family with small kids- can’t travel nurse. Lucky I can go to nursing school :(

Hi

I more than tripled my pay going per diem

Nurses need to learn to invest in real estate! They need to be taught to be entrepreneurs and not slaves to the system.

Not straightforward to the point, too much fluff, but thank you for the end result.

You were a zombie :) LOL!!

So in 2019 making six figures but not keeping up? You go RN girl. Money is the name of the game. Forget that bs about how it's a calling. It's a job.

Didn't even finish watching, of course its travel nursing

Why do nurses take high liability jobs for the same amount that a Costco checker makes? It is no wonder women commonly earn less than men. Nurses should be earning at least MORE than a plumber. I started at $62/hr right out of nursing school. $50 should be rock bottom minimum. $70-$100 is the only serious pay range with experience.

This video is a testament to how bad the system is. Execs paying themselves a million a year have no trouble with this, but won't staff a medical unit above slave labor. Grab the dough while you're young, kids. Your brain and body will not last under the barrage of weak middle managers and new computer systems every two or three years, not to mention idiotic patients and families demanding hotel services (fully supported by executives, btw).

Some people made me earning money as a registered nurse an issue of race and sex....how trifling is that? Nursing is not about that.

This concept is so damaging to the future of nursing. It makes me so sad to see young nurses promote this toxic industry. Firstly, it has fractured the team comradery which maintains mental health wellness if nurses, retention rates, enhanced communication between staff, and so much more. Secondly, travel nursing is a very big ask for nurses with families which accounts for a majority of millennial (and adjoining generations to a lesser extent) so these nurses are very often working as core staff which requires them to have increased responsibility to shuffle travelers in and work many shift with strangers surrounding them. Thirdly, hospitals are losing enormous amounts of money from hiring travel agencies to staff them while not investing in the cheaper and more sustainable/healthy culture and organizational mission values by using that money to attract more dedicated staff for the longer term. Thirdly, from personal experience, it contributes significantly to pandemic and post pandemic mental health issues/burnout due to work in a more isolated environment with the rapid turnover of travelers which is likely a contribution to the depletion of the workforce too. Fourthly, I have seen it influence a sense of management and HRs gravely inflated indifference to nurses as human beings. Sad. Lastly, I see seemingly very young nurses as well as nurses not far from retirement in this role most often and they are both poised with the money hungry mindset, whereas, nurses in between these age groups are more in positions where they need to or greatly care to settle in one place because building their family is their sole priority. This video broke my heart because the enegery that travelers put into building their wealth should consider our code of ethics first and foremost and look towards the future of nursing along with our colleagues so that we can be a part of building that sustainable nursing workforce in the near future (and projections for that are more bleak than climate change) instead of being greedy about the massive influx and shift brought on by covid.

I hope she's at least investing in a roth IRA.

Avoid these nurses!