Nursing careers
Travel nursing jobs
Travel nursing trades stability for pay, variety and control over where you work — if you can walk into an unfamiliar unit and be useful on day one.
How contracts work
A travel assignment is typically 13 weeks, arranged through an agency that places you with a facility covering a staffing gap. Compensation usually combines an hourly rate with housing and travel stipends, so two offers with the same headline rate can be worth quite different amounts once you work the package through.
Extensions are common when things go well, and many travellers string assignments together in the same region or return to facilities they liked.
What agencies look for
At least a year of recent experience in your specialty is close to universal, and high-acuity units often want two. Because orientation is short — sometimes a couple of shifts — agencies favour nurses who have worked across multiple systems and charting platforms and who hold current certifications without gaps.
Compact licensure widens your options considerably; so does keeping your credentialling file complete before you start applying rather than during.
What belongs on a travel nurse resume
Travel resumes are read differently from staff resumes. Recruiters are scanning for fit against a specific unit, fast. List each assignment with the facility type, bed count, unit and specialty, your patient ratio, the EMR you charted in, and the dates.
Do not let a run of 13-week contracts read as job-hopping — label them as travel assignments and group them under the agency so the pattern is obvious at a glance.
Getting the resume right
Whatever part of nursing you are in, the resume has to say more than your title. Our certified nursing resume writers do this every day — see our nursing resume service, or call 1-800-482-1303.
Ready to get your resume written?
Talk to us about your career level, your target roles and your timeline. We will match you with a certified writer and give you an exact price before any work starts.