Travel Nurse Agencies & Recruiters
So, you are about 2-4 weeks away from getting your VisaScreen/Visa4Nurses and your state license in hand... What’s next? Getting a recruiter!
Before You Begin
The very first thing you should do is join the community of other Canadian to U.S. nurses. We have a Facebook group, Instagram, a Youtube, and this website for tons of resources and support.
THE MOST IMPORTANT ADVICE I COULD POSSIBLY GIVE ABOUT RECRUITERS...
I cannot stress enough the importance of working with a recruiter and agency who routinely work with Canadian nurses.
I had it happen a few times where I got through onboarding with an agency, only to ask if they will issue a job offer letter that I can take to the border to get my TN visa only to be told, “Oh, we don’t do those.”
So... Obviously they don’t work with Canadians, even though they claim they did.
A lot of recruiters will OVERSELL their abilities to work with Canadian nurses when they don’t actually know as much as they claim or they don’t want you to know their level of knowledge is lacking (and perhaps they plan to ask for help from a more senior coworker). This is far from ideal. This is what led to a two week delay for me with my first contract. A recruiter oversold their abilities like a good salesperson and then made a mistake with my criminal record check (by putting my Canadian SIN on it where it asked for an SSN and it bounced because the criminal record check said I was not associated with that number in the United States).
This is also why I suggest NEVER EVER giving them your Canadian SIN. It will only cause problems.
If an application form for any agency asks for a SSN in order to proceed, I would enter in all zeros and contact them to explain. This makes it less likely payroll, whoever runs the criminal record check, etc. will make an error that could cause a delay or cancellation. Please learn from my mistake.
The reason isn’t REALLY malicious, these recruiters just want to recruit!
Where to start?
Your travel nurse recruiters and agencies can make or break your experience, so this will take some time to properly vet an agency and recruiter.
You will need to choose a company that is trustworthy, will pay you fairly, and has good resources and benefits for you personally, especially as a Canadian nurse.
You may even want to do your due diligence and ensure an agency is credentialed by the Joint Commission. Agencies that obtain this certification must complete a strict qualification process, and it helps ensure that the company is upheld to the highest standards in the industry. Look up any agencies at www.qualitycheck.org for more information.
Three Steps to getting a recruiter
STEP ONE: Research travel nurse agencies & make a list
Bearing in mind the things you want out of a recruiter and agency, you will want to research agencies and compose a list.
Here are some ways to compile a list:
- Google travel nurse agencies
- Ask other travel nurse friends
- Read agency reviews (especially in facebook groups like the ‘Gypsy Travel Nurse’
- Check the agency websites and compare what they are offering in your specialty, state, etc.
. . . And the best way?
Check out our facebook group and RECOMMENDED RECRUITER LIST
oNCE YOU HAVE A LIST OF AGENCIES AND THEIR TOP cANADIAN RECRUITERS’ NAMES... tHEN YOU CAN START MAKING CALLS/EMAILS
STEP TWO: Contact Agencies & Recruiters
When you contact an agency (via their website ‘contact us’ section or via phone call to the main like, you will want to make it absolutely clear with your initial contact that you were referred to a specific recruiter or you are looking to get in touch with a specific recruiter (who you presumably saw was recommended somewhere online or from a friend).
If you found the referral online (such as from a facebook group), you may want to take the extra step and message whoever posted that they had a good recruiter and ask them for their recruiter’s name, why they recommend them, and their direct contact information.
Also, do let the person know that you will mention them as the referral source too. Most of us would be happy to help regardless, but the referral bonus is always appreciated. I also have started a promotion where if my name is used with any of the top recruiters in the RECOMMENDED RECRUITER LIST, once the referral bonus is paid out, I will send $500 (minus taxes) & a Canadian Care Package (SEEN HERE).
This is especially important as referrals are really the only thing keeping our Canadian-to-American Travel Nursing Community sustainable. I have ginormous dark bags under my eyes to prove it (think dark under eye bags like Nurse Jon lol). Plus, the $500 helps put a dent in the start up costs to travel nurse for the nurse starting out too.
Referral money is essentially money left on the table. And I think it should be a win-win for the community and nurse!
HEED THIS ADVICE... OR PREPARE TO GET A NEW PHONE NUMBER!!
I do suggest checking out meta job sites like Vivian and BluePipes to get an idea of what contracts are paying in your state, specialty, etc. (as this will help you negotiate the best pay). But I DO NOT recommend actually signing up or applying for jobs with these meta job boards as you will be bombarded with phone calls/emails from obscure agencies and recruiters. And a lot of the companies may not work with Canadians (or do the job offer letter we need to cross the border).
Likewise, be prepared to be contacted often from any agency you interview on your journey to find your top favourites.
This is one reason I highly discourage going with some agencies like Triage.
I was contacted roughly a dozen times in 5 weeks by several different recruiters from their agency. A couple of times, I asked to just have one person reach out to me (the original person I called and only once I was finished my current contract). The texts and calls from their agency continued, so I asked to be taken off their mailing list completely. If a company cannot accommodate a simple ask, of having just one recruiter reach out to me, I wouldn’t trust them with any, more difficult tasks and certainly not a contract.
Don’t let this be you...
STEP THREE: Interviewing Agencies/Recruiters
Now, you will interview the agencies and recruiters you have on your list and when you do, you will want to ensure they address all of your questions in a way that is favourable to you.
We will go into a detailed list with explanations and examples shortly.
But something to bear in mind is that when a recruiter isn’t answering your questions the way you want or isn’t able to meet your deal-breaker needs, it probably isn’t worth their time nor yours to continue the interview. Determine what you want and what terms you cannot live without.
... If they are vague about pay or won’t give a breakdown, you may want to consider ending the interview.
... If they haven’t worked with a Canadian nurse before, close the interview politely.
... If you aren’t able to get in contact with them for three business days (excluding any major holidays, just lose their number.
... There may be many more dealbreakers, but those above are some of mine!
For more examples, go ahead and check out some travel nurse facebook groups or forums online and you will se an abundance of horror stories about bad recruiters and agencies (e.g. Aya).
It is always a good idea to compare agencies and recruiters, so go ahead and research agencies and recruiters yourself!
Obviously, I am partial to the ones I recommend in the RECOMMENDED RECRUITER LIST (as I vetted them for any Canadian nurses who need good recruiters already). So, if you are willing to take my word for it, you could save some time and energy and just go straight to them in that link there.
REMEMBER...
... To make notes and jot down all of the important information down so you can keep all the information straight about each agency and what they offer.
the INTERVIEW
I have been in contact now with dozens and dozens of recruiters and agencies at this point and have asked them a series of questions from this two-page document. As long as their answers were good, I kept the interview going. If I noticed they were not answering them how I wanted them to, I would softly try and end the call without making any promises or agreeing to start a profile under them (as my recruiter with that agency).
QUESTION ONE: CAN THEY WORK WITH CANUCKS?
Have you ever worked with Canadians?
Are you currently working with any Canadian nurses?
Which states have you placed them? (See if your state is one of them)
Does your agency draft and issue an employment letter for Canadian nurses to take to the border when applying for a TN visa?
(If the answer is ‘no’ to any of the above, I would end the interview).
For further probing:
Do you help and understand the process for Canadian nurses trying to cross the border for work? How confident are you are working with Canadian nurses and handling all of the technical steps?
QUESTION TWO: PAY
Can you break down the pay?
1) Hourly rate, callback (if applicable), and overtime/holiday rate
For example, if you are working 3x12s for 36 hours per week, what will you make if you picked up a shift between hours 36-40 and 40+? And, be careful, if you sign up for a 4x12s, since you are agreeing to it in advance, you may not be getting any overtime for those hours 40-48! This is why it is important to ask!
2) Weekly stipend amount
ie. do they max out the stipend to the maximum the GSA will allow? *For more info about the GSA and how to find out the max, click HERE. However, some agencies do not max the stipend if it will bring the hourly rate too low. They do this because the IRS expect you to be getting paid the same hourly rate as any average nurse in that state. Some agencies were maxing out the stipends and had hourly rates as low as $20/hour or even less. I must say, there are many more fun ways to trigger an audit...!
3) Bonuses
This can be good or bad. My understanding is that there are numerous agencies out there that are all trying to lure in nurses and look more appealing than the other guys, so they will often ‘skim’ a bit off your pay and then present it to you later as some sort of bonus. Typically that so-called bonus was probably supposed to already be in your pay package anyways. They are just taking some of it, wrapping it up in a nice little bow, and presenting it to you as a holiday bonus or lavish gifts.
All agencies are trying to out-do each other, but the truth is the hospital sets the bill rate and it is very similar across agencies. Sometimes, hospitals may have preferred vendors though and you could try and do some digging to find out which one it is. Honestly, I’d rather an agency just try and max my stipend (since it is tax-free), and try and max out my pay and overtime. I was with RNNetwork and they were really good at doing this. I don’t really care for bonuses that are only awarded after a certain about of hours (e.g. 600) are reached, because they are often designed that way so you have to take a second contract with them for that bonus... Which again, probably should have been included in your pay from the get-go.
4) What is the highest looking pay like in (insert your state) for (insert your specialty) that you can see off the top of your head right now?
*You may want to exclude strike or crisis contracts if you are a newer travel nurse.
*Once presented with their top offer, ask them to explain the above 4 things to help break down what the pay package looks like to you.
ADDITIONAL SUPER IMPORTANT QUESTIONS:
1) Will my hours be guaranteed? If not, I want it added to all of my contracts!
This is SUPER important. If you do not have guaranteed hours, hospitals tend to cancel the more expensive travel nurses before their own staff nurses when it comes to things like low census or if they hired too many travel nurses. With guaranteed hours in your contract (e.g. 36 hours per week), they can cancel you and you need to remain available for them to rebook a shift somewhere in that week since it is part of your contract. This is where it is super important to ensure this is in your contract and you are content with the terms.
2) What if I am missing hours on my pay stub?
3) What if the hospital cancels a shift?
Guaranteed hours means you get paid (but may need to work another day that week). However, some agencies do not pay the stipend if a shift is cancelled. This super illegal (ie. stipends CANNOT be tied to hourly pay/hours since you technically have to be duplicating expenses every single day of your travel nurse contract). But... Do yourself a favour and set yourself up so you don’t ever need to deal with this by having guaranteed hours in the first place (with no cancellations allowed). Sometimes hospitals will add a clause that they can cancel you for a shift once every 2 weeks or something. Bear in mind, if you agree to this and the hospital cancels a shift, you will find out if your agency will pay out your stipend regardless of if you worked that day. Some do not. Is it illegal? Absolutely. But is it worth it to sue? Probably not. It is much better to avoid any such issue by having a solid contract in the first place and let your recruiter know before even submitting to hospitals that you want that in every contract of yours or you can allow them to cancel you once every few weeks if you are comfortable losing the hourly pay and possibly stipend money.
QUESTION THREE: BENEFITS
1) What benefits are offered?
- Health insurance? What is the cost per week/paystub?
Often times, you might find the health insurance is cheaper buying it from Canada as travel medical insurance through some companies like CAA, Manulife, Allianz, etc. I suggest getting quotes tailored to your situation and then comparing the plans. There will be more on liability insurance providers in a future article. I found most agencies charged about $100-300/week USD for their plans. With CAA for 13 weeks it was about $400 total for me.
- 401k?
Note, for some states that do not charge state income tax (e.g. Alaska, Texas, Washington, etc.), a 401k is an EXCELLENT way to put money away, have your employer match it to a certain amount, AND lower your income reporting to Canada. Highly recommend as long as you will not need the money until you are almost sixty years old...
- Sick pay? And is there a fee/penalty for calling in sick for a shift?
Another consideration when discussing pay is that travel nurses generally do not receive paid vacation or paid sick leave. Travel nurses are considered ‘at-will’ employees and are contractors sent by the agencies (who are your true employers). Thus, when you need personal time off, it will be typically without pay. This is a significant benefit difference and downside of travel nursing compared to being a typical staff nurse. Some states have mandated sick pay which helps; however, some agencies also have a fee/penalty in the contract for any missed shift (this corresponds nearly identically to the amount your stipend would have been -- They do this to avoid having to pay the stipend and it is a legal loophole).
- Is there agency liability coverage?
Some nurses opt to still get additional/their own coverage even if the agency does have coverage for just the added peace of mind. There will be more on liability insurance providers in a future article.
2) What costs for onboarding will be reimbursed?
- Will you reimburse for the VisaScreen/Visa4Nurses?
- Will you reimburse for my state license fee and the costs to acquire it?
- Will you cover renewal or future costs incurred when getting any additional state licenses?
- Will I be paid my hourly rate for my computer training modules for the hospital?
Some agencies pay a much lower rate, sometimes just about minimum wage. IMPORTANT: Any promises for reimbursements, get in writing/an email.
3) Are there any continuing education funds or student debt benefits?
QUESTION FOUR: HOUSING & PARKING:
1) What options do you offer for housing? Does the agency offer furnished housing, stipend, or a choice between the two? Will you provide pet-friendly housing (if applicable)?
- Travel nurses enter a new city and have a move-in ready apartment or extended stay hotel waiting for them, or they can opt to receive a housing stipend that will be tax-free provided all IRS conditions are met (see stipend article HERE for more info.
- Some travel nurse companies have a department dedicating to hosing. If your travel nurse company offers housing stipends, you can still get your own housing with a number of options such as Furnished Finger, Airbnb, extended stay hotels, VRBO, Facebook housing pages, etc. but be sure to crunch the numbers and look up the area you are thinking about submitting to. It might be cheaper to accept the agency’s housing if it is a very expensive city. Just bear in mind, if you take the stipend and really hunt for a cheap place (sans the bed buggies), you can pocket the leftover cash all tax-free!
- If you go with the agency provided housing (if they offer any), how early can you move in?
- How long do I have to move out at the end of my contract?
2) Do you pay for parking? Will you reimburse for parking or can I have it included with my contract?
This is especially important in large densely populated cities if you opt to drive and park.
QUESTION FIVE: CONTRACTS
1) Does your agency have contracts in all states, a few states, or in a particular area of the country?
Obviously, there is a supply and demand factor, but generally, travel nurse agencies will post on their website a listing of current openings and the travel nurse will be able to consider the options and tell the recruiter which locations they are willing to go to. A good recruiter will try to find a nurse assignment in a desirable location with the best pay they can find.
2) Do they have ‘exclusive’ contracts? If so, where?
3) Do you have extensions?
4) Are there penalties for early termination of a contract? What are they? What if it is due to a compassionate reason (e.g. death of a family member)?
5) What are the shifts and hours like?
Say if you want 3x12s, 5x8s, etc. and morning, mid, evening, night shift. Also, some nurses prefer block scheduling, especially if they want to travel, see sights, or visit home every once in a while. Some prefer self-scheduling and ask if that is an option. And some nurses will negotiate for every other weekend (in case the hospital was going to put them on every single weekend and they didn’t want that).
QUESTION SIX: OTHER
1) Will they MATCH other agency offers?
Most agencies may say no. However, no is not the end of the conversation... It is where it is just getting started! This is how negotiating with your recruiter happens. If you do your research, find out someone else on your contract is getting paid much more and started the same time in the same unit... You can 100% go to your recruiter and say, “Wtf?” and I would ask that other nurse which agency she is with and if she would mind if I got a copy of her contract to show my recruiter. And for me, there would always be the looming threat that if you don’t match the pay the others are getting, I will cancel and head home. With negotiating, you tend to need to be coming from a position of power. So, that is always the risk, you can always ask, explain how getting the contract/staying on contract is beneficial for both of you (you and your recruiter) since neither of you gets paid if you lose the contract or end the one you are on... Show off your research, remain civil... Then wait and see if they happen to ‘find’ some money somewhere in the bill rate and then just be EVER so gracious. ;)
2) How many references do I need?
3) What is the structure of the company? Does the recruiter do everything for you (e.g. housing, credentialing, time sheets, contracts, etc.) or are there separate people for these different tasks?
*Note, I got SO angry with the credentialing department (it doesn’t matter which agency as most are just awful with Canadian stuff), so I told my recruiter I wasn’t dealing with them anymore. I think the credentialing person was asking for a document I had already sent her like 6 times including recently.
4) Do they offer merchandise? Either for sale on their website or as gifts along the way?
5) How often does the recruiter ‘check-in’ with nurses during their contracts?
6) Do you guys have a nurse advocate or nurse liaison that is going to advocate for me (vs. the hospital) if any practice issues come into play?
7) How will I get support as a travel nurse? If there is an emergency? Do you guys have an emergency hotline or after hours number?
What if I work a night shift, and it’s 2 am and something crazy happens?
This list may not be an exhaustive list of all the questions possible, but it is just something to get you started. Feel free to add anything to your list of questions and re-visit it occasionally and edit it if you think you might have new questions or new dealbreakers to add.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
Many agencies might be vague or confusing about pay. I found with RNNetwork, it was a lot more straightforward and my recruiter was willing to break it down for me. It isn’t a bad idea to ask for your potential recruiter to email you a detailed pay breakdown. The lesson is this: Make sure you understand your pay package.
The next lesson is this: Know your dealbreakers and don’t settle for anything less. For me, my bottom line is all about pay. If I am leaving my home and country, I wouldn’t do so for less than a certain amount of money. Anything above that amount is just gravy! This is likely a dealbreaker for many people and might be what drives many nurses back into a staff position.
Figure out what your minimum pay is that you would want, not just the lowest you’d accept, but what is the rate you think is fair given the jobs out there.
This is all about knowing your worth. Hospitals are desperate, agencies are recruiting as much as possible, but us as nurses have an insane amount of options. We could practically live anywhere in the world because EVERYWHERE is desperate for us. So, don’t settle for less than your worth. Don’t compromise with an agency or hospital when THEY need YOU, not the other way around.
FOR ME PERSONALLY...
Back in 2022 when I was starting out, I wouldn’t take less than $4000/week USD as an OR nurse. Since then, when I look and compare, I probably wouldn’t take less than $3300 (places with decent housing prices like Albany, NY) and $3800 (places with bad housing prices like NYC or Boston).
If I was given lower offers over the phone, I’d politely wrap up the call and my questions. Likewise, if they don’t have experience with Canadian nurses (currently), I am not okay with being their guinea pig.
So, I would ask about pay rates (assume everything is included and the amount said is gross pay) and if they have ever worked with a Canadian nurse. If the pay is less and they aren’t currently working Canadian nurses, I would always say to transfer me to someone who has the experience or I would go with another agency, full stop.
ABOUT VACATION/REQUESTING TIME OFF
Another dealbreaker for some nurses is vacation time.
As a travel nurse, there is no reason you need to work holidays if you don’t want to. Some hospitals are good about this and others aren’t.
Again, know your worth.
Some nurses are told by their hospital that they must work either Christmas or New Years, etc. but the reality is, you have a plethora of jobs to choose from and YOU should be dictating your demands when it comes to your schedule and time.
At my last contract, whatever time off you want as a travel nurse, the manager will accept and if anyone asks why the travel nurses get Christmas or New Years off, etc. her response is, “It was part of their contract.” And that is exactly how it should be. We are no staff nurses, so union rules back in our Canadian provinces like having to work alternate holidays, or seniority, etc. don’t apply to us! In the United States, we are contract workers to the hospital. This is why you must go over your contract with a fine-toothed comb to ensure the terms are all favourable.
Do be up front about any time off you want and ensure the dates ARE IN YOUR CONTRACT. If it isn’t there, it doesn’t have to be honoured!
CANADIAN CONSIDERATION
Okay, now this is important to know. Many travel nurses (such as myself) recommend Canadian-to-U.S. travel nurses should join multiple agencies and have them submit you to jobs.
*Note, you want to ensure you never submit to the SAME facility job posting twice. The managers tend to throw out any duplicate applicants rather than figure out which agency to contact to represent them.
In theory, it is a good idea. I would sign up with my top recruiters in the RECOMMENDED RECRUITER LIST and then I would just take care they are reminded NEVER to submit me to anywhere without asking me first and I would keep track that I am not submitting to the same job with more than one agency. I’d just say, only sign up with the number of agencies you feel you could reasonably keep track of.
So, here is the small snag we face as Canadians. The issue is our i-94/TN visa.
If a Canadian is hired by multiple agencies, we must have ALL of our employers listed on our i-94 as active. This is why I ask in my interview, if an agency will match other agency offers if I find one offering more. If I have to keep changing agencies, I will have to go to the border and get an agency added every single time I take a new contract with a new agency.
Then, I will need an new i-94 issued, When I interviewed dozens of agencies, the big question they all said ‘no’ to was, “Will you try and match offers from other agencies if I see them?” When I asked my recruiter with RNNetwork, they were the FIRST agency to explain it honestly, and say they would try and match if I find anything else. At the very least, they would look into it and try to see how another agency can offer more in the first place (when rates are typically set by the hospitals -- with the exception of exclusive contracts). However, my recruiter still said they would try and offer the exclusive rate and the agency would absorb the cost from their share of the bill rate.
In the end, I am pretty sure I got the highest paying assignment at a great facility in all of Massachusetts at that time. I got $85/hr, $150/hr for OT/holiday/callback pay, and regular on-call was $16/hr, Ultimately, with maxed stipends in there, I would make about $6,052 per week in Canadian dollars.
Interview Results
Atlas?
I didn’t get far in the interview because the pay was appallingly low. I was quoted way below what was out there with several other agencies. Additionally, the recruiter did not have experience working with Canadians. They also refused to match. D Rating.
Triage?
They contacted me an obscene amount. I would never give them a call or your contact information. You’ve been warned!
AMN?
I can’t say I have used them personally. But I would just advise a lot of caution. They have probably the second worst reputation (second to Aya).
Aya
Aya?
I would give them an F rating. There are way too many things wrong with them to list but I will try... I also suggest heading to the Gypsy Travel Nurse Facebook group, joining, and typing in ‘Aya’ in the search function. It is just negative review one after another...
Aya has the absolute worst reputation of any agency. Now, some would say they are the biggest, but even the second biggest (Medical Solutions) has a far superior reputation. Aya had a class action for bait n switch practices. This means they got nurses on assignments for high pay that didn’t really exist in the first place. Once the nurse got to their assignment, the recruiter would call and say something happened and the pay was lowered by several hundred. The money never changed, they lied in the first place about the pay to get the nurse there.
Next, they told me my Massachusetts license was not able to be used. I panicked thinking I got a license I couldn’t use. Well, no. Aya just doesn’t put first time Canadians in MA. RNNetwork had me there about 3 weeks later making over 4k USD/week.
I really strongly caution any Canadian nurses to AVOID Aya. Even if you find a good recruiter, it is a systemic problem with the organization and how they operate.
Oh, I nearly forgot, one recruiter was committing identity theft and so were the Canadian nurses he worked with but they probably had no idea what they were doing was considered a felony... Yeah, definitely an F rating from me.
Are there breaks?
Fastaff?
They sometimes have crazy high rates, but other times the high paying jobs are taken or not actually there. They also do crisis contracts. The amount you see is gross, they do not provide benefits or anything on top of gross pay. The weird part was they do not give the stipends tax-free. They tax everything. That kind of makes the higher pay pale in comparison since you will pay much higher taxes as a result. You should be able to show you met the requirements of duplicating come tax time, but I’m not sure if you will get your money back. They also will not match. They reimburse a lot of licensing fees. I’ve got to give them a C. The above is kind of mixed, but I find in recent years they have really fallen into obscurity. Whether I am judging them harshly for their poor marketing, I am not sure. But they just don’t seem like one of the major players so that makes me wonder how many contracts they can get. I plan on revisiting this soon. And if you need a good recruiter who knows Canadians with Fastaff, feel free to contact me and I can connect you.
How many questions are on the NCLEX?
Aya
Nomad/Trusted?
For first time Canadian nurses, it is an awful idea to go with these two because they are essentially recruiter-less agencies.
You are basically on your own to navigate everything and I’m not sure how efficient or responsive they are when there are issues.
To be honest, even as a more experienced travel nurse and somewhat of an expert, I still would never use them. Not even if they were thousands of dollars more than every other agency. It’s just too much of a gamble and too much responsibility to ensure things go well.
For a list of recommended recruiters...
For the agency info and the contact info of the agencies that are at least above a ‘C’ grade, head over to the RECOMMENDED RECRUITER LIST. I explain in more detail about them and am always updating the list.
Some of the agencies I recommend include: RNNetwork, Host, TNAA, Medical Solutions, AHS, GetMed, etc,
I am always looking for new agencies and recruiters. So, if you are a nurse who has had a stellar experience with a recruiter and agency that isn’t in the RECOMMENDED RECRUITER LIST yet and you’d like to see your recruiter added to the list, please let me know by sending me a message and including their contact information!
ONBOARDING WITH AGENCIES
Just to wrap up and tie everything together...
...at about 2-4 weeks prior to getting all your documents (ie. the VisaScreen or Visa4Nurses and your state license), when you have your agencies picked out. That is when you will need to onboard with the agency or agencies you have selected.
MOST travel nurse agencies won’t be able to start submitting you or doing anything until they have these documents!
This looks similar to applying for any staff job.
You will need to fill out a profile (typically an online one) and I suggest anywhere it asks for a SSN, put all zeros and talk to your recruiter about it.
You’ll also need typically 2-3 supervisory, charge, or manager references. Also, sometimes there are expirations on these, so it might need to be within the last 1-3 years.
You’ll also need a cover letter and resume. Do ensure all your certifications are included in your resume.
*If you want help with your CV/resume, I have a background in HR and have been writing them for others for years on the side. This would have a fee since it is a bit time-consuming. Contact me for more info if you’d like!
And there is a skills checklist, sometimes a few.
It will usually take a few days for your references to be contacted. Then once your recruiter has cleared you, they should let you know and hire you and then they can start submitting you to assignments.
Then we start submitting and prepare for the interview! More on this in another article to come!
FINAL NOTE
Although, we have covered it quite ab it already, it is worth mentioning now that Canadian nurses NEED agencies and recruiters who routinely work with Canadian nurses. Not just one time, not just a couple times a year in small doses, but who have several Canadian nurses on tap at any given moment!
I know I have sent a lot of nurses to Dillon and now Toni with RNNetwork so they have adapted to become a more efficient and Canadian-friendly agency. One way is that there are now a couple of ‘experts’ in the credentialing department who all the Canadian nurses go to. It makes sense to put Canadians with those who understand and are experts with all this paperwork and documentation instead of just sending us to a credentialing specialist at random.
TNAA is another example. They have a ‘Canadian division’ so an entire team from recruiters, credentialists, etc. who are all part of this team that Canadians automatically get put with. In the list, I recommend Nick.
Another popular choice is Host and I recommend Alison with Host. As an agency, they are just killing it in terms of marketing to everyone, not just Canadians. They were recently acquired by Medical Solutions which is another good one I have on the list too.
