Maybe you’ve got a bit of wanderlust and being stuck in one location just isn’t enough for you.
Or you may love the flexibility of becoming a travel nurse, but you’re not sure what it takes to get there.
At Trusted Nurse Staffing we specialize in taking our nurses on the travel nursing journey of a lifetime and can tell you exactly what you need to know to have a successful career on the road.
Keep reading to discover the requirements for travel nursing, including any special credentials you may need.
Table of Contents
- What Are The Requirements To Be a Travel Nurse?
- Education Requirements for Travel Nursing
- Licensing Requirements for Travel Nursing
- Nursing Experience Requirements for Travel Nursing
- 3 Additional Requirements for Travel Nursing
- Travel Nursing Requirements by Specialty
- What Does It Take To Become a Travel Nurse With Trusted Nurse Staffing?
What Are The Requirements To Be a Travel Nurse?
Education Requirements for Travel Nursing
First, the brass tacks.
A registered nurse (RN) is the most common type of traveling nurse. The minimum requirement is an Associate’s Degree in Nursing (ADN) but many hospitals and facilities require a Bachelor’s degree in Science and Nursing (BSN).
After graduating from a nursing program and passing the National Council Licensure Exam (NCLEX), you may also be interested in specialty credentials.
Beyond the basics, many facilities look for specialties in high demand such as:
- Emergency room
- ICU
- Labor and delivery
- Neonatal nursing
- Oncology
- Telemetry
Additionally, there are more specific situational specialties available to travel nurses, including:
- International travel nurse: These nurses work all over the world. Typically, a staffing agency will send you to a country where you have a working understanding of the language.
- Rapid response travel nurse: After a disaster or in response to a pandemic, there is an immediate demand for healthcare workers. These nurses have very little time to prepare for their assignments and go where they are needed most.
- Electronic medical records conversion (EMR): New EMRs are a learning curve in any new facility. Some nurses specialize in training a team in new software and help manage patient care during the transition.
- Strike travel nurse: Strikes happen. Filling that staffing void means you might find yourself in an understaffed, unfamiliar environment. This situation is for the most flexible and adaptable of nurses.
Licensing Requirements for Travel Nursing
No matter where you go in the United States, you will need to be licensed in the state you’ll be working in. Meeting these travel nurse license requirements could come in two formats:
- A state license: If you want to be a travel nurse within the state where you reside, this is an easy transition. You can obtain a license from the state where you wish to work.
- Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC): A compact license, or NLC, allows you to upgrade your single-state license to a multi-state license. As of 2024 41 out of 50 states participate in the NLC.
If you’re unsure if your credentials apply, be sure to speak to your recruiter about your goals and desired locations.
Trusted Nurse Staffing walks with you on every step of your travel nursing journey. Use the Pronto job search to find available travel nurse assignments today!
Recommended Credentials
Two of the most basic recommended certifications are:
- Basic Life Support (BLS)
- Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS)
Then, if you decide to specialize in a specific unit, you’ll need credentials for that specialty. For example, if you intend to specialize in labor and delivery or postnatal care, you’ll need to complete a Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP).
Or maybe you intend to specialize in direct care to acute or critically ill patients. If so, you’ll need a Critical Care Registered Nurse certification (CCRN). Depending on the demographic you choose to serve, there also may be sub-certifications under this title that you will need.
Maintaining Your Licenses
If you’ve been around nursing for very long, you understand the importance of maintaining your licenses. You don’t want a license to expire while you’re working in another state and have no way to renew it.
If you have a compact license, and if you renew in your home state, your license for the new location is automatically updated.
However, if you do not have a compact license, and have to obtain an additional state license, you will need to renew each of them separately.
Every state has different requirements, so it’s important to fulfill the requirements needed for the state in which you wish to work.
Nursing Experience Requirements for Travel Nursing
As a travel nurse, you’ll be using many different electronic medical record systems. Even though you’ll be walking into brand-new situations, you will be expected to hit the ground running.
Most agencies require one to two years of experience, however, agencies may be flexible depending on their needs. For example, some travel nurses have been accepted with only one year of experience if they have clinical experience in rotations in college.
There are some extenuating circumstances where experience may not be considered a requirement. For example, during COVID-19 some hospitals took on new graduates to fuel the desperate need for healthcare workers.
3 Additional Requirements for Travel Nursing
#1: Aptitude and Adaptability
Onboarding happens quickly. At a new facility, the window between arrival and hitting the floor typically happens within one to two days.
After one to two weeks, you’re expected to be situated within your new environment. To be a successful travel nurse you’ll need to possess the aptitude to learn quickly. You must act like a sponge, with the understanding that the nursing profession is constantly changing.
#2: Flexibility
Being flexible is a necessity as a travel nurse. Most of the time, when you get a new assignment you have very little time to acclimatize to a new environment.
To be successful you must be able to handle stress well since inflexibility is a sure-fire way to burn out.
Flexibility in travel nursing allows you to have more control over your career and you can choose assignments based on your career goals and needs.
#3: Dedication
Being a nurse anywhere requires dedication. You put your patients first and are committed to providing the best care no matter where you go or who you serve.
Being a travel nurse means you can show that dedication in a variety of settings. You become devoted to seeing different viewpoints and perspectives for the benefit of your patients.
Travel Nursing Requirements by Specialty
ICU
For the most part, the requirements for travel nursing in an ICU are the same as a stationary ICU nurse.
The basic requirements to become an ICU nurse include:
- Become a Registered Nurse by obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree (BSN) or an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN).
- Pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX).
- Obtain licensure as a registered nurse in your state.
- Gain nursing experience.
Typically, ICU travel nurses are required to have spent a minimum of one year in an ICU, and depending on your assignment, there might be some additional certifications that you are required to have, like:
- Critical Care Nurse Certification (CCRN) adult, pediatric, or neonatal
- Cardiac Medicine Certification CMC (adult)
While not required for every ICU job, these certifications set nurses apart from the pack.
Emergency Room
If you want to become qualified as an ER travel nurse you must:
- Become a Registered Nurse by obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree (BSN) or an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN).
- Pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX).
- Obtain licensure as a registered nurse in your state.
- Gain nursing experience.
You may also consider becoming a Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN) to further enhance your credentials.
Labor & Delivery
If you are hoping to become a labor and delivery travel nurse, you will need to follow a specific path, including:
- Become a Registered Nurse by obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree (BSN) or an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN).
- Pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX).
- Obtain licensure as a registered nurse in your state.
- Gain nursing experience. While the requirement for a labor and delivery travel nurse job is generally one year of experience in a labor and delivery unit, some facilities may require up to three years of experience.
Depending on the state you choose, additional requirements may be required for some L&D travel nurse jobs, including:
- Basic Life Support (BLS)
- Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS)
- Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM)
- Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP)
- Electronic Fetal Heart Monitoring (C-EFM)
Neonatal
If your heart is set on becoming a neonatal travel nurse you’ll need to:
- Become a Registered Nurse by obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree (BSN) or an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN).
- Pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX).
- Obtain licensure as a registered nurse in your state.
- Gain at least one year of experience in an acute care facility or the NICU.
You may also want to consider obtaining a Critical Care Registered Nurse (Neonatal) or CCRN (Neonatal) certification to enhance your qualifications and demonstrate your commitment to your specialty.
Telemetry
If you’d like to pursue a career in telemetry nursing you will need to:
- Become a Registered Nurse by obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree (BSN) or an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN).
- Pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX).
- Obtain licensure as a registered nurse in your state.
- Gain one to 2 years of nursing experience in telemetry.
The following advanced certifications may also be required to work as a Telemetry travel nurse:
Oncology
In order to become an oncology travel nurse, you must meet the following basic requirements:
- Become a Registered Nurse by obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree (BSN) or an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN).
- Pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX).
- Obtain licensure as a registered nurse in your state.
- Become certified in Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS).
- Have a minimum of one year of experience working with cancer patients in an oncology setting.
Registered nurses interested in distinguishing themselves from other nurses may choose to obtain one or more oncology-specific certifications, including:
- Oncology Certified Nurse (OCN)
- Certified Pediatric Hematology-Oncology Nurse (CPHON)
- Certified Breast Care Nurse (CBCN)
- Blood and Marrow Transplant Certified Nurse (BMTCN)
- Advanced Oncology Certified Nurse Practitioner (AOCNP)
- Advanced Oncology Certified Clinical Nurse Specialist (AOCNS)
- Certified Pediatric Oncology Nurse (CPON)
- Advanced Oncology Certified Nurse (AOCN)
What Does It Take To Become a Travel Nurse With Trusted Nurse Staffing?
If you’re a licensed RN with one to two years of experience who wants to continue your education (we’ll even help pay for it) and loves flexibility you’ve got what it takes.
At Trusted Nurse Staffing, our goal is to make you successful. We support you by:
- Analyzing your education, experience, and work history
- Aligning your goals, interests, and availability with current opportunities
- Creating a list of possible assignments
- Arranging a phone interview with facility hiring managers
- Consulting with you on job offers
- Handling pre-hire paperwork and making housing arrangements
- Remaining in touch 24/7 throughout your assignment
- Negotiating and extending your current assignment or helping you plan your next one
Thanks to the CARES Act, Trusted Nurse Staffing is thrilled to offer a helping hand with your student loan repayments.
We support active nurses who have been with us for 30 days with tax-free student loan reimbursements of up to $5,250 every year.
We’re all about easing the load of student loans and giving you a bit more breathing room.
Find your dream travel nurse assignment on Pronto today!