Where Will I Work in My First Job as an International Nurse in the USA?
By Conexus MedStaff - Posted Aug 3, 2022
It takes courage to pursue your dream of working as a U.S. nurse, especially when you’re not sure where you’ll work within the United States. One of the top questions from international nurses and nursing students on the F1 visa is, “Where will I work?”
We collaborate with hospitals across the United States to provide opportunities for international nurses moving to the U.S. and nursing graduates on the F1 visa looking for OPT and Green Card sponsorship. Once you start working with Conexus, we do everything we can to make sure you’re placed at a location that is a good fit for both you and the hospital. To do this, we follow a placement process that takes your geographical preferences, career goals, acuity level, and other factors into consideration.
Here’s a closer look at our placement process.
- Presentation to Operations and Review of Candidate Profile: The first step of the process is presentation to operations. Once you’ve completed all aspects of credentialing – including your updated resume, skills, experience, other aspects of work, and references – we compile that into a profile that we’ll use to present you to facilities.
- Placement Call with Engagement Team Member: After we have your profile ready, you’ll have a scheduled call with a member of our Engagement Team. This is a life-changing call, so we put a lot of emphasis on this part of the process to ensure we understand your desires and get as close to finding a good match as possible. Engagement managers are strategically placed across the U.S. to provide hands-on engagement to all of our healthcare professionals once they’re on assignment. Our goal is that the person you’re with on this call would be your Engagement Manager for the whole term of your contract, so that you can begin building that relationship early on. During the call, we’ll discuss the following:
- Geographical preferences. This could be where you have friends or family residing, a state you visited while you were in nursing school that you loved, or maybe it’s where you currently live. We will try to find a facility as close to your geographical preferences as possible.
- Residency programs. Many new nursing school graduates find residency programs highly desirable. We’ll talk about whether this is a priority for you.
- Acuity levels and opportunities for growth. We’ll discuss your top priorities and goals for the time period you’re on Conexus contract and beyond that. We’re committed to your success as a U.S. nurse, and, in addition to our Conexus Academy offerings, we want to pair you with a facility that supports your growth.
- Personal development plan . It’s important to remember that while you’re on contract with Conexus, we are your employer. We are here to advocate for you, help you build relationships, and find growth and continued education opportunities. So as part of this call, we start the first step of your personal development plan.
- Identify Three Matches: After our placement call, we’re typically able to identify three possible matches for you. We’ll send you those matches, including a full name of the facility, the city and state of that facility, and information about multiple locations when applicable. Once you do research, consider what’s available to you and take all of your priorities into consideration, you’ll identify your top choice. You might feel like there are other opportunities you want to talk about, and in that case, we will continue working to customize your offerings to find you a perfect match.
- Submission of Profile to Your Preferred Match, Interview Preparation, and Interview: After you’ve given us your top choice for where you want your resume submitted, with your permission, we’ll submit your profile and resume to that facility. The facility will then have 48 hours to schedule an interview with you. As part of our continued support to you and as your employer, we will be a part of this interview. Additionally, we have a step to prepare you for your interview, if you choose. Ahead of your interview, we can prepare you for what the facility is going to be like, the format of the interview (video or phone), what kind of questions are typical for that facility, how many people will be in the interview, and more. After your interview, the facility has 48 hours to decide if you’re the right fit for their open position.
- Offer Letter from Conexus: After we’ve matched you with the best facility for you, you’ll get your official offer letter from Conexus sent electronically. You’ll have time to review that and sign it. Immediately after the signature is received, you’ll receive your own copy of the offer letter as a PDF.
- Conexus Team Helps with Moving Logistics: Once you have your official placement, the Conexus Deployment and Immigration teams will be notified. They’ll start working with you to plan your move and assist you with any questions you might have about relocation. This often includes:
- When you want to move
- How you want to move
- What type of housing you’re looking for
- Transportation needs
- Bank account setup
- Cell phone setup
- Conexus Representative Helps with Assimilation to New Home: When it’s time for you to move to your new home, a Conexus representative will introduce you to your new community and help you assimilate. After you’ve moved and gone through deployment week – a week of festivities with our relocation team – you’ll be working with your Engagement Manager.
Putting You First is Our Priority
This entire process is designed with you in mind. We always put our healthcare professionals first, and we want to make sure that your move to the U.S. is as seamless as possible. We are invested in your success, and we know that placing you in a community of other international healthcare professionals is important. Whether you’re a nursing graduate on the F1 visa looking for opportunities on OPT or an international nurse looking for your first nursing job in the USA, we are here to help you. Apply today to start your journey as a U.S. nurse.