So...I don't even know where to start...I guess I'll begin with my dilemma. I don't know what I'm going to do. I realize that this is the case with most post-college graduates, but I'm already terrible at making decisions (ask my family on this one...), so this is extra hard for me! I mean, this is quite possibly the biggest decision I will be making for a long time. It can affect the rest of my life. Seriously. So...I think I'll just start out with some pro/cons for current location options:
St. Louis, Missouri
PROS
-Home near family
-Lots of friends in STL
-Could live at home for a while so I could be financially stable
-I would be able to do the DNP program at Mizzou
-Already talked with a couple of friends about living together
-It's a comfortable environment
-Obtaining a nursing license would be so much easier in MO
CONS
-I'm too comfortable with it
-I want an adveture and going home wouldn't be too much of one
-The safest place to live is the suburbs and I want to live near people my age
-I would move home, whereas I'd love to be independent right off the bat
-A lot of hospitals are either on hiring freezes or aren't accepting applications until April/May (I would like to have a job by then!)
-Am I settling? Would I ever move away if I did just go to STL?
-Starting pay is less than Dallas
-I'd have to drive to and from work everyday--no public transportation
Dallas, Texas
PROS
-ADVENTURE!!!
-New city, new me
-I've already found a great area to live in: The Village. It's 14 apartment complexes in one big complex! It's huge and totally accessible to all major areas in Dallas
-I would live in hip downtown, which is actually safe
-I have a few friends there that would be willing to help me move/get my feet on the ground/search for jobs
-Lots of opportunities for internships (what nurses usually start with)
-Great starting pay for RNs
-There are graduate programs for nurses at Baylor Nursing School and University of TX-Arlington
-Trains run from the apartments to hospitals, so I wouldn't have to drive to work
-Cost of living is equivalent to STL (depending on where you live)
-Warm weather!! (Mostly year-round)
-Our good family friends live there, so I'd have a second set of parents right there
-Most hospitals will pay for me to move down there
CONS
-The DNP at Mizzou is so readily available, but I wouldn't be able to do it if I were in Dallas
-Would miss family and friends
-9 hour drive to and from STL
-Already turned down from internships because I'm not from Texas...it's almost a disadvantage that I'm not from Dallas
-I probably wouldn't have a roommate
-Might have problems making friends (maybe, maybe not)
-I would have to move everything down there
-Wouldn't be able to be close to family during holidays if I have to work
-I don't speak Spanish, which is a huge percentage of the population...I'd have to learn some.
-I'd have to figure out where and how to obtain a Texas nursing license
Houston, Texas
So...now one of my friends really wants me to think seriously about Houston. I don't know much, but here's what I know:
PROS
-I would already have a roommate and an apartment...I wouldn't have to deal with any of that
-I have family in Houston
-There are tons of opportunities and great hospitals
CONS
-Same as Dallas pretty much
-It's extremely hot there!! And humid.
So...what do I do? What do you all think I should do? There are great reasons to stay in St. Louis, but there are a lot of reasons to move to Dallas. I guess my best option at this time is to apply to jobs in all three cities and see what the Lord gives me. It's the best I can do at this time.
If you all have any suggestions (or connections *hint hint*), I would gladly take them!
Au Revoir for now,
xoxo Betsey
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2 comments:
I think you know the answer here. You used three exclamation points at the end of the first pro for Dallas. I think you know where you're moving to.
Yeah, the hiring freezes in STL would scare the bajeezes out of me.
I am not a huge fan of change; I never have been. But when Eric's job brought us out to KC, I had to deal with the whole "not knowing anyone" and forcing myself to get used to it. And I came out OK. I am more open to change now, and more open to another move to a city of unknowns.
So as excited as you seem about Dallas, that seems like a fit for you. I mean, you've already found where you'd live, for cryin' out loud!
I say go for the big Dallas Adventure!
And P.S....I have a co-worker from here in KC who moved to Texas about a year ago; I could hook you up with the how to obtain a nursing liscense! :)
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