{"id":5669,"date":"2022-10-26T18:03:36","date_gmt":"2022-10-26T18:03:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/?p=5669"},"modified":"2023-10-03T21:02:40","modified_gmt":"2023-10-03T21:02:40","slug":"dallas-nurses-career-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/travel-guides\/dallas-nurses-career-tips\/","title":{"rendered":"6 Career Tips for Dallas Nurses"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Whether you&#8217;re currently <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/explore\/dallas-tx\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">working in Dallas, Texas<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> or considering relocating to Big D to pursue a new nursing job, you may be pondering your job satisfaction and considering your path for career progression. The average nurse salary in Dallas is slightly higher than the state average, and nursing professionals have a wealth of opportunities in diverse fields and settings. Use the following career tips for Dallas nurses to help you find your ideal nursing role and develop skills within your profession.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>1. Join Professional Nursing Organizations<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although you may already be a member of national or international <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/career-resources\/nurse-organizations-boost-career\/\">nursing organizations<\/a>, such as the American Nurses Association, the International Council of Nurses and the National League for Nurses, joining state or local organizations is also highly recommended to learn about local nursing issues, access nearby training opportunities and network with nurses in your area. Local memberships also enable you to impact practice areas and policies in your city and get involved in regional advocacy and initiatives.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/travel-guides\/texas-location-guide\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Living in Texas<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, you\u2019ll find many nursing organizations specifically geared toward nurses in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Some organizations focus on particular practice areas, while others serve nurses from specific ethnic or cultural groups. Some popular local professional nursing organizations for Dallas-based nurses include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Texas Nurses Association (TNA):<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> TNA empowers nurses to develop their careers through the Peer Assistance Program, the Texas Nurses App, online learning and resources for diverse practice areas. It hosts live webinars with practicing nurses on various current topics, with breakout rooms available for further discussion. TNA members can take advantage of several benefits, and the organization awards outstanding nurses across the state.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Sigma Beta Beta Chapter:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> This\u00a0is the Dallas branch of the global Sigma organization. It aims to develop nurse leaders and improve healthcare throughout communities. Members can attend monthly meetings at the Texas Woman&#8217;s University Dallas Campus for networking, information and discussions, and the organization provides diverse member-only resources.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>The Dallas Fort Worth Affiliate of the Association for Nursing Professional Development:\u00a0<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This organization connects those in the nursing professional development field, provides learning opportunities for particular roles and offers support from local leaders in this specialty practice area.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Texas Nurse Practitioners (TNP):<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> TNP is a statewide membership organization that offers support, guidance and training for nurse practitioners across Texas. It seeks to empower nurse practitioners for success and advocates for legal and policy changes to positively affect nursing practices and enhance patient welfare. The group attends and facilitates diverse conferences and is a valuable resource for nurse practitioners throughout Texas.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>North Texas Nurse Practitioners:\u00a0<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This affiliate of TNP provides the same services with a local focus in the North Texas area.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Texas School Nurses Organization:\u00a0<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Texas School Nurses Organization is the only group specifically representing school nurses in the state. It provides advocacy, education, training and partnership to improve and protect the school nursing practice.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Texas Clinical Nurse Specialists:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> This membership organization provides support, education and assistance for clinical nurse specialists in Texas. It administers various courses and seminars for members held in person and online.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Dallas Ft. Worth Society of Pediatric Nurses:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The Dallas Ft. Worth SPN\u00a0supports pediatric nurses through learning opportunities, research and practice-focused news. It also provides in-person and virtual networking opportunities.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>American Nursing Informatics Association (ANIA):<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The Dallas-Fort Worth ANIA Chapter accepts members interested in informatics nursing. Organizational goals include providing research, education and practice in diverse settings and nursing roles to promote nursing informatics. AINA strives to combine nursing knowledge and technology to manage health information to improve wellness while decreasing healthcare costs. \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Metroplex Black Nurses Association \u2013 Dallas:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> This affiliate chapter of the National Black Nurses Association (NBNA) provides a channel for Black nurses in Dallas to network, discuss common issues, share ideas and obtain support. NBNA \u2013 Dallas member benefits include journal subscriptions, continuing education, leadership opportunities and conference participation.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>North Texas Korean Nurses Association:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Headquartered in Dallas, this nonprofit organization promotes opportunities for Korean nurses throughout North Texas while assisting patients from minority and uninsured groups with bilingual healthcare services.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Texas Nursing Students&#8217; Association:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> This organization\u00a0provides education and support for student nurses across Texas. The group helps new nurses develop personal, professional and leadership skills and has more than 3,000 members preparing to obtain their first RN license.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>2. Take Advantage of Dallas RN Networking Opportunities<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Networking is essential for anyone in nursing. Not only can you meet friends who understand your profession&#8217;s daily joys and challenges, but nurses can also be a terrific source of peer support for one another. Professional networks help you keep abreast of new developments and provide opportunities for learning new skills and knowledge, which help advance your career. Networks can also be a good source of referrals for job vacancies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many of the above-listed professional organizations provide networking opportunities for nurses in Dallas. For informal networking, search for local nurse meetups and groups. There are several Facebook groups for nurses in Dallas-Fort Worth including the following:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>The Dallas Nurse Group:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> This private Facebook group has more than 1,400 members. The social network group provides opportunities for members to discuss relevant issues and arrange meetups.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>DFW Nurses:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Local nurses discuss nursing issues and concerns, share ideas and frustrations, find information, meet other nurses and share industry humor in this advertisement-free public Facebook group.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Travel Nurses \u2013 Dallas\/Ft. Worth:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> This private Facebook group helps connect travel nurses throughout the Dallas and Fort Worth areas. With more than 4,400 members, it\u2019s a good group for travel nurses looking to make local friends with others in the nursing profession.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><b>3. Check Which RN Specialties Are Most in Demand in Dallas<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to Drexel University, Texas is among the top five states with a pressing need for nurses. Incidentally, the university also ranks Dallas as one of the top 10 metro areas for nursing jobs based on the number of nurses employed and the highest annual pay.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In a 2021 article, the Texas Tribune further emphasized the lack of nursing professionals when it interviewed several nursing professionals, including Donna Richardson, the chief nursing officer at Parkland Hospital in Dallas. According to the article, Richardson indicated that Dallas had a lot of competition for a limited number of nurses. She also expressed concern over staffing and the struggle to recruit ICU nurses.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In keeping with national norms, Dallas has an exceptionally high need for nurses in the general medical field. However, you\u2019ll find abundant nursing jobs in Dallas and throughout Texas in most specialties. Browse Vivian\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/explore\/dallas-tx\/#top-jobs\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dallas job listings<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to find RN openings for in-demand fields like cardiology, ICU, acute care, labor and delivery, NICU and more.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-5671 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/10\/Dallas-City-Plaza-Resized-scaled-e1666806839665.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"630\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><b>4. Consider Taking Dallas Travel Nursing Jobs to Gain Experience<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/travel-nursing\/what-is-a-travel-nurse\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Travel nursing<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> offers plenty of opportunities to explore a new destination before fully committing to a permanent role. You can learn what living in Dallas is like for a healthcare professional while earning lucrative pay in a temporary travel nursing assignment or <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/career-resources\/what-is-per-diem-nursing\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">per diem position<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Travel nursing helps you gain valuable experience and develop beneficial attributes, such as:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Developing skills in various practice areas<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Working in top-performing medical facilities<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Experiencing varied nursing settings<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Using different technologies\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Learning different procedures<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Increasing professional adaptability and flexibility\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Broadening cultural knowledge<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Enhancing communication and people skills<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Boosting professional confidence<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Building a vast professional network<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Such experience can enhance your resume, making you more attractive to potential recruiters and help you develop your nursing career. There are numerous Dallas travel nurse jobs for those specializing in medical-surgical, emergency department, labor and delivery, telemetry and operating room nursing.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>5. Research Dallas Salary Norms for Nursing Professionals<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Understanding average salaries is beneficial when comparing job opportunities. In mid-October 2022, Vivian listed an average <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/nursing\/dallas-tx\/salary\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">hourly salary of $36.89<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for Dallas RNs in permanent staff positions. While this was slightly less than the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/nursing\/salary\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">average of $37.24<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> RNs made per hour nationwide, it was 3% higher than the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/nursing\/texas\/salary\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Texas norm of $35.84<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The average travel nurse salary in Dallas ran <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/nursing\/travel\/dallas-tx\/salary\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$2,367 per week<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> during this same period. This average put Dallas\u2019 travel RN wages at $67 more than the per week <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/nursing\/travel\/texas\/salary\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">state average of $2,300<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Other types of nurses also fared well during this period. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/lpn-lvn\/dallas-tx\/salary\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Staff licensed practical nurses<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (LPNs) earned an average of $24.58 per hour, while <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/lpn-lvn\/travel\/dallas-tx\/salary\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">travel LPNs<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> were making around $1,348 per week in Dallas. The average pay for <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/cna\/dallas-tx\/salary\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">permanent certified nursing assistants<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (CNAs) was $14.24 per hour, and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/cna\/travel\/dallas-tx\/salary\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">travel CNAs<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> earned $693 per week on average. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/nurse-practitioner\/dallas-tx\/salary\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Staff nurse practitioners<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (NPs) and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/nurse-practitioner\/travel\/dallas-tx\/salary\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">travel NPs<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> earned an average of $55.38 per hour and $2,936 per week, respectively.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, remember that your actual nurse salary in Dallas varies according to your education, experience, specialty, professional certifications and workplace.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>6. Apply for Positions with Top Dallas Healthcare Employers<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Look for opportunities with one of Dallas&#8217; top healthcare employers for greater opportunities to progress and develop your career. From training, mentoring and employee support to professional certifications, seminars and promotion opportunities, many of the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/career-resources\/dallas-healthcare-employers\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">leading healthcare employers in Dallas<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> offer diverse ways to boost your career.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Per U.S. News &amp; World Report, the best hospitals in the Dallas-Fort Worth area include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/facilities\/university-of-texas-southwestern-medical-center-aka-ut-southwestern\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">UT Southwestern Medical Center<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: This Magnet-certified hospital is a leading research and academic hospital that\u2019s produced six Nobel Prize winners and is home to one of the country\u2019s top cancer treatment centers.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/career-resources\/baylor-university-medical-center\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Baylor University Medical Center<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: A large hospital with Magnet status, Baylor University Medical Center is a Level 1 trauma hospital where nurses can work alongside leading medical professionals and quickly develop decision-making skills.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/career-resources\/parkland-hospital-dallas\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Parkland Health-Dallas<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: As the main hospital within the Dallas County Hospital District, Parkland Health sees more than 1 million patients annually. It acts as Dallas County\u2019s public teaching hospital, and its Center for Nursing Excellence offers many opportunities for nursing career development.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas: This Magnet-certified hospital offers accredited graduate education and career development for nurses who wish to keep learning and moving forward in their professions.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Medical City Dallas: Known for its cutting-edge technology, Medical City Dallas gives nurses the opportunity to work with both adult and child patients in its Magnet-certified facility.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Methodist Dallas Medical Center: Nurses at Methodist Dallas Medical Center can develop their leadership, mentoring and teaching skills through its extern program and further their professional development in diverse nursing specialties.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If your specialty is pediatrics, the Children\u2019s Medical Center is also among the top healthcare employers in Dallas. However, there are many other <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/explore\/dallas-tx\/#facilities-map\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">medical facilities in Dallas<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> where you can apply for RN roles, as well as plentiful opportunities for permanent, travel and per diem jobs available through a range of staffing agencies.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Learn which Dallas nursing groups and networking opportunities can boost your career.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":5670,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[118],"tags":[30,344,319,290,294,295,360,361,331,303,75,87,90,309],"class_list":["post-5669","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel-guides","tag-cna","tag-dallas","tag-dallas-tx","tag-discipline","tag-employment","tag-location","tag-lpn","tag-lvn","tag-nurse-practitioner","tag-permanent","tag-rn","tag-texas","tag-travel","tag-tx"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2022\/10\/Dallas-Skyline5-Resized-scaled.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5669","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5669"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5669\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5670"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5669"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5669"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vivian.com\/community\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5669"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}