Pros
I was at TMC location (1000 bed hospital) There are many hospital locations so can find a job close to you. Lots of opportunity for involvement in committees, projects, volunteering. Well-defined criteria for advancement. I enjoyed the encouragement and possibilities to further my education such as conferences and help with certification. I loved my team. Overall, I had a good experience, but it was because I took the effort to advance my skills and knowledge.
Cons
Politics. Even though I never held management position, any one who works there can tell you there are overt office politics issues occurring. Turnover for RN's is often times very high. If you're a new nurse, you have to sign a 2 year contract for residency. During this period, if you discover you don't like the unit you've been hired to it can be really hard to transfer during that time period. Because of high turnover, a lot of charge RN's are younger nurses which can be positive if you are looking for early leadership, but also it's highly stressful and potentially unsafe. Employee insurance is not very good I've heard (I was on a family plan). Experience is very unit specific some are great and some are notoriously awful- so ask before you accept a job.
