Seattle Children’s Nursing Residency Program
At Seattle Children’s, our goal is to provide expert care for our patients and a healthy and safe work environment for our staff. For new graduate nurses, we create opportunities for continual growth as they begin their nursing career.
The Nurse Residency Program is one of those opportunities: a one-year program that prepares each new graduate for their role as a pediatric nurse.
Why Choose Seattle Children's Nurse Residency Program?
Seattle Children’s Nurse Residency Program strives to:
- Build competency in the application of pediatric nursing knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors at Seattle Children's.
- Support professional well-being throughout the transition into pediatric nursing practice.
- Promote professional development, an ongoing spirit of clinical inquiry and integration of evidence-based practice.
- Foster peer collaboration, interdisciplinary teamwork and organizational connection.
Program Components
As a new graduate nurse at Seattle Children’s, your transition into nursing practice will include:
- Pediatric curriculum that includes various learning modalities
- Patient care orientation with nurse preceptors
- Ongoing support from a Nursing Professional Development Practitioner
- Mentorship by an experienced nurse
- Participation in an evidence-based project under the guidance of a experienced nurse leader
- Evaluation of new graduate nurse competency
Eligibility Requirements
To be eligible for the program, candidates must:
- Have less than one year of RN experience at the start of the RN Residency cohort.
- Earn a bachelor’s of science in nursing (BSN) or higher from an accredited nursing program, or earn an associate’s degree in nursing (ADN) from an accredited nursing program.
- Obtain a Washington State registered nurse (RN) license prior to the start date of the cohort.
- Complete Basic Life Support (BLS) certification prior to start date of the cohort.
Preferred Qualifications
We prioritize hiring new graduate nurses with a desire to work in an environment that fosters connection and honors unique identities in an approach to individualized care.
Placement Areas
Please check the cohort application for the list of departments that are participating in a specific cohort. The list below includes all areas that have the ability to hire residents, but all departments may not hire for every cohort.
Cancer and Blood Center Inpatient
The Cancer and Blood Disorder Center inpatient unit (CBDC inpt) cares for patients from birth to young adult who are being treated for a hematologic or oncologic diagnoses. This includes hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) and immunotherapy patients.
Medical Unit F3
The Medical Unit F3 Care for patients from newborn to 21 years of age. It is comprised mainly of medically complex children, pulmonary and cranio-facial service patients. Staff in this area also care for patients with tracheostomies and ventilators.
Medical Unit R4
The Medical R4 unit cares for patients, newborn to 21 years, from medical specialty services. It is comprised mainly of endocrine, neurology, rheumatology and gastroenterology service patients.
Rehab Unit
The Rehabilitation Unit provides inpatient evaluation and care of children up to 21 years of age with disabilities due to illness, injury or congenital causes. Additionally, they may care for general surgery and general medical patients. Care is provided to children with traumatic brain injury, spinal cord trauma, burns and neurological disorders as well as physical or cognitive disabilities. Staff on this unit care for patients with tracheostomies and ventilators. The Rehab unit helps to organize the family's experience and prepare them for the transition back to their home and community.
Surgical Unit RC5
Surgical RC5 cares for infants to young adults covered by mostly surgical specialties and some medical specialties. This unit's patient population is comprised mainly of General Surgery, Orthopedics, Urology, Neurosurgery, Neurology, Plastics, Craniofacial and ENT/Otolaryngology service patients. Staff in this area care for patients with external ventriculostomies, seizure monitoring needs, halo-gravity traction devices and fresh spinal fusions.
Surgical Unit RC6
Surgical RC6 cares for pediatric patients across the age continuum. This unit's services include Cardiology; Cardiac Surgery; Organ Failure and Transplant; Dialysis; and Neonatology. The unit receives transfers from the NICU, PICU and CICU, offering a wide variety and high-acuity assignments.
The ACFP provides staffing support to units all over the hospital. Our RNs work on all the acute care floors – Medical, Surgical, Cancer Care, Rehab, and later train to the Emergency Department (ED) and Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine Unit (PBMU). Staff can float between assignments as frequently as every four hours to meet the needs of our acute care units. Generally, we are given the same assignments as nurses that work on that unit with some clear restrictions.
The Cancer and Blood Disorder Center outpatient unit (CBDC outpt) serves children and young adults needing infusions that last less than 12 hours and have certain health conditions, including blood disorders, cancer, gastrointestinal problems, genetic disorders, immune system disorders, rheumatology disorders, and any other service line requiring an infusion. The nurses access portacaths, place PIV and PICC removal.
The Emergency Department (ED) manages the spectrum of mild to critically ill and injured patients from birth to age 21. Additionally, they support patients with mental health needs and work to arrange follow up care or placement for these children. All patients presenting to the ED seeking care receive a Medical Screening Exam (MSE), stabilization, evaluation, and treatment. Nursing care in the ED includes assessments, IV placement, portacath accessing, NG placement, procedural sedation, emergency resuscitation and much more.
Cardiac ICU
The Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU) cares for newborns up to young adults with acquired and congenital heart disease. The CICU supports robust mechanical circulatory assist and cardiac transplant programs. Specialized care provided in the CICU includes cerebral oximetry monitoring, inhaled nitric oxide, temporary pacemakers, heart failure management, open chest procedures and continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT). Extracorporeal life support represents a highly specialized form of cardiopulmonary support that includes the use of ECMO and ventricular assist devices.
Neonatal ICU
The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is the only Level IV NICU in Washington. Patients in the NICU are neonates up to 50 weeks post-gestational age. Many of the patients have congenital diagnoses requiring specialized pre-operative surgical and postoperative surgical care. Critically ill neonates with complex medical issues are also cared for in this unit. Specialized care provided includes ECMO/ECLS, cooling, in-room surgical procedures, high frequency oscillatory ventilation, use of inhaled nitric oxide, etc.
Pediatric ICU
The Pediatric Intensive Care Unit cares for infants up to young adults with a wide range of clinical conditions. Examples of medical conditions include septic shock, acute and chronic respiratory failure, diabetic ketoacidosis, and metabolic diseases. Patients have a range of surgical and medical services including Neurosurgery, Solid Organ Transplant, Craniofacial/Plastics, Hematology/Oncology and Bone Marrow & Stem Cell Transplant patients. Specialized care provided in the PICU includes cerebral and renal oximetry monitoring, high frequency oscillatory ventilation, use of inhaled nitric oxide, continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) and intracranial pressure monitoring. This also includes extracorporeal life support (ECMO), highly specialized cardiopulmonary support.
The Psychiatric and Behavioral Medicine Unit (PBMU) is involved in the evaluation and behavioral stabilization of children (ages 4 through 17) with emotional, behavioral, and neuropsychiatric disorders. Depression, developmental delays, attention deficits, anxiety, pervasive developmental disorders, conduct disorders, oppositional-defiant disorders, anorexia/bulimia, and psychosis are among the disorders commonly diagnosed. The unit is also invested in treating children with unique concomitant problems such as hearing impairments, chronic medical illnesses, or physical developmental disabilities. The PBMU program utilizes a model of care that emphasizes an interdisciplinary approach. Care includes the provision of behavior management in a milieu setting; parent and patient education; group activities; supportive family and individual support; psychotropic medication management and limited medical nursing services.
Time Frame
The one-year program begins with a combination of in-class learning experiences and patient care orientation on the units. Classes will continue after the nurse resident transitions to independent practice.
RN Residency cohorts occur in February, May, August, and November.
Check back for updates as dates may possibly change.
|
Process Step |
Feb. 2025 |
May 2025 |
Aug. 2025 |
Nov. 2025 |
| Application Available | Oct. 24 – 31, 2024 | Feb. 5 – 12, 2025 | Apr. 23 – 24, 2025 (moved up from April 30) | Aug. 21 – 23, 2025 |
| NCLEX Deadline | Jan. 14, 2025 | Apr. 9, 2025 | Jul. 16, 2025 | Oct. 8, 2025 |
| Washington State or Multistate RN License Deadline | Jan. 29, 2025, by 2 p.m. Pacific time | Apr. 23, 2025, by 2 p.m. Pacific time | July. 31, 2025, by 2 p.m. Pacific time | Oct. 22, 2025, by 2 p.m. Pacific time |
| Start Date | Feb. 3, 2025 | Apr. 28, 2025 | Aug. 4, 2025 | Oct. 27, 2025 |
Nurse Resident Commitments
We are looking for energetic, passionate nurses that have a desire to care for children, prioritize patient safety in their care and embrace the uniqueness of all our patients, families and staff.
How to Apply
- Apply early! The first candidates to apply will receive the first interviews and potential offers. These are rolling admissions and we do not wait until the application closes to review candidates.
- Please go to our job listings page when the application is available. You can type "RN residency" in the search box and the application will appear.
- There are 2 job postings for each RN residency cohort. Current staff will have the ability to apply to a cohort for up to 2 weeks before the external application is posted. Once the external application is posted (see dates above), internals will still have the ability to apply to this if they missed the internal posting. Each cohort will have an internal posting followed by an internal/external posting.
- You will be asked for your top two unit selections, and the reason why you selected them in the application.
- During the phone screen, you will discuss these unit selections with a recruiter.
- Applicants may apply for a residency position prior to taking the NCLEX and graduating from a nursing program.
Application availability for internal candidates
Internal candidates are those currently working for us and receiving a paycheck. Nursing students are not considered internal candidates and should apply to the external job posting (see time frame section above).
- February 2025 cohort — Oct. 1 to Oct. 8, 2024
- May 2025 cohort — Jan. 15 to 22, 2025
- August 2025 cohort — Apr. 2 to 9, 2025
- November 2025 cohort — July 22 to 29, 2025
Frequently Asked Questions
We are happy to share any information that would be helpful as you start your career at Seattle Children’s. If you have questions that are not addressed here, please email the Nurse Residency Program.
Due to the volume of applications received, we are not able to share updates on the status of each application. Each candidate that applies will receive an email when the application has been successfully submitted and if they are moving forward or not.
Applying
We are looking for energetic, passionate nurses that have a desire to care for children, prioritize patient safety in their care and embrace the uniqueness of all our patients, families and staff.
There is one job posting for each RN residency cohort. Applicants may apply for multiple units through the one job posting. During your phone screen with the recruiter, you will also have the opportunity to indicate with which critical or acute care units you are interested in interviewing with.
Please visit our Nursing Careers page to learn more about our nursing units.
You may apply to positions prior to graduation, but you must graduate, pass the NCLEX, and have a Washington State RN license prior to starting. Please apply for the next cohort if you do not meet these requirements.
Pay and Licensure
Nurse residents are paid per their Washington State Nurses Association (WSNA) collective bargaining agreement contract and are based on full-time equivalent RN experience.
Visit the Washington State Nursing Commission website.
It usually takes approximately 2 weeks for the Washington Department of Health to award an RN license after a candidate passes the NCLEX exam. However, if the NCLEX exam was taken in a state other than Washington, it may take an additional 4 to 6 weeks transfer the awarded RN license to Washington. Therefore, many candidates will want to plan for up to 8 total weeks between taking/passing the NCLEX exam and a cohort’s start date to ensure that they will be eligible.
In the event that a candidate receives and accepts a job offer for the RN Residency Program but still has a pending RN license at the time of the deadline, we will work with that candidate to attempt to postpone their start date to that of the next available cohort, which is usually around 3 months later. Please note that this is not always possible, and each situation will be considered on a case by case basis. In some cases we may have to rescind the job offer entirely if the RN license deadline is not met.
Interview and Hiring
If you meet the qualifications, your recruiter will email you to schedule a phone screen. If you do not receive an interview, please apply for the next Nurse Residency cohort.
If you are not hired, we encourage you to apply for a future cohort, or consider gaining some pediatric experience in another setting and re-applying in the future.
Time Commitment
Nurse residents will work their hired FTE and may work up to 40 hours a week. Please note the first four months of hire are demanding as nurse residents must balance Nurse Residency classes, unit based orientation classes and patient care shifts. Nurse residents may work several days in a row with only a few days off in-between their workdays.
Your schedule and shifts are based on individual departments needs.
It is expected that the nurse resident will attend all residency classes. Nurse residency classes occur monthly. It is the nurse resident’s responsibility to schedule time off around residency classes. Vacation hours must be accrued in order to take time off. Every unit has their own process for requesting time off; you will discuss the process and timing for requesting time off with your nursing leaders once you have been hired.
Changes to shift positions within your unit of hire are based on seniority as outlined in the WSNA contract.
Work Expectations
Nurse Residency is a yearlong program. Class dates and times will vary throughout the residency year and will be communicated in advance for you to prepare. The first four months of hire are demanding as nurse residents must balance Nurse Residency seminars, department-level classes based on specialty, and patient care shifts. In general, Nurse Residency seminars continue monthly throughout the entire year.
Your patient care orientation shifts generally mirror your preceptor’s schedule. This means you can be scheduled any day of the week. Acute care and critical shifts start at the following times: day shift at 7 a.m., evening shift at 3 p.m. and night shift at 7 or 11 p.m. Other departments, such as the ED, PACU, OR and Ambulatory Clinics have other standard shift start times.
For inpatient areas, required attire includes scrub top and pants. Business causal is the required attire in the ambulatory clinics. Closed-toe shoes are required in all areas. Your badge should be above the waist and visible to others in the hospital at all times.
The Residency Program consists of monthly seminars and workshops focusing on universal nursing topics that are selected based on QSEN Competencies. These topics include Patient Centered Care, Evidence Based Practice, Safety, Teamwork and Collaboration, Quality Improvement and Informatics. These seminars and workshops are in addition to your department-based specialty classes and hands on practice during precepted shifts.
Accreditation
Seattle Children’s RN Residency Program is accredited with distinction as a Practice Transition Program by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation in Practice Transition Programs.
The current workplace settings included in this accreditation with distinction designation are: Acute Care Float Pool, Cancer and Blood Disorders Center - Inpatient, Cardiac Intensive Care Unit, Emergency Department, Medical Unit, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Operating Room, Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Post Anesthesia Care Unit, Psychiatric and Behavioral Medicine Unit, Rehabilitation Unit, and Surgical Unit.