Progressive care unit (PCU) is a high-demand nursing specialty across the country, so if you’ve been considering a transition to travel nursing, this can be a great way to grow your career as a PCU nurse.
In the guide below, we share everything you need to know about becoming a travel nurse, from the average length of travel nursing assignments to salary expectations and more.
Although there’s a need for PCU nurses throughout the U.S., demand is highest in areas with growing populations, aging populations, or those in areas with limited access to critical care. Demand for PCU nurses is also especially high in hospitals and other acute care facilities, post-surgical recovery centers, or other facilities with trauma-related or surgical units.
Whether you take a travel nursing assignment in a rural area or in a major metropolitan area, there are travel opportunities across the nation for PCU nurses. You might consider working in these states where progressive care unit travel nurses are typically in high demand:
Given that PCU nurses work with patients who require close monitoring—including those transitioning out of the intensive care unit or requiring complex post-surgical recovery—these healthcare professionals tend to be most in-demand at larger hospitals, acute care hospitals, trauma centers, cardiac specialty hospitals, and similar facilities.
Within these healthcare facilities, PCU travel nurses are needed in stepdown units, telemetry units, cardiac monitoring units, oncology units, and post-surgical care units.
The length of a travel nursing assignment for PCU nurses varies depending on factors such as location, facility demand, and more. Typically, travel nursing contracts last anywhere from 8 to 26 weeks, with 13 weeks being the most common length for a travel assignment.
It’s worth noting that, if you’re enjoying your travel assignment at a certain healthcare facility, you may have opportunities to extend your contract, assuming the facility has a continued need.
There are several factors that contribute to the average pay for PCU travel nurses. Though, due to the increased nursing demand across the country, it’s common for travel nurses to earn higher salaries than permanent staff nurses.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average salary for registered nurses is $45.42, or approximately $1,816 a week. Meanwhile, the average weekly gross pay* in February 2025 across all TRS Healthcare positions for PCU travel nurses was $2,071 per week.
Keep in mind that it’s possible to earn a higher salary as a travel nurse by taking travel nursing assignments in areas with high demand for PCU nurses or cities with a lower cost of living.
To get a better idea of how your earnings could vary by location, refer to this list of average PCU travel nurse pay by state.
*Average weekly gross pay includes base pay (hours worked multiplied by the hourly rate) and tax-free stipends (meals, incidentals, & lodging).
Many factors contribute to salary variations for progressive care unit nurses on travel assignment, including but not limited to:
As a travel nurse, you may not have direct control over all of these factors, but there are opportunities for you to see better take-home pay as a travel PCU nurse. For instance, taking assignments in areas with a lower cost of living, traveling with friends to split costs, or receiving additional nursing certifications can help you increase your salary as a PCU travel nurse.
Despite the similarities shared between a permanent staff PCU nurse and traveling as a PCU nurse, there are still some unique advantages to travel nursing.
The chance to experience new places across the country is one of the major benefits of working as a travel nurse. With job opportunities throughout the U.S., PCU travel nurses can find travel assignments in the cities, states, and regions they most want to visit—and they can take advantage of all the great things to do in these locations during their days off.
Travel nursing is unique in that you can choose when and where you work, meaning you can choose everything from your shifts to the amount of time off you take between assignments. In other words, PCU travel nurses are afforded an immense amount of flexibility to suit their lifestyle, whether it’s spending time with family, going back to school, or pursuing other work opportunities on the side.
Travel in general is a great way to broaden your horizons and learn new things. Beyond what travel nursing can do for your professional career, it can also benefit you on a personal level as you explore new cultures, discover new hobbies, make new friends, and enjoy the various mental health benefits of travel.
When you work as a PCU travel nurse at various facilities or in different units, you can expand your nursing skills with each assignment. You can gain insight into new nursing techniques, learn how to use specialized equipment or charting systems, and work at the top of your license when you take travel nursing assignments. These are things permanent staff nurses may not be able to do.
The nursing shortage in the U.S. continues to grow, meaning travel nurses continue to be in high demand. Although travel nursing assignments are temporary, the opportunity to move around to wherever demand for your nursing specialty is highest leads to greater job security compared to a facility’s permanent RN staff.
Repetitiveness is a key contributor to burnout, which makes travel nursing a great opportunity to combat stress or lack of interest in your PCU nursing career. With a new environment can come a new outlook, so each travel nursing assignment is an opportunity for a clean slate and a fresh mindset. Also, with the opportunity to take short breaks between assignments, you’ll have the chance to rest and rejuvenate before your next job.
PCU travel nurses have nearly identical requirements to permanent staff nurses. That said, you will need to satisfy certain criteria before being able to work as a travel nurse. Also, there are additional qualifications you can seek to help you earn high-paying PCU positions.
Travel nurses will find that requirements related to experience vary from facility to facility; however, it’s typically expected that healthcare professionals have at least one to two years of recent experience to take a travel nursing assignment. To work as a progressive care unit travel nurse, you’ll likely need between one and two years within the specialty, too.
To get started as a PCU travel nurse, you’ll need your registered nurse (RN) license in the state(s) you want to take travel nursing assignments in.
Getting a Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) license can simplify this, as it allows you to work in any state within the NLC. (Currently, there are 42 states that participate in the compact.)
Travel nursing assignments require a current Basic Life Support (BLS) certificate. This is standard for all travel nurses, but healthcare employers often prefer PCU nurses to also have their Progressive Care Certified Nurse (PCCN) certification and require Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certifications.
You can further expand your travel nursing career opportunities and potentially earn more while on assignment as a PCU traveler by seeking additional certifications, such as:
TRS Healthcare can help you achieve your travel nursing goals as a PCU nurse. With 25 years of experience in the healthcare staffing industry, our dedicated recruiters, credentialing experts, and clinical support team make it easy for you to transition from permanent staff to traveling as a PCU healthcare professional.
Ready to pursue your PCU travel nursing career? Search our current PCU jobs or apply with us today!
