Registered Nurse Jobs in San Jose, CA
Registered nurses in San Jose earn a metro median of about $216,740 a year, and new graduates have real entry points at the county hospitals, Kaiser and Good Samaritan. Here are the current RN openings, followed by who is hiring, what it pays and how to get licensed in California.
Current registered nurse Openings in San Jose, CA
Listings marked External are sponsored openings provided by the Jobs2Careers network.
Registered Nurse Work in San Jose
RN hiring in San Jose clusters around a handful of big hospitals. The county's Santa Clara Valley Healthcare system is the largest, with Valley Medical Center on South Bascom Avenue, O'Connor Hospital on Forest Avenue, and Regional Medical Center on North Jackson Avenue in East San Jose, where the county restored Level 2 trauma care after taking over from HCA in April 2025. Kaiser Permanente's San Jose Medical Center serves south San Jose from Hospital Parkway off Santa Teresa Boulevard, and Good Samaritan Hospital anchors Cambrian near SR 85.
Pay follows step scales at the county, Kaiser, HCA and El Camino Health, and the county's nurses work under a union contract that runs through October 2027. The county posts its own specialty tracks, from medical-surgical and critical care to custody health, acute psych and the emergency department.
Top San Jose Employers Hiring Registered Nurses
These San Jose-area hospitals recruit RNs for staff, specialty and new graduate roles:
- Santa Clara Valley Healthcare - the county system hires Clinical Nurse I through III at Valley Medical Center, O'Connor, Regional Medical Center and St. Louise in Gilroy.
- Kaiser Permanente - the San Jose and Santa Clara medical centers are both sites in Kaiser's Northern California RN residency.
- Good Samaritan Hospital - HCA's Cambrian hospital, a comprehensive stroke center, recruits RNs and runs a nurse residency for new graduates.
- El Camino Health - the Magnet-designated Los Gatos hospital, off SR 17, hires clinical nurses alongside its Mountain View campus.
Registered Nurse Salaries in San Jose
- Entry level: from about $60 an hour, the metro's 10th percentile, or roughly $124,000 a year.
- Experienced: about $100 to $105 an hour around the metro median of $216,740 a year.
- Senior: $113 an hour and up at the 90th percentile, with Clinical Nurse III top steps of about $195,000 to $216,000 a year at the county, Kaiser, Stanford, HCA and El Camino before differentials.
These are estimates from BLS 2025 wage data for the San Jose metro and a County of Santa Clara nurse pay survey. Step scales set most hospital pay, so years of experience, a BSN, specialty units such as ICU and the emergency department, night shifts and charge duty move it most. The county contract adds a $4.25 hourly charge nurse differential.
How to Become a Registered Nurse in San Jose
You need a nursing degree from an approved program and a license from the California Board of Registered Nursing, which licenses new graduates after they pass the NCLEX-RN and licenses nurses from other states by endorsement. Locally, San Jose State's Valley Foundation School of Nursing downtown offers a five-semester pre-licensure BSN, Evergreen Valley College on Yerba Buena Road runs an accredited Associate Degree Nursing program and an LVN-to-RN track, and Mission College in Santa Clara offers LVN-to-RN as well.
What the Job Involves
Registered nurses assess patients, give medications and IV therapy, carry out physician orders, monitor vital signs and change in condition, and chart in the electronic health record. They coordinate with physicians, therapists and aides, teach patients and families about care at home, and supervise LVNs and nursing assistants on the unit. Hospital RNs commonly work three 12-hour shifts a week.
Skills Employers Look For
- Active California RN license from the Board of Registered Nursing
- Basic Life Support certification, plus ACLS or PALS for acute and specialty units
- Acute care experience, or completion of a new graduate residency
- Electronic health record charting
- Clinical judgment and prioritization on a busy unit
- Clear communication with patients, families and the care team
Career Path and Advancement
In San Jose, many nurses start through a new graduate program, such as the county's Clinical Nurse I training track or Good Samaritan's residency, then move up the Clinical Nurse II and III steps. From there the path leads to charge nurse, specialty certification in critical care or emergency nursing, educator and nurse manager roles, or graduate study for nurse practitioner work. Evergreen Valley College nursing students can also enroll concurrently in San Jose State's BSN through the EVC-SJSU program.
Related Careers in San Jose
For a wider look at San Jose's medical job market, see:
Frequently Asked Questions
How much do registered nurses make in San Jose?
BLS 2025 data puts the median RN in the San Jose metro at about $216,740 a year, with the 10th percentile near $124,140 and the 90th near $235,190. Most hospital pay follows step scales, so experience and specialty move it most.
How do I get a California RN license?
New graduates apply to the California Board of Registered Nursing for licensure by examination and pass the NCLEX-RN. Nurses already licensed in another state apply for licensure by endorsement instead.
Do San Jose hospitals hire new graduate nurses?
Yes. The county hospitals hire nurses with less than a year of acute care experience as Clinical Nurse I through a Nurse Training Program, Good Samaritan runs a Nurse Residency Program, and Kaiser lists San Jose and Santa Clara as sites in its Northern California RN residency.
Which nursing schools are in San Jose?
San Jose State's Valley Foundation School of Nursing offers a BSN downtown, and Evergreen Valley College offers an Associate Degree in Nursing and an LVN-to-RN program in the Evergreen foothills. Mission College in neighboring Santa Clara offers LVN-to-RN.
What shifts do San Jose hospital nurses work?
Most inpatient RNs work three 12-hour shifts a week on days or nights, with weekend and holiday rotation. Clinic and outpatient nurses more often work 8 or 10-hour day shifts.
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