St. David's Medical Center
Hospital · Austin, TX
On the floor
What the day-to-day looks like
- Setting
- Hospital
- Shifts hiring now
- Nights 1
Benefits
Medical/dental/vision; 401(k) with 100% match on 3–9% by tenure; ESPP; PTO and family leave; Progyny fertility; AirMed; pet insurance; education assistance for tuition, certifications, dependent scholarships, and student loan support.
What stands out
New graduates
StaRN walks you through a year-long residency with 10–22 weeks of specialty training—didactic first, then a 7–14 week preceptorship—across tracks like Critical Care, L&D, NICU, ED, Telemetry, and more.
As of 2023Source 1: careers.hcahealthcare.comSource 2: careerservices.ecpi.edu
New graduates
You get a one-on-one preceptor during clinical weeks, regular resident–preceptor–Director check-ins, and a mentor who stays with you after StaRN ends.
As of 2023Source: careerservices.ecpi.edu
New graduates
Education assistance covers tuition, certifications, dependent scholarships, and student loan support under total rewards.
As of 2026Source 1: careers.hcahealthcare.comSource 2: careers.hcahealthcare.com
Experienced nurses
The downtown campus posts roles across Labor and Delivery, ICU, OR/anesthesia evenings, and other service lines inside an eight-hospital HCA system.
As of 2026Source 1: careers.hcahealthcare.comSource 2: glassdoor.comSource 3: ziprecruiter.comSource 4: careers.hcahealthcare.com
More about working here
Experienced nurses
In 2026 the Medical Center earned a Healthgrades Patient Safety Excellence Award and was named among the 100 Top Hospitals by Premier and Modern Healthcare.
As of 2026 · 2026-04-21Source 1: facebook.comSource 2: stdavids.com
Moving here
You keep more of each paycheck in Texas—no state income tax—and total rewards include medical/dental/vision, a 401(k) with 100% match on 3–9% by tenure, PTO and family leave, and ESPP.
As of 2026Source: careers.hcahealthcare.com
Experienced nurses
Shared Professional Governance, continuing education, mentorship, and research/evidence-translation support are part of the stated career path here.
As of 2026Source: careers.hcahealthcare.com
Working conditions
- Scheduling
- StaRN didactic typically Mon-Fri 8-hour days; clinical preceptorship typically three 12-hour hospital shifts; CRNA evening 3p-11p exists
As of 2023Source 1: careerservices.ecpi.eduSource 2: ziprecruiter.com
- Pay and benefits
- Former ICU RN stated Austin RN pay is terrible and even lower at this facility; no dollar amount given
As of 2021-05-10Source: glassdoor.com
Starting out and growing here
- Nurse residency
- StaRN (Specialty Training Apprenticeship for Registered Nurses) / St. David's HealthCare Nurse Residency · Applications: Year-long program; initial training 10-22 weeks by specialty (didactic 5-9 weeks then 7-14 week preceptorship)
As of 2023Source 1: careers.hcahealthcare.comSource 2: careerservices.ecpi.edu
- Preceptors and orientation
- StaRN assigns one-on-one preceptor during clinical preceptorship with regular resident-preceptor-Director development meetings; mentor continues after StaRN
As of 2023Source: careerservices.ecpi.edu
- Career development
- Shared Professional Governance model; continuing education, mentorship, and career development opportunities; research/evidence translation support
As of 2026Source: careers.hcahealthcare.com
- Tuition support
- Education assistance covering tuition, certification support, and dependent scholarships
As of 2026Source: careers.hcahealthcare.com
- Loan assistance
- Student loan support listed under education assistance in total rewards
As of 2026Source: careers.hcahealthcare.com
The city
Living in Austin, TX
Austin blends Barton Springs' year-round cold water with East Sixth taco trucks and South Congress honky-tonks. For an RN, Texas brings no state income tax, and the cost of living sits about 2% below the national average — meaning your nursing paycheck stretches further in a city that lives outdoors and loud.
Browse roles in Austin
- Metro price level · Austin area
- 2% below the national average
- BEA index 98.1 (100 = national)
- Median gross rent
- $1,729/mo
- rent and tenant-paid utilities
- Median household income
- $93,658/yr
- all local households, not nurse pay
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis · 2024 metro Regional Price Parities · Census ACS 2024
Who they are
You would be walking into St. David's Medical Center on 32nd Street in downtown Austin, a core campus in the eight-hospital St. David's HealthCare system under HCA.
- Hospital · Austin
- Hiring nights
More about St. David's Medical Center
If you are new, StaRN (Specialty Training Apprenticeship for Registered Nurses) is the main on-ramp: a year-long residency with 10–22 weeks of initial training by specialty—about 5–9 weeks didactic, then a 7–14 week preceptorship with a one-on-one preceptor and regular meetings with your Director. Tracks span Critical Care, Surgery, L&D, Women's, Postpartum, NICU, ED, Telemetry, Ortho, Neuro, Renal, Nephrology, Transplant, and Inpatient Rehab. Didactic days usually run Monday–Friday eight-hour shifts; clinical weeks look like three 12-hour hospital shifts. Once you are on staff, total rewards include medical, dental, and vision; a 401(k) with 100% match on 3–9% depending on tenure; ESPP; PTO and family leave; plus education assistance for tuition, certifications, dependent scholarships, and student loan support. Shared Professional Governance, mentorship, and continuing education are part of the stated growth path. The campus has recent external recognition, including a 2026 Healthgrades Patient Safety Excellence Award and a 2026 place among Premier/Modern Healthcare 100 Top Hospitals. The honest texture from nurses who have worked here is mixed. CMS-derived staffing on allnurses shows about 1.05 RN per bed and 9.2 nursing HPPD (Grade B). Patient surveys there land around 79% positive experience and 77% likely to recommend. At the same time, a former ICU nurse described extremely high turnover, a unit heavy with nurses under 1.5 years’ experience, and pay that felt worse than an already-tight Austin RN market. Some travelers praised nights; others noted green floors. You will want to ask any hiring manager directly about your unit’s mix, ratios, and current base pay before you sign.
Exceptional care every patient every day, with warmth, friendliness, and personal pride.
Working here
Culture and working life
Themes from public reviews
Summaries of published reviews, with the original sources.
- ICU inexperience and high turnover
- Reviewer described ICU as immature with very high turnover and mostly new grads under 1.5 years experience.
As of 2021-05-10Source: glassdoor.com
- HCA profit-over-safety culture
- Former nurse called it a typical HCA site putting profits above patient and staff safety while losing staff and equipment.
As of 2021-05-10Source: glassdoor.com
- Low RN pay relative to Austin
- Reviewer said Austin RN pay is already poor and worse at this facility.
As of 2021-05-10Source: glassdoor.com
More review themes
- Glassdoor category ratings (Austin filter)
- Aggregated Austin-related ratings roughly mid-3s on culture; work/life and career near 3.1; 28% positive business outlook.
- Inexperienced floor staffing
- Reddit nurses said Medical Center floors had too many inexperienced RNs and flagged HCA ownership as a concern.
As of 2023Source: reddit.com
- Shift-dependent team quality
- Travel-nurse thread: night nurses praised; some day-shift nurses described as focused on NP school.
As of 2022Source: reddit.com
- Good experience stepping stone
- Same ICU review noted some great coworkers and useful experience before moving to a stronger ICU.
As of 2021-05-10Source: glassdoor.com
What to weigh
A former ICU nurse described extremely high turnover there, with roughly 90% of nurses under 1.5 years’ experience and an average age around 22, and called Austin RN pay already poor and even lower at this facility.
As of 2021-05-10Source: glassdoor.com
The reality check
Before you decide
Quick facts
- Relationship
- Direct employer
- Roles last seen active
- Aug 25, 2026
- Website
- careers.hcahealthcare.com ↗
Weighing a first job here?
The license clock and the job hunt run at once, and new-grad windows do the deciding. Residency commitments carry fine print worth reading before you sign.
Work here?
This page is built from public postings and employer research. Help us get it right: corrections, photos, and the story of the floor itself.
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A closer look at the units
Open counts come from the live roles below. Source links show where unit details were reported.
- Endoscopynew grads1 open
- ICU1 open
Former RN: extremely high ICU turnover; ~90% of nurses under 1.5 years experience; average age ~22; favoritism on promotions/bonuses.
Source location unconfirmedSource: glassdoor.com
- L&D1 open
- Postpartum1 open
- TeleNights 11 open
Labor and Delivery
Employer posts PRN Labor and Delivery RN roles at St. David's Medical Center as part of HCA Healthcare.
Source location unconfirmedSource: careers.hcahealthcare.com
Facility-wide staffing
allnurses CMS-derived staffing: Grade B, RN per bed 1.05, nursing HPPD 9.2, 653 RN staff, 28 LPN/LVN.
Source location unconfirmedSource: allnurses.com
Anesthesia/OR
AAG provides anesthesia for much of St. David's HealthCare; CRNA evening shift 3p-11p posted at this campus.
Source location unconfirmedSource: ziprecruiter.com
Multi-specialty (residency tracks)
StaRN tracks include Critical Care, Surgery, L&D, Women's, Postpartum, NICU, ED, Telemetry, Ortho, Neuro, Renal, Nephrology, Transplant, Inpatient Rehab.
Source location unconfirmedSource: careerservices.ecpi.edu
Open roles
Current openings at St. David's Medical Center
Refreshed throughout the day.
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