How to do a 401k without employer?

[lvbhappy]

I am thinking about switching from full time staff RN, to a prn (work as needed) RN without benefits ( I have health insurance through my husband).  The benefit is I can get a much higher hourly rate (close to if not more than $40/hr compared with $30/hr), pick my own schedule.  The hospital is short so I don't fear not having hours, but the prn position would not come with access to a 401k I believe.  So my question is, if you don't have an employer provided option, what is the best way to put money away in one.  I have two prior 401ks through Fidelity, one for around $34k and one for $1500 from previous employers.  And my apologies if this is actually pretty simple, numbers/investments don't make sense to me very easily.

[maco]

The short answer is "you don't. They're specifically employer-provided."

The long answer is that if you're self-employed, there are a few different retirement accounts out there, including Solo 401k. I don't know if you're talking about being a 1099  independent contractor (and therefore self-employed) or a part-time W-2 employee, though. If the latter, nothing at that link is useful to you, and we revert to the short answer.