From J1 to TN

My girlfriend lost her job and is about to find another one. On her previous one she was under a J-1 visa. Now she will probably need to go for a TN. In her previous job she was a research associate, the Institute decided that she would get a J1. Now that they don't have a position for her anymore it would be really frustrating if she would be force to go back in Canada for two years because the Institute that hired her though it would be simpler to go with a J1.
My questions are: Will it be possible for her to get her TN without having to go back to Canada? How? What about the two years rule? Anything else that I am missing?

thanks

She needs to first determine if she is subject to the two-year departure rule, and if so, she needs to get a J1 waiver to avoid having to leave US for 2 years.

Look on a true immigration forum like immigration.com for better guidance.