Working and nursing school...

Nursing Students CNA/MA

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I was recently offered a job as a CNA working 11pm-7am at a nursing home. I'm very excited but I'm starting to feel stressed out. I will be starting nursing school in august. Have any of you worked night shift and gone to school at the same time? I know it's possible but is it too much? School is important but so is having a job. I'm 18 and this job is 40hrs, benefits, decent income for this area.

Would another shift better, like 3pm to 11pm?

Thank you for your input. :)

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Specializes in Med-Surg/urology.

If possible, I'd recommend just work part-time during NS.

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I'm doing that now. Was doing full time nights and had to go very much part time, half way into the first semester. I thought I would be one of the ones who could do it. But I couldn't make it work. SLeeping through class is not what I spent all this time and hard work getting to this point to do. If there is any other way than work full time, do that! You're young, is there anyway of keeping on your parent's insurance while you are in full time school? Some companies will do that. If you can work and do school full time, more power to you. I always heard it could be done too. But I found out for me, that wasn't such a hot plan.

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For me, it's not the number of hours worked that impacts my schoolwork, it's the distribution of shifts. I've found that it's easier to work 2-3 long shifts rather than 5-6 shorter ones.

Evening shift would probably work much better for you being in school. I know several people that worked nights and had class in the morning, and they had a very difficult time concentrating and really had to use a lot of caffeine and energy drinks to stay awake. Their grades suffered.

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The way classes are scheduled at my school, evening shifts from 2-10, are not possible because classes and clinicals happen during that time. Not every day but enough to really interfere. That's why most folks I know are doing nights and yes class in the morning does totally suck!

I like a few longer shifts vs shorter ones also. I'm doing two 12 hours on weekends now. Ideally I would win the lotto and be done with the whole work dilema but that just hasn't seemed to be working out for me yet :D

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Specializes in Geriatrics.

I start LPN school this September, and I work full-time as a CNA, but will be going down to part-time... probably 24 hours a week.

I considered switching onto the 11-7 shift (I'm on 3-11 now), but after thinking more about it, I realized I'd probably be so much more exhausted trying to stay up all night at work, and then trying to stay awake enough to pay attention during school in the morning.

Do you need to work 40 hours? If not, I would cut back to part-time.

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Thank you all for your honest answers. I once I have established myself at this facility I may then make a switch to part time...I don't want to set myself up for failure! Again thank you and good luck all of you who are going to school!

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I am going to be working 72 hours every other weekend while I'm in nursing school BUT it is a situation where I will have lots of study time and I sleep at night while I'm there.

I know lots of nursing students who work 11-7 while in school. I guess everyone is different. Some people can do it and some can't. I don't think I could. I HAVE to have sleep! I wouldn't recommend 3-11 during the week because you would be in class all day and then at work all evening and I can't see where that would leave any time for school assignments and studying. A lot of people only work weekends, like myself.

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I am going to be working 72 hours every other weekend while I'm in nursing school BUT it is a situation where I will have lots of study time and I sleep at night while I'm there.

I know lots of nursing students who work 11-7 while in school. I guess everyone is different. Some people can do it and some can't. I don't think I could. I HAVE to have sleep! I wouldn't recommend 3-11 during the week because you would be in class all day and then at work all evening and I can't see where that would leave any time for school assignments and studying. A lot of people only work weekends, like myself.

I agree and I don't see how you study working 11-7 as my clinicals are 6:30a-3:30p (working to 7a or even 3p is not an option in this program at least for clinical days)so by the time you drive home and haven't slept yet but have to go back to work at 11pm...so you either study or sleep. Unless you do work the weekend and have a couple days during the week. The only way I see it working is if some of your class days are half days so you can go sleep then study or study after class and sleep before 11p shift. Good luck and I hope you will have some flexibility in your schedule.

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